PURPOSE: To administer an interferon inducing active substance to an animal body or cell having the ability to induce the interferon, by recovering the active substance from a plant, etc. belonging to the genus Carthamus of the family Compositae, and contaning the interferon inducing active substance.
CONSTITUTION: The tussue of a plant, e.g. safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) or Carthamus lanatus L., belonging to the genus Carthamus of the family Composite, and containing an interferon (IF) inducing active substance or a variant thereof is extracted under alkaline conditions, e.g. pH7W10, at room temperature for 1W 5 days, and the plant residue is removed from the resultant extract. The active component is then recoverd and purified by various gel filtering materials, ion exchange agents, etc. to give the aimed IF inducer. The resultant IF inducer is then administered to an animal in a dose of 0.01W10mg/kg intravenously or 0.1W10mg/ kg intraperitoneally and to a man in a dose of 0.01W1.0mg/kg intravenously or in a dose 10 times or more the amount orally. The active substance is capable of imparting a high activiral activity and improving the antitumor activity and physiological action.
KONNO YOSHIYUKI
HASHIMOTO TAKASHI
