Scientific data in various fields of human endeavor. Interesting user friendly presentation of articles in sciences both recent and in the distant past
PHILADELPHIA (UPI) — U.S. medical scientists now say they’ve discovered a protein called Mcl-1 that plays a critical role in allowing melanoma cancer cells to metastasize.
Researchers led by Thomas Jefferson University Associate Professor Andrew Aplin said the protein causes cell-resistance to a form of apoptosis — a type of cell death called anoikis. That resistance, Aplin said, enables the melanoma cells to metastasize and survive at sites distant from the primary tumor.
“When we depleted Mcl-1 from the tumor cells they were susceptible to cell death,” said Aplin, who conducted the study at Albany Medical College in New York. “Our findings show that targeting Mcl-1, which is unregulated in a majority of melanoma cells, could be a viable treatment strategy.”
Aplin said there is one drug now in development that targets Mcl-1. That agent, called obatoclax, is in phase I/II trials.
The research is reported in the journal Molecular Cancer Research.
Copyright 2009 by United Press International
Sourced and published by Henry Sapiecha 20th April 2009
NEW YORK (UPI) — U.S. researchers say they’re working on ways to duplicate the success of laser eye surgery and hair removal into a workable treatment for the ever common toenail fungus.
An estimated 23 million people in the United States have onychomycosis, a fungal condition that discolors and thickens toenails. Current treatments, which include anti-fungal oral concoctions and topical applications, have relatively low success rates, The New York Times reported recently.
There has been some support with treatments using ‘Potassium Permanganate’ [Condy's Crystals], Salicylic -Benzoic Acid, Tea-tree oil etc.
toe condition cure
However Nomir Medical Technologies in Massachusetts said it has now had success in early testing of a laser, called Noveon, which targets bacterial and fungal infections while preserving healthy tissue.
Preliminary analysis shows 76 percent of patients showed evidence of improvement after the Noveon treatment. A significant drop in fungus levels was seen in 74 percent of patients after two treatments.
The findings were presented at the Council for Nail Disorders 13th Annual Scientific Meeting in San Francisco.
Noveon lasers are currently used for cataract surgery, dental work and hair removal, the newspaper said.
Sourced and published by Henry Sapiecha 24th March 2009
PITTSBURGH (UPI) — U.S. researchers are testing a vaccine to prevent colon cancer in people already at high risk for the disease.
Unlike other anti-cancer vaccines that block viruses, the vaccine has been directed against a variant of a cell protein — called MUC1.
Colon cancer generally starts with an abnormal growth in the intestinal lining — a polyp. When polyps become cancerous they are called adenomas. Adenomas produce MUC1 in excess.
“When stimulating an immune response against the MUC1 protein in these precancerous growths,one should be able to draw the immune system’s fire to attack and destroy the abnormal cells,” principal investigator Dr. Robert Schoen of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine said in a statement. “That might not only prevent progression to cancer, but even polyp recurrence.”
Several people have received the experimental vaccine so far, and the researchers intend to enroll another 50 participants ages 39 to 70 with a history of adenomas sized 1centimeter or more.
After an initial dose of vaccine, the study participants get doses two and 10 weeks later. Blood samples taken then as well — also at 12 weeks, 28 weeks and one year later — will determine and measure immune response.
Sourced and published by Henry Sapiecha 24th March 2009
New poster puts smoking hazards gives you a realty check.
So you think smoking is OK. Think again. Facts now revealed.
A global information design consultancy, has created “Put It Out,” an illustrated poster showing in no uncertain terms the lethal chemicals — including arsenic, methane and formaldehyde — ingested from each cigarette and what some of the harsh health facts are surrounding smoking. The 11×17? poster can be viewed and downloaded at www.xplane.com/4000.
DO NOT SMOKE POSTER
Created by a team of world-class graphic designers, the poster is intended to educate, inform and create a dialogue amongst the general public relating to the ongoing issues associated with smoking. Released under the Creative Commons 3.0 Unported License, the poster can be downloaded and used by health organizations and other individuals wishing to spread the word about what harmfull substances go into each cigarette.
Sourced and Published by Henry Sapiecha 24th March 2009
Currently, only GMO seeds have received approval for planting by governments around the world. The European Union may soon change that situation. It is considering approval of the Amflora potato from BASF AG for cultivation. This GM product is designed for use as an industrial starch. BASF has partnered with Monsanto to develop additional biotech products that it plans to bring to market that have better output-traits, including higher yields, unsaturated fatty acids and starch content.
Innovate or Die – Aquaduct: Mobile Filtration Vehicle
WATER FILTER BIKE
The Aquaduct is pedal powered vehicle that transports, filters, and stores water especially for the developing world. A peristaltic pump attached to the pedal crank draws water from a large tank,via a filter, to a smaller clean tank. This tank is removable and closed for contamination-free home water storage and use. A clutch engages and disengages the drive belt from the pedal crank, enabling the rider to filter the water while traveling or while stationary. The Aquaduct is the winning entry in the Innovate or Die contest put on by Google and Specialized. The contest challenge was to build a pedal powered machine that has environmental impact. Please visit our blog ( http://theaquaduct.blogspot.com/ ) or email team.aquaduct@gmail.com for more details.
We’re constantly being told that compact energy efficient fluorescent light bulbs (CFL) are better for the environment than older incandescent globes, but what you may not know is that the CFL bulbs may actually be a lot more dangerous to life
SERIES OF OLDER GLOBES OVER THE YEARS
Governments in their wisdom said incandescent globes will be phased out in November 2009 because they burn on average 80 per cent more energy than the newer bulbs.Poisonous bulbs must be good for us..!!
As the deadly poison fluoride in our drinking water is good for our teeth…!!!
Where do these governments get off.
If we want to be poisoned we can do it ourselves by choice.
DEADLY ODDS
Critics claim the CFL light bulbs give off dangerous amounts of radiation and can cause skin disorders and medical conditions – a claim that is strongly denied by both industry and medical officials.
“You would have to suffer from a skin condition such as Lupus and sit under a light bulb for an hour to develop any kind of adverse affect,” Dr Stephen Schmack [Dermatologyst] said.
Another health concern that has some people worried is the concentration of mercury contained in the CFL light bulbs.
CFL’s contain small amounts of mercury as vapour inside the glass tubing and average about 4.0 mg per bulb.
DANGER TO HEALTH
When the bulbs are broken or smashed open, a white vapour mist can come out and potentially cause dangerous levels of mercury in the surrounding environment.
Crime writer Clinton Smith is convinced the UV radiation from the new ‘green’ globes helped contribute to his head cancer.
“The dangers are not only great, they’re going to be unavoidable,” he said
“I’m going to put an incandescent globe on my desk – I don’t want to be irradiated all my working life.”
Clinton is even going as far as not purchasing the CFL light bulbs and stockpiling the older incandescent bulbs.
“I’m going to have a lot of them and my shed will be filled,” Clinton said.
“I’m very concerned about skin cancer with the CFL bulbs and I know that the incandescent globewill be safer
Is he right???
WHY-TELL ME WHY...
Although serious health problems resulting from one broken light bulb is rare, the federal government recommends that you wear gloves, protective clothing and sweep up the broken globes to prevent toxic dust from spreading through the home.
If you are worried about mercury poisoning, here’s what to look for.
There can be a number of problems associated with mercury poisoning including cramping, weak breathing, headaches, swelling and redness of the skin and death
Common neurological symptoms in children include decreased eye contact, poor concentration and loss of speech.
If you start to experience any of these symptoms, visit your doctor or call the Poison Hotline at 13 11 26
HOME DANGER FOR MANKIND
or DIE at the hands of the political system which wants to police us for our own good they say and give us no choice in our lighting or water purity options.
Birds Eye had planned to launch frozen herring to capitalize on the plentiful supplies of cheap British herring. This new product went on sale in South Wales.As very much a second choice they simultaeously launched another product in Southampton called cod sticks.These proved to be immensely popular such that the herring concept was discarded as the focal product and cod fish fingers was launched as a major product in 1955 at the expense of the herring
2…..Ice-Cream Cone.
Everybody's Favourite
In 1904 at the St.Louis World’s fair a young ice cream salesman presented his girlfriend with an ice cream sandwich and a bunch of flowers. Since she had no vase for the flowers, the resourceful lady had rolled the layers of wrapping into the shape of a cone to use as a vase. The idea promoted the use of an edible cone for the containment of ice-cream
3…..Liquorice Allsorts.
Selling liquorice sweets individually, one colour and or taste at a time, travelling salesman Charlie Thompson met with little enthusiasm from wholesalers until, one day at Leicester England in 1899 he accidently dropped the different individual sweets and got them all mixed up. When confronted with this assortment the wholesaler began to show interest in the products . The’ Liquorice Allsorts’ was born.
4…..Microwave Oven.
Cooking with waves
Percy Spencer a physicist and engineer on American radar equipoment manufacturers Raytheon, was employed during the second world war to make the magnetrons used in radar systems. He noticed that the magnetrons gave off as much heat as a large lightbulb and used them to warm his hands on cold days. But it wasn’t until he discovered a melted sweet in his pocket that the possibility occurred of cooking with microwaves. How big was this micrtowave??
5…..Non-Stick Saucepan.
Assorted pots-n-pans
In 1938 Roy Plunkett of the American Company Du-Pont was working on refrigerants when he stumbled upon a polymer called polytetrafluoroethylene.or Teflon for short. Du-Pont began producing Teflon ten years later but it needed another folly encounter for it to be considered for kitchenware. In 1954 a french manufacturer Marc Gregoire chanced upon a process which would enable teflon coatings to be applied to metals. It occurred to him that the non-stick properties would be ideal for the kitchen environment and uitensils. He consequently founded the Tefal Company to make frying pans and saucepans
6…..Nylon.
Lucky legs
Three years into his studies in polymerisation Dr. Wallace Carothers, a research chemist with Du-Pont, discovered that a fibre of extreme tensile strength could be drawn form a mass of polymers. His task wasn’t even to create a specific product but the fibre, known as nylon was launched in 1938 by which time Carothers had committed suicide as he was a depressive during his life and did not see his crowning glory being acknowledged worldwide.
Industry will always be grateful to him.
We all can visualize many of the products made from this substance, one of which is the stocking.
7…..Paper Tissue.
Kleenex,a fragrant soft treatment
In 1924 Kimberly Clark brought out celluwipes, upmarket makeup removers made from paper pulp. Sales however were slow and special notice was given to letters from consumers about the celluwipe products. To managements’ surprise these letters highlighted the alternate perfect use of these products for blowing noses.
These products were then relaunched as the ‘Kleenex’ that we all know today
Yes, and they can be like a fragrant soft towell treatment with plain or textured and printed versions
8…..Post-it Note.
Tagged notepad
Spencer Silver, a research chemist with the American 3M Corporationwas told to create the strongest glue in the world. Instaed he cam up with the opposite, a temporary glue that would not hold anything for long.It’s only virtue was that it would leave no residue on the material to which it was applied when removed and could be reused over again. Silver’s glue remained idle for another 10 years until in 1980 a collegue, Arthur Fry, who sang in a church choir, noted that a litle of the glue on a strip of paper used as a bookmark in the hymnbook did not fall from the pages nor soiled the paper to which it was attached.
3M launched and marketed the product the following year.
We are all now very familiar with the product and the various colours in which it comes
9…..Superglue.
superglue experiments
While studying uses and properties of ethyl cyanoacrylate in the 1950′s scientists with the Eastman Kodak Company accidently stuck together the glass prisims of a refractometer. This alerted them to the extreme bonding properties of this substance and superglue was born and is now well known to us all
Yes and now there is a superglue remover as well.
10…TCP.
Can this cure venerial disease?
Count Callaimachi, a Romanian biochemist working in London, invented what he hoped was a cure for veneral disease. He named the liquid TCP because he thought it contained trichlorophenol, but it proved to be ineffective against veneral disease but was soon to be heralded for its strong antibacterial properties and was consequently marketed for use against infections of the throat and cuts and bruises
Providing better outcomes in bowel cancer detection is the goal of Dr. David Hewett, a gastroenterologist from the Royal Brisbane and Woman’s Hospital in QUEENSLAND AUSTRALIA. He has received a prestigious fellowship from the National Institute of Clinical Studies [N.I.C.S.]. Co sponsered by the Queensland Health Clinical Practice Improvement Centre.
Dr. Hewett will use the N.I.C.S. Quensland Health Fellowship to undertake a two year implementation project to improve the quality of colonoscopies.
“
Bowel cancer is the second most common cause of death from cancer in Australia” he said.
“Early detection is critical and a colonoscopy is the best invasive means of both examining the bowel and removing precancerous polyps but the quality of colonoscopy performance various.
“Via my “NICS” Fellowship, based at the Queensland Health Development Centre, I’ll provide training to both private and public colonoscopists to address this variance and improve patient care.”
