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Washington:
Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center scientists have reportedly
discovered a master gene called Foxa2, which is responsible for the
first breath that babies take while after they are born. According to
them, the gene is the key factor that allows the lungs of a foetus to
develop fully and eventually breathe air. According to the study to
be published in the October issue of the Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the discovery of this gene could help scientists
save premature babies, who often die of respiratory distress syndrome
caused by the lack of air, and adults with lung disease or lung injury.
The researchers found that when the Foxa2 was removed from mice in their
fetal state, they usually did not survive at birth and if they did,
they developed several lung-related ailments later in life. The finding,
according to the researchers, has huge implications because approximately
24 percent of all infants born prematurely die in the first month of
life and in most cases, it is as a result of respiratory distress syndrome.
The scientists are now saying that further in depth studies should be
carried out into how Foxa2 functions and develops. Folic acid during pregnancy protects babies from birth defects (Go To Top) Washington:
Adding folic acid to mother's food can protect the to-be born baby
from spina bifida or neural tube disorders and other birth defects,
a Canadian research has revealed. The study conducted by Dr. Catherine
McCourt, from the Population and Public Health Branch, Health Canada,
and published in BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, has found that incidence
of babies born with neural tube defects dropped by 78 percent, after
folic acid was added to flour, cornmeal and pasta to be consumed by
expecting mothers during early weeks of their pregnancy. Though there
have been some speculations that the increased intake of folic acid
could mask the symptoms of vitamin B12 , as it improves levels of blood
folate, yet this study did not find any decline in vitamin B12 status
in the expectant mothers. The researchers are not sure how exactly folic
acid works to reduce the risk of neural tube defects in developing babies,
but are certain about the benefits of this vitamin. "Public education
regarding folic acid supplement use by women of childbearing age should
continue," the authors write. Red wine halves men's prostate cancer risk (Go To Top) Washington:
'Red red wine stay close to me...', the lyrics of this U2 song might
be all the more relevant to you if you are suffering from prostate cancer,
for a new study suggests that drinking a glass of red wine a day may
halve a man's risk of prostate cancer. Researchers led by Janet L. Stanford
at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center interviewed 753 newly
diagnosed Seattle- area prostate-cancer patients as well as 703 healthy
controls who served as a comparison group. Detailed information about
tumor aggressiveness (such as tumor grade and disease stage) was obtained
through the National Cancer Institute's Seattle-Puget Sound Surveillance,
Epidemiology and End Results cancer registry. "We found that men who
consumed four or more glasses of red wine per week reduced their risk
of prostate cancer by 50 percent. Among men who consumed four or more
4-ounce glasses of red wine per week, we saw about a 60 percent lower
incidence of the more aggressive types of prostate cancer. The more
clinically aggressive prostate cancer is where the strongest reduction
in risk was observed," Stanford said. No significant effects were associated
with the consumption of beer or hard liquor and no consistent risk reduction
with white wine. This suggests red wine has a beneficial compound called
resveratrol, which is abundant in the skins of red grapes but much less
so in the skins of white grapes. "From a public-health standpoint, it's
difficult to recommend any alcohol consumption given the risks associated
with heavy consumption, from increased overall cancer risk to accidental
injury and social problems. But for men who already are consuming alcohol,
I think the results of this study suggest that modest consumption of
red wine - four to eight 4-ounce drinks per week - is the level at which
you might receive benefit. Clearly other studies show that more than
that may have adverse effects on health," Stanford said. Scientists discover causes behind red wine's health benefits (Go To Top) Washington: Scientists have come a step closer to understanding the causes behind the health benefits of drinking red wine, by successfully converting chalcone synthase, a biosynthetic protein enzyme found in all higher plants, into an efficient resveratrol synthase, a beneficial component of red wine. Published in the recent issue of the journal of Chemistry and Biology, the study claims that resveratrol is thought to contribute to the improved cardiovascular effects associated with moderate consumption of red wine. According to the scientists at Salk Institute in San Diego, Calif., resveratrol has a number of health benefits, including roles as anti-oxidants, cancer preventing agents, blood thinners and blood pressure, lowering compounds. It was also recently shown to increase life span in fruit flies and yeast, suggesting an additional role in our diets as a promising anti-aging natural chemical. "This research demonstrates the power of protein engineering in producing value-added traits, and in solving synthetic puzzles using modern techniques. The study provides new insights into the relationships among plant proteins," said William Nes, program director in NSF's division of molecular and cellular biosciences, which funded the research. The health benefits of resveratrol consumption are a lucky accident, as grapes actually produce resveratrol in order to defend against fungal invasion, said scientists. "In addition to illuminating the molecular mechanisms of plant evolution, this study has agricultural and nutraceutical significance. This biotechnological advance will allow us to 'engineer' natural resveratrol production into crop plants via a small modification of that plant's own chalcone synthase gene, as occurs naturally in grapes and a few other plants," said Noel of the Salk Institute. Sept 18, 2004 Men could soon be things of the past! (Go To Top) London: It seems as if nature has ordained men for extinction and one day women will rule the earth, if a new research is to be believed. According to The Sun, scientists at the Australian National University in Canberra believe that men have lost 1,393 genes out of 1,438 genes on the Y chromosome over the past 300 million years and they might be extinct in another 10 million years. The 45 that are left include the crucial SRY gene, which starts development of the testes and release of male hormones. According to lead researcher Prof Jenny Graves, "All Y chromosomes - including those in mammals - shrink over time. Most of the original human Y has been lost. At this rate it would lose the last 45 genes in 10million years. But it could be a lot closer - it could be 100,000 years away." This is because the Y chromosome found in males, is constantly at risk as it travels through the testes in sperm. She added that men may survive by developing a replacement sex-determining gene - called a Proto-Y chromosome. "A species can withstand loss of the Y chromosome and the male sex-trigger gene. But less lucky ones have become extinct as a result and humanity may join them," Graves added. Sept 9, 2004 We can now live till we are 120 (Go To Top) London: A Cambridge University scientist has claimed that it is possible for a person to live upto the age of 120 after reportedly discovering the factors that contribute to the deterioration of the human body. According to Dr. Aubrey de Grey, extending the average life expectancy by another 40 years is almost within our reach, as he believes that he has discovered the secret to an extra-long life. Grey claimed that a combination of gene and stem cell therapy along with vaccinations to reprogram the body's immune system can halt body deterioration processes to within 25 years. He described the therapies as "genuine rejuvenation processes" that could extend and improve life. The current average life expectancy is 75.7 for men and 80.4 for women. Grey thinks that with the further advancement of science, living indefinitely could become a possibility. "It could mean a 50-year-old person lives another 50 to 70 years rather than 20 to 30, and they are healthy years, we are not talking about frailty. Ultimately, we could extend life indefinitely because these processes do not simply slow down the damage which causes ageing, but repair it," the Daily Mail quoted Grey as saying. Some scientists, however, do not agree with Grey's claims of increasing life expectancy in near future. "To say that we're going to achieve life expectancies of 100, as a population, any time soon is outside the realm of possibility. I'd be elated if we could get ten more years of life by slowing down ageing. But talking about 50, 60, 5,000 more years? That's counter-productive," said Dr. Jay Olshansky, an authority on anti-ageing medicine. Sept 9, 2004 Man's forearm skin grows him a new penis (Go To Top) London: A Romanian man whose penis was accidentally severed by a surgeon will now have a new organ made from the skin on his forearm. The 34-year old man from Bucharest was being operated for a testicle problem almost three months ago when the mishap took place. Dr. Ioan Lascar who operated on the man after a colleague made the mistake, revealed to 'Libertatea' newspaper, "The patient's condition is good and evolving as we expected. He comes to medical checks once or twice a week." Lascar added that the 'butchered' man might also need some subsequent minor operations later. Meanwhile, the surgeon who cut the man's penis has lost the right to perform any operations and is still under investigation for malpractice. Sept 7, 2004 Men may indeed have come from Mars (Go To Top) Washington:
British scientists at the University of Canterbury, have revealed
that bacteria found on meteorites can withstand high pressure, surviving
even the million times more atmospheric pressure while crashing onto
Earth lending credence to the theory that Martian organism, after surviving
such crashes on Earth, may have seeded life on this watery planet. According
to Nature, the scientists claim that cosmic bacterium on meteorites
even have the capability to survive crashes into the icy surfaces of
such as Jupiter's moons Europa and Ganymede. The experiments carried
on by Mark Burchell and his colleagues have revealed that bacterium
by the name of panspermia upon being injected in porous ceramic which
was then shot at targets, survived the high velocity impact, even while
they were crushed by up to a million times more atmospheric pressure.
Further experiments were carried out with other types of soil bacteria
using a gas-powered gun to fire bits of ceramic, between 0.1 and 2 millimetres
across, into targets of gel or ice, the projectiles of which were loaded
with cells or spores of the soil bacteria The findings revealed that
one in every ten million soil bacteria cells survived when they hit
the gel. Scientists believe that since the survival rate for an ice
target was about ten times higher, it might have been possible that
life on Earth was re-seeded after a massive impact probably wiped out
all life forms on this planet. |
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