The efficacy of duct tape vs cryotherapy in the tr... [Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2002] - PubMed result The Most Dangerous Drug A new study in The Lancet rates the harmfulness of 20 psychoactive drugs according to 16 criteria and finds that alcohol comes out on top. Although that conclusion is generating headlines, it is not at all surprising, since alcohol is, by several important measures (including acute toxicity, impairment of driving ability, and the long-term health effects of heavy use), the most dangerous widely used intoxicant, and its abuse is also associated with violence, family breakdown, and social estrangement. A group of British drug experts gathered by the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs (ISCD) rated alcohol higher than most or all of the other drugs for health damage, mortality, impairment of mental functioning, accidental injury, economic cost, loss of relationships, and negative impact on community. Over all, alcohol rated 72 points on a 100-point scale, compared to 55 for heroin, 54 for crack cocaine, and 33 for methamphetamine. [Thanks to Terry Michael for the tip.]
Scientists find chemical that could make superhealing possible Scientists from Osaka University and King's College London have identified an incredible new chemical that prompts the body's stem cells to flock en masse to the site of a skin wound, allowing it to heal at an accelerated rate, reports the BBC. The finding could lead to new breakthroughs in the field of regenerative medicine, essentially revolutionizing how medical professionals treat wounds. The chemical, simply called HMGB1, works as a catalyst that awakens stem cells idling in the body's bone marrow, summoning them directly to the targeted wound. Researchers liken the process to that of a "megaphone going off in the system." "It could have a very big impact on treating people with rare genetic illnesses and more common problems such as burns and ulcers," said professor John McGrath, one of the study's authors. The discovery has also shed light on the role that bone marrow plays in healing the skin.
How Fructose Impairs the Memory Americans consume more fructose than ever before, yet concerns remain that the sugar, used to sweeten beverages and processed foods, poses health risks. In animals, fructose-rich diets increase the production of fat and promote resistance to the energy-regulating hormone insulin. New research suggests that memory suffers as well, at least in rats. Neuroscientist Marise B. Two days after the training ended, Parent’s group removed the pool’s platform and recorded where the rats—now adults—swam. Another research group has shown in hamsters that insulin resistance can affect the hippocampus, a part of the brain critical for learning and remembering facts and events. Note: This article was originally printed with the title, "Forget the Fructose."
Carbon nanotubes prove useful in cancer cure treatment Houston (TX) - Medical researchers at the MD Anderson Cancer Center and Rice University have discovered that carbon nanotubes can be used to cure cancer! So far the process has only been tested on animals, but the tumors were completely destroyed with only minimal damage to surrounding tissue. The treatment involved four rabbits that were given liver tumors. The researchers found that the heat killed the cancer cells without any significant side effects. Our scientists continue to find more and more uses for carbon nanotubes.
Nanotech Could Make Humans Immortal By 2040, Futurist Says CIO Computerworld — In 30 or 40 years, we'll have microscopic machines traveling through our bodies, repairing damaged cells and organs, effectively wiping out diseases. The nanotechnology will also be used to back up our memories and personalities. In an interview with Computerworld , author and futurist Ray Kurzweil said that anyone alive come 2040 or 2050 could be close to immortal. That may sound like something out of a sci-fi movie, but Kurzweil, a member of the Inventor's Hall of Fame and a recipient of the National Medal of Technology, says that research well underway today is leading to a time when a combination of nanotechnology and biotechnology will wipe out cancer, Alzheimer's disease , obesity and diabetes . It'll also be a time when humans will augment their natural cognitive powers and add years to their lives, Kurzweil said. "It's radical life extension," Kurzweil said . Continue Reading
This cancer cure will make you sick Color-enhanced scanning electron micrograph showing Salmonella typhimurium (red) invading cultured human cells. Credit: Rocky Mountain Laboratories, NIAID, NIH SYDNEY: Treating tumours with Salmonella bacteria induces an immune response that effectively kills cancer cells, Italian scientists announced. This research could lead to that holy grail of modern medicine: a cure for cancer. “We demonstrated that it is possible … to generate immunotherapy protocols that are effective in controlling the growth of established tumours or in vaccinating against tumours,” said co-author Maria Rescigno of the study published in Science Translational Medicine. Invisible cancer cells The body’s natural immune responses are often able to detect and destroy early cancer cells. Salmonella bacteria cause illnesses such as typhoid fever and the food-bourn disease salmonellosis. A team of Italian scientists have demonstrated that an injection of Salmonella bacteria into tumours can render them ‘visible’ again.
New Bacteria-Killing Light Can Destroy Superbugs With the Flip of a Switch Sterilization is hands down one of the most important technologies ever developed by mankind, but though we've known how to do battle with bacterial pathogens in places like the operating room for decades, superbugs like MRSA and Clostridium difficile persist in hospital environments, often causing serious medical complications. But now, researchers at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow have devised a novel means to drive dangerous pathogens to cell suicide by simply bathing them in a pleasant violet light. Light-based sterilization is nothing new – ultraviolet light can do a number on pathogens, though it also does damage to humans – but the new method uses a narrow spectrum of visible, harmless light wavelengths known as HINS (High Intensity, Narrow Spectrum) light to do the trick. HINS light excites molecules within bacteria such that they produce a chemically lethal response, in essence pushing bacteria to kill themselves. And what of the violet hue?
The gel that stops bleeding instantly This video is a bit gruesome, but it is demonstrating a remarkable substance that can stop bleeding almost instantaneously. Jack Millner of Humans Invent interviewed NYU student Joe Landolina, the creator of Veti-Gel. "In all of our tests we found we were able to immediately stop bleeding,” says Landolina. “Your skin has this thing called the extracellular matrix,” he explains. The gel that stops bleeding instantly
10 Most Useful Medicinal Plants For Your Garden Would you like to create your very own backyard pharmacy by growing medicinal plants? There’s no better way to use whatever extra space you have at home than to create a garden space where you can grow medicinal plants. In fact, even if you live in an apartment setting, you can create a windowsill garden where you can grow medicinal plants. This is especially useful if you have little kids running around in the house who can acquire a burn, a shallow wound, a sore or strike up a fever. Basically, the medicinal plants to grow in your very own little garden space should be ones with the most number of medicinal values. Factors that You Need to Consider when Growing Medicinal Plants in a Garden Before giving out the top 10 medicinal plants that you can grow in your very own garden, here are a few tips to get you started. First, check on the area where you plan to grow the medicinal plants in. 1. If there’s one medicinal plant which has 101 uses, that is none other than aloe vera. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Pushing black-hole mergers to the extreme: Scientists achieve 100:1 mass ratio in simulation Scientists have simulated, for the first time, the merger of two black holes of vastly different sizes, with one mass 100 times larger than the other. This extreme mass ratio of 100:1 breaks a barrier in the fields of numerical relativity and gravitational wave astronomy. Until now, the problem of simulating the merger of binary black holes with extreme size differences had remained an unexplored region of black-hole physics. "Nature doesn't collide black holes of equal masses," says Carlos Lousto, associate professor of mathematical sciences at Rochester Institute of Technology and a member of the Center for Computational Relativity and Gravitation. "They have mass ratios of 1:3, 1:10, 1:100 or even 1:1 million. "Leaders in the field believed solving the 100:1 mass ratio problem would take five to 10 more years and significant advances in computational power. A paper announcing Lousto and Zlochower's findings was submitted for publication in Physical Review Letters.
The List Blog 10. Charles Bonnet Syndrome Charles Bonnet syndrome is a condition that causes patients with visual lossto have complex visual hallucinations. Sufferers understand that the hallucinations are not real. 9. Hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia is literally defined as the "fear of thenumber six hundred sixty-six (666).” 8. Möbius syndrome is an extremely rare neurological disorder which ischaracterized by facial paralysis and the inability to move the eyes from sideto side. 7. Alien hand syndrome is an unusual neurological disorder where one of thepatient's hands takes on a life of its own. 6. Trimethylaminuria or fish odor syndrome is a rare metabolic disorder thatcauses a defect in the normal production of the enzyme FMO3. 5. 4. The Capgras delusion is a disorder in which a person holds the belief that afriend, spouse, parent or other close family member has been replaced byan identical-looking impostor. A similar condition is Fregoli delusion. 3. 2. 1. One More Target Fixation
Key enzyme that regulates the early growth of breast cancer cells identified New University of Georgia research, published this week in the early online edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, has found that blocking the action of an enzyme called GnT-V significantly delays the onset and spread of tumors in mice with cancer very similar to many cases of human breast cancer. When the GnT-V enzyme activity in the cells was increased in mammary gland cells, they increased proliferation and began to take on many characteristics of cancer cells. Using a mouse model of human breast cancer, tumors appeared when the enzyme was deleted, but onset was delayed an average of 10 weeks in the mice. "In human terms," said Michael Pierce, director of the UGA Cancer Center and study co-author, "the corresponding delay would be many months and maybe years. You basically are slowing everything down and keeping the cancer from forming and progressing very early." Pierce likened the cancerous stem cells to the queen of an ant colony.
Gene for Left-Handed Trait Discovered August 1, 2007 The gene most closely linked to left-handedness has been found, experts announced this week. The gene, called LRRTM1, is also associated with a slight increase in developing certain mental illnesses such as schizophrenia. Clyde Francks is lead author of a new study on the gene and a visiting fellow at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics at Oxford University. For right-handed people, he said, the right side of the brain usually controls emotion, while the left side of the brain tends to control speech and language. (Related: "First Ever Brain 'Atlas' Completed" [September 26, 2006].) In left-handers—about 10 percent of the world's population—the pattern is usually reversed. "We think that this gene affects the symmetry of the brain," Francks said. Brain asymmetry is also a factor in schizophrenia, a mental disorder that affects about one in a hundred people worldwide and results in impaired perception and severe behavioral changes. Finding Symmetry