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Washington:
Wake Forest University researchers claim that ginger and a certain
Mediterranean herb, chamomile can be effective in treating common gastrointestinal
disorders which affect children. Kathi J. Kemper, M.D., M.P.H., a pediatrics
professor at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, and the
author of "The Holistic Pediatrician," has written the cover article
for Contemporary Pediatrics magazine on which herbs and dietary supplements
can help children with nausea, constipation and similar gastrointestinal
(GI) problems. "What we did was look at the original research, the studies,
what people were out there doing, and came up with a guide for pediatricians,"
Kemper said. "Historically, 50 years ago, people used home remedies.
Then they began relying on prescriptions, and now there is a swing back
toward using more natural health products." The article in the current
issue cites chamomile as one of the most widely used and safest herbs
for children with abdominal discomfort. It can be given in small amounts
to treat colic in infants and can be combined with peppermint, star
anise or fennel for stomach aches, gas, indigestion and bloating for
school-age children, according to the article. Ginger has been well
documented as a remedy for nausea and dyspepsia. Probiotics, such as
yogurt, have been used to prevent antibiotic-associated diarrhea, newborn
colic, ulcerative colitis, and a variety of forms of diarrhea. On the
other hand, the article says that star anise should be avoided for colicky
infants. Building human lungs closer to reality (Go To Top) London:
In a breakthrough research scientists have taken the first step
towards growing human lungs for transplant They have successfully converted
human embryonic stem cells into lung cells, taking a first step towards
building human lungs for transplantation. According to research to be
published in the journal Tissue Engineering, the team from Imperial
College London, took human embryonic stem cells and 'directed' them
to convert into the type of cells needed for gas exchange in the lung,
known as mature small airway epithelium. Dame Professor Julia Polak,
from Imperial College London, who led the research team, says, "This
is a very exciting development, and could be a huge step towards being
able to build human lungs for transplantation or to repair lungs severely
damaged by incurable diseases such as cancer." Dr Anne Bishop, from
Imperial College London and based at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital,
and senior author of the paper, added, "Although it will be some years
before we are able to build actual human lungs for transplantation,
this is a major step towards deriving cells that could be used to repair
damaged lungs." Following further laboratory tests, the researchers
plan to use their findings to treat problems such as acute respiratory
distress syndrome (ARDS), a condition which causes the lining of the
cells to fall off, and which currently kills many intensive care patients.
By injecting stem cells that will become lung. Aspirin lowers colorectal cancer risk (Go To Top) Washington:
Women who take two or more aspirins or NSAIDs per week for more
than 10 years, are significantly at a lower risk of developing colorectal
cancer, according to a study published in JAMA. Recent randomized intervention
trials have demonstrated that regular use of aspirin in patients with
a history of colorectal adenoma (benign tumor) or cancer reduces the
risk of recurrent adenoma within 1 to 3 years, Andrew T. Chan, M.D.,
M.P.H., of Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School,
Boston, and colleagues examined the influence of aspirin and nonaspirin
nonsteroidal anti- inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) on the risk of colorectal
cancer in a large group of women. The study included 82,911 women, enrolled
in the Nurses' Health Study, who have been providing data on medication
use biennially since 1980 and followed up through June 1, 2000. "Our
study supports a possible role for aspirin in cancer prevention, which
has been demonstrated by prior adenoma recurrence trials. However, any
substantial impact of aspirin on cancer necessitates early initiation
and prolonged, consistent use," the researchers wirte Moreover, optimal
chemo-prevention may require substantially higher doses of aspirin than
currently recommended for the prevention of cardiovascular disease.
Many toxicities of aspirin, including gastrointestinal bleeding, are
dose-dependent. Thus, future studies will need to thoroughly consider
the risk-benefit profile for aspirin/NSAID chemoprevention among various
risk groups and compare such a strategy with other potential prevention
efforts," the authors conclude. Researchers discover gene that can repair DNA! (Go To Top) London:
US researchers claim to have discovered a new gene, named FANCM,
that can shed light on an important pathway involved in the repair of
damaged DNA in humans. Researchers have said that a mutation in this
gene resulted in children getting afflicted with one of the forms of
Fanconi anemia (FA). The report to be published in the September issue
of the jounal Nature, said that unravelling the intracacies of this
gene towards the development of FA would go a long way towards understanding
age related diseases like ovarian and pancreatic cancers and leukemia.
Weidong Wang, Ph.D., a senior investigator in the NIA's Laboratory of
Genetics, who led the study, said that FA occured mostly due to a breakdown
in the vital DNA mechanisms. This breakdown, he said, later affected
the tissues and organs within the body, leading to increased risk of
cancer. "FA is a disease that appears to be the result of a breakdown
in vital DNA repair mechanisms. Some scientists theorize that DNA damage,
which gradually accumulates as we age, leads to malfunctioning genes
and deteriorating tissues and organs as well as increased risk of cancer,"
said Prof Wang. "We believe that this new gene, FANCM, may be a potent
cog in the DNA repair machinery. It is possible that we could learn
how to promote the function of DNA repair complexes and thereby prevent
the age-related accumulation of DNA damage," he added. Reasearchers
are now saying that the the discovery of this gene and its protein would
enable them to develop drugs for preventing or alleviating FA and a
variety of cancers. Indians develop ANSiscope to treat Diabetes Neuropathy (Go To Top) Chennai: In a medical breakthrough, a team of Indian researchers have developed a unique device that can detect even the most minute changes in a person's Autonomic Nervous System. Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) is a part of the central nervous system that controls the organs of the body, such as the heart, stomach and intestines and many other vital organs. A disorder in such a system may be silent and can cause sudden death if not detected early. Researchers say that their invention can help them diagnose the disorder in the system and prevent its breakdown, particularly in diabetic patients. Combining mathematics with medical science, a US based company, Dyansys has financed the research and has now plans to market ANSiscope, the portable, safe and non-invasive device, which helps in quickly checking people for a defect in the nerves. Under the diagnosis, the patient is monitored over time to determine if the nervous defect termed as Diabetic Autonomic Neuropathy (DAN) is stabilizing or advancing. Though common, DAN, is a serious complication, the increases the risk of death. "This equipment is a very specialized equipment which particularly detects the involvement of the Autonomic Nervous System which affects majority of diabetes patients. This equipment can be used along with anesthesia also. This is one of the first of its kind and no equipment like this has been invented before," said S Muthukumaran, a doctor at the Tirunelveli Medical College, Chennai, where the research was done. Till
now, the ANS related ailments were only detected through clinical tests
that were usually not very accurate. But now, with the introduction
of ANSiscope, an accurate extent of the damage can be detected much
early with good analysis. Under this procedure, electrodes are connected
to the body of the patient and readings for 500 heartbeats are taken,
with details of the percentage of autonomic dysfunction are given. M
Srini Nageswar, chief executive officer of Dyansys, says that ANSiscope
is probably the most potent prevention against the disease. "The machine
that we make can be applied as a general-purpose medical instrument.
In fact it is as ubiquitous a device as a voltmeter for an electrical
engineer. But we have proved its use in diabetes because we thought
from the world's perspective diabetes is one of the biggest scourges
of the world, and India has a very large percentage of diabetics," said
Nageshwar. Doctors say that apart from diabetes, ANSiscope can be used
also in other medical fields like endocrinology, anesthesiology and
cardiology, adding that tests are being conducted to prove its effectiveness
in these areas. A World Health Organisation (WHO) report also says that
nearly 171 million people are afflicted with diabetes and number could
very well swell to over 330 million by the year 2030. A sizeable number
of these, doctors say, could be saved from life threatening complication
by early detection. Meteors might have spurred life on earth (Go To Top) Washington:
A new study conducted by the Geological Society of America and Geological
Association of Canada suggests that the heavy bombardment of Earth by
meteors during the planet's youth actually spurred early life on our
planet. A study of the Haughton Impact Crater on Devon Island, in the
Canadian Arctic, has revealed hydrothermal systems, blasted rocks that
are easier for microbes to inhabit, plus the cozy, protected basin created
by the crater itself. Canadian Space Agency geologist Gordon Osinski
with colleagues conducted a geological survey of the 24-kilometer (15-mile)
diameter Haughton Crater and along the rim of the crater they noticed
what looked like fossilized hydrothermal pipes, a few meters in diameter.
"That set the bells ringing about possible biological implications.
Hydrothermal systems are thought by many people to be the favourable
places for life to evolve," Osinski added. Detailed mineralogical analyses
have since revealed that when the Haughton meteor smacked into the icy
ground 23 million years ago it created not only a crater, but fractured
the ground in such a way as to create a system of steamy hydrothermal
springs reaching temperatures of 250 degrees C. The heat gradually dropped
over a period of tens of thousands of years. The impact also created
pore spaces in otherwise dense granitic rocks, giving microbes more
access to the minerals and the surfaces inside the rocks - basically
more real estate and more supplies. The shocked rocks are also more
translucent, which would be beneficial to organisms that possessing
with any photosynthetic capabilities. A crater shape itself also might
serve as a protective environment, says Osinski. "Most people put impacts
with mass extinctions. What we're trying to say is that following the
impact, the impact sites are actually more favorable to life than the
surrounding terrain," he added. Gene silencing may be panacea for all ills (Go To Top) Washington:
A new study by researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have
claimed that a new technique, aimed at directly controlling the expression
of genes by turning them on or off at the DNA level, could offer a new
strategy for treating or curing many diseases. "Virtually every disease
starts at the level of malfunctioning gene expression, or viral or bacterial
gene expression. This is an approach that could theoretically produce
a drug for the treatment or cure of almost any disease," said Dr. David
Corey, professor of pharmacology and biochemistry. In the study published
in the journal Nature Chemical Biology, the researchers describe how
they efficiently shut down gene expression in cultured cells by blocking
the ability of chromosomal DNA to be copied into RNA and made into proteins.
"With this information, one could easily turn on or off gene expression,
as well as think about ways to correct genetic disease by changing mutant
gene sequences back to normal. Those types of things now look a lot
more feasible," Dr. Corey said. Current techniques for turning genes
on or off focus on controlling the messenger RNA once it's already produced.
But blocking all the copies of messenger RNA before they can make a
protein within a cell is akin to using a bucket to catch all the streams
of water coming out of a yard sprinkler before they can hit the ground.
A more efficient way to staunch the streams of water would be to turn
off the faucet. The researchers targeted chromosomal DNA in two ways.
First, they developed a synthetic molecule called a peptide nucleic
acid, or PNA, which physically binds to DNA and blocks enzymes from
copying, or transcribing, the DNA into messenger RNA. More importantly,
the researchers also employed RNA itself as a silencing agent. "The
RNA is more important because it may reflect the body's own natural
mechanism for controlling gene expression, while the PNAs are synthetic.
The experiments worked beautifully. It's hard to believe that this strategy
would work so well if nature wasn't doing it already," Dr. Corey said.
"It's possible that the body is making the RNAs that we are using, and
that will be an exciting topic for further research, to determine whether
the human body or viruses and bacteria make RNA sequences like this
to control gene expression," he added.
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