When It Comes To Vitamins, More Is Not Always Better

Due to the winter season I will be writing in green and red.

Having too much vitamins in your system isn't a good thing, in fact it may be harmful. A study conducted at the ARS Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging focusing on two dietary B vitamins (folate and B12). Blood tests were taken to observe patients levels of folate and vitamin B12.

Folate has been an enrichment vitamin for U.S. cereal products since 1998. The information from the study was taken from 1999-2002 so all patients who ate cereal had high levels of folate. Since cereal has been enriched by fortification folate levels in the U.S. population have been extremely high.

The study also created interesting data for senior citizens. People 60 and over experience very low levels of vitamin B12, and those who were taking stomach-acid blockers also showed low B12 levels. This is because they both decrease the absorbtion rate of B12 into the body.

Overall the study showed that patients with high levels of folate and low levels of B12 were more likely to exhibit symptoms of anemia and cognitive impairment. Low levels of B12 has been known to cause cognitive impairment, but information about the dangers of folate is new and has opened a pathway to many new studies. So remember take your vitamins, just make sure they are the right ones!

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071126151019.htm

Stem Cells Train Heart Following Heart Attack

Adult human EPDCs, 'Epicardium Derived Cell', extracted from the atrium of the heart were transplanted into a mouse heart that had suffered an infarction. This resulted in the mice having better heart function than mice without the cells in both short and long term studies and ensured that less mouse cells died off. In fact, two weeks after the cell transplantation, the treated hearts exhibited increased activity of DNA damage repair, and contained more blood vessels. In addition, the wall of the heart where the infarct had occurred was thicker.

What amazed me is that the EPDCs apparently had an almost instant stimulating effect on the heart tissue in the surrounding areas after being transplanted.

Along with the obvious potential that this research offers for stroke patients, this just illustrates the growing importance and potential of stems cell therapy.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071127101923.htm

Heart Healing Patch Website

http://www.sciencentral.com/articles/view.php3?article_id=218393016&cat=3_2

Toxin From Coral-reef Bacteria Could Become Next-generation Cancer Drug

Researchers at University of Michigan have recently discovered new potential mechanisms for a protein family, GNAT, that is found in an array or organisms from microbes to humans. A member of the GNAT family is found in the molecule curacin-A. Curacin-A is a toxin derived from coral reef that shows great potential in killing or disabling cancer cells. More significantly is that this member of the GNAT family has been shown to play a role in initiating the synthesis of curacin-A. Understanding more about these synthetic pathways is important to understanding more about how the toxin works, and this is a big stepping stone. This could help lead to being able to develop the toxin in high quantities in the laboratory. I especially find it interesting because this cancer fighting method is being developed from a substance from nature. Slight modifications to the toxin could make it a leading cancer fighter in the future.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071128103345.htm

Heart Healing Patch

With a family history of heart disease, the possibility of regenerating heart cells damaged from a heart attack brings new hope to the recovery process. Recent discoveries have led to the development of this regenerative treatment.

It has long been known that if the beating muscle cells of the heart, cardiomyocytes, are damaged they don't normally regrow. But pediatric cardiologist Bernhard Kuhn of Children’s Hospital Boston and his colleagues discovered that a protein we're born with can prompt adult heart cells of rats to regenerate. This protein is called periostin. Scientists know our bodies have high levels of this protein before we’re born, but levels decrease soon after birth. One significant affect of periostin on the heart is it increases the in-growth of new vessels.

He also thinks it may one day be possible to administer this treatment without major surgery by using cardiac catheterization: delivery via a thin tube that is inserted into a blood vessel and runs to the heart.

There is a big jump from procedures working on rats to procedures working on humans, but at least the further development of our knowledge for cardiac proteins will bring us that much closer to new discoveries.

Zombie Roaches and Neurotransmitters

Cockraoches stung by Jewel Wasps become zombies. Not really, but the Jewel wasps inject their toxin directly into the roaches brain which makes them compliant and the wasps physically lead the roach to their den where they lay eggs into the abdomen and the young eat the cockroach from the insided out, gruesome.
Scientists in Isreal studied this phenomenon and began to experiment with possible neurontransmitters to counter the effects of the toxin. A synthesized form of the neurotransmitter octopamine reversed the effects of the "zombie-making" toxin and gave the roaches the ability to walk freely again. In cockroaches injected with the toxin by the wasps, levels of octopamine were low not just in the brain, but in other places of the body as well, suggesting that the toxin acts on the DNA responsible for coding octopamine and interferes with the production all over the body.

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn12983-zombie-cockroaches-revived-by-brain-shot.html

Blood Stem Cells Fight Invaders

The blood stem cells, which are scattered sparingly throughout the marrow and capable of replenishing an entire blood system, are the most understood stem cells and have allowed for successful bone marrow transplants. Scientists previously thought that this hematopoietic stem cell had a singular role but research from a professor at Harvard has shown that its role is far more versatile.

They studied lymph samples from the thoracic ducts of mice and found that there was a population of cells that behaved identically to blood stem cells and upon further tests found these cells present in visceral organs also. It was discovered that hematopoietic stem cells can travel from the bone marrow into the blood circulation and enter visceral organs and play a role in the immune system. When the cells encountered invaders, they divided and made new immune system cells such as leukocytes. After a period of time, the cells would then be taken up by the thoracic duct and reenter the circulation then back to the marrow. Due to the presence of endotoxin, some cells would get stuck in the tissue and would be triggered to proliferate into immune cells. Overall the hematopoietic stem cells seem to play a rolein sensing local environmental disturbances and initiating an immune response. This research opened new doors for looking into how our bodies fight pathogens and ways diseases may use this same process.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071129121143.htm

Faster Breast Cancer, Alzheimers, and Parkinson's Disease Detection

A company out of Houston, Power 3 Medical Products, have pioneered a low cost, simple blood tests to detect Breast Cancer, Alzheimer's' Disease, and Parkinson's Disease 6-10 years before signs become known. These blood tests detect irregular proteins that have been linked to the conditions. For example, "Women who carry the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes run a greater risk of developing breast cancer", so these tests detect those genes early. The tests are still being approved but early tests have shown promising results. This would allow people to test for these conditions before the peak time in which the condition is normally known and shown. For women, mammograms are a very painful way of detecting breast cancer. This test would be pain free and used earlier in life. I chose this article because these conditions are very common and with these tests being able to detect them earlier would make every one's life better. Whether it was you that was detected of having something or a family member.

http://www.popsci.com/popsci/science/871ab15144e56110vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html

Damage Control

http://pubs.acs.org/cen/news/84/i38/8438nanofibers.html

This is pretty amazing stuff. To think that the mere presence of nanofibers will help stem cells differentiate into to neurons is amazing. If only we could carry this over to the human brain.

The Immune System Can Restrain Cancer Growth

The immune system has been shown in the past to destroy cancer cells, but in a study with mice models of primary chemical carcinogenesis, it has been shown that immunity can also control cancer for an extended period of time in what has been termed an "equilibrium". The researchers induced cancer in mice by giving them methylcholanthrene, which is a tar much like that found in cigarette smoke. After a first wave of deadly tumors, the mice that survived did not have any growing tumors; only dormant tumors remained. The mice appeared healthy, and their tumors were kept dormant by the immune system. These tumors only developed into active tumors after T cells were depleted or interleukin-12 or interferon gamma, both cytokines, were neutralized. This indicated that adaptive immunity provided by T cells was the component of the immune system that maintained the tumors in a dormant state. If the mice immune systems were suppressed, the tumors would begin to grow again.

This "equilibrium" state also appears to exist in humans, as evidenced by clinical observations. There are cases where the recipient of an organ transplant developed cancer that their organ donor previously had and was assumed to be cured. After the organ transplant, the recipient was highly immunosuppressed, allowing the cancer that had been held in check by the immune system of the donor to begin growing again.

News article:http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nature06363.html
Paper:http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nature06309.html

Evidence Of Mature Heart Cell Potential Found In Embryonic Stem Cells

A group of researchers from UC Davis claim to have found evidence of calcium stores in embryonic stem cell derived heart cells. Calcium stores are important for excitation-contraction coupling of heart cells. After differentiating the stem cells, the researchers used electrical current and chemicals to energize the cells and then measured the changes of intracellular calcium. They also found four of the seven known proteins that are involved in controlling calcium inside cells. The researchers are hoping that this finding will lead to using these differentiated heart cells to become a safer alternative to heart transplants. Despite these findings, there is still a long way to go before this is possible.

New Imaging Technique Could Establish Early On If A Cancer Patient's Treatment Is Working

A cancer research study recently published in Nature Medicine (UK) has shown how a device thousands of times more sensitive than an MRI could be used to detect the responsiveness of the tumors to applied treatments in cancer patients, within only days. This method could be a huge factor in trying to save a patient’s life, especially since current treatment methodologies involve simply monitoring the tumor’s response over time, which can take weeks.

This “super-sensitive scanning device” imaged treatments being given to mice with lymphoma. Researchers working with the mice were actually able to see the tumor cells in the mice being killed in the advanced MRI scans, showing that the drug treatment was successful. This method works by making the MRI highly sensitive to pyruvate, a substance which cancer cells uptake. The pyruvate was cooled to absolute zero to make the waves it emitted stronger, then dissolving it in heated water and given to the mice. Professor Brindle added: "The technique we've developed is straightforward and fast acting. The pyruvate circulates around the body of the mice within just a few seconds, so images can be taken virtually straight away".

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/90218.php

Stem Cells Made From Monkey Embryos

I'm sure a lot of you have read about this by now but browsing through the blog I didn't see any articles on this yet.

In Oregon a team of scientists has created 2 batches of stem cells from monkey embryos. This is pretty major because monkey's DNA is just as complicated as ours. The team needed 150 embryos to create these 2 batches of stem cells so this is still way too inefficient to try on humans. (It is much more difficult to get eggs from humans, especially given laws in that prevent the sale of eggs.) Eventually, though, the process may be streamlined or improved enough that testing this method on human embryos to see if human stem cells can be created efficiently enough to be used clinically.

Also, the results were far less miraculous than the articles we read about the discovery in South Korea so there are much more likely to be true.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/11/14/monkey.clones.ap/

Working the night shit may cause cancer

Apparently soon, working the night shift will be added to the list of probable causes of cancer. It would be one among many such causes as UV light and diesel exhaust fumes. In the next month, the Agency of Research on Cancer will officially add this to list. The reason it had not been added earlier was that the link to cancer was "uncertain, controversial and unproven." The fact that working the night shift could make someone more prone to cancer is based on data collected by a man named Richard Stevens, who noticed that the incidence of breast cancer in women increased greatly after the introduction of night shifts in the 1930's. Scientists believe that having a work day begin at night is dangerous because it disrupts circadian rhythms (specifically, melatonin, which is known to suppress tumors, is created at night). The article explains how important it is not to disrupt your internal clock. This data, of course, is still found to be skeptical by some and it is merely a suggestion from a pattern of data.
I found this quite interesting and quite appropriate because it is a topic that is illustrated in the book and is part of the material on our next test. This article shows how important our internal clock, how important circadian rhythms, and how important SLEEP is in our lives. I though the article illustrated quite well that going against the nature of things usually is not a good idea and that too of one thing is usually bad. At least people working the night shift are getting paid more though!


http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/11/29/night.shift.cancer.ap/index.html

Relieving News for Back Pain Sufferers

This article, titled "7 Back Pain Breakthroughs," appeared in the July 2007 issue of Reader's Digest Magazine. Although I'm not too sure about how true this is, here is the summary.

The article discusses new inventions and breakthroughs for ending back pain, ranging from recurring pain to chronic pain. For example, there is a "pain pacemaker" developed by Medtronic, modeled after their heart pacemaker. Another invention is the infrared belt called the Lumber Wrap by its inventor, Lawrence Gordon.

Other treatments include a minimally invasive surgery method, which removes disk material by use of a needle to relief that is "instantaneous"; spinal fusion surgery using "bendable materials"; and site-directed bone growth (SDBG) which "increases bone mass just where it's needed."

All in all, the article is self-explanatory.

The link to the first page of the article is:
http://www.rd.com/content/chronic-back-pain-breakthroughs-/

New Blood Substitute

The new blood substitute PolyHeme, produced by Northfield Laboratories Inc., is set to greatly reduce mortality rates among trauma patients. The substitute is universally accepted by all patients regardless of blood type and is capable of being given to trauma victims in the field whereas many times blood cannot. All seems good and well except for the fact that human clinical trials will need to be done on trauma patients without their own consent.

The normal alternative for trauma patients is delivery of a saline solution. While the solution carries no extra oxygen content it does manage to keep the blood volume, and hence blood pressure, high. PolyHeme, however, is able to actually carry oxygen and can help stave off brain damage due to oxygen loss. The clinical study will include patients both in the UK and the states. Participants’ family members will be notified of the trial and can choose to take their family member off PolyHeme if they choose.

According to the article, approximately two million Americans suffer trauma-related injuries each year and is the leading cause of death among people under 45. Hopefully the new blood substitute will be able to stem this tide and we will be able to see past ethical issues on such important scientific progress.

http://www.uky.edu/PR/News/Archives/2005/Jan2005/050104_blood_substitute.htm

Possible Revolution in Orthopedic Science

Chief Medical Officer of StemLife, Professor Dr. Aw Tar Choon, demonstrated how stem cell technology can be applied as a treatment for muscles and bones. His findings, with the addition of other data obtained from the stem cell expansion project, prove that there is a big potential for the overall success of these research projects.

"Nanotechnology in Healthcare", was a presentation given by Professor Seeram Ramakrishna, Dean of Engineering, National University of Singapore (NUS). It explained the use of stem cells and two naturally occurring bone substances, collagen and hydroxyapatite that were successfully used in producing a new substance. This substance can mimic the action and function of natural bone substances, providing support and strength to the damaged bone when used to replace the inner core. Seeram said that this development "holds great potential for the construction of a new biomaterial that provides for the mineralization of osteoblasts (bone-forming stem cells) and hence the ability to regenerate new bone tissue."

Source: http://www.azonano.com/news.asp?newsID=5299

A Nano Cancer Fix?

One of the current problems with cancer is that the only treatments available kill healthy tissue along with the tumor. But what if there was a noninvasive way to destroy the tumors without damaging the healthy cells in the process?

By using nanotechnology, scientists may soon be able to kill cancerous cells without damaging the surrounding tissue. The secret lies within a small nanoshell. The nanoshell has a glass core and is surrounded by a gold plated shell. While it may not seem so, the geometry is actually very important because it allows control of the relative size of the two parts of the nanoshell. What this allows is an ability to tune the optical properties of that nanoparticle such that one could control what wavelength of light and what color of light the nanoshell absorbs.

The nanoshells were put to the test on cancer induced rodents. A substance that allowed the nanoshells to bind to the cancer cells was coated on the shells and then the nanoshells were injected into the tumors. The nanoshells' ability to capture light and convert it to heat destroyed the tumors from the inside without damaging any of the near by tissue.

25 mice with tumors were tested and were divided into three groups: one that received no treatment; one that received saline injections and three minutes of exposure to the near-infrared light; and one that received nanoshell injections. Within 10 days the cancer was present in all the mice except the ones in the group who received the nanoshell injections. They were cancer free and even better they remained cancer free.

http://www.sciencentral.com/articles/view.php3?language=english&type=24119&article_id=218392390&cat=3_all

original article

Hold Your Horses: Impulsivity, Deep Brain Stimulation, and Medication in Parkinsonism

The use of Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus on the Parkinson's has diseasemarkedly improves the motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease, but causes cognitive side effects such as impulsivity. This article shows that DBS selectively interferes with the normal ability to slow down when faced with decision conflict. Under high-conflict situation, what a normal does is usually slow down and think twice and feel hard to make the final decision. However, while on DBS, PD's patients actually sped up their decisions under high-conflict conditions. This form of impulsivity was not affected by dopaminergic medication status. Instead, medication impaired patients' ability to learn from negative decision outcomes.
These findings implicate independent mechanisms leading to impulsivity in treated Parkinson's patients and were predicted by a single neurocomputational model of the basal ganglia. It tells the future research on Deep Brain Stimulation to take the cognitive conflict into account.

The article can be found at: http://www.sciencemag.org.ezproxy.tamu.edu:2048/cgi/content/full/318/5854/1309

Remote Controlled Drug Release

A team of researchers at MIT, initially designing nanoparticles that would accumulate at tumors and aid in MRI imaging, have devised "remote controlled" nanoparticles. The nanoparticles enter the blood stream and can be activated by exterior magnetic fields; which would help in locally targeting an area for drug release.

The nanoparticles are composed of an iron oxide core, a DNA strand, and a ligated drug of interest. The iron oxide cores are superparamagnetic, which means they release incredible amounts of heat under magnetic stimulation. A double stranded DNA helix is attached to the iron oxide core, and a drug is ligated to the DNA. The heat given off by the iron oxide core under magnetic stimulation creates enough heat to denature the DNA, thereby releasing the drug of interest. By using different lengths of DNA ligated to the iron oxide core, the team can choose which iron oxide cores they want to stimulate, and therefore they can choose which drugs to release.

This new drug delivery method shows a lot of potential for cancer treatments, and would allow chemo drugs to target tumor cells specifically. The nanoparticles cannot penetrate the blood brain barrier, or the blood testes barrier, however, so they would not be useful for brain or testicular cancer.

The article can be found at

http://www.photonics.com/content/news/2007/November/20/89754.aspx?utm_s

Stem cell breakthrough defuses debate

Scientists have discovered a new way to extract embryonic stem cells. They transformed human skin cells into stem cells that hold the same properties as the embryonic stem cells; thereby, defusing the controversy of destroying embryos. These cells can transform into all kinds of important tissues such as the heart, nerve and brain. This technique has been confirmed by experimenting on mice. Surprisingly, it was very simple, only four genes are needed to transform human somatic cells (skin cells) to stem cells. Stem cells are important in medicine because they can be used to cure degenerative diseases, grow new organs and even replace limbs. As a rule, every solution has some holes. This technique disrupts the molecular composition of the skin cells, that may enhance some chances of cancer. Despite that, I find this interesting because many stem cells were derived from embryos which sparks issue between religion and politics. Due to this new process, this has resolved the ethical issues and is good news for everyone. Medical problems can be solved without sacrificing human life.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071120/ap_on_sc/stem_cells

Why Can't Dogs Eat Chocolate?

Everyone has heard about the myth that feeding chocolate to your pooch will lead to devastating side effects, maybe even death. Has anyone ever seen a dog die from eating an M&M? Probably not, so what's the big deal about feeding the dog a few pieces of chocolate every now and then?

The chocolate that we eat comes from the bitter seeds of the cacao tree, which contain a family of compounds called methylxanthines. In humans methylxanthines lead to bronchial smooth muscle relaxation which helps to dilate constricted airways, stimulates diuresis to help relieve congestion, and acts as a mild cardiac and central nervous system stimulant. These compounds, however, contain two substances that are detrimental to dogs: caffeine and theobromine.

Caffeine and theobromine bind to receptors on the surfaces of dog's cells and act as competitive inhibitors by blocking the ligands that normally bind there. The results are frightening in canines: muscle tremors, seizures, vomiting, diarrhea, and a doubled increase in heart rate. The type of chocolate also matters - unsweetened baking chocolate has a much higher ratio of theobromine than does milk chocolate. Even a few ounces of milk chocolate can mean death for a small dog. Other foods/drinks that contain methylxanthines include coffee, cocoa, cola nut (used in cola drinks), and black teas.

Although most dogs do survive the typical bout with chocolate "poisoning," vets and researchers recommend avoiding the substance for your furry friend altogether.

New technique captures chemical reactions in a single living cell at unprecedented resolutionT

Bioengineers at the University of California-Berkeley have found a way to utilize metallic nanoplasmonic particles to detect chemical signals at a previoiusly impossible resolution. The new technique enables scientists to determine different actions of individual cells in real time. These actions include whether specific enzymes are activated or if certain genes are expressed. This procedure is also exciting because it could prove to be helpful in the monitoring of stem cell proliferation or disease progression. Scientists have been able to use other techniques like nuclear magnetic resonance to study clusters of cells. However, now they have the ability to study the actions of single cells. The technique uses absorption spectroscopy on a nano-scale. Researchers found that Cytochrome c (a protein involved in cell matabolixm and cell death) has an optical absorption peak of about 550 nm. By introducing gold nano-particles about 20-30 nm long, and knowing that gold particles oscillate at specific frequencies in response to light, the scientists were able to detect overlaps in absorption peaks of cytochrome c and the resonant frequency of the gold paticles. This overlap enables scientists to determine whether or not energy is exchanged between the protein and the particles and thereby model the reaction. This new technique to study biochemical processes of the cell is much more effective than the old technique which cut throught the outermembrane, thereby killing the cell. This new procedure is extremely exciting and looks to be an important step in the advancement of nanotechnology and molecular medicine.

http://www.physorg.com/news114707171.html

Allergies may protect against brain cancer

A recent research in New York has found that a history of allergies may reduce the risk of a particular type of brain tumor called glioma. At this time, very little is known about what actually causes glioma. An inverse association however between allergy and the risk of glioma has been observed. Researchers have conducted a study to quantify the association between asthma, eczema, or allergy and a medically confirmed diagnosis of glioma or another type of brain tumor called meningioma.

The research results showed that the relative risk of glioma was actually much lower in those with a history of allergy, asthma, or eczema, compared to those with no history of allergic disease. However, there was no overall significant association between allergy and meningioma. This may have been because the information on this disease was limited.

There are several possible reasons why allergies might offer protection against brain cancer. One factor has to do with immune factors that are involved in or predispose people to allergies might play a role. It is also possible that medications for these conditions could offer some protection. Other factors including some that are not involved with the immune system may also affect the risk.

To learn more about this story, visit: http://www.revolutionhealth.com/news/?id=reut-20071102elin032

Cancer Drug Works By Overactivating Cancer Gene

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/89500.php

Researchers at the University of Michigan have stumbled upon a new and promising cancer drug called bortezomib. This drug is able to fight against melanoma tumor cells by revving up the action of a cancer promoting cell. The idea is to instigate the cancer promoting cell so much that it goes into overdrives, and eventually self-destructs, also known as apoptosis. Researchers believe that this new idea of fighting cancer is very promising compared to the other treatments, which involve stopping the cancer promoting cells instead. The other cancer treatments aim to block specific oncogenes. Scientists know that these oncogenes have the power to both cause tumor cells to divide rapidly and instigate cell suicide. So instead of attacking these oncogenes from the other side, researchers started promoting these genes even more in hopes of having these oncogenes promote cell death, instead of cell division. This is very exciting because it not only helps fight cancer from a different way, but it also decreases the amount of toxins released in your body--something that cancer treatments currently are dealing with. Clinical trials of this drug are under way at the University of Michigan, as well as around the country.

I found this article interesting because I am very interested in the subject of cancer and it amazes me that they are getting closer and closer to curing this terrible disease everyday. The type of cancer that was emphasized in this article is melanoma, a very serious cancer that not many people recover from. I find it very fascinating that researchers at the University of Michigan have come so close to curing a very serious cancer just by looking out of the box and trying a completely different technique than what is currently used. The techniques that these scientists are using this fight this cancer is very unique and it shows how creative scientists need to be in order to cure something as serious and complicated as cancer. I find it very interesting how the minds of today are getting so close to curing so many serious diseases and advancing on so many current treatments.

Philips' remote control pill may cure your allergies

Remote-controlled pill

Many different mecahnisms have been developed to deliver varying levels of medication. Patches, time-released pills, gas-propelled injections, and coated pills all utilize different timing mechanisms to deliver medication where and when it is needed. However, the timing mechanisms may not work based on diet, varying body structure/metabolism/enzyme activity.

Phillips has created a remote-controlled pill that can house a drug that can then be released at varying times/levels via an electronic signal. The pill's migration throughout the body is monitored by MRI/ultrasound.

The pill can also be manipulated to release based on a chemical trigger from an environmental factor such as the achievement of a certain pH, or a certain blood pressure rate. The intent is to make a disposable/recyclable drug delivery system that could surpass the usability of the normal pill form.

http://appft1.uspto.gov/...

Avastin may prove to be a leader in fighting Brain Cancer

Researchers conducting phase II trials of Avastin for the treatment of the most aggressive type of brain cancer, glioblastoma multiforme. Avastin has been approved by the FDA to be used for treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer and several types of lung cancer. Avastin is a drug known as a monoclonal antibody that inhibits the growth of tumours by blocking the production of new blood vessels that the tumor needs to survive. This drug which has been described as a "blockbuster" was one of the first angiogenesis inhibitors available in the USA. Phase II of the trials consisted of administering Avastin alone, or coupled with irinotecan chemotherapy in a randomized manner over a 6 month period showed that 36 percent treated with Avastin alone, and 51 percent treated with Avastin had experienced progression-free survival. Progression-free survial is described as the "absence of any event of cancer progression or death" which was significant given that historically only 15 percent of patients from this type of cancer experienced progression-free survival. The researchers are now undertaking steps to discuss these results with the FDA in order to advance in the next steps to get this drug administered to more patients. I find this article fascinating because it shows real promise and advance in the fight against cancer. The drug avastin, although experiencing a small amount of side effects, seems like a less of a brute force method to attacking cancer when compared against common chemotherapy techniques. When scientist and doctors can cure cancer with minimizing the effects of the quality of life on the patient that is when real progress is made.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/89186.php

Furthering Understanding Of Brain Function, Carnegie Mellon Neuroscientist Proposes New Theory Of Brain Flexibility

Some researchers have been tempted to conclude that a simple one-to-one relationship exists between high-level mental tasks and brain areas. However, Carnegie Mellon University neuroscientist Marcel Just and Stanford postdoctoral fellow Sashank Varma have shown that this is not the case. They propose the brain acts as a collaborating network, with several areas of the brain constantly adapting themselves to the task at hand based on the brain's own resources and biological limitations. This teamwork of the parts of the brain has been compared to members of a sports team whose players substitute in and out of the action. Their theory, called 4CAPS (an acronym for Capacity Constrained Concurrent Cortical Activation-based Production System), proposes a decentralized process by which members of the cortical team volunteer themselves when their strengths are called for, but also permits less efficient but capable members to step forward when the primary player is injured or disabled, as might occur as a result of a stroke. This has been used to predict which areas of the brain will become activated to replace the function of damaged regions. For instance, if a stroke causes damage to the Bronca's area-- which is located in the left prefrontal cortex and is involved in language processing -- the corresponding site on the right side of the brain often becomes activated during language processing, even within hours after a stroke. This dynamic allocation mechanism allows brain areas to volunteer themselves on a moment-by-moment basis, and provides an explanation for why semi-dormant brain regions become activated after injury to other areas of the brain. 4CAPS provides a framework for scientists and medical researchers to better understand nascent topics in neuroscience, such as how brain areas communicate and collaborate with one another during the thought process and how this can go awry.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/89022.php

Body Fat is Linked to Six Types of Cancer

We've all been told, "too much of anything is bad for you." The same is true of body fat. This Los Angeles Times article documents the work of the American Institute for Cancer Research's findings that relate body fat to cancer. It is known that excess body fat affects the levels of hormones and cell growth factors. Additionally, excess body fat is characterized by a low-grade chronic inflammatory state where the fat is localized, thus promoting or encouraging the growth of cancer. The report, found at www.dietandcancerreport.org, provides evidence connecting the growth of excess body fat to cancers of the esophagus, pancreas, kidneys and endometrium, colon and rectum, breasts of post-menopausal women.

Various recommendations are made as to how improving dietary, physical, and behavioral aspects of one's life will reduce body fat. Interestingly for steak-eaters, "Once an individual reaches the 18-ounce weekly limit for red meat, every additional 1.7 ounces consumed a day increases cancer risk by 15%." Therefore, too much of anything is bad for you.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-cancer31oct31,0,4739640.story?coll=la-home-center

Brainbow

Neuroscientists at Harvard have developed a way of fluorescently lighting up the brains of mice with up to 90 different shades of colors. They inserted a string of four color producing genes which were all controlled by a genetic system called Cre/ lox.
The system was designed to randomly promote the expression of just one of the four color genes. Then multiple copies of this string of genes and the control system were inserted into the genome of mouse embryonic stem cells. The stem cells were used to make transgenic mice, whose brain’s cells lit up in different colors based on the random mixture of colors being picked to be expressed in each cell. Each color string has the ability to express one of four colors of fluorescent proteins: yellow, red, cyan, and either orange or green. Thus when multiple copies of the string are put into one cells, it could result in a lot of red, and a little blue and a little green, resulting in a distinct shade.
This new visualization technique is exciting because the connections between neurons can be seen more clearly. The brain cells are intertwined so much that tracking which cells connect with which other cells before was essentially impossible. Karel Svoboda, a neuroscientist explains the possibilities of the new technique this way, “Brainbow will allow you to trace neuronal circuits over long distances — maybe across centimeters of tissue. You can see how different neuronal circuits relate to each other in the same animal."
I think that this research is particularly exciting because it could give rise to a better understanding of which areas communicate with each other and will show if there are consistent pathways or connections made by the same neuron in different mice. It might show a connection between areas of the brain that were not known before, giving insight into how different signals are processed to yield the various responses. I think this technique could someday be used to show how the brain cells develop and intertwine with each other as the brain develops, if it is possible to take multiple pictures of the fluorescent colors over time. The technology could also be used in neurological diseases like Alzheimer’s disease, where plaque is interfering with the connections being made between individual cells.

http://www.nature.com/news/2007/071031/full/news.2007.209.html

Fountain of Youth For Your Heart?

A healthy heart will use a combination of fat and sugar for energy so that the heart can beat efficiently. Researchers have found that if the heart does not use fat for energy and mainly uses sugar, heart function could increase for a longer period of time. This is due to the fact that fat accumulates when it is transported into the heart cells. If the fat is blocked from transporting to the cells, there will be no fat to accumulate and cause a decrease in heart function.

In the study, mice were genetically engineered to lack the protein responsible for transporting fat into heart cells. This means that the mice had to use sugar as their primary energy source. As the mice aged, they did not accumulate fat in their heart cells like ordinary mice did. Also, the old, genetically engineered mice performed better on a treadmill test than ordinary old mice did. The old, genetically engineered mice had heart function similar to that of young mice.

These findings show exciting potential for drugs to improve human heart function as age becomes a factor. The drugs would inhibit the protein responsible for transporting fat into the cells of the heart that use it for energy. This drug could prevent and could also possibly reverse the effects of aging on the heart.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071102111949.htm

Newt protein may offer clues for human regeneration

Scientists have discovered a protein in newts that allows them to regrow severed limbs. Previous to this finding, it was known that salamanders and newts have the ability to renew damaged body parts, but it was unclear how they do it. The identified protein, nAG, is present in nerve and skin cells and plays a “role in producing a clump of immature cells, known as a blastema, which regrows the missing part.” Scientists were able to coax regeneration even when a nerve was severed below the stump tip by artificially making the cells produce the nAG protein. This ability of newts means they are capable of manipulating their bodies by turning cells into undifferentiated stem cells and then back into mature tissue again.

I found this article interesting since this finding may offer clues for limb regeneration in humans. Understanding how newts regrow severed limbs does not necessarily mean though, that the same process would allow humans to regrow lost arms or legs.

http://www.reuters.com/articlePrint?articleId=USL2950765720071101

Brain Abnormalities Found in 1 in 8 Healthy People

By Gene Emery

BOSTON (Reuters) - Thirteen percent of healthy adults were found to have some type of undiagnosed -- but likely harmless -- abnormality in the brain, according to a Dutch study published on Wednesday.

The research, led by Meike Vernooij of the Erasmus MC University Medical Center in Rotterdam, is important because brain scans are becoming more common and more detailed, and doctors need to know whether to be concerned if they stumble onto something unexpected.

Vernooij and colleagues looked at MRI scans of 2,000 volunteers over the age of 45. Magnetic resonance imaging or MRI can give a detailed picture of physical brain structures.


http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN3132323720071031?sp=true


Just over 7 percent showed evidence of a brain clot, but the clots were too small to produce symptoms and seemed to be more common with age.

Nearly 2 percent had a brain aneurysm, which is a bulge in a blood vessel that can burst if it becomes too big, causing a stroke. But 32 of the 35 aneurysms were so small, the researchers did not suggest follow-up medical treatment.

The younger volunteers were just as likely to have them as older ones.

The scans also uncovered 32 tumors. All but one were benign.

Thirteen people had more than one abnormality, Aad van der Lugt, another member of the team, said.

As MRI scans become more sensitive, they "will probably increase the number of small brain abnormalities detected" and doctors will need to know which ones can be safely ignored, the researchers wrote in the New England Journal of Medicine.

"Unfortunately, we know little of the natural course of these asymptomatic findings," Van der Lugt wrote in an e-mail.

"It may well be that the clinical course and relevance of these unexpected asymptomatic findings differ from those of similar symptomatic findings for which persons seek medical treatment," he added.

Tracking such "incidental" abnormalities "will hopefully provide more information on this that will be useful for both researchers and clinicians," he said.


http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN3132323720071031?sp=true

Short-Circuiting Depression with Vagus Nerve Stimulation

Patients with severe depression that doesn't respond to conventional treatments now have a new hope.

(illustration by Cyberonics, Inc.)




As we learned Wednesday, depression can be a serious neurological condition that is often unresponsive to medications and traditional treatments. Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) therapy has been offered as a treatment for patients who don't respond to other treatments. It was originally discovered in the waning years of the 20th century when many epilepsy patients who had these implanable pacemaker-like devices stimulating their vagus nerve refused to have it removed even when it wasn't improving their epilepsy ... because it did improve their moods. Several clinical studies have pointed to the efficacy of VNS therapy for severe depression when other treatments have failed (the FDA stipulates that at least 4 other types of treatment have failed before it is used). Even though VNS isn't a cure-all (only about 50% of patients who use it respond), for those who it does help, it can be a life-saver, as one patient who testified to the FDA review board of her own volition and at her own expense will say. This patient underwent multiple chemical therapies, and even the dreaded electroconvulsive therapy -- which wiped 20 years of her memory -- yet still lived trapped in a prison of depression and horror until she took part in the clinical study using VNS therapy. Although the studies performed and results obtained wouldn't normally pass the FDA, this patient's testimony, and the relatively trivial side effects (such as inducing a gravelly voice during pulsation) allowed it to slip through.


Although it is not clearly understood how VNS therapy works, it is known that the vagus nerve is one of the primary pathways between the major organs and the brain. The device is much like a pacemaker, but instead of the electrical lead going to the heart, the end of the lead is wrapped around the vagus nerve, providing electrical pulses. The device can be re-programmed or turned off by a magnetic wand that is held over the implantation site.


Electrical stimuli to the vagus nerve transmits electrical pulses to regions of the brain involved in mood regulation, and it is hypothesized that this causes the production or activity of neurotransmitters, including serotonin and norepinephrine.



Explanation of how VNS therapy works from Cyberonics (the company that developed and manufactures the VNS therapy device) -- this is where the video came from :) http://www.vnstherapy.com/depression/whatisvnstherapy/howitworks.asp
News article on VNS therapy.
http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2007/05/nerve
Article discussing FDA approval of VNS therapy (and another type of therapy) -- includes the full testimony of the patient mentioned in this post ... very touching!
http://www.mcmanweb.com/article-17.htm



Video from http://www.vnstherapy.com/