How vitamin D controls blood pressure

A research team has decrypted the one of the biological mechanisms about Vitamin D deficiency triggering a range of diseases.

Vitamin D regulates the elasticity of blood vessels and thus also affects blood pressure amplitude.

The two primary authors, molecular biologist Olena Andrukhova and medical doctor Svetlana Slavic, of the Institute of Physiology, Pathophysiology and Biophysics at the Vetmeduni Vienna, found that prolonged vitamin D deficiency can stiffen blood vessels.

Examining the aorta, an elastic blood vessel that expands with each pulse of blood and then constricts again, the researchers showed that vitamin D deficiency makes the vessel less flexible.

Andrukhova explained that Vitamin D enhances the production of the enzyme eNOS (endothelial nitric oxide synthase) in the inner layer of blood vessels, the endothelium. This is critical for the regulation of blood pressure.

She said that the enzyme produces a molecule called nitric oxide (NO), an important factor for the relaxation of smooth muscles in the blood vessels.

Andrukhova explained added that when too little NO is formed, the vessels become less flexible, which ultimately leads to higher blood pressure which can give rise to other circulatory diseases, asserting that indirectly, vitamin D controls blood pressure.

The results have been published in the journal Molecular Endocrinology.

Source: sify

Scientists’ one step closer to magic bullet against cancer caused by asbestos

Researchers have come closer to finding a cure for Mesothelioma – a very aggressive cancer associated with asbestos exposure – usually diagnosed in an advanced stage.
In December, the research team of Antonio Giordano, an internationally renowned pathologist, Director and Founder of the Sbarro Health Research Organization in Philadelphia, PA and Professor of Pathology and Oncology at the University of Siena, Italy, published two separate studies aiming to address the urgent need to identify possible new methods for mesothelioma treatment.

In the first study, published in the scientific journal Cell Cycle, Giordano’s researchers tested on mesothelioma cells the effect of two drugs designed to reactivate the p53 protein, one of the most important ‘tumor suppressors’, which is turned off in most human cancers.

Lead author Francesca Pentimalli of the National Cancer Institute of Naples “In mesothelioma, although p53 is rarely mutated, it is inactivated by alterations in its pathway. Both of the drugs used in the study target p53, but with different mechanisms of action. One in particular, called RITA, proved to be very toxic. Specifically, RITA caused mesothelioma cells, and not ‘healthy’ cells, to undergo apoptosis – a type of programmed cell death that occurs through the activation of a specific ‘cascade’ of events.

The second study, published online in Cancer Biology and Therapy and led by Paola Indovina of the University of Siena and the Sbarro Institute for Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine, Temple University in Philadelphia, was designed along the same lines as the first study.

In the second study, the authors tested, for the first time in mesothelioma, a new drug called MK-1775 in combination with cisplatin. MK-1775 is a selective inhibitor of WEE1, a protein that is crucial in activating a ‘checkpoint’ for the repair of damaged DNA before the cell starts its division process.

Source: Yahoo news

Fish oil ‘cures’ brain damaged kid

A teenager, who had severe brain damage after a brutal hit-and-run has made miraculous recovery due to consumption of fish oil.

Grant Virgin, who suffered from a torn aorta, a traumatic brain injury, compound bone fractures and spinal fracture after being struck by a car, was told by the doctors that he wouldn’t be alive by next morning, News.com.au reported.

However, the boy’s family vowed to save their kid, who underwent multiple surgeries remained in a coma with severe brain damage, and rubbed progesterone cream on their son, and soon saw him waking up and speaking simple words and phrases.

The Virgins thought about giving their son fish oil, after learning that the brain’s cell wall is partly comprised of the same omega-3 fatty acids, and put him on a regimen of 20-gram-per-day.

The teenager is still a long way from making a full recovery, but the family claimed that he is progressing by the day.

Source: Business standard

Tips for taking care of skin during winters revealed

Winter time can be hard on the skin, making it dry, flaky and itchy, but with proper care you can effectively banish your skin woes. Dermatologist Rita Pichardo-Geisinger, Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, provides tips that are easy to incorporate into your daily routine to help keep your skin and hair in prime condition.

First of all use a fragrance free soap because perfumes and additives can dry the skin which can lead to flaking and itching or exacerbate conditions like eczema. It is also important to use a moisturizing lotion after the shower because when you apply a moisturizer to damp skin right after showering, this helps seal in water to prevent skin from drying out. “A moisturizer helps to act as a barrier of protection for your skin so look for one that has ceramides, a new technology that helps restore and protect the skin barrier,” she said.

Next, keep the temperature at home on the cool side, not too warm, to avoid skin dehydration because if your home or workplace temperature is warm enough to make it feel like a sauna, you might be drying your skin out. Do not forget to use a fragrance free detergent and liquid fragrance free conditioner for the clothes because some people with skin sensitivities can experience skin irritation or rash after wearing clothes washed in a detergent with fragrance additives.

Also, do not forget your moisturizing lotion with sunscreen for your face, even if it is winter time. If lips get chapped, avoid cracking by using a lip balm with sunscreen to get the double benefit of smooth and protected lips, Rita asserted. And, your hair can get dry in the wintertime too, so you might need to use a hydrating shampoo or an anti-frizz leave-in conditioner.

Lastly, tend to your toes and feet and treat them with good lactic acid creams that can help keep feet soft and supple.

Source: Times of India

FDA approves post-natal test to help diagnose developmental delays

The US Food and Drug Administration has authorized for marketing the Affymetrix CytoScan Dx Assay, which can detect chromosomal variations that may be responsible for a child’s developmental delay or intellectual disability. Based on a blood sample, the test can analyse the entire genome at one time and detect large and small chromosomal changes.

According to the National Institutes of Health and the American Academy of Paediatrics, two to three per cent of children in the United States have some form of intellectual disability. Many intellectual and developmental disabilities, such as Down syndrome and DiGeorge syndrome, are associated with chromosomal variations.

“This new tool may help in the identification of possible causes of a child’s developmental delay or intellectual disability, allowing healthcare providers and parents to intervene with appropriate care and support for the child,” said Alberto Gutierrez, director of the Office of In Vitro Diagnostics and Radiological Health in the FDA’s Centre for Devices and Radiological Health. “The FDA’s review of the test provides clinical laboratories with information about the expected performance of the device and the quality of the results.”

The FDA reviewed the Affymetrix CytoScan Dx Assay through its de novo classification process, a regulatory pathway for some novel low-moderate-risk medical devices.

For the de novo petition, the FDA’s review of the CytoScan Dx Assay included an analytical evaluation of the test’s ability to accurately detect numerous chromosomal variations of different types, sizes, and genome locations when compared to several analytically validated test methods. The FDA found that the CytoScan Dx Assay could analyse a patient’s entire genome and adequately detect chromosome variations in regions of the genome associated with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Additionally, the agency’s review included a study that compared the performance of the CytoScan Dx Assay to tests that are commonly used for detecting chromosomal variations associated with a developmental delay or intellectual disability. A comparison of test results from 960 blood specimens showed the CytoScan Dx had improved ability over commonly used tests, including karyotyping and FISH chromosomal tests, to detect certain chromosomal abnormalities.

This device should not be used for stand-alone diagnostic purposes, pre-implantation or prenatal testing or screening, population screening, or for the detection of, or screening for acquired or genetic aberrations occurring after birth, such as cancer. The test results should only be used in conjunction with other clinical and diagnostic findings, consistent with professional standards of practice, including confirmation by alternative methods, evaluation of parental samples, clinical genetic evaluation, and counselling as appropriate, according to a statement issued by the FDA.

Interpretation of test results is intended to be performed only by healthcare professionals who are board certified in clinical cytogenetics or molecular genetics, the statement said.

Affymetrix CytoScan Dx Assay is manufactured by Affymetrix, Inc, located in Santa Clara, California.

Source: India Medical Times

Smoking during pregnancy could make your baby gay

Smoking and drinking during pregnancy could make your baby gay and stupid, if the claims of a neuroscientist are to be believed.

A controversial study has found that a pregnant woman’s lifestyle could influence their child’s IQ or sexuality.

Dr Dick Swaab – professor of neurobiology at Amsterdam University – claims that drinking, taking drugs or living in a area with high pollution levels have an impact on the development of foetuses and could affect children later in life.

Taking synthetic hormones and smoking while pregnant can increase the chances of girls becoming lesbian or bisexual, while drinking and drug-taking could lower a child’s IQ, Dr Swaab suggests.

And the more older brothers a boy has, the more it is thought to increase his chance of being gay, it is reported. The study claims this could be because the mother’s immune system develops stronger responses to male hormones with each son that is born.

Dr Swaab also believes living in an area of high pollution is linked with an increased risk of autism.

He told the Sunday Times: ‘Pre-birth exposure to both nicotine and amphetamines increases the chance of lesbian daughters.

‘Pregnant women suffering from stress are also more likely to have homosexual children of both genders because their raised level of the stress hormone cortisol affects the production of foetal sex hormones.’

He added: ‘In women who drink a lot, cells that were meant to migrate across the foetal brain can end up leaving the brain altogether.’

However, Dr Swaab recognised lifestyle factors were a small influence and added that genetics play the most important role in child development.

Source: Metro News

Want to Stay Healthy? Try Washing Your Hands

Like “Turn out the lights” and “Don’t slam the door,” being told to “Wash your hands” is one of those universal instructions children hear every day. But it’s more than that.

Hand washing has been shown to be one of the most effective ways to stay healthy.

Why the fuss? Because after you’ve touched something contaminated with viruses or bacteria, your hands give germs a free ride into your body through your eyes, nose or mouth, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Why is it so important to wash your hands?

Simply put, washing your hands frequently and thoroughly helps keep you healthy.

“You use your hands to touch everything around you, and it’s the fastest way to communicate infectious germs,” said Kevin Morano, a professor in the department of microbiology and molecular genetics at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston. Some common illnesses that can be transmitted via the hands include the flu, the common cold and a number of diarrheal illnesses. Remember that last stomach bug you had? You probably got it from your hands.

Regular washing of hands with soap and water could reduce deaths from diarrheal illnesses by 50 percent, according to CDC estimates.

How can you catch a cold by not washing your hands?

Germs may live on inanimate objects for an extended time. If you touch contaminated surfaces, the germs get on your hands. Eventually, you touch your eyes, nose or mouth, which gives germs access to your insides.

Where are you most likely to pick up germs?

“The top of the list is the restroom, and everything associated with the restroom,” said Morano. Things like computer keyboards, phones and TV remotes may have some germs on them, he said, but most bacteria and viruses prefer warm, wet environments, like a hand towel in the bathroom.

What’s the right way to wash your hands?

“The proper way to wash your hands is with lots of soap and warm water for as long as you have the patience for, but aim for at least 20 to 30 seconds,” Morano said. “If you can sing the ‘Happy Birthday’ song twice, you’ve washed long enough.”

What about the fingernails? Is it necessary to use a nail brush?

Alison Pittman, a nurse and assistant professor at the College of Nursing at Texas A&M Health Sciences Center in Bryan, said you don’t need a special brush to clean under your fingernails. Just be sure to get the soap and water under your nails, she advised.

Does water temperature matter?

No, said Morano. But, if you use water that’s too hot, you probably won’t wash long enough. It’s more important to use soap for a longer period of time.

Do you need to use antibacterial soap?

“Soap and water are a good solution for dirty hands,” Pittman said. “Any soap has ingredients that break the cells of the bacteria, killing them.” And, if there’s no soap or water available, “use an alcohol-based sanitizer that’s at least 60 percent alcohol — although these products aren’t as effective if hands are visibly soiled,” she said.

Do some soaps clean better than others? Should they contain specific ingredients?

Any soap will do, said Pittman.

Does a quick rinse do anything for your hands?

A quick rinse won’t clean your hands. Rather, Morano said, washing for a while with soap is what gets your hands clean.

Source: webmd

 

Sunlight may lower your blood pressure

Here’s why sunbathing feels so good: It may lower your blood pressure, British researchers reported Friday.

Just 20 minutes of ultraviolet A (UVA) sunlight lowered blood pressure by a small but significant amount in 24 volunteers, they report in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology. Further checks suggest the sun does this by increasing levels of nitric oxide, a chemical linked to blood flow.

The effects are so strong they may help explain why people who live in the darker north, like the Scots, have higher rates of death from heart disease, Richard Weller of the University of Edinburgh and Martin Feelisch of the University of Southampton say.

“We are concerned that well-meaning advice to reduce the comparatively low numbers of deaths from skin cancer may inadvertently increase the risk of death from far higher prevalent cardiovascular disease and stroke, and goes against epidemiological data showing that sunlight exposure reduces all cause and cardiovascular mortality,” they concluded.

Their volunteers got the equivalent of 30 minutes of natural sunlight at noon on a sunny day in Southern Europe. They protected their volunteers from the warming effects, just in case that was the cause. It lowered blood pressure by about five points, and the effects lasted half an hour.

In other words, a little sunshine really may warm your heart.

Source: NBC News

 

Home remedies for cracked heels

one thing to keep in mind before you step out in your ‘opens’ is to make sure your feet are in absolute great shape. If your heels aren’t in perfect shape, sadly, there’s not much a lovely pair of summery flip-flops would be able to do.

Home Remedies for how to cure cracked heels:

Here is our list of 10 simple home remedies that will help soothe and makeover your cracked heels, and let you step out in style. Read, on how to heal cracked heels for more!

1. Lemon, salt, glycerin, rose water foot mask:

One of the first steps towards having a pair of beautiful feet is to heal them, and that is why this foot mask is absolutely perfect home remedy for cracked heels.  Take a basin of warm water in which you’ll be dipping your feet and add raw salt, lemon juice, glycerin and rose water. Soak in your feet for about 15-20 minutes in this water.

Using a pumice stone or foot scrubber, scrub your heels and sides of the feet.
Take 1tsp undiluted glycerine, 1 tsp rose water and 1tsp lemon juice and after mixing, apply over your cracked heels. Since this will be a sticky mixture, you can wear a pair of socks and leave on overnight. Wash off with lukewarm water in the morning.
Repeat for a few days till heels are soft and healed.

2. Vegetable oil:
Dry skin on the heels is one of the foremost reasons behind the cracking. This home remedy for dry skin helps combat this problem.

After washing your feet and cleaning and drying them up completely, apply a layer of vegetable oil on the cracked parts of your feet. Wear a pair of thick socks and leave overnight. In the morning, wash off and repeat for a few days to get smooth and healed feet.

3. Banana along with banana and avocado foot mask:

Take the pulp of a ripe banana and apply over cracked parts of the heel and feet.
Keep on for about 10 minutes and wash off.
You can also create a foot mask at home using a ripe banana and avocado.

Take a ripe banana and half an avocado, or the flesh of half a coconut (green coconut). Blend everything in a blender together.
Apply this thick creamy paste over your heels and feet.
As avocados and coconut are rich in several essential oils and vitamins and fats, this paste will help treat cracked heels and keep them soft and moisturized.

4. Vaseline and lemon juice:

Clean and dry your heels. Once all the dirt is out, soak your feet in warm water for about 15-20 minutes. Rinse and pat dry.
Take 1 tsp Vaseline and the juice of a lemon. Rub this mixture over your heels and other cracked parts of the foot. Rub this in nicely, till it gets absorbed in the skin.

Apply this mixture before going to bed and keep on overnight, wearing a pair of woollen socks, as these socks help trap body heat and increase the effectiveness of the mixture. Wash off in the morning. This is an especially good treatment if you have really cracked and painful heels.

5. Take some paraffin wax and mix it with mustard oil or coconut oil.
Heat the mixture in a pan till the wax melts properly. Allow this to cool at room temperature and once it’s cool, apply over your feet. To get the best results, apply before going to bed and cover with a pair of socks.
Wash off properly in the morning.

6. Honey:
Honey is great to moisturize your feet and has great antibacterial properties.

Mix one cup of honey to half a bucket of warm water.
Soak your feet for about 15-20 minutes.
Scrub off gently for soft and supple feet.

7. Rice Flour:
Make this scrub that’s great for scrubbing your feet. Take 2-3 tbsp of ground rice and add a few spoons of honey and apple cider vinegar to make a thick paste.

If your heels are extremely dry and cracked, add a spoon of olive oil or sweet almond oil.
Soak your feet in warm water for 10 minutes and gently scrub it with this paste to remove dead skin from your feet.

8. Olive oil:

Virgin olive oil is one of the most natural ways to get smooth soft healthy heels.

Apply some extra virgin olive oil with the help of a cotton ball and gently massage your feet in a circular motion for 10-15 minutes.
Wear a pair of thick cotton socks and wash off after an hour. Next, take 1 tbsp olive oil, a few drops of lemon oil or lavender oil in a small bottle and add an equal amount of water to it. mix it properly to get a thick solution. Apply this homemade foot cream on your feet a few times in the day and also overnight.

9. Oatmeal:

Take 1 tbsp powdered oatmeal and some jojoba oil to make a thick paste.

Apply this over your feet, especially well over the heels and any cracked parts.
Leave this on your heels for about half an hour and rinse off with cold water.Pat dry.

Do this every alternate day to remove all cracks.

10. Sesame oil:

Apply sesame oil on your heels and any cracked parts each night before going to bed. This is a great cracked heels solution for feet.
Massage well till it mixes in the skin.
Do this every night to get rid of cracks and have beautiful smooth heels.

Source: Style craze

Google unveils ‘smart contact lens’ to help diabetics

Keeping blood sugar levels in check is an important part of life for diabetics, but this can be a daily struggle, involving pricking their fingers and taking blood samples. Now, Google may have a solution – in the form of a “smart contact lens” that measures glucose levels in tears.

Revealing their prototype, which has been in the works for the past 18 months, Google X lab members and project co-founders Brian Otis and Babak Parviz write through their company blog that many of they people they have talked to “say managing their diabetes is like having a part-time job.”

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), diabetes affects 347 million people worldwide, and in 2004 alone, 3.4 million people died as a result of high fasting blood sugar.

This highlights the importance of monitoring blood glucose levels in diabetics, which the Google X project team aims to tackle.

Aside from mortality, Otis and Parviz note that uncontrolled blood sugar increases risks for damaging the eyes, kidneys and heart.

And because glucose levels can change suddenly with normal activities, such as exercising, eating or sweating, the team says that “round the clock” monitoring is imperative.

Lens employs tiny chips, sensors and an antenna
Though some diabetics wear glucose sensors embedded under their skin, Otis and Parviz say they still need to prick their finger, resulting in many diabetics checking blood glucose levels less often.

So how did the team decide on a contact lens to measure glucose levels?

Google’s smart contact lens
The ‘smart contact lens’ uses tiny chips and sensors, and a miniature antenna to measure glucose levels in tears.

They write that previously, scientists have looked into using bodily fluids, such as tears, to track glucose levels, but the difficulty has been in the fact that tears are not easily collected.

This led the Google X team to try using tiny chips and sensors, as well as an antenna “thinner than a human hair,” to measure tear glucose with better accuracy.

They have come up with a prototype smart lens, which looks very much like a normal contact lens with lines around the outside.

Embedded between two layers of soft contact lens material is a tiny wireless chip and glucose sensor. Otis and Parviz report they are testing prototypes that can produce one reading per second.

‘Early days,’ in promising tool for diabetics
The project members say they want the lens to alert the wearer when glucose levels are getting out of control, so they are looking into using miniature LED lights that could light up as a warning.

“It’s still early days for this technology,” they write, but they add that they have already completed several clinical research studies to help refine the prototype, with the hope that their lens could one day help diabetics manage their condition.

Though Otis and Parviz say they are working with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), there are still many more steps to take before the technology can be used by diabetics – a process which will likely take a further 5 years for the lens to reach consumers.

The Google X team is currently looking for partners and experts to join the project and develop apps for the lens.

But Otis and Parviz are passionate about their project. They write:

“We’ve always said that we’d seek out projects that seem a bit speculative or strange, and at a time when the International Diabetes Federation is declaring that the world is ‘losing the battle’ against diabetes, we thought this project was worth a shot.”

Several developments have occurred recently in the field of wearable monitoring devices. A team from Taiwan unveiled their tooth sensor that monitors oral activity, while researchers from the University of Pittsburgh presented their calorie-counting eButton, which uses a low-power central processing unit (CPU), a random-access memory (RAM) communication interface and a Linux or Android operating system to measure portion size.
In diabetes news, researchers in Denmark recently suggested that type 2 diabetes is an inflammatory disease and other studies have suggested eating more fiber and following a Mediterranean diet could reduce risks of developing diabetes.

Source: Medical News today