One of the world’s deadliest diseases, caused by the Ebola virus, may finally be preventable thanks to US and Canadian researchers, who have successfully tested several Ebola vaccines in primates and are now looking to adapt them for human use.
Dr Anthony Sanchez, from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia is presenting an overview of Ebola vaccine development today (Monday 31 March 2008) at the Society for General Microbiology’s 162nd meeting being held this week at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre.
“The biothreat posed by Ebola virus cannot be overlooked. We are seeing more and more naturally occurring human outbreaks of this deadly disease. With worldwide air travel and tourism the virus can now be transported to and from remote regions of the world. And it has huge potential as a possible weapon of bioterrorism”, says Dr Sanchez. “We desperately need a protective vaccine”.
So far, there have been over 1500 cases of Ebola haemorrhagic fever in humans. Illness starts abruptly and symptoms include fever, headache, sore throat, weakness, joint and muscle aches, diarrhoea, vomiting and stomach pain. A rash, red eyes and bleeding may also occur. Ebola haemorrhagic fever can have a mortality rate of around 90% in humans.
Because Ebola virus is so dangerous, producing and testing a vaccine is extremely challenging for the scientists. One significant factor slowing down progress has been that there are only a very limited number of high containment facilities with staff capable and authorised to conduct the research.
“Ebola virus is a Biosafety Level 4 threat, along with many other haemorrhagic fever viruses”, says Dr Sanchez. “As well as the difficulty in getting the right staff and facilities, vaccines for viruses like Ebola, Marburg and Lassa fever have been difficult to produce because simple ‘killed’ viruses that just trigger an antibody response from the blood are not effective. For these viruses we need to get a cell-mediated response, which involves our bodies producing killer T-cells before immunity is strong enough to prevent or clear an infection.”
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Monday, March 31, 2008
Monday, March 17, 2008
If you are a woman, drink tea
Women who drink three cups of tea a day may be protecting themselves against heart attacks and strokes.
They are less likely to have plaques - dangerous build-ups of fat and cholesterol - in their arteries, researchers found.
Only around one third of women who drank three or more cups of tea a day had plaques in a neck artery, compared with almost half of those who drank no tea.
However, the French study appeared to show that men who were regular tea-drinkers did not reap the same health benefits.
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They are less likely to have plaques - dangerous build-ups of fat and cholesterol - in their arteries, researchers found.
Only around one third of women who drank three or more cups of tea a day had plaques in a neck artery, compared with almost half of those who drank no tea.
However, the French study appeared to show that men who were regular tea-drinkers did not reap the same health benefits.
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It looks like wine is worse than beer
Drinking wine damages the brain more than beer or spirits, scientists claim.
They say it particularly affects the hippocampus, the part of the brain associated with memory and spatial awareness, and one of the first areas to be affected by Alzheimer's disease.
It could explain why millions forget what they are doing mid-task, or arrive in a room only to forget why they went there in the first place.
The findings will come as a particular blow to middle-class drinkers – many of whom drink wine for its supposed health benefits.
Women, who tend to drink more wine than beer, are also more likely to be affected.
Recent figures show 36 per cent of women in pubs drink wine, compared to only 21 per cent of men.
Writing in the medical journal Alcohol and Alcoholism, the psychiatrists behind the study compared brain scans from diagnosed alcoholics with those from healthy adults.
They found the hippocampus, which is located deep within the brain's temporal lobes, was up to 10 per cent smaller in those who drank
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They say it particularly affects the hippocampus, the part of the brain associated with memory and spatial awareness, and one of the first areas to be affected by Alzheimer's disease.
It could explain why millions forget what they are doing mid-task, or arrive in a room only to forget why they went there in the first place.
The findings will come as a particular blow to middle-class drinkers – many of whom drink wine for its supposed health benefits.
Women, who tend to drink more wine than beer, are also more likely to be affected.
Recent figures show 36 per cent of women in pubs drink wine, compared to only 21 per cent of men.
Writing in the medical journal Alcohol and Alcoholism, the psychiatrists behind the study compared brain scans from diagnosed alcoholics with those from healthy adults.
They found the hippocampus, which is located deep within the brain's temporal lobes, was up to 10 per cent smaller in those who drank
Full Article
Tips to fight against yourself
Avoid your triggers. "You crave what you eat, so if you switch what you're eating, you can weaken your old cravings and strengthen new ones," says Marcia Pelchat, PhD, of the Monell Center. This can happen pretty fast. For five days, her study volunteers drank bland dietary-supplement beverages. During that time, they craved fewer of their trigger foods. By the end of the study, the volunteers actually wanted the supplements instead. The first few days are always the hardest, and you probably can't completely eliminate your old cravings. But the longer you avoid your trigger foods, the less likely you may be to want them. In fact, you'll probably begin to crave the foods you eat, a real bonus if you've switched to fresh fruit.
Destroy temptation. If you've succumbed to a craving and bought a box of cookies or some other trigger food and start to feel bad while eating it, destroy it. "Don't just throw it away; run water over it, ruin it. You'll feel a sense of accomplishment that you've licked your binge," says Caroline Apovian, MD, director, Nutrition and Weight Management Center at Boston Medical Center. Don't think about the money you're wasting. If the cookies don't go into the garbage, they're going straight to your hips.
Go nuts. Drink two glasses of water and eat an ounce of nuts (6 walnuts, 12 almonds or 20 peanuts). Within 20 minutes, this can extinguish your craving and dampen your appetite by changing your body chemistry, says RD's "Health IQ" columnist Michael F. Roizen, MD.
Jolt yourself with java. Try sipping a skim latte instead of reaching for a candy bar. The caffeine it contains won't necessarily satisfy your cravings, but it can save you the calories by quenching your appetite, says Dr. Roizen. And the warm richness and ritual can distract you.
Let it go. Since stress is a huge trigger for cravings, learning to deal with it could potentially save you hundreds of calories a day. This will take some practice. You can try deep breathing or visualizing a serene scene on your own, or you can speed things up by buying one of the many CDs that teach progressive muscle relaxation. A good one is Relaxation/Affirmation Techniques, by Nancy Hopps.
Take a power nap. Cravings sneak up when we're tired. Focus on the fatigue: Shut the door, close your eyes, re-energize.
Get minty fresh. Brush your teeth; gargle with mouthwash. "When you have a fresh, clean mouth, you don't want to mess it up," says Molly Gee, RD, of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.
Distract yourself. If only ice cream will do, it's a craving, not hunger. "Cravings typically last ten minutes," says John Foreyt, PhD, of Baylor College of Medicine. Recognize that and divert your mind: Call someone, listen to music, run an errand, meditate or exercise.
Indulge yourself -- within limits. Once in a while, it's OK to go ahead and have that ice cream. But buy a small cone, not a pint. Try 100-calorie CocoaVia chocolate bars and 100-calorie snack packs of cookies, peanuts or pretzel sticks. The trick is to buy only one pack at a time so you won't be tempted to reach for more. And since even 100 extra calories can sabotage weight loss if you indulge daily, strike a bargain with yourself to work off the excess calories. A brisk 15-minute walk will burn 100 calories or so.
Plan or avoid. Vary your usual routine to avoid passing the bakery or pizzeria. If you know you'll be face-to-face with irresistible birthday cake, allocate enough calories to fit it into your diet.
Cravings sneak up when we're tired. Focus on the fatigue: Shut the door, close your eyes, re-energize.
Full Article
Destroy temptation. If you've succumbed to a craving and bought a box of cookies or some other trigger food and start to feel bad while eating it, destroy it. "Don't just throw it away; run water over it, ruin it. You'll feel a sense of accomplishment that you've licked your binge," says Caroline Apovian, MD, director, Nutrition and Weight Management Center at Boston Medical Center. Don't think about the money you're wasting. If the cookies don't go into the garbage, they're going straight to your hips.
Go nuts. Drink two glasses of water and eat an ounce of nuts (6 walnuts, 12 almonds or 20 peanuts). Within 20 minutes, this can extinguish your craving and dampen your appetite by changing your body chemistry, says RD's "Health IQ" columnist Michael F. Roizen, MD.
Jolt yourself with java. Try sipping a skim latte instead of reaching for a candy bar. The caffeine it contains won't necessarily satisfy your cravings, but it can save you the calories by quenching your appetite, says Dr. Roizen. And the warm richness and ritual can distract you.
Let it go. Since stress is a huge trigger for cravings, learning to deal with it could potentially save you hundreds of calories a day. This will take some practice. You can try deep breathing or visualizing a serene scene on your own, or you can speed things up by buying one of the many CDs that teach progressive muscle relaxation. A good one is Relaxation/Affirmation Techniques, by Nancy Hopps.
Take a power nap. Cravings sneak up when we're tired. Focus on the fatigue: Shut the door, close your eyes, re-energize.
Get minty fresh. Brush your teeth; gargle with mouthwash. "When you have a fresh, clean mouth, you don't want to mess it up," says Molly Gee, RD, of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.
Distract yourself. If only ice cream will do, it's a craving, not hunger. "Cravings typically last ten minutes," says John Foreyt, PhD, of Baylor College of Medicine. Recognize that and divert your mind: Call someone, listen to music, run an errand, meditate or exercise.
Indulge yourself -- within limits. Once in a while, it's OK to go ahead and have that ice cream. But buy a small cone, not a pint. Try 100-calorie CocoaVia chocolate bars and 100-calorie snack packs of cookies, peanuts or pretzel sticks. The trick is to buy only one pack at a time so you won't be tempted to reach for more. And since even 100 extra calories can sabotage weight loss if you indulge daily, strike a bargain with yourself to work off the excess calories. A brisk 15-minute walk will burn 100 calories or so.
Plan or avoid. Vary your usual routine to avoid passing the bakery or pizzeria. If you know you'll be face-to-face with irresistible birthday cake, allocate enough calories to fit it into your diet.
Cravings sneak up when we're tired. Focus on the fatigue: Shut the door, close your eyes, re-energize.
Full Article
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Vinegar's benefits
Vinegar, which is created from the fermentation of ethanol, is an inexpensive and more environmentally friendly alternative to what might be in your medicine cabinet. Here are five of the ways that vinegar can be good for your health:
Apply vinegar to jellyfish stings to ease the pain.
If a jellyfish doesn't get you at the beach, the sun might. Vinegar can be applied to a sunburn to ease the effects.
Equal parts vinegar and alcohol dropped in the ear canal can ward off infection for someone with swimmer's ear.
A daily drink of one tablespoon of vinegar and one of honey mixed with water will help to ward off a cold.
Vinegar, when swabbed on a cervix will turn cancerous cells white. I don't know that this will ever come in handy ... but hey, it's good conversation starter if you find yourself chatting with an OBGYN.
Full Article
Apply vinegar to jellyfish stings to ease the pain.
If a jellyfish doesn't get you at the beach, the sun might. Vinegar can be applied to a sunburn to ease the effects.
Equal parts vinegar and alcohol dropped in the ear canal can ward off infection for someone with swimmer's ear.
A daily drink of one tablespoon of vinegar and one of honey mixed with water will help to ward off a cold.
Vinegar, when swabbed on a cervix will turn cancerous cells white. I don't know that this will ever come in handy ... but hey, it's good conversation starter if you find yourself chatting with an OBGYN.
Full Article
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