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Showing posts with label Health Info. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Health Info. Show all posts

Monday, April 27, 2015

World's First, people recovering from a rare disease due to HIV

Gene therapy trials in seven children who suffer from Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome succeed. Six of the seven children successfully cured while the other one died because of resistance herpes.

Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome is a rare disease that afflicts 10 infants than 1 million births. The disease is easily injured but difficult to heal, susceptible to various infections including pneumonia and autoimmune.
The lives of six boys with a deadly genetic disease have been transformed by a pioneering treatment to correct errors in their DNA, say doctors. (Picture from: http://bbc.in/1DdOCl9)
The cause of autoimmune disease is a mutation in the gene that carries the code for formation WAS protein. Mutations in the genes that make a protein that inhibits the formation of pieces of blood so that blood clotting is slow.

During this time, the only alternative treatment of Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome is a bone marrow transplant. However, the transplant itself is difficult because it must find a donor who really fits.

Overcoming the limitations, Salima Hacein Bey Abina of the Necker Children's Hospital try to do gene therapy. He recruited 12 children with Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome of Britain and France for trial. Of course, this is with the consent of the patient's parents.

In the therapy, Abina and her colleagues took the bone marrow and purifying it to obtain cells that affect the immune system. Once obtained, then she inserts the HIV genes that have been "tamed".

Cells that have been inserted by HIV genes were transplanted back into the spinal cord so that it can thrive. The therapeutic effect is conducted between the years of 2012 to 2014 was last seen for several months.

The results, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association on Tuesday, April 21, 2015, all children in good health after treatment and their condition is improving.

Eczema, skin problems and infection susceptibility improved in 6 patients. There was no incidence of bleeding in all patients after infection. While, autoimmune also improved in 5 patients.
Daniel Wheeler, who is now 15 and from Bristol, was the first British patient who were helped thanks to gene therapy. (Picture from: http://bbc.in/1DdOCl9)
One of the patients who were helped thanks to gene therapy is Daniel Wheeler, 15 years old from Bristol. Earlier, his brother died of the same disease. Now, he could be relieved thanks to gene therapy.

Adrien Trasher of Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, as quoted by the BBC on Tuesday, saying, "I think this is very significant. This is clear evidence that an effective gene therapy approach."

However, Ian Alexander of Gene Therapy Research Unit at the Children's Medical Research Institute in Sydney, Australia, says that this is still the beginning of gene therapy. "Gene therapy is still in the infant stage and many things that were promised have not been realized," he said. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | BBC | SCIENCEDAILY]
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Saturday, April 25, 2015

Lowered cholesterol levels with Yogurt

Yogurt is a fermented milk which turned out has a myriad of health benefits. One of them, ie can lower cholesterol levels. According to Marya Haryono, a clinical nutrition specialist said, that the yogurt can bind cholesterol in the intestine so it can be removed together with dirt.

"Yogurt contains lactic acid bacteria and probiotics that can inhibit reabsorption of bile and cholesterol absorption," Marya said in the Media Adventure with Heavenly Blush event in Sukabumi, Indonesia on Tuesday, April 21, 2015.
Yogurt was able to reduce cholesterol levels. (Picture from: http://bit.ly/1Og1nX0)
Marya said, yogurt is easy to digest and contains a number of nutrients that are good for the body. Nutrients that of the milk is also found in yogurt. "Yogurt is also high in calcium such as milk. The consumption of yogurt twice a day should be able to meet the needs of calcium per day with an average of 1,000 milligrams," said Marya further.

The benefits of yogurt to lower cholesterol levels have been proven in a study conducted in Shiraz, southern Iran in 2010. They examined the consumption of yogurt with probiotics and without probiotics against to 46 respondents aged 20-67 years old. As a result, they were given a probiotic yogurt 300 grams per day was effective at lowering levels of LDL and cholesterol.

This research was done because many people in Iran who suffer from cardiovascular disease and high cholesterol. In addition, regular consumption of yogurt is also believed to prevent high blood pressure and coronary heart disease. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | KOMPAS HEALTH]
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Tuesday, April 21, 2015

A Mobile-based devices can detect cancer cells

A new tool based phones can diagnose the presence of cancer cells in a blood sample. The technology can be taken anywhere, can be used in remote areas where advanced equipment for cancer detection is not available.
A team of scientists have developed a method for detecting cervical cancer using smartphone technology. (Picture from: http://dailym.ai/1DKimtw)
Cancer diagnosis usually involves the cells experts called cytologists, high-powered microscopes and other equipment. Cytologists look for cancer cells in blood or tissue samples obtained by biopsy. The technology and skilled personnel are often not available in remote areas, especially in Africa or Asia.
The graphic above shows how a blood sample can be mixed with microbeads that bind to cancerous cells (labelled A). When these are placed in a clip on module (B) that attaches to a iPhone camera (C) the microbeads produce distinctive diffraction patterns when they clump around a diseased cell (top right). (Picture from: http://dailym.ai/1DKimtw)
The graphic above shows the internal structure of the diagnosis module that can be attacked to a smartphone. (Picture from: http://dailym.ai/1DKimtw)
But researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston has streamlined the process of using a mobile phone that can be used by anyone who has been trained. This system is called 'D3 Cancer Detection System'.
The graphic above shows how the new device works with a iPhone to analyse samples for signs of cancer. (Picture from: http://dailym.ai/1DKimtw)
In a study involving 25 cell samples from women suspected of having cancer of the cervix, a small camera phone appears with the initial diagnosis in 45 minutes. And it was done with nearly 100 percent accuracy, differentiate "high risk" than "low risk" and non-cancerous cells.
The images above show how the microbeads (small white circles in bottom images) clump around cells (dotted lines) in samples that were found to be of high risk of cervical cancer (left) low risk (middle) and benign (right). (Picture from: http://dailym.ai/1DKimtw)
This test can be done by anyone even at home, using a small sample like drops of blood, and not expensive, only cost about US $ 1.80 for the module, bacteria and small beads. This article about D3 Cancer Detection Systems was published on Monday, April 13, 2015 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | VOA NEWS | DAILY MAIL]
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Sunday, April 12, 2015

Solved, the puzzles about the HIV spreading in the body!

Scientists have long known that the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) attacks the human CD4 T cells, lowered immunity, triggering Acute Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS). However, the pattern of spread of the virus is still a puzzle.

Trying to solve the puzzle, a HIV expert at the same network security of University College London, Changwang Zhang, develop simulation. The model is inspired from the Conficker virus infection in the military and police Europe's first in 2008.
Researchers creates a model 'hybrid spreading' which accurately predicted patients' progression from HIV to AIDS in a major clinical trial - and say the spread was similar to a computer virus. (Picture from: http://dailym.ai/1FDzfWb)
The simulation results show that the spread of HIV in the body similar to the pattern of spread of Conficker. "Both use a hybrid mechanism, survive for long, and difficult to remove," said Zhang.

To enter into a network, Conficker has two main lines, namely between computers directly and via the Internet. HIV also has two lines, namely through the blood and direct inter-cell. "The model that we have developed to explain important features to predict the infection process," Zhang said as quoted by the Daily Mail on Tuesday, April 7, 2015. Zhang added, the model will help the fight against two viruses of computer and biological.
The model was inspired by similarities between HIV and computer worms such as the highly damaging 'Conficker' worm, first detected in 2008, which has infected military and police computer networks across Europe and is still active today. (Picture from: http://dailym.ai/1FDzfWb)
For confirms the modeling, Zhang examined 17 HIV-positive patients in London. As a result, a hybrid deployment model is most appropriate to describe the condition in these patients. HIV-related, because it is known as a hybrid spread, the spread between cells directly can not be underestimated. In fact, the pattern of spread of the possibility that a greater role accelerate the progression of HIV to AIDS.

Benny Chain, a scientist at University College London who participated in the research says, "The amount of HIV in the blood stream is always lower and our models indicate that HIV in the blood alone will not be able to cause AIDS."

"Most likely HIV hiding place had high T cell populations, such as the gastrointestinal tract, and then use the mechanism for inter-cell spread efficiently," he added. The presence of HIV is hiding in the T cell-rich areas show the need for the use of antiretroviral drugs immediately. Because, what if so infected with HIV live in hiding in those places?

"Our models indicate that blocking the spread between cells will prevent the progression of HIV to AIDS, underscoring the need for new treatment method," said Chain. Going forward, Chan and Zhang plan to study the direct spread of the virus similar to HIV in the animals. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | DAILYMAIL]
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Thursday, April 9, 2015

Is it true Alkaline water has health benefits?

Currently there are various types of water circulating in the market. Found that the more recent of which is water with a pH of additional or called alkaline water. Many products claim resulting alkaline water has a pH level that is most appropriate and good for health. Actually, is it true that alkaline water is good for the body? What are the benefits for your body?
No studies that prove the benefits of alkaline water. (Picture from: http://bit.ly/1yR9kp0)
According to the University of Rhode Island, pH is the most common analysis commonly tested in soil and water. Drinking water that we usually encounter usually contains a pH of 7. While the water is often referred to as alkaline water, has a pH greater than 7. US- Environments Protection Agency (EPA) recommends that you consume drinking water containing pH 6.5 - 8.5 only.

Many say that alkaline water has a higher pH than drinking water in general, can neutralize the acid in the bloodstream, increasing the body's metabolism and helps the body to absorb nutrients more effectively. Even some who say that alkaline water can prevent disease and slow the aging process. "But there has been no research to confirm or corroborate these claims," ​​said Katherine Zeratsky, a dietitian of Mayo Clinic.

Katherine also revealed that there are studies which confirmed that alkaline water can prevent bone loss, but should be further investigated, whether alkaline water can affect bone density as a whole.

Which can also be assured that alkaline water has no impact on the body is, basically stomach acid will neutralize the pH of the water that enters the body. EPA also emphasized that the excessive consumption of alkaline water can be dangerous because there is platinum on a machine that filters are used, can cause kidney and liver disorders. Alkaline water also has a similar taste like baking soda with a smooth texture. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | 1HEALTH]
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Monday, April 6, 2015

Fish-oil supplements may inhibit cancer treatment

The doctors almost always advise the patient to eat a lot of fish, because fish-oil benefit to the body. But now researchers say that they found that fish-oil may interfere with the treatment of cancer patients, because the cause of chemotherapy becomes less effective.
Fish-oil supplements are commonly taken by many cancer patients in the U.S. and other countries as part of a lifestyle change in the interest of their health. (Picture from: http://bit.ly/1IBNawl)
A study conducted in the Netherlands, and then the results are published in the JAMA Oncology journal, showed that most fish-oil supplements seem to interfere with the metabolism of chemotherapy, so that cancer cells can be gained back after treatment.

Therefore, experts say the patient is better not to uses the fish-oil a day before and the day after chemotherapy sessions. They also recommend not to eat oily fish such as herring or tuna in the 24 hours before and after chemotherapy. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | VOA NEWS]
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Sunday, April 5, 2015

Spider venom could be new painkillers

Spiders, often crowned as an uninvited guest in many homes, but now has a new reputation, ie is a drug source of pain relievers. Spider venom contains thousands of proteins, including several useful molecules that could one day be made into a painkiller that is very powerful.
Spider in a research project at the Australian Museum in Sydney. (Picture from: http://bit.ly/1MQWClS)
Such products can really help millions of patients with chronic pain who are not immune to the usual medications. In the United States alone, the cost of chronic pain is estimated to exceed US $ 600 billion per year due to lost productivity and medical expenses, higher than the cost for cancer, heart disease and stroke combined.

Spider seems not painkillers. Many of the proteins in the venom they activate pain pathways, causing paralysis and muscle spasms for prey spider. And in humans, spider bites can be very painful.

But researchers at the Institute for Molecular Bioscience of the University of Queensland, Australia, which analyzes the poison 206 species of spiders, identified seven compounds among the thousands of toxins in samples that actually block pain signals from reaching the brain. Their findings were published in the British Journal of Pharmacology.

"If we can take the toxins that can hinder these canals and turn it into a drug, then people will not feel the stimulation of nerves that usually cause pain," said Julie Garb, a researcher spider in biology department of the University of Massachusetts at Lowell, who was not involved in the research in Australia.

It is estimated that there are nine million proteins in the venom of 45,000 species of spiders in the world. Only a very few, 0.01 per cent, of the peptides that have so far been investigated for biological activity, according to her. "But perhaps there is only one component that has a positive medical effects and useful, so they tried to isolate exactly what it is. So if we know exactly what it is, then we can produce it as a drug," she said further.

Australian scientists suggest that the techniques they use to filter the spider's venom can be used to test other compounds, identifying useful toxins can be used to create new drugs. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | VOANEWS]
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Sunday, March 29, 2015

The adverse impact of smoking on pregnant women

A study for the first time successfully demonstrated the impact of the activity of pregnant women who smoke on the fetus significantly. Studies reveal that the activity of mothers who smoked during pregnancy affects the behavior and development of the fetus.

Nadja Reissland of Durham University observed 20 pregnant women in the James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough. Four among a number of the mothers who smoked up to 14 cigarettes a day. By using instruments 4D scans, Reissland oversee the fetus development. Scanning is performed to determine the behavior of the fetus at weeks 24, 28, 32, and 36.
A pilot study by Durham University researchers looked at the movements of fetuses at 32 weeks gestation in smokers and non-smokers. The fetus carried by the smoker touches its face and mouth much more, indicating its development is delayed. (Picture from: http://dailym.ai/1Chauz8)
Scientists know that while in the womb, the fetus often to moving their mouth and touching themselves on the face and mouth. Frequency touching themselves wane before the birth. Based on her research published in the Acta Paediatrica journal, Reissland said that the fetus of smoking mothers have a higher frequency in the activities of mouth movements and touch themselves.

Movement of the mouth and touching themselves demonstrate the ability of control over the body, which is becoming increasingly well before the birth. With higher frequencies, the fetus showed lower control capabilities.
Reissland said, this still early stage studies to prove the impact of smoking on the development of the fetal central nervous. "More studies are needed to investigate specific effects, including interactions maternal stress and smoking," she said. 

As reported by the Daily Mail on Monday, March 23, 2015, Reissland hope to sensitize women to quit smoking during pregnancy. This research adds another evidence of the adverse effects that occur in fetuses of pregnant women who smoke. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | DAILYMAIL]
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Thursday, March 26, 2015

Skin tests can help diagnose Alzheimer's and Parkinson's

Someday, perhaps in a positive skin test can diagnose a person suspected of having dementia. The test, developed by researchers in Mexico, also can detect abnormal proteins that are specific to Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's.
A skin test could help identify Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. (Picture from: http://bit.ly/1I16aEV)
According to the group Alzheimer's Disease International, more than 44 million people worldwide suffer from Alzheimer's, which makes the elderly lose their short-term memory. In the end, this disorder leads to death.

This disease is the most common form of dementia. But there are other forms of progressive brain disease, such as vascular dementia, which resemble the symptoms of the early stages of Alzheimer's and cause maslaah-cognitive problems. Unlike Alzheimer's disease, vascular dementia patients can live for years.

Other progressive neurological disease that is difficult to diagnose in the early stages disease is a movement disorder of Parkinson's. Currently, researchers at the University of San Luis Potosi, Mexico, has developed a way to diagnose Alzheimer's and other cognitive disorders, using a small piece of the patient's skin.

Investigators seek specialized proteins with high levels of unnatural and there in the brain tissue and there was also in skin cells. Ildefonso Rodriguez-Leyva, a neurologist who led the study using skin biopsy to diagnose people with various forms of dementia.
Skin biopsies from behind the ear showed telltale protein deposits. (Picture from: http://bbc.in/18m4gmk)
"The skin is closely connected with the nervous system because they have the same origin," said Rodriguez-Leyva. "Then we decided to look at the possibility of finding proteins that are not normal in the brain, in the skin. And we found it. Skin for our truly outstanding."

Twenty people were confirmed suffering from Alzheimer's appear to have abnormally high levels of a protein called tau in the 4 millimeters skin samples.

The study also included patients with Parkinson's, which also have high levels of tau and another protein called alpha-synuclein with a high level, compared with healthy people.

Currently, the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease based on clinical observation, because it may take samples of tissue from the living to confirm.

Maria Jimenez, a biochemist who developed the test. She said skin biopsies offer ways that are not invasive to diagnose early dementia. "Until now, these proteins were identified only in the brain," he said. "And the concept of our work is to find these proteins outside the brain in the skin."

Early diagnosis of Alzheimer's and Parkinson means treatment can begin early so improve the quality of life. Mexican researchers have plans to report their findings at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology next month. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | BBC]
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Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Coffee reduce the risk of Multiple Sclerosis

Drinking coffee reduces the risk of contracting a disease called multiple sclerosis (MS), a disease that attacks the central nervous system, it is based on a study released on Friday, February 27, 2015.

As reported by the Environmental News Network, these findings will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 67th Annual Meeting in Washington, DC, on April 18-25, 2015.
A new study says that the coffee cuts Multiple Sclerosis risk. (Picture from: http://bit.ly/1rYEnAP)
"Caffeine intake has been associated with a reduced risk of Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's and our research shows that coffee consumption may also reduce the risk of Multiple Sclerosis, supporting the idea that the drug may have a protective effect on the brain," said the study author Ellen Mowry, MD, MCR, with Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore and a member of the American Academy of Neurology.

The latest study involved 1,629 people with MS and 2,807 healthy people who living in Sweden, as well as 1,159 people with MS and 1,172 healthy people who living in the United States.

The study indicated coffee consumption among people with MS and 5 years before the symptoms of MS started (as well as 10 years before the symptoms of MS begins in the Swedish study) and compare it with the consumption of coffee people who do not have MS in the same time period.

The study also takes into account other factors such as age, sex, smoking, body mass index, and exposure to sunlight.

Swedish study found that compared with those who drank at least six cups of coffee per day for years before symptoms appear, those who do not drink coffee has about one and a half times increased risk of MS.

Drinking large amounts of coffee in 5 or 10 years before symptoms begin equally protective. "Caffeine should be studied for its impact on relapses and long-term disability in MS as well," concluded Mowry. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS NETWORK]
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Friday, March 6, 2015

An aggressive HIV is found in Cuba

Recently in Cuba, the researchers have found a kind of an aggressive HIV that progresses to AIDS in just three years. They said that progression occurs so quickly so the treatment with antiretroviral drugs may come too late.

Professor Anne-Mieke Vandamme of the University of Leuvan in Belgium said the health officials were first informed about the kind of AIDS forms. They are asking for help to find out what happens.
Blood samples testing to determine whether there is HIV. (Picture from: http://bit.ly/1GjDCpg)
"We have a collaborative project with Cuba and the Cuban physicians have observed the presence of HIV patients are growing very fast to AIDS, compared to what they had seen before. In this case, the majority of patients suffering from AIDS even at diagnosis," she said.

Vandamme and her team looked at more than 70 patients and divided into various groups. One group consists of those with the virus rapidly develops into AIDS, although recently infected. "They have tested HIV negative one or a maximum of two years earlier," she said.

She said that on average, without treatment, HIV infection need five to 10 years before it grows become AIDS. It was determined by the scarcity of immune cells CD-4 and the number of opportunistic infections in the patient's body.

Typically, she said, the progression of HIV to AIDS more quickly is due to a weak immune system rather than the presence of HIV-specific sub-types. What happens in Cuba is different. 

"There is a variant of HIV that we find in the group that growing rapidly. This virus is a recombinant of three kinds of different sub-types," she said. This new form of HIV is the combination of sub-types A, D and G. This type of virus called CRF19. 

The good news is this aggressive strain of HIV that responds to most antiretroviral drugs. The bad news, people may not realize they have AIDS until it was too late for therapies to treat them.

Vandamme said this variant has previously been seen in Africa, but when the patients are still very few and not visible spread there. But this time the widespread distribution in Cuba and now can be easily researched. She said it was important for people who perform unprotected sex with multiple partners for HIV testing early and often. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | VOA NEWS]
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Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Spider venom as the impotence panacea

Impotence is often regarded as the most shameful disease for men. Since the days of ancient Egypt, people keep trying to find the cause and the panacea to cure it. There was a time when people assume that impotence is caused by evil spells. And to treat it, humans must grind the heart of baby alligators, then rub the results of the penis.

More recently, scientists from the Catholic University of Korea finding promising compounds that could potentially be a panacea impotence. This compound is found in the venom of the most poisonous spider in the world.
Brazilian wandering spider (Phoneutria nigriventer). (Picture from: http://bit.ly/1AX9nUI)
Scientists first discovered the potency of these compounds when studying human cases were stung by a poisonous spider (Phoneutria nigriventer) in Brazil. These men reported experiencing priapism or prolonged erection. Parse the spider venom, scientists discovered a protein that is responsible for priapism, called PnTx2. Then, by using baculovirus bacteria, scientists produce the protein.

As reported by IFLScience.com sites on Thursday, February 19, 2015, scientists then tested the compound to treat impotence in rats. The results of the study published in the Urology journal on September 2014 ago.

According to the study results, the PnTx2 protein expressed can treat impotence in rats with improving the blood flow to the penis. Not only that, the protein was also not cause side effects such as muscle stiffness.

With the results of the study, Ae Ryang Jung and colleagues who conducted the research states that PnTx2 could be a panacea impotence. However, a number of tests, including clinical trials, are needed to prove efficacy. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | IFLSCIENCE]
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Friday, February 20, 2015

Researchers develop the smart Insulin to control Diabetes

The researchers have developed 'smart' insulin that automatically adjusts the amount of blood sugar in the body of people who suffer from Type 1 Diabetes. This will be a breakthrough for patients who are struggle to maintain healthy blood sugar levels everyday.
An image shows a syringe being filled with insulin. (Picture from: http://bit.ly/1z9VVs4)
Type 1 Diabetes occurs when the body's immune system attacks and destroys the pancreatic cells that produce insulin. Insulin is a hormone that helps the glucose metabolism of food, which used the body's cells for fuel.

People with Type 1 Diabetes must frequently check their glucose levels and inject insulin, sometimes several times a day. However, that's not appropriate routines. If Insulin is too little will raise blood sugar levels over time can lead to serious complications, including heart disease, kidney failure and blindness. But if patients with Type 1 Diebetes get too much insulin, they risk a dangerous coma.
Researchers are hopeful that 'smart' insulins which are undergoing trials could revolutionise the way diabetes is managed. (Picture from: http://bit.ly/1AqaNqO)
"The idea is to get something completely autonomous. So if the patient does not have to check their blood sugar levels. If they can inject insulin in the morning and know that they have enough supplies for the day, it is a best-case scenario. But I guess where the role of the smart insulin generation in response to glucose," said Matthew Webber, a biomedical engineer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who helped develop the smart insulin that activate themselves when blood sugar levels rising.

Single injection of long-acting agent binding molecules of glucose circulating in the blood, automatically bring down blood sugar levels when they jumped. Webber said the researchers have conducted a several tests using laboratory pets. Tests showed that the smart insulin working for at least 14 hours, repetitive and automatic lowering blood sugar levels in rats.

The research is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. And the researchers hope the next step will conduct human clinical trials for the first glucose-response insulin. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | VOA NEWS]
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Thursday, January 22, 2015

Scientists have developed a 3D printer for organ

Japanese scientists are developing a 3D printer technology to make the skin, bones and artificial joints. And several groups of scientists around the world have developed a small mass of tissue to implant, but now they will move to the next stage and make it more functional.
Tsuyoshi Takato, professor of the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Medicine, displays an artificial ear made of polyactic acid and designed by a 3D printer at his laboratory in Tokyo on Friday, Jan. 16. (Picture from: http://bit.ly/1AKJ3ZD)
Tsuyoshi Takato, a professor at the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Medicine  said that his team is working on the "next generation 3D bio-printer" that can build a thin layer of biomaterials to make parts of the body.

His team combines stem cells - a proto cells that can develop into all parts of the body - and the proteins that trigger the growth, as well as synthetic substance similar to human collagen.

By using a 3D printer, they create "artificial organ structures" such as hard and porous surfaces inside the bone, Takato said as quoted by AFP news agency. In just a few hours, the printing machine can produce implants by using data from Computer Tomography (CT) Scanner.

The plastic surgeons say that implants can be implanted in the body, and quickly assimilated by the body's tissues and organs other patients. "Usually we use cartilage or bone from the patient's body (for regular implants), but the implants are made to order it means no need to take away from the original source," Takato said.

The technology also gives hope to children who are born with the problem of bone or cartilage, which can not use regular synthetic implants because their body growth rate. The biggest obstacle is the heat generated from conventional 3D printers that damage proteins and living cells.

"We do not fully know how to avoid the heat that causes denaturation, but we have several models and is exploring where the most efficient method," he said. And the artificial protein that used by Takato and his team was developed by Fujifilm, which has been researching collagen used in photographic film.

Because the implant is made based on human collagen, not taken from the animals, the implants were easily assimilated in the human body and reduce the risk of infections such as mad cow disease. Takato said his team has a target to begin clinical trials leather printed with a 3D printer in the next three years, followed by bone, cartilage and joints.

The researchers say their project prior to "CT-Bone" which was developed by the company Next 21 based in Tokyo and government agencies provide guidance for the current study. Techniques that use calcium phosphate, bone constituent substance, but does not contain stem cells.

CT-Bone implant is inserted into the fractured bone or placed where the missing bone to act as a scaffold for new bone growth. The new growth that can take over the implant in two years with the parent bone acts as an incubator.

Takato said tests on animals showed regeneration can even be faster to use collagen implants, stem cells and growth stimulus. And the Japanese medical authorities are expected to approve the use of CT-Bone in the medical practice in this year. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | THE CHINA POST]
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Friday, January 2, 2015

These foods that can make you full faster

Why your diet fails? Perhaps one of your brain is always screaming hungry so you can not resist the hunger. The good news, Researchers from Imperial College London and the University of Glasgow are developing a kind of food that can be mixed in food that can make you feel full even though eating a little.

This material is made from materials that will stimulate Propionate intestine to release hormones into the brain so that the brain think you are full. Propionate is already present in foods containing dietary fiber but this new type of material called Inulin-Propionate Ester (IPE) have content Propionate more.
Inulin-Propionate Ester (IPE) ingredient will make you feel fuller. (Picture from: http://bit.ly/1EclGj9)
In a trial with 20 volunteers who given the wide range of the diet foods such as dietary fiber and IPE, the results was the volunteers who given the IPE turned out to eat 14% less than others.

Professor Gary Frost, who led the study at the Department of Medicine at Imperial College London, said, “We know that adults gain between 0.3 and 0.8 kilos a year on average, and there’s a real need for new strategies that can prevent this. Molecules like propionate stimulate the release of gut hormones that control appetite, but you need to eat huge amounts of fiber to achieve a strong effect. We wanted to find a more efficient way to deliver propionate to the gut

Seeing the results are quite satisfactory, the IPE will be produced and this is probably one of the things that can make you lose weight. The new study was published on Wednesday, December 10, 2014 in the journal Gut. Happy diets. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES |  LIVESCIENCE]
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Monday, November 24, 2014

Two chemical compounds of sunscreen allegedly defective male fertility

Some US researchers on Friday, November 14, 2014 said the two chemicals that are used to protect the skin from ultraviolet (UV) seems to be able to impair the ability of men to be fathers.

These chemicals, known as Benzophenone-2, or BP-2, and 4OH-BP, each of which could result in a 30 percent decrease in male fertility, biological ability to reproduce, say the researchers of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Department of Healths Wadswoth Center in the State of New York.

It could be happens because the chemicals are absorbed by the skin, can interfere with the body's hormones and the endocrine system. Lower fertility rates that may result in more length of pregnancy, the researchers said in the American Journal of Epidemiology.

BP-2 and 4OH-BP contained in the composition of the group called ultraviolet filter BP-Type, that made up a total of 29 classes of chemicals are commonly used in sunscreen and other personal care products to protect skin and hair from sun rays.

The researchers studied 501 couples who trying to have children, and follow their progress to become pregnant or for one year effort to record the women time required for pregnant, as reported by Antara on Saturday, November 15, 2014.
Illustration of male fertility. (Picture from: http://bit.ly/11i4gQd)
They also examine the urine sample and measuring the content of selected five UV filter and associated with endocrine disrupting activity. The female test participants aged between 18 and 44 years, and the male were 18-year-old. Nobody ever undergo a medical examination on fertility diagnosis.

Their findings showed that most, but not all, UV filter may be associated with loss of fertility in men, regardless of the exposure of their spouse. The researchers examined the impact among men who exposed very high (BP-2 or 4OH-BP) UV filter.

"In our study, male fertility seems to be easier to penetrated by these chemicals compared to the female fertility. Women participants actually have a greater exposure to the UV filter as a whole. However, their exposure was not associated with significantly pregnancy delay," said Germaine Louis, author of the study from the National Institutes of Health and Human Development Chile, part of the NIH, in a statement.

Louis also said people still encouraged to use the sunscreen to prevent skin cancer but men who are concerned about their fertility may try other ways to reduce their exposure to the benzophenone UV filter, such as washing themselves after the entry into the house. The researchers caution that the results are preliminary and additional studies are needed to confirm their findings.. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | ANTARA]
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