Health aNd Fitness Guide » Research & Development

One Foetus, 3 Parents

Aziz — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 18:31:13 +0000

Scientists have created human embryos from three parents, which could be the answer to a group of hereditary diseases called mitochondrial disease. Researchers from Newcastle University in Northern Ireland created test tube embryos in the lab using the DNA of a man and two women. Mitochondrial diseases — including liver, brain and heart disorders, blindness, deafness, some forms of epilepsy, and muscular problems — are inherited from the mother. The aim of the method is to make sure that women with faulty mitochondrial DNA do not pass the diseases on to their children. This is achieved by giving the embryos at risk a mitochondrial transplant. However, it may take time to sort out the ethical aspects of these studies.

Cloned immune cells fight cancer

Aziz — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 18:31:08 +0000

A patient whose skin cancer had spread throughout his body has been given the all-clear after being injected with billions of his own immune cells.
Tests revealed that the 52-year old man’s tumors, which spread from his skin to his lung and groin, vanished within two months of having the treatment, and had not returned two years later. Doctors attempted the experimental therapy as a part of a clinical trial after the man’s cancer failed to respond to conventional treatments.
The man is the first to benefit from the new technique, which uses cloning to produce billions of copies of a patient’s immune cells. When they are injected into the body they attack the cancer and force it into remission.
(more…)

Ever Heard of Phthalates?

Aziz — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 18:31:57 +0000

A group of obscure chemical compounds, called phthalates, was in the news recently. They are found in scores of consumer products, and are linked by some to a variety of health problems. A primer on this new chemical hazard:

What are Phthalates?
Phthalates are a family of chemical compounds that come in the form of oily, colourless liquids. There are dozens of types of phthalates.

How are they used?
Phthalates have been used for about 50 years to make plastics softer and flexible in products like vinyl-flooring and seat coverings, raincoats, shower curtains, garden hoses and sex toys. They are found in children’s products like teething rings and bibs, plus bath, beach and pool toys. In hospitals, phthalates are found in intravenous medical tubing, exam gloves, catheters and blood storage bags. They are used in nail polish to prevent chipping, and in perfumes to help the fragrance last longer. Phthalates are so ubiquitous that studies have found them in almost everyone tested.

Why are they considered harmful?
Some studies have linked phthalates to reproductive problems, early onset of puberty, testicular cancer, and liver and thyroid damage. Studies suggest that phthalates may contribute to asthma and decreased lung function in men. But trade groups say they are harmless to humans, and cite government reports to back their view. While studies have found phthalates to be toxic to lab animals, fewer studies on humans have been done.

Surgery Sans Scars

Aziz — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 18:31:17 +0000

French surgeons gave a peek into the future of surgical procedures — they removed a patient’s gall-bladder without incisions in the abdomen. The feat was accomplished with a single incision in the patient’s vagina. It used laparoscopic procedure to remove the gall-bladder. The recovery was smooth, with very little pain.

Face Transplant Works

Aziz — Sat, 17 May 2008 18:31:54 +0000

A French woman who received the world’s first partial face transplant is all smiles. Isabelle Dinoire, 38, who lost her facial parts when they were torn off by her dog, had her nose, cheeks, mouth, lips, and chin replaced with donor tissue in November 2005. (more…)

Men’s fertility linked to voice

Aziz — Wed, 07 May 2008 18:31:15 +0000

Men with deep-pitched voices are more fertile and father more children, according to a study at Harvard University, US. The study was based on the reproductive patterns of a Tanzanian hunter tribe called Hazda that continues to live pretty much the same way that human beings did 200,000 years ago. The Hazda tribe females collect berries and males hunt animals. (more…)

Night Shifts: A cause of cancer

Aziz — Mon, 05 May 2008 18:31:30 +0000

Overnight shift work will be named as a probable cause of cancer by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer. The findings, published in a recent issue of Lancet Oncology, can affect millions of people worldwide. The analysis is based on research that shows higher rates of breast and prostate cancer among people who work overnight. (more…)

Toxin in breast milk

Aziz — Sun, 04 May 2008 18:31:18 +0000

Scientists have discovered the mechanism by which a chemical known as perchlorate can collect in breast milk and cause cognitive and motor deficits in newborns. Used since the 1940s to manufacture explosives and rocket fuel, the contaminant is still widely present in the water and food supply, experts say. High concentrations of perchlorate in breast milk can be passed on to a fetus during pregnancy and affect an infant’s ability to manufacture essential thyroid hormone, the new study suggests. (more…)

Skinning Cells

Aziz — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 18:31:59 +0000

Embryonic stem cells are the mother of all body cells. They are not specialized cells, and can undergo division for a long period. And, under the right circumstances, these cells can evolve into specific organs, such as heart muscles, bone marrow or pancreas. Just as the sculptor can fix a broken arm, scientists dream of a day when they can select stem cells from the shelves to repair a body organ. (more…)

Scientists create heart

Aziz — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 18:31:33 +0000

Scientists from the University of Minnesota have created a new heart in the laboratory using hearts of dead rats. The study, published in Nature Medicine, could bring hope for patients whose heart muscles have been damaged. (more…)