The man who grew a finger (with 'pixie' dust)

WARNING-SOME GRAPHIC IMAGES -------------

"I think that within ten years that we will have strategies that will re-grow the bones, and promote the growth of functional tissue around those bones"

Dr Dr Stephen Badylak
University of Pittsburgh

clipped from news.bbc.co.uk "I put my finger in," Mr Spievak says, pointing towards the propeller of a model airplane, "and that's when I sliced my finger off." clipped from viewer.zoho.com clipped from news.bbc.co.uk The photos of his severed finger tip are pretty graphic. You can understand why doctors said he'd lost it for good. clipped from viewer.zoho.com clipped from news.bbc.co.uk Today though, you wouldn't know it. Mr Spievak, who is 69 years old, shows off his finger, and it's all there, tissue, nerves, nail, skin, even his finger print. clipped from viewer.zoho.com clipped from news.bbc.co.uk 'Pixie dust' How? Well that's the truly remarkable part. It wasn't a transplant. Mr Spievak re-grew his finger tip. He used a powder - or pixie dust as he sometimes refers to it while telling his story. Mr Speivak's brother Alan - who was working in the field of regenerative medicine - sent him the powder. The process he has been pioneering over the last few years involves scraping the cells from the lining of a pig's bladder. It can be turned into sheets, or a powder. the extra cellular matrix is put on a wound clipped from viewer.zoho.com clipped from news.bbc.co.uk scientists believe it stimulates cells in the tissue to grow rather than scar

British team finds two genes for osteoporosis

clipped from www.reuters.com British researchers have identified two common genetic mutations that increase the risk of osteoporosis and related bone fractures, according to a study released on Tuesday These changes were present in 20 percent of the people studied and highlight the potential role of screening for the bone-thinning disease that mainly affects women after menopause Osteoporosis affects about one in three women and one in five men around the world In the Lancet study, the team scanned the genes of 2,094 female twins and identified a link between decreased bone mineral density and changes in chromosomes 8 and 11 In chromosome 11 the change was associated with a 30 percent increased risk of the condition and related fractures and for chromosome 8 the mutation raised risk by 20 percent For people who had both changes, their risk went up by 30 percent The findings are an important step forward toward better understanding of the genetic basis of osteoporosis, other researchers wrote in a Lancet commentary

Really?: The Claim: Tilt Your Head Back to Treat a Nosebleed

THE BOTTOM LINE

Never treat a nosebleed by leaning your head back.

clipped from www.nytimes.com Most people know the right way to stop a nosebleed: lean the head back and apply pressure to the nose. But medical experts say that what most people know about nosebleeds is wrong. Tilting the head back, a technique widely considered proper first aid, can create complications by allowing blood into the esophagus. It risks choking, and it can cause blood to travel to the stomach, possibly leading to irritation and vomiting. The American Academy of Family Physicians says the best treatment is to sit down, lean forward and keep your head above your heart, which lessens the bleeding. Leaning forward also helps drain the blood from the nose and keeps it from the esophagus. A report in the British journal BMJ says you can stop the bleeding by using your thumb and index finger to squeeze the soft tissue just below the bridge of your nose for 5 to 10 minutes. A cold compress or ice pack placed across the bridge of the nose can also help.

Diabetic Recipes Most Appeal to Your Tastes

Although many people diagnosed with diabetes initially worry about the future, there is no reason why with a properly regulated diet, they cannot enjoy a good healthy life.

clipped from diets-diabetes.blogspot.com Diabetic Recipes Most Appeal to Your Tastes Although many people diagnosed with diabetes initially worry about the future, there is no reason why with a properly regulated diet,

Most Lethal Melanomas Are On Scalp And Neck

clipped from www.sciencedaily.com People with scalp or neck melanomas die at nearly twice the rate of people with melanoma elsewhere on the body, including the face or ears, survival rates differ depending on where skin cancer first appears. Those with scalp or neck melanomas die at a rate 1.84 times higher than those with melanomas on the extremities physicians pay special attention to the scalp when examining patients for signs of skin cancer. "Only six percent of melanoma patients present with the disease on the scalp or neck, but those patients account for 10 percent of melanoma deaths Lymph node involvement was also more common in patients with scalp-neck melanomas

Does Stress Cause Weight Gain?

clipped from www.intelihealth.com Q: Can stress cause weight gain? The short answer is yes, though not in every person. Some people lose their appetite and lose weight when they're stressed. But if you already tend to be overweight, stress usually leads to weight gain. It also can make it harder to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight. How likely are you to respond to negative emotions and stress by eating? It's hard to know. But in a large British study, researchers found that people with the lowest body mass index (BMI) tended to lose weight when stressed, while people with the highest BMI usually gained weight. Since food is essential for survival — and for most of human history food was relatively scarce — the brain has evolved to protect us against times of scarcity. Sadly, the brain does a poorer job of protecting us against abundance! In fact, it may actively undermine many of us. Some experts say that chronic stress leads to a preference for foods that are high in sugar and fat.

Cell Phones Dangerous Due To Brain Cancer Risk

Call me crazy, but don't call me using your cell phone.

clipped from www.emaxhealth.com New evidence on mobile phone hazard as cell phone usage is linked to brain cancer. According to The Independent, a recent study led by a renowned neurosurgeon, Dr. Vini Khurana, strongly demonstrates that prolonged exposure to mobile phone radiation will result in brain cancer and neighbouring tissue damage: It draws on growing evidence – exclusively reported in the IoS in October – that using handsets for 10 years or more can double the risk of brain cancer. Cancers take at least a decade to develop, invalidating official safety assurances based on earlier studies which included few, if any, people who had used the phones for that long. “It is anticipated that this danger has far broader public health ramifications than asbestos and smoking,” says Professor Khurana, who told the IoS his assessment is partly based on the fact that three billion people now use the phones worldwide, three times as many as smoke.

Chest pain in middle-age an ominous sign

clipped from www.reuters.com In a long-term follow-up study, chest pain felt by men and women in their 40s was a major risk factor for premature death due to heart disease later on The risk of death from heart disease was much higher in men and women with angina than in those without, the investigators report in the medical journal Heart The relative excess risk conferred by angina is similar to that associated with modest elevations in cholesterol and blood pressure, they note This study, the investigators say, supports results of a previous study indicating that "Rose angina" is not a benign finding and warrants investigation in both sexes

Etanercept (Enbrel) in Action, see Alzheimer's patient's memory come alive (Video)

clipped from alzheimersreadingroom.blogspot.com To watch the video on how this works with Alzheimer's patients click here The Institute for Neurological Research To read about the on going research study click here Arthritis Drug Success With Alzheimer's Prompts Calls For More Investment In Research To read my previous detailed post on this topic click this link 'Instant' Alzheimer's Drug Claim, Enbrel (Etanercept) Read more about Alzheimer's at The Alzheimer's Reading Room One of the videos shows how the treatment affected 82-year old Marvin Miller. Miller can be seen muttering incoherently in response to questions from a nurse. He can't name objects like a pencil or a bracelet. Miller is then given his first etanercept injection, and according to the video, five minutes later he recognizes and embraces his wife when she comes up to him. Mrs Miller said he had not done this for years, because until that moment he did not know who she was. She appears visibly shocked by her husband's improvement.

Remote lie detection raises ethical issues

clipped from www.abc.net.au Eric Bland A new way to remotely monitor blood pressure, pulse rate and sweating could be used to screen for health signs as well as to administer lie detection tests on people without their knowledge or consent. It's obvious when Pinocchio's lying. What about more subtle clues? Scientists say they have the basis of a remote lie detector test that monitors someone's sweat, pulse and blood pressure without them knowing. But is it ethical? While researchers stress their work remains only proof-of-concept, a commercial version using sub-terahertz waves could theoretically help remotely monitor medical patients, evaluate athletic performance, diagnose disease and detect lies. The key is in the surprising shape of human sweat ducts. The device could also be used as a remote lie detector, without their knowledge or consent. Trained professionals can evade polygraphs, but if a person doesn't know they are being constantly tested the new method could be more effective.

Almonds

clipped from www.naturalnews.com One study showed that three ounces of almonds a day actually lowered a person's cholesterol by 14%. Munching on almonds helps people feel satisfied and less inclined to overeat at dinner! Ninety percent of the fat in almonds is unsaturated fat, and frequent consumption, as a result, could help lower blood cholesterol levels. Almonds are loaded with protein, fibre, calcium, magnesium, potassium, vitamin E and other antioxidants and phytochemicals. And studies have shown links between nut (especially almond) consumption and lower risk of cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease, and other chronic illnesses. In a nutshell, almonds are an excellent source of fibre, vitamin E, zinc, selenium, copper, potassium, phosphorus, biotin, riboflavin, niacin and iron. Almonds are the most nutritious of all nuts. clipped from www.eurekalert.org clipped from www.supermarketguru.com Eating almonds has the same effect as the cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins. almonds may well be a food that helps fight obesity and diabetes.also have greater levels of satiety

Dyslexia Differs by Language

Interesting article.

clipped from dsc.discovery.com Dyslexia affects different parts of children's brains depending on whether they are raised reading English or Chinese. That finding, reported in Monday's online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, means that therapists may need to seek different methods of assisting dyslexic children from different cultures. "This finding was very surprising to us. We had not ever thought that dyslexics' brains are different for children who read in English and Chinese," said lead author Li-Hai Tan, a professor of linguistics and brain and cognitive sciences at the University of Hong Kong. "Our finding yields neurobiological clues to the cause of dyslexia."

clipped from news.bbc.co.uk Depression linked to Alzheimer's People who have had depression may be more prone to Alzheimer's disease, two studies suggest. Dutch researchers found Alzheimer's was 2.5 times more likely in people with a history of depression. However, the latest study found no difference in the size of these two brain areas in people with depression and people who had never developed the condition The researchers said their findings suggested that depression was a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease - rather than a subtle early sign of its underlying pathology They found that those with more signs of depression at the start of the study were more likely to develop Alzheimer's One theory is that depression leads to the loss of cells in two areas of the brain, the hippocampus and the amygdala, which then contributes to Alzheimer's disease It was four times more likely in people with depression before aged 60. Dutch and US research appeared in Neurology and Archives of General Psychiatry

Green Tea and Weight Loss

If you use green tea as a drink then the best time to take this is just before you retire for the night.

clipped from healthyeating-info.blogspot.com Green Tea and Weight Loss Although there are a number of products to help lose weight, it is green tea that is probably one of the most famous; used a great deal especially within the weight loss industry and for products which are used as antioxidants. People requiring a natural product to burn calories will not find anything to compare with green tea weight loss supplements. The affect on the human metabolism is quite amazing as it actually slows down the process of aging if used over a long period by aiding cell regeneration. When used in weight loss products, it shows some amazing qualities like helping the metabolism by ridding the system of toxins and using the natural laxative quality it possesses. To help stop fatty tissue from forming, products using it increase the number of calories we burn by speeding our normal metabolic rate. Get Fit After Kids

Is AIDS an Evolutionary Accident?

clipped from www.scientificblogging.com Is AIDS An Evolutionary Accident? AIDS may partly be the consequence of an evolutionary accident, said Professor Frank Kirchhoff from the University of Ulm in Germany “AIDS is a deadly disease in people that is caused by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). But similar viruses such as simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV), which infects monkeys, usually don’t cause disease in their natural monkey hosts,” says Kirchhoff. The researchers found that the Nef protein of most SIVs removes a molecule from the cell surface that is critical to make T cells responsive to stimulation. Nef proteins in HIV-1 and its closest related SIVs lack this protective function natural SIV infections in monkeys, the ability of the Nef protein to remove a specific receptor means that it can still fight off other diseases. Only the Nef proteins of HIV-1 and its immediate SIV relatives do not perform this function. evolutionary loss of a protective function of Nef may contribute to the high virulence of HIV-1 in humans”

Tai Chi exercises improve type 2 diabetes control

clipped from physorg.com Tai Chi exercises can improve the control of type 2 diabetes, suggests a small study, published ahead of print in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. Tai Chi Chuan is a traditional Chinese martial art, which combines deep diaphragmatic breathing and relaxation with gentle movement. The research team assessed the impact of a 12 week programme of Tai Chi exercises on the T helper cell activity of 30 patients with type 2 diabetes and 30 healthy people of the same age. T cells are a key component of the body’s immune system, producing powerful chemicals, including interleukins, which alter the immune response. Type 2 diabetes is associated with chronic inflammation, caused by excessive glucose in the blood (hyperglycaemia). After the 12 week programme glycated haemoglobin (when excess blood sugar combines with the oxygen transporter in red blood cells) levels fell significantly from 7.59% to 7.16 in the diabetic patients.