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CBS -- In the new poll, the public gives the Democrats a big edge over the Republicans on handling health care issues. Asked which party they believe will best improve the health care system, 62 percent said the Democrats, while just 19 percent said the Republicans.
NYT 2 March 2007 --A majority of Americans say the federal government should guarantee health insurance to every American, especially children, and are willing to pay higher taxes to do it, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll. ... access to affordable health care is at the top of the public's domestic agenda, ranked far more important than immigration, cutting taxes or promoting traditional values.
posted by Bill at 5:55 AM
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Boost for BTG as Campath moves into PhIII for MS
Pharma Times (subscription) - London,UK
British-based BTG received more good news this week regarding Campath after its licensee, Genzyme Corp, and Bayer Schering Pharma AG announced they had ...
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New Zealand backing for Tysabri
RTE.ie - Ireland
Elan and partner Biogen said today their drug Tysabri has been approved in New Zealand for treatment of the relapsing remitting form of multiple sclerosis. ...
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What are CFDs
Irish Independent - Dublin,Ireland
... a favourite CFD punt among Irish investors, plummeted after it temporarily withdrew its Tysabri multiple sclerosis treatment from the market.
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Health BRIEFS
McKinney Courier-Gazette Fri, 28 Sep 2007 11:12 PM PDT
The Multiple Sclerosis Support Group will meet at 7 p.m. Monday at the Medical Center of McKinney Wysong Campus, 130 S. Central Expressway, in Classroom 1.
posted by Bill at 5:17 AM
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| Society > Disabled > Arts > Music | Go to Directory Home |
| Categories |
| United Kingdom (16) |
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  | Canadian Association for Music Therapy - http://www.musictherapy.ca/ Promotes awareness, use and development of music therapy in order to maximize health and well-being. (Canada) |
| | Coalition for Disabled Musicians, Inc. - http://www.disabled-musicians.org/ CDM, Inc. is a non-profit, self-help organization dedicated to assisting disabled musicians to pursue their musical aspirations. Our local site is on Long Island, NY and offers a National Referral Service for disabled musicians worldwide. |
| | Van Gogh - Atlanta-based band - http://www.vangoghmusic.com/ Psychedelia, rock'n'roll, pop, funk and more from the band lead by the Heisner brothers Robby and Ricky from their super-fast, eye-popping, yellow and black, racing striped powered wheelchairs. |
| | The Savant Academy - http://www.savantacademy.org/ Supporting the education of musical and artistic savants, as well as research into and awareness of Savant Syndrome. |
| | Special Music by Special People - http://www.specialmusic.org Compact discs, mp-3 and quicktime music projects available at the site that feature music composed by people with developmental disabilites and other challenges. |
| | Disabled Drummers Association - http://www.disableddrummers.org/ Dedicated to serving drummers with disabilites and helping them to be a positive part of the music industry, as well as to help change the way the disabled musicians are viewed and treated in the industry today. |
| | HandiDrummed - http://www.handidrummed.com/ A website for disabled drummers. We offer drummer profile pages, articles, product information, and links. |
| | Connie Deming - http://www.conniedeming.com/ Singer songwriter from Rochester, NY who performs music inspired by her experience with autism and love for her autistic son. |
| | Flutelab ergonomy and adaptations - http://www.flutelab.com Ergonomical aspects of flutes and many adaptations of wind instruments for people with disabilities. Large photo archive. Company is in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. |
| | Tony Melendez - http://www.tonymelendez.com Successful toe-pickin' guitar player and vocalist.Born without arms and a club foot, The sound of hope and courage to the world! |
| | Metro Music Therapy - http://www.metromusictherapy.com A private music therapy practice with an emphasis on working in collaboration with therapists and professionals (Glendale, Colorado) |
| | Carolina Music Therapy - http://www.carolinamusictherapy.com/ Music therapy agency providing sessions to individuals and groups with a wide range of strengths and needs. (Raleigh, NC) |
| | Andrew Hewitt - http://www.drummerstix.com.au "The Man behind the Stix," a drummer born with Cerebral Palsy living in Sydney, Australia. |
| | musical ARC - http://www.musicalarc.com/ A group of musicians, with and without impairments based in Leeds, UK. This site contains music downloads, and a concert diary. |
| | Arts For Healing, Inc. - http://www.artsforhealing.org/ A non-profit corporation dedicated to providing creative arts therapy services and programs for people with special needs. |
| | Flame - http://www.flamesoftrock.com Flame is a soft rock cover band of musicians with developmental disabilities from Fulton County, New York. |
posted by Bill at 12:06 AM
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Stem cell from bone marrow may hold hope for multiple sclerosis patients
ANI via Yahoo! India News Fri, 28 Sep 2007 3:38 AM PDT
London, September 28 (ANI): Medical practitioners at the Frenchay hospital, near Bristol, are conducting clinical trials with stem cells drawn from patients' own bone marrow to see whether they can travel to damaged parts of the brain and repair them. Tens of thousands of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) may benefit from the treatment if the tests become successful, say the ...
Study of bone marrow stem cells in multiple sclerosis
News-Medical-Net Thu, 27 Sep 2007 6:12 PM PDT
A new pilot clinical trial to test bone marrow stem cell therapy with a small group of patients with multiple sclerosis has started at Frenchay Hospital.
Hope for multiple sclerosis patients
The Times of India Fri, 28 Sep 2007 8:12 AM PDT
LONDON: Medical practitioners at the Frenchay hospital, near Bristol, are conducting clinical trials with stem cells drawn from patients' own bone marrow to see whether they can travel to damaged parts of the brain and repair them.
Stem cell injection trial 'raises hope of MS cure'
Daily Mail Fri, 28 Sep 2007 2:39 AM PDT
A pioneering new treatment which could help thousands of multiple sclerosis suffers "recover" from the incurable disease is being trialled for the first time at a British hospital
Health BRIEFS
McKinney Courier-Gazette Fri, 28 Sep 2007 0:08 AM PDT
The Multiple Sclerosis Support Group will meet at 7 p.m. Monday at the Medical Center of McKinney Wysong Campus, 130 S. Central Expressway, in Classroom 1.
MS treatment Tysabri wins approval in New Zealand
Reuters - USA
I: Quote, Profile, Research) said their drug Tysabri has been approved in New Zealand for treatment of the relapsing remitting form of multiple sclerosis. ...
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Risk-Averse Behavior Entrenched at FDA
Genetic Engineering News (press release) - New Rochelle,NY,USA
... warnings on the labels of antidepressants and the discovery of previously unknown adverse reactions to NSAIDs and the multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri. ...
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Opexa Says Its Safety Board Recommends For Continuation Of Phase ...
RTT News - Williamsville,NY,USA
... Texas - based Opexa Therapeutics, Inc. (OPXA) said its Data Safety Monitoring Board has not recorded any safety issues with Phase IIb study of Tovaxin ...
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Hope for multiple sclerosis patients
Times of India - India
LONDON: Medical practitioners at the Frenchay hospital, near Bristol, are conducting clinical trials with stem cells drawn from patients' own bone marrow to ...
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Oprah Winfrey Talks To Michael Moore About Sicko And Health Care ...
Best Syndication - Pinon Hills,CA,USA
A comment came from a former hospital CEO, William Blaine of Minnesota, who said "I retired early because I had Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and could no longer ...
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News in Brief
Times Online - UK
A pioneering new treatment that could help thousands of multiple sclerosis sufferers to "recover" from the incurable disease is being tested for the first ...
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A TREATMENT which could halt the effects of multiple sclerosis is ...
Glasgow Daily Record - Glasgow,Scotland,UK
Patients are being injected with bone marrow stem cells, which it's hoped will repair damaged areas of the brain and spinal cord and "reverse" their ...
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posted by Bill at 5:13 AM
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posted by Bill at 3:58 PM
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| Riley's last day with the landscaping company is Friday. | |
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| Riley thinks the physical demands of his job caused his tremors to come back. | |
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posted by Bill at 12:40 PM
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Cloning. Stem cells. Regenerative medicine. These are terms you may have heard or read about in the news over the last decade.
For students in Stem Cells and Cloning taught by Visiting Professor of Biology Bill Anderson, these are topics they will be examining first hand — literally. They will perform experiments most undergraduates just read about. Some of the laboratory exercises include splitting flatworms to observe re-growth of entire body parts and instructing mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells to develop into specialized tissue.
This type of laboratory work is rarely done in undergraduate biology courses. In fact, according to Anderson and Biology Professor Scott Gilbert, Stem Cells and Cloning is the first course of its kind to be offered with a laboratory component involving hands on work with ES cells at the undergraduate level.
The moral, ethical and political implications of cloning and stem cell research have received a substantial amount of media attention, continuing to be subjects of heated debate. The actual science of stem cells and cloning, which is the focus of this new course, has not been a prominent topic in public discourse.
“It’s important to have students get an understanding of what is currently known in the field, separating the science from the hype, and have a true understanding of what the potential for this type of work is,” said Anderson.
Anderson is replacing Gilbert who is currently on-leave. He recently completed his doctorate in biochemistry from the department of molecular and cellular biology at Harvard University.
Anderson previously helped create a class on stem cells and cloning at Harvard in 2004, which was, to his knowledge, one of the first undergraduate courses on stem cell research. However, it did not include a laboratory component. Gilbert said that other institutions in the country have offered similar courses involving laboratory work with other types of stem cells such as from the bone, but none include ES cells.
“It excited me that there isn’t a textbook for this subject yet because the research is so new; all we read is primary literature. I just thought that was really intriguing,” said Macy Kozar ’10, a student in the course. Anderson is currently writing a textbook on stem cells and cloning for use in undergraduate and graduate courses.
“Plus, you hear about it all the time and I felt embarrassed as a biology person to not understand what people were talking about,” Kozar said.
“It’s a topic of great current scientific and ethical interest. And we feel like it’s important to educate ourselves and our students about the biology behind what’s going on,” said Biology Department Chair Sara Hiebert Burch.
Many within the scientific community have expressed their objection to reproductive cloning. Therapeutic cloning, however, which involves cloning cells, and not entire organisms, is another matter.
Scientists continue to look to stem cells in the hopes that they might one day be used to treat diseases such as Parkinson’s, Multiple Sclerosis, Alzheimer’s, Type 1 Diabetes and conditions such as spinal cord injuries. According to Anderson, ES cells are obtained from embryos at the blastocyst stage, roughly five and a half days after fertilization in humans and three and a half days after fertilization in mice. This is a critical time in which cells in the embryo are able to form into any type of tissue in the body. This creates the potential for growing cells genetically identical to a patient’s original cells that are affected by disease or injury.
Therapeutic cloning might also be able to aid in the development of models of a certain diseases in order to take steps toward preventing it. “By the time the patient is diagnosed, many of the cells that are affected are gone. You can’t really study what is happening in the initial stages of the disease, the middle stage and the
end stage,” said Anderson. He said that therapeutic cloning not only entails growing replacement cells, but it might be able to generate a cell-based model to help understand how certain diseases progress. “I think this will be a really powerful way to attack some of these diseases.”
ES cell research is, however, still in its infancy, and is also surrounded by many ethical controversies.
The potential to treat many people is a compelling reason for supporting human ES cell research, but it is also highly controversial because it involves the destruction of human embryos. This raises questions such as when human life begins. Scientific, theological and philosophical perspectives present many different viewpoints on this ancient question.
“I think the probability with [ES cell research] is that you’re inevitably going to make an industry out of creating human embryos through cloning in order to get the stem cells,” said Patrick Tiedemann ’08, a member of the Swarthmore Students Supporting Life group. “There’s definitely going to be a price on them because of the scientific research and the money that goes into that. I think it trivializes and puts in danger the value of life.”
“When you start to realize that embryos are going to have a cash value on them, there’s inevitably going to be women who will want to sell embryos for money.
That would have to be something that has to be watched out for. It’s an exploitation of the ability of women to
harbor these embryos,” he said. “I think that what’s
really cool is that there are adult stem cells which have yielded therapeutic results. In that sense, you’re
not cloning human embryos, something that can potentially become human. You’re just using stem cells that are naturally in humans, in umbilical cords and other parts of the adult body … You’re not artificially creating them.”
According to Anderson, adult stem (AS) cells, otherwise referred to as tissue-specific stem cells, are found throughout the adult body, such as the skin and in blood. While these cells do not have the ability to form all of the different cell types present in the body, they do play important roles in maintaining tissues in the adult. The course will evaluate, among other topics, the advantages and disadvantages of ES versus AS cells.
In the lab, students will work hands–on with mice ES cells that have been isolated from early stage mice embryos. They will see how the mice ES cells grow and differentiate on their own to observe how they generate special cell types. Later, they will allow the ES cells to differentiate into specialized tissue in the presence of certain signals.
Studying functions in simpler organisms might contribute to a better understanding of human biology. They will also work with planaria, a species of non-parasitic flatworms with a strong regenerating capacity. According to Anderson, students will conduct Thomas Hunt Morgan’s historical experiment splitting the planaria and observing the phenomenon in which they regenerate entire missing body parts. Anderson said they will delve into questions such as what types of signals are responsible for instructing the worm to do this and why planaria have this regenerating capacity that humans, except for the ability to regenerate parts of the liver, do not have.
Burch said, “In [the biology department], we never ask a student to do anything that they are uncomfortable with. And if they are taking a class and a part of it is uncomfortable for them, they are more than free to say, ‘this is not something that I feel I can participate in’ and we’re happy to provide an alternative activity or something else. As long as they learn the intellectual content then that’s considered fine.”
Given the ethical and political ramifications surrounding stem cell research, the course includes an ethics and public policy lecture later in the semester to open up the discussion about various ethical perspectives and to help students form their own informed opinions.
“So far, it’s been historical studies that have been done in the field. Thus far, I haven’t gotten the chance to delve into the issues that really question my ethical values. But I really hope that the class does because that is a really pertinent issue,” said Mark Mai ’09, a biology major in the course. I think eventually there is going to come a point when I’ll probably have to take a stance on whether or not all this stem cell controversy really bothers me.”
For Anderson, given that this is such a publicly contested issue, the main goal for the course is for students to be able to explain the science and then come to their own conclusions.
Reverend Joyce Tompkins, Swarthmore’s Protestant Religious Advisor said she supports the goals of the course. “Stem cell research and cloning offer great promise for future healing and should definitely be taught to Swarthmore students preparing for careers in the biological sciences,” she said in an e-mail.
“But students should always be taught to think deeply about the ethical implications of this work. Ethical or moral intelligence is just as important to a Swarthmore education as is factual knowledge. This is not an either/or proposition, nor an easy answer, but a balancing act, searching for the greatest good.”
posted by Bill at 10:57 AM
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Fort Wayne MS Patient Back from China
WANE - Ft Wayne,IN,USA
... Mikey Riley, 20, traveled to China for a controversial stem cell treatment in hopes of stopping the progression of his multiple sclerosis (MS). ...
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Genzyme begins phase 3 trials of Campath for MS
Boston Globe - United States
Genzyme Corp. of Cambridge and German partner Bayer Schering Pharma AG said they have begun phase 3 trials of their cancer drug Campath to treat multiple ...
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Elan "add"
newratings.com - USA
Both these companies expect to file for the marketing approval of Campath for multiple sclerosis in 2011, the analyst says. The progress of Campath has been ...
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Health BRIEFS
McKinney Courier-Gazette Thu, 27 Sep 2007 0:07 AM PDT
The Multiple Sclerosis Support Group will meet at 7 p.m. Monday at the Medical Center of McKinney Wysong Campus, 130 S. Central Expressway, in Classroom 1.
Genzyme And Bayer Schering Pharma AG, Germany Announce Start Of Phase 3 Program With Alemtuzumab For Treatment Of ...
Medical News Today Thu, 27 Sep 2007 1:13 AM PDT
Genzyme Corporation (Nasdaq: GENZ) and Bayer Schering Pharma AG, Germany announced that the first patient has been treated in the first of two planned Phase 3 trials examining the safety and efficacy of alemtuzumab for the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS). [click link for full article]
Bike ride to raise money for MS
The State Wed, 26 Sep 2007 9:08 PM PDT
The second annual Savannah River Bike Ride fundraiser for MS is Oct. 20-21 at Savannah Lakes Resort & Marina in McCormick. The two-day, 150-mile ride is sponsored by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Mid-Atlantic Chapter. Cyclists will trek through the back roads of McCormick and Greenwood and along the Savannah River at the South Carolina/Georgia border. There will be rest stops every ..
posted by Bill at 10:34 AM
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Opexa Therapeutics Names Dawn McGuire, Multiple Sclerosis Clinical ...
Trading Markets - Los Angeles,CA,USA
... as we advance our lead product Tovaxin, an autologous vaccine currently in Phase IIb clinical trials for multiple sclerosis, through development."
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Multiple Sclerosis Patients Find Dietary Treatment More Effective Than Pharmaceutical Regimens
Medical News Today Wed, 26 Sep 2007 1:14 AM PDT
MS sufferers, who have found little benefit from drug treatments, are finding success in a diet that targets five food triggers. Sugar and saturated fats also contribute to the disease process. By identifying and eliminating food sensitivities, along with other simple dietary changes, the MS Recovery Diet can halt and reverse symptoms for those afflicted with MS. [click link for full article]
Genzyme and Bayer Schering Pharma AG, Germany Announce Start of Phase 3 Program with Alemtuzumab for Treatment of ...
The San Francisco Examiner Wed, 26 Sep 2007 10:40 AM PDT
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. ( Map ) - Genzyme Corporation (Nasdaq: GENZ ) and Bayer Schering Pharma AG, Germany today announced that the first patient has been treated in the first of two planned Phase 3 trials examining the safety and efficacy of alemtuzumab for the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS).
Gulf veterans need care, panel is told
Miami Herald Wed, 26 Sep 2007 0:12 AM PDT
Sixteen years after the Persian Gulf War ended, more than one in four of those who fought remain seriously ill with medical problems, including severe fatigue and joint pain, Lou Gehrig's disease, multiple sclerosis and brain cancer, the chairman of a congressional advisory committee testified Tuesday.
Campath MS testing moves forward
Boston Globe - United States
Genzyme Corp. of Cambridge and its German partner Bayer Schering Pharma AG appear to be moving closer to seeking approval to use their cancer drug, Campath, ...
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BTG says Campath licensees begin phase III
Hemscott - London,UK
LONDON (Thomson Financial) - BTG PLC said its licensee, Genzyme Corp and Bayer Schering Pharma AG have started phase III trial of Campath (alemtuzumab), ...
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Opexa Therapeutics Names Dawn McGuire, Multiple Sclerosis Clinical ...
RTT News - Williamsville,NY,USA
Commenting on the appointment, Opexa's chief executive officer, David McWilliams said, "Her understanding of clinical trial design and the regulatory ...
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posted by Bill at 12:29 AM
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| Health and science news from UC campuses and labs UC Newswire Tue, 25 Sep 2007 2:07 PM PDT Cell-surface sugar defects may trigger nerve damage in MS patients Sep 20, UCI -- Defects on cell-surface sugars may promote the short-term inflammation and long-term neurodegeneration that occurs in the central nervous system of multiple sclerosis patients, according to UC Irvine researchers. |
posted by Bill at 5:19 PM
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Acorda Therapeutics (Nasdaq: ACOR) has given astute biotech investors the ride of their lives over the last 12 months, with shares shooting up more than eight times their low of $2.22 following the release of positive phase 3 data for its lead drug. The story of that drug goes on, as Acorda yesterday gave an overview at the UBS Global Life Sciences Conference of its progress in getting Fampridine-SR approved for sale.
Acorda is testing its sustained-release version of fampridine as a treatment for improving walking ability in patients with multiple sclerosis. Fampridine-SR is currently in a second phase 3 trial enrolling 200 patients. The trial is a relatively simple eight-week efficacy study with timed 25-foot walk tests as the primary endpoint. Results are expected in mid-2008.
Acorda negotiated a special protocol assessment (SPA) with the FDA for the trial, clearly defining the endpoints that must be achieved, but that doesn't guarantee success with the FDA. Investors in Encysive Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: ENCY) or GPC Biotech (Nasdaq: GPCB) could tell you all about that.
In the previous phase 3 study, which ended in the third quarter of last year, patients were tested for improvements in their 25-foot walk speed over the study's 14-week treatment period. Four times as many patients taking Fampridine-SR saw improvements than those not taking the drug.
While Fampridine-SR may achieve positive efficacy results, investors should watch out for the side-effect profile, as there have been issues with seizures.
Fampridine-SR is interesting because it improves some of the symptoms related to multiple sclerosis, rather than attempting to arrest disease progression, as most drugs do. Also, no data to date suggests it couldn't be used along with existing MS therapies like BETASERON from Bayer (NYSE: BAY) EMD Serono and Pfizer (NYSE: PFE). or Rebif from
The complementary nature of Fampridine-SR means Acorda wouldn't have to compete against the marketing muscle of some of the big-name multiple sclerosis drug sellers. It's also why Acorda is going to try to market the drug itself in the U.S. if the data coming up next year leads to FDA approval in 2009.
posted by Bill at 5:12 PM
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The findings also suggest that a dietary supplement similar to glucosamine may be useful as an oral therapy to correct these defects and to treat both the short-term and the long-term symptoms of the disease. Study results appear on the online version of the Journal of Biological Chemistry.
"The findings raise the possibility that these may both be treated by metabolic therapy," said Dr. Michael Demetriou, an assistant professor of neurology, and microbiology and molecular genetics. "This is particularly important, as therapies are not currently available to treat neurodegeneration in MS."
In tests on mice, Demetriou found that genetic deficiencies in a process called protein glycosylation led to a spontaneous disease very similar to MS, including paralysis associated with inflammatory damage to the protective myelin coating on nerve cells and degeneration of axons and neurons. Protein glycosylation refers to the addition of specific sugars to proteins; virtually all cell-surface and secreted proteins have complex sugars attached to them.
MS is a two-stage disease, with initial attacks of inflammatory demyelination, which damages myelin, followed approximately 10 years later by a slow, progressive neurdegenerative phase marked by loss of axons and nerve cells.
The irreversible damage to the central nervous system induced by neurodegeneration in MS leads to long term disability, including paralysis, incoordination, dementia and pain, and is not targeted by currently available therapies.
Demetriou's findings provide the first genetic model of MS in which both inflammatory demyelination and neurodegeneration arise from defects in a single biological pathway.
In previous studies, Demetriou found that the dietary supplement N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc), which is similar but more effective than the widely available glucosamine, corrected defects in protein glycosylation in cells and inhibited inflammatory demyelination in mice. The new study opens the possibility that metabolic therapy with GlcNAc may also prevent neurodegeneration. Studies in humans are required to assess the potential of this therapy in MS.
Cell-surface sugar defects may trigger nerve damage in multiple sclerosis patients
News-Medical-Net Sun, 23 Sep 2007 6:43 PM PDT
Defects on cell-surface sugars may promote the short-term inflammation and long-term neurodegeneration that occurs in the central nervous system of multiple sclerosis patients, according to University of California, Irvine researchers.
Health and science news from UC campuses and labs
UC Newswire Mon, 24 Sep 2007 2:22 PM PDT
Cell-surface sugar defects may trigger nerve damage in MS patients Sep 20, UCI -- Defects on cell-surface sugars may promote the short-term inflammation and long-term neurodegeneration that occurs in the central nervous system of multiple sclerosis patients, according to UC Irvine researchers.
Frankfort resident to run for Congress
Joliet Herald News - Joliet,IL,USA
"Stem cell research is vital not only for diabetes, but medical experts say the same about multiple sclerosis and Lou Gehrig's Disease. ...
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Building Bombproof Immunity
Natural Products Industry Insider - Phoenix,AZ,USA
Cells biologically marked to become immune cells originate as stem cells in bone marrow. Some develop into myeloid progenitor cells, while others become ...
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posted by Bill at 9:32 AM
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 (CBC) " style="border-width: 0px; width: 150px;">Study participants who slept longer than eight hours were more than twice as likely to die as those who kept sleeping for seven. Researchers believe depression, low socioeconomic status and cancer-related fatigue could play a part. (CBC) |
Researchers at the University of Warwick's Warwick Medical School studied 10,308 British civil servants in two different time periods: between 1985 and 1988, and between 1992 and 1993.
With seven hours seen as the optimal amount of sleep for the average adult, the study subjects who cut the duration of their sleep from seven hours to five hours a night had a 1.7-fold increased risk of death from all causes, according to the research, presented Monday to the British Sleep Society.
They also had twice the increased risk of death from a cardiovascular problem.
More surprisingly, scientists found those individuals who increased the number of hours they slept per night from seven to eight hours or more were more than twice as likely to die as those who kept sleeping for seven. They were also more likely to die from non-cardiovascular diseases.
"Short sleep has been shown to be a risk factor for weight gain, hypertension and Type 2 diabetes sometimes leading to mortality,' said Francesco Cappuccio, an author of the study.
"But in contrast to the short sleep-mortality association, it appears that no potential mechanisms by which long sleep could be associated with increased mortality have yet been investigated. Some candidate causes for this include depression, low socioeconomic status and cancer-related fatigue."
Cappuccio said adults should aim for seven hours of shuteye a night.
“In terms of prevention, our findings indicate that consistently sleeping around seven hours per night is optimal for health and a sustained reduction may predispose to ill-health.”
posted by Bill at 1:21 PM
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Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) treated with Biogen Idec/Elan’s Tysabri may experience significant increases in disease activity after they stop using the drug, according to a study published in the online edition of Neurology.
According to study author Machteld Vellinga, a physician with the VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam, data from 23 patients who participated in registrational studies for Tysabri (natalizumab) in MS suggest that subjects developed new and enlarging T2 lesions following discontinuation of the treatment, an effect known as rebound. It appeared only to occur in patients exposed to the product for a short period of time.
The VU University Medical Center was a clinical trial site used during studies for the drug.
In response to the study, Biogen said it was not planning to study this issue further as clinical studies for Tysabri did not show evidence of disease rebound upon discontinuation of the drug.
posted by Bill at 5:06 PM
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Health and science news from UC campuses and labs
UC Newswire Thu, 20 Sep 2007 6:37 PM PDT
Cell-surface sugar defects may trigger nerve damage in MS patients Sep 20, UCI -- Defects on cell-surface sugars may promote the short-term inflammation and long-term neurodegeneration that occurs in the central nervous system of multiple sclerosis patients, according to UC Irvine researchers.
Study Highlights Disease Rebound Effects From Tysabri
FDA news (subscription) - Falls Church,VA,USA
Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) treated with Biogen Idec/Elan's Tysabri may experience significant increases in disease activity after they stop using ...
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posted by Bill at 4:44 PM
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Reported September 19, 2007
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ANN ARBOR, Mich. (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) -- Imagine surviving a heart attack and having laboratory-grown muscle implanted in your heart. Or try to envision being born with a defective heart valve and being able to get a new heart to grow in its place. These are possibilities that could soon become realities.
Chronic heart failure kills thousands each year. A heart transplant is an option, but many patients die waiting for one. Now, cutting edge research offers something better. Researchers at the University of Michigan are growing heart muscle and valves in the lab. A biological replacement could be an almost exact match of the real thing.
"If we think about science fiction, the ability to have a total bio-artificial heart and implant it back into the patient may be a lifesaving option for some cases where there simply is no other option available," says Ravi Birla, Ph.D., a biomedical engineer at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
Scientists begin by taking cardiac cells from rats. The cells are then combined with a fibrin gel to make 3-D tissue. Electro-mechanical stimulation from a bioreactor gives the cells the same environment they're used to in the body. The goal is to put the created tissue back into the body as replacement heart muscle or create new valves, vessels, and ventricles.
"The whole concept of being able to grow tissue-engineered products and the components of the heart, it sort of gives you a reason to wake up in the morning and come to work," Birla says.
Researchers are still years away from actually using lab-created heart parts in patients, but the experts say this discovery could revolutionize modern medicine.
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, which offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, click on: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.
If you would like more information, please contact:
University of Michigan Health System
Public Relations
(734) 764-2220University of Michigan
Cardiovascular Center
1500 E. Medical Center Drive
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5852
To make an appointment:
(888) 287-1082
http://www.med.umich.edu/cvc/
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posted by Bill at 8:13 AM
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Your Health - CTV MedNews Express :: Exciting news about vitamin D emerges out of study of studies
by Dr. Marla Shapiro on Tue 11 Sep 2007 09:00 AM EDT | Permanent Link
Vitamin D, the sunshine vitamin, is back in the news. The information about vitamins has been somewhat confusing for many of my patients.
Recent news that the antioxidant vitamins A, C and E have no benefit -- and even adverse events -- has left many wondering what to take as a supplement. That study, published in Archives of Internal Medicine, contradicted claims that beta carotene, vitamin A, and vitamin E can prevent disease, and found they may actually increase the risk of death.
So what is the latest on vitamin D? In this week's Archives of Internal Medicine, the study authors looked at 18 previously published, randomized clinical trials involving the vitamin. These were gold standard studies looking at other outcomes and what are called “primary end points” – the main result that is measured at the end of a study to see if a given treatment worked. What was found was startling, but not entirely unexpected. For those who regularly took vitamin D, there was a 7% reduction in all-cause mortality.
The studies generally involved healthy people who were usually at high risk for fractures; most of the ages ranged from middle to elderly; and most dose ranges of vitamin D used were 400 to 800 IU.
While we know vitamin D is important for bone health, recent studies have pointed to its beneficial effects in preventing cancer, cardiovascular disease, glucose intolerance, high blood pressure, MS and type 2 Diabetes.
We know that vitamin D is essential for many functions at the level of the cell. The vitamin is used in a number of endocrine functions that can affect how our genes express themselves. Vitamin D is important for immunity and even antibiotic peptides. It also is important in regulating how our cells multiply and therefore have an impact on cancer incidence and survival.
The editorial that accompanies the Journal article is quick to point out that the study did not consider specific causes of death. The studies generally had short courses, so the impact of vitamin D had to be seen on diseases that were likely to express themselves in a shorter period of time. If vitamin D prevents seasonal deaths associated with influenza or pneumonia, that would be seen for example, but for chronic diseases that have a long period of time to develop, the impact of vitamin D would be underestimated by this study and analysis.
The study also did not show any adverse effect of taking vitamin D supplementation.
Recently, the Canadian Cancer Society made headlines when they recommended that Canadians take 1,000 IU per day during the fall and winter months.
The evidence is growing that vitamin D indeed is a supplement that we should be taking. Future studies are bound to look at the role of vitamin D specifically, how early it should be taken, its modes of actions, the specific diseases that are impacted and how.
VIDEO: Dr. Marla Shapiro discusses the study on Canada AM
Keywords: vitamin
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Re: Exciting news about vitamin D emerges out of study of studies
by lisadiamond on Tue 18 Sep 2007 01:32 PM EDT | Profile | Permanent Link
The effects of natural medicine have helped my daughter thrive through her journey. She was diagnosed with leukemia in 2005. Thanks to natural vitamins and supplements, she is doing well. I would love to share her story with you,considering she has gone against the odds, and the hosiptal messed up her protocol.
http://healthblog.ctv.ca/blog/_archives/2007/9/11/3220356.html
posted by Bill at 8:12 AM
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posted by Bill at 3:37 AM
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There's another Dr. John Hong out there! Actually two! I've been getting emails to my new web page, only to be disappointed that the senders have confused me with a neurologist or a hospital administrator.
How many John Hong, MDs can there be? There aren't too many Hongs. I think that's why people usually get my last name wrong: Wong, Kong, Hwang, and Hung. I often say to people who ask for my name, "Think of Hong Kong, you know that famous Chinese city?"
Hong means "fragrant," so I smell good. "Dr. Kong?" Sigh. Can all of this lead to a nervous breakdown?
Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a breakdown of the nervous system, afflicting over 350,000 Americans. It's the #1 cause of disability in young adults that isn't trauma related. Women have MS twice as frequently as men (such as actress Teri Garr). People of northern European descent have it more often, although it affects many African Americans (such as Montel Williams and the late Richard Pryor).
We aren't sure what causes MS and therefore there is no cure. The sheath of the nerves (called myelin) are attacked and destroyed by the body's immune system, which causes the nerves to stop functioning. So during a flare-up of MS, neurological problems can become pretty evident: movement problems, weakness, numbness, blindness, vertigo, and incontinence.
Four types of MS are described. The most common type is Relapsing-Remitting MS (RRMS). Acute flares occur before a period of "back off" that lets the nerves heal, and then they occur again. After enough attacks, the nerves are permanently destroyed.
Secondary-Progressive MS (SPMS) is an end result of RRMS in which the nerves just keep dying, regardless of whether there are flare-ups, leading to more neurological dysfunction.
Primary-Progressive MS (PPMS) is a chronic steady road to permanent neurological destruction without any obvious relapses in MS flares. Lastly, the rarest form, Progressive-Relapsing MS (PPMS), is a continuing series of flares.
So are we all bright and cheery right now? I hate MS. It's devastating to anyone afflicted with it. To make things worse, MS patients struggle with depression and fatigue. In fact, some people have depression and fatigue for years before being diagnosed with MS because MS strikes randomly in the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord). So symptoms can be very mild and very transient.
An MRI of the brain is probably the best way to detect MS, something health insurance absolutely hates paying for because it cuts their officials' world cruise on the Queen Mary 2 by at least a month. Lumbar puncture and evoked potentials can be of assistance in diagnosis, but sometimes it's difficult to confirm if someone has MS.
Treatment usually includes IFN-beta (such as Avonex). Also medicines can help with fatigue and depression (don't tell Tom Cruise because he'll say you're glib!!), but MS patients also need to pay attention to other issues such as cholesterol, osteoporosis, skin ulcers, PAP smears, etc.
I wonder if Annette Funicello (Mouseketeer, beach icon, MS survivor) has an impostor as well. If she does, the impostor definitely has some nerve.
Please participate in or support the National MS Society Bike Rides bikeorc.nationalmssociety.org
Dr. Hook cracks a joke or two, but he's a renowned physician with a local practice. Email him with your questions.
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posted by Bill at 2:19 AM
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DR. HOOK- MS: A devastating nervous system breakdown
The Hook - Charlottesville,VA,USA
Primary-Progressive MS (PPMS) is a chronic steady road to permanent neurological destruction without any obvious relapses in MS flares. ...
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Active Biotech to Present at the UBS 2007 Global Life Sciences ...
Market Wire (press release) - USA
The presentation will include laquinimod, an oral immunomodulatory drug for the treatment of Multiple Sclerosis, which is licensed to Teva Pharmaceutical ...
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Waddell Center Experts Conduct Multiple Sclerosis Symposium
SpiritIndia - New Delhi,New Delhi,India
... raise the risk of multiple sclerosis, lending insight into the causes of the debilitating disease. -- Reuters MS Society announces $2.4 M for stem cell ...
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Opexa Appoints Randall to Board of Directors
Woodlands Online, LLC - The Woodlands,TX,USA
The Company's lead product, Tovaxin(TM), a T-cell therapy for multiple sclerosis, is in Phase IIb trials. The Company holds the exclusive worldwide license ...
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...Generally, there is no way to prevent multiple sclerosis (MS) or its attacks....
Found in: Brain & Nervous System
posted by Bill at 2:09 AM
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http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2786897,00.html
Düsseldorf's Rheinische Post newspaper reported the success story of stem cell therapy conducted on a 64-year-old patient.
Bodo-Eckehard Stauer, the director of the cardiology department at Düsseldorf University Hospital, told the Rheinische Post that the patient was "on the verge of dying" after having suffered a severe heart attack. The man spent seven weeks in the intensive care unit with no sign of improvement.
Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Germany draws the line at embryonic stem cell research
Stauer decided to apply stem cell therapy on the patient. Following nine days of treatment, the man had improved enough that he could leave intensive care and be moved to a rehabilitation center.
The therapy involved extracting adult stem cells from the patient's bone marrow and then inserting them, with the help of a balloon catheter, into the artery damaged by the infarction.
The procedure took about a half hour.
Stauer called it a "global innovation" in that cardiogenic shock -- inadequate delivery of oxygen to the heart tissues -- could be treated with stem cell therapy for the first time ever.
Embryonic stem cell research banned in Germany
Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Germany draws the line at embryonic stem cell researchSuch stem cell therapy, however, has enlivened the debate on embryonic stem cell research.
Recently, the German government said it would allocate five million euros ($6.9 million) over the next three years for non-embryonic stem cell research.
Stem cells can develop into different cell types, including those for bones, blood and the brain. Specialists say they can help in treating illnesses such as Parkinson's, and can help to regenerate damaged organs or tissue.
Researchers say embryonic stem cells -- cells taken from days-old human embryos -- are the most promising.
Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Minor heart attacks often go unnoticed
However, genetic research is highly contested in Germany due to its Nazi history of experimentation to create a "master race."
Since 2002, the production of embryonic cells from pre-existing stem cell lines is prohibited in Germany. Scientists are also not permitted to research on any lines produced after Jan. 1, 2002 to ensure that foreign laboratories do not create new lines for the German market.
Critics have said that such prohibitions put German scientists at a disadvantage.
Critics of embryonic stem cell research, however, say that progress with adult stem cell treatment, such as with the cardiac patient in Düsseldorf, nullifies the need for cells derived from human embryos.
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