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Why diet drugs work

September 12, 2009 By admin 1 Comment

London, Sept 11 (ANI): Diet drugs work because they make people eat more healthily, claim psychologists.

In the study, presented at the British Psychological Society’s Division of Health Psychology conference in Birmingham, researchers found that dieters who lost the most weight on the drugs had also reduced the amount of fatty junk food they ate.

However, some people reacted differently to starting the drugs, taking them as a license to eat more unhealthy food such as crisps, reports The Telegraph.

To reach the conclusion, researchers analysed data of 572 people who had been prescribed the diet drug orlistat by their doctor.

The drug works by reducing the amount of fat absorbed by the body.However, this fat is them eliminated in bowel movements, which can cause disagreeable side effects.

Amelia Hollywood, a PHD student at the University of Surrey and one of the researchers who carried out the study, said: “Our findings support the idea that orlistat works not only on a physical level, but also psychologically – as it encourages people to see their diet as a cause of their weight problem.

“In addition, the side effects are so unpleasant that people avoid bad eating fatty foods and therefore lose weight.

“However, the way in which some people responded to orlistat was surprising.

“Some participants in this study reported that their eating behaviour became significantly unhealthier over the six month period.”

She added: “People also told us that they were not adhering to the medication as they should. It seemed that these people were taking orlistat as a lifestyle drug – choosing to take it when they were eating foods higher in fat to reduce any weight gain or not taking it when going on holiday or out for a meal as they didn’t want to experience the consequences of eating fatty foods.”

The preliminary findings found that on average those taking the diet pills lost almost 10lb over six months. (ANI)

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Indian-origin scientists find novel therapeutic target for autoimmune diseases

September 2, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Sept 2 (ANI): A research team led by Indian-origin scientists from University of Michigan have discovered a new mechanism that would help in future therapies for conditions ranging from autoimmune diseases to organ transplants to cancer.

U-M biochemistry professor Ruma Banerjee and her colleagues have identified a mechanism that keeps a check on aggressive immune cells that can attack the body’s own cells.

They found that immune system’s regulatory T cells influence aggressive immune cells by regulating the chemical environment between cells.

“Now we know that the redox environment outside the cell is a very important dynamic. It regulates cell function,” Nature quoted Banerjee as saying.

The processes known as redox chemistry are fundamental to the way cells derive and consume energy.

She said that regulatory T cells appear to alter the chemical environment around their aggressive cousins, known as autoreactive T cells, which either curb them or cause them to proliferate.

This mechanism is likely to be involved in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and ulcerative colitis.

The study conducted over live mouse immune cells showed that important redox communication occurs between dendritic cells, which are the first immune cells to detect a foreign agent, and autoreactive T cells.

Dr Sanjay Garg, a research investigator in the U-M Department of Biological Chemistry, said that the dendritic cells alter the chemical environment outside cells in a way that promotes activation of the T cells.

But then T regulatory cells “intervene in the redox chatter” and suppress that effect.

Banerjee insists that she needs to conduct more study to fully understand the process before they can use their insights to block or encourage T regulatory cell activity in animal studies of IBD or another autoimmune disease.

The study appears in Nature Chemical Biology. (ANI)

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Soluble fibre ‘effective in treating irritable bowel syndrome’

August 28, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Aug 28 (ANI): A new study by researchers from Utrecht University in the Netherlands has suggested that a soluble fibre supplement called psyllium should be the first line of attack in treating irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

In the study, researchers compared adding bran, psyllium and a dummy supplement to sufferers’ diets.

They found psyllium was the most effective, warning that bran may even worsen the symptoms of the condition.

IBS is characterized by abdominal pain and an irregular bowel habit.

Its exact cause is unknown and recommendations for treatment include dietary advice, antidepressants and drug treatments.

Many relying on dietary adjustments still turn to bran in a bid to help improve the way the intestines work.

However, the new study of 275 patients questions the wisdom of this approach.

The researchers gave patients 10g of either psyllium, bran or rice flour twice a day for 12 weeks.

At the end of the study, those on psyllium, a naturally occurring vegetable fibre, reported symptom severity had been reduced by 90 points using a standard scale of rating problems.

For bran it was 58 points and for the placebo group, 49.

The study also showed that patients seemed less tolerant of bran, with more than half of the group dropping out during the trial, mostly because their symptoms worsened.

Soluble fibre can also be found in fruit such as apples and strawberries, as well as barley and oats.

“I think adding psyllium to the diet is the best treatment option to start with. In the study, people did this by adding it to things such as yoghurt and it had a real effect,” the BBC quoted Dr Niek de Wit, one of the researchers, as saying.

The study has been described in the British Medical Journal. (ANI)

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Microscopic ‘beads’ may revolutionise organ transplantation

July 8, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 7 (ANI): If Medical College of Georgia researchers are to be believed, organ transplantation in future may include microscopic beads that create “designer” immune cells so that patients may tolerate their new organ.

Dr. Anatolij Horuzsko, reproductive immunologist at the MCG Center for Molecular Chaperone/Radiobiology and Cancer Virology, has already used this approach successfully in mice with skin grafts.

“It’s absolutely natural,” says the researcher.

The degradable microparticles deliver the most powerful known form of HLA-G, a natural suppressor of the immune response, straight to dendritic cells, which typically show the immune system what to attack.

The microparticles are given right after a transplant, just as dendritic cells are giving the immune system a heads up to get busy attacking the new organ.

Dr. Horuzsko says that microparticle therapy likely would be needed for just a few weeks, until the dendritic cells have learned instead to ignore it.

“It’s like a calming effect and once tolerance is established, we don’t need it any more,” he says.

His team compared the success of HLA-G microparticles with the dendritic cell marker to those without a marker, those with were much more efficient at getting where needed and acting.

He says that those without direction likely were consumed by garbage eaters called macrophages.

“We want to create in kidney transplant patients, the same tolerance to the new kidney,” says Dr. Horuzsko, who reckons that HLA-G microparticles could be doing just that within five years.

He presented the patented process along with his other latest HLA-G findings during an opening lecture of the 5th International Conference on HLA-G in Paris, July 6-8.

Dr. Horuzsko believes that marked microparticles also have treatment potential in diseases where the immune system attacks normal tissue, such as arthritis, multiple sclerosis and inflammatory bowel disease.

He is currently working in collaboration with Dr. Laura Mulloy, chief of the Section of Nephrology, Hypertension and Transplantation Medicine in the MCG School of Medicine, to find out whether higher natural levels of HLA-G already are giving some transplant patients an edge, by comparing HLA-G expression in those who keep and reject their transplanted kidneys. (ANI)

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Vitamin D: the best protection against cancer

May 30, 2009 By admin 1 Comment

London, May 30 (ANI): Taking supplements of vitamin D could reduce the incidence of breast cancer by a quarter and bowel cancer by a third, say scientists.

What’s more, the vitamin, sometimes called “bottled sunshine”, should be offered to the population as part of a public health drive, the boffins suggested.

To reach the conclusion, researchers reviewed 2,750 research studies involving vitamin D which show that taking daily supplements of the vitamin could do more for cancer prevention than a library full of lifestyle advice, reports The Independent.

The study, published in the Annals of Epidemiology, involved Professor Cedric Garland and colleagues from the University of California, San Diego.

Vitamin D, made by the action of sunlight on the skin, has attracted increasing attention in recent years as its role in preventing cancer and other conditions including heart disease, diabetes and multiple sclerosis. (ANI)

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Healthy people on the verge of becoming overweight at higher risk of bowel cancer

May 11, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, May 11 (ANI): A study suggests that healthy people who are on the verge of becoming overweight may be at an increased risk of developing bowel cancer.

It has found that such people are about 15 per cent more likely to develop bowel cancer than those at the lower end of the range.

Professor Martin Wiseman, a medical and scientific adviser for the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF), says that it is possible to prevent about 18,600 cancer cases if people had a body mass index (BMI) under 25.

A BMI of 25 to 30 is classed as overweight and over 30 is obese.

The WCRF recommends that people aim to be as lean as possible without becoming underweight to avoid the cancers of the breast, bowel, oesophagus, kidney, pancreas, womb, and gallbladder.

Wiseman says that that means that people should aim to be closer to a BMI of 18 than 25, even within the healthy weight range.

“The evidence that being overweight puts you at increased risk of cancer is stronger now than ever before and we now say that, after not smoking, maintaining a healthy weight is the most important thing you can do for cancer prevention,” the Telegraph quoted him as saying.

“This is the reason we recommend people aim to be as lean as possible without becoming underweight.

“But a recent survey showed almost 40 per cent of people still do not know that excess body fat is a cause of cancer. This means we need to do more work to spread the message that maintaining a healthy weight is something positive people can to reduce their risk of developing cancer later in life,” he added.

Health experts are of the opinion that people one in three cases of the most common cancers could be avoided if people ate healthily, took more exercise, and maintained a healthy weight. (ANI)

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Ferguson keeps vigil beside his gravely injured grandson’s hospital bed

May 7, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, May 7 (ANI): Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson kept vigil beside his gravely injured grandson’s hospital bed, as the kid fought back from the brink of death.

Ferguson clutched Charlie’s hand and whispered words of support as the sedated ten-year-old recovered from a five-hour op to reduce brain swelling.

Ferguson, 67, was shaken to learn of the crash hours before his side’s Champions League semi-final second leg clash with Arsenal.

Charlie, who dreams of one day playing for Sir Alex’s Manchester United, was last night in a “serious” condition and faces more surgery today to repair his spine after shattering a neck vertebra. e is the stepson of Sir Alex’s manager son Darren, 37, but both treasure him as “their own flesh and blood.”

He suffered a catalogue of injuries, including a punctured lung and bowel damage, in a head-on car smash in Macclesfield, Cheshire, on Tuesday.

His mum Nadine Metcalfe – Darren’s ex – broke both legs and was cut free with Charlie’s sister Grace, six.

Charlie walked unaided when they reached Leighton Hospital in Crewe, Cheshire. But medics realised that he had severe internal bleeding only after he keeled over.

He was airlifted to Liverpool’s Alder Hey Hospital for surgery, The Sun reported.

Nadine was “stable” last night in Manchester’s Wythenshawe Hospital. Grace, who had cuts, has been released from the hospital. (ANI)

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Coming soon, a sureshot way to treat constipation

April 9, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, April 9 (ANI): Suffering from constipation? Well, help is on the way – a team of researchers has identified a potential drug target to make it a lot easier to go to the bathroom, especially when all other methods fail.

They have discovered a group of nerve ending receptors, which, when stimulated, causes the bowels to pass waste, and the specific receptor needed to activate bowel clearance.

Also, they tested chemicals that work with those receptors, providing a blueprint for the development of new laxatives.

“We hope that the receptor identified by our study would be exploited more in the design of drugs to treat constipation,” said Bindu Chandrasekharan, a researcher from Emory University who was involved in the study.

The study involved two groups of mice, focusing on a type of receptor also present on human nerves in the gut (a type of adenosine receptor).

The first group of mice had normal adenosine receptors on these nerves and normal bowel movements. The second group of mice completely lacked these adenosine receptors and showed familiar signs of constipation.

The researchers started with simple experiments such as comparing the wet weight, dry weight, and water content in the stools of both groups.

The mice were also made to drink a dye not absorbed by the body to see how it passed or did not pass.

In addition, the researchers used microscopic lasers to separate the nerve cells from the bowel to determine exactly where the receptors are located. Then they tested various chemicals that can activate or inhibit the nerve receptors.

Gerald Weissmann, M.D, Editor-in-Chief of The FASEB Journal, said: “Here’s why: First, we can look forward to a solution to what is sometimes a serious problem, especially infants and the elderly. Second, it’s the first definitive proof that these receptors, the adenosine receptors, control bowel function. This discovery promises to yield agents that will permit us to sit down and ease up in the middle of a busy day.”

The study has been published online in The FASEB Journal. (ANI)

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Beckham set to overtake Bobby Moore’s England cap record

March 29, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Mar 28 (ANI): English midfielder David Beckham has only to make it onto the pitch against Slovenia today to get his 109th cap, and beat the record of Bobby Moore, regarded by many as England’s greatest player.

Beckham equalled Bobby Moore’s tally when he appeared in the friendly against Spain last month, but recently admitted he thought his days as a top-line player were over when manager Steve McClaren dumped him in 2006.

“I have had a lot of ups and downs in my career but being left out of the England squad was a big low. It knocked my confidence a lot and it affected me. I just assumed I wouldn’t play for my country again. They were playing well and I just thought: That’s it,” Beckham had said.

Now, he says: “The confidence is back that I can still play at this level. I went to LA to try something different and the game is still growing there. However, I was quite happy to get the Milan thing sorted. I have to be playing at the highest level to put me in a position to carry on getting picked for England.”

Stephanie Moore MBE, who set up the Bobby Moore Fund for Cancer Research, told Sky News: “It will be a marvellous personal achievement. It will also be a testimony to his outstanding contribution to English and world football.”

“The fact that David generously donated the shirt he wore on his 108th cap to the Bobby Moore Fund is a mark of the man. His gesture will help us raise crucial funds for our globally respected bowel cancer research programme.”
“If Bobby were alive today I’m sure he would be the first to congratulate David,” the Sky News quoted her, as saying. (ANI)

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Jade Goody dies of cancer

March 22, 2009 By admin 1 Comment

New Delhi, Mar 22 (ANI): British reality star Jade goody has lost her battle to cervical cancer, media has reported.

The mum of two, 27, who recently married boyfriend Jack Tweed, died in her sleep at her home in Essex, southeast England, her publicist Max Clifford said.

Goody was diagnosed with cancer in 2008 but the disease spread to her liver, groin and bowel and she was told it was terminal in February.

She was being treated at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London but wanted to die at home with her family, new husband and sons, Bobby, five, and Freddy, four.

Goody became famous after appearing on the Channel 4 show Big Brother. (ANI)

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Soon, robots to replace army medics on battleground

March 5, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Mar 5 (ANI): Robots may soon replace army medics on the battlefield, say researchers.

Scientists hope to replace Mobile Army Surgical Hospital with “Trauma Pod” including robot surgeons and nurses, in the next 10 years.

The three-armed surgical robot, being developed by Pentagon’s Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) is currently under trials.

It is assisted by 12 other robotic systems, including a voice-activated “Hot Lips”, the nickname given to chief nurse Major Margaret Houlihan in 70s hit TV series M*A*S*H.

Its single arm passes instruments to the robot surgeon and disposes of used equipment.

A third “circulating nurse” robot gives out right tools, while the Pod’s bed monitors vital signs and administers fluids and oxygen.

The purpose of the Trauma Pod is to provide a quick “temporary fix” to wounded soldiers before being taken to the hospital.

“The system will focus on damage control surgery, the minimum necessary to stabilise someone. It could provide airway control, relieve immediate life-threatening injuries such as a collapsed lung, or stop bleeding temporarily,” the Telegraph quoted Pablo Garcia, from project leaders SRI International, based in Menlo Park, California, US as telling New Scientist magazine.

The surgeon robot, remote-controlled by a human from a distance away, will communicate with and instruct the other robots.

One of its three arms holds an endoscope to allow the human controller to see inside the patient, while the other two grip surgical tools.

Garcia added robot could be allowed to carry out some simple tasks without human help, such as placing stitches or tying knots.

It has successfully passed the first phase of a feasibility trial where they treated a mannequin with bullet injuries by inserting a plastic rube into a damaged blood vessel and operating to close a perforated bowel.

“Three separate robots dance over the top of the patient with their powerful arms moving very quickly, yet they don’t crash and they’re able to deliver very small items from one arm to another,” said Brendan Visser, a surgeon at Stanford University in California who helped develop the Trauma Pod.

The team hopes to shrink the Trauma Pod and all its robots to a collapsible unit encased in a shell that can be carried on the back of a vehicle. Eventually the bed will act as an anaesthetist, using a robotic arm to insert intravenous lines and deliver drugs. (ANI)

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Body painting may help improve understanding of human anatomy

February 22, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Melbourne, Feb 21 (ANI): Students can have a better understanding of human anatomy, if all the organs and parts are painted on a real live body, according to an Australian expert.

Professor Paul McMenamin, of the University of Western Australia, reckons that body painting can turn out to be a useful tool in anatomy classes.

“Essentially we’re using a three-dimensional canvas in the shape of the body,” ABC Online quoted him as saying.

“You can paint the muscles on and bring them to life. It’s just fantastic when you see it. People just go ‘Oh my God,’” he added.

McMenamin has been using body painting in classes for about four years.

He says that when students paint muscles, tendons, nerves, blood vessels and even organs, like the heart, on a model, or on each other, the visual impact helps them learn more than they would otherwise.

“They see the heart and it’s almost as if it’s there in front of them. As if they’d ripped the skin and ribs off and the heart’s right there,” he added.

In his opinion, body painting is not meant to replace other anatomy teaching methods, but it is a method that helps students to bring together text-book and other knowledge on a real live person.

He also points out that the students in body painting class wear swimwear that can be painted on, and that the only limitation with the method is when it comes to drawing hearts.

McMenamin says that in females the heart is under the breast, which is why it is generally only drawn on males.

In his opinion, the method will also help young students get used to having physical contact with patients.

McMenamin got the idea from a Dutch group that reported using body painting to teach the location of the stomach and bowel, and since than he is giving talks and workshops on it around the world.

The study has been published in the journal Anatomical Sciences Education. (ANI)

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In-flight health problems ‘rising’ due to aged passengers, long flights

February 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Feb 19 (ANI): With an increase in the number of older passengers and extended flights, there’s a subsequent rise in the occurrence of on-board health problems, according to US researchers.

And thus, a Lancet review has suggested that both travellers and authorities should be aware of the risks, whether they are blood clots or flu pandemics, and seek to minimise them.

Many researchers have warned that an ageing population means passengers are boarding planes with existing health problems, and the risk is further elevated because of extended flight times, reports the BBC.

The researchers found an overall link between air travel and venous thromboembolism (VTE), which occurs when a blood clot in a leg vein travels through the body to the lung.

Almost three fourth of air-travel cases of VTE were found to be linked with the lack of movement while on board.

However, economy passengers are no more likely to develop clots than their counterparts in business.

Lahey Clinic Medical Center team, led by Dr Mark Gendreau, found that the greatest risk of clot was in flights of eight hours or more, but one study claimed that the risk started to climb at four hours.

Researchers said that the improved cabin air quality and passenger seating on board should, in fact, increase some aspects of passenger wellbeing, what with new aircraft like the Airbus A380 and Boeing 777-LR extending flight times to up to 20 hours.

One can reduce the risk of VTE by taking in plenty of fluids, walking through the cabin or changing position, and using compression stockings.

The researchers advised that how individuals with compromised cardiac and pulmonary function can endure long air travel needs to be assessed, and current-screening guidelines should undergo re-assessment.

The review also found that spending long periods of time in a highly pressurised environment could prove problematic for passengers.

People with existing breathing difficulties may experience particular problems as a result of the reduced oxygen in the aircraft.

On the other hand, the expansion of gases in the body – as happens in the cabin – is risky for those who have recently had major surgery.

In fact, researchers have also revealed anecdotal evidence of bowel perforation and wounds bursting open.

Spending long periods in close quarters with others is also known to spread disease.

However, the researchers noted that the risk of on-board transmission is mainly restricted to within two rows of the passenger carrying the infection. (ANI)

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Expert tells Brisbane court that Patel surgery ‘inappropriate’, led to deaths

February 19, 2009 By admin 1 Comment

Brisbane, Feb.19 (ANI): Colo-rectal expert Brian Collopy told a Brisbane Magistrates Court today that controversial Indian-born surgeon Dr. Jayant Patel fell short of competent medical practice when he wrongly diagnosed and performed an unnecessary operation on a man who later died.

Bundaberg Base Hospital patient Mervyn Morris, 76, died in June 2003 after Dr Patel performed two operations to try to stop bleeding in his bowel.

According to news.com.au, Collopy told the court that the bleeding could have been treated with iron tablets, cortisone and occasional blood transfusions.

He said Dr Patel, 58, incorrectly diagnosed the source of the bleeding and unnecessarily removed part of the colon.

This was an “inappropriate” and “over-aggressive” response, Dr Collopy said.

Dr Patel has been charged with Morris’s manslaughter, as well as that of two other patients. He faces another 10 charges relating to his time as director of surgery at the hospital between 2003 and 2005. (ANI)

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Jade Goody planning £1M dream wedding?

February 15, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Feb 14 (ANI): Cancer-stricken Jade Goody is reported to be planning a one-million-pound extravagant wedding with beau Jack Tweed for the sake of her kids.

The Big Brother star is keen to tie the knot in a “traditional” ceremony.

However, if she becomes too weak and ill, the couple will marry in hospital.

She has less than a 40 per cent chance of survival, as the cancer has spread to her bowel, groin and liver.

The 27-year-old babe is desperate to earn as much money as she can for sons, Bobby Jack, five and Freddie, four, before she looses her battle to cancer.

If reports are to be believed, she can rake in a lot of money by selling her wedding to the highest bidder.

According to sources, access to the exclusive wedding could easily top one million pounds, and Jade is keen for the cash to be put into a trust fund for her boys.

“Jade’s wedding is going to be a real tear-jerker. Every magazine editor will want to buy the rights,” the Daily Star quoted a magazine insider as saying.

“A celebrity wedding always sparks a bidding war but this will be something else.

“The fact that she is doing it to raise money for her children makes it even more heartbreaking,” the insider added.

Jade’s spokesman Max Clifford said: “We are all hoping for the best but Jade knows she may not have much time left and, to be blunt, she is desperate to earn as much money as she can. It is fair to say that selling the rights to her wedding would be a surefire way of earning a big amount of money,” he added. (ANI)

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Cancer-stricken Jade Goody to continue giving media appearances

February 8, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Feb 08 (ANI): Jade Goody will continue to give media appearances as she battles against cancer, says her representative Max Clifford.

Earlier this week, the former Big Brother star learned her cervical cancer had spread to her bowel, liver and groin.

And she underwent a lengthy operation on Feb 06 to remove the tumour from her bowel at the Royal Marsden Hospital in central London.

Goody’s spokesman says that the reality TV star with continue to give media appearances, including a reality show on Living TV following her life, because it helps her cope with her illness, reports the Daily Star.

He said: “It helps her to think about something else instead of am I going to live and how long am I going to live?”

“Is she doing it for money? Yes she’s doing it for the money because she has to look after her two boys.

“She is keeping herself busy which helps her and helps her spirits but it is totally, totally up to her. Living TV have said ‘If you want us to stop we will’ but she said ‘that’s fine’,” he added. (ANI)

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Gut worm may help treat asthma

January 29, 2009 By admin 2 Comments

London, Jan 29 (ANI): The humble worm could hold the key to wiping out asthma and other conditions which are on the rise due to the modern mania with cleanliness, reckon scientists.

Researchers in Nottingham are currently investigating whether giving hook worms to asthma sufferers can cure their condition.

In developed countries, the worms have been eliminated from humans, because of an increased emphasis on hygiene, reports the Telegraph.

However, experts believe their absence could be one of the reasons why some illnesses, including asthma and diabetes, are increasingly prevalent.

Now, a trial by scientists at Nottingham University is testing whether infecting asthma sufferers with hookworms can ease their symptoms.

Besides UK boffins, American researchers are also attempting to replicate the results of an Argentinian study which showed that infecting multiple sclerosis sufferers with parasites slowed the progression of the condition.

If successful, researchers hope that pharmaceutical companies could develop drugs which have the same positive effect on the immune system as worms.

Professor Jan Bradley, an expert in parasite immunology from Nottingham University, said that our immune systems could be “out of balance” because of a lack of the parasites.

“It’s not inconceivable that for certain bowel conditions you might take it in your drink,” she said. (ANI)

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Heritability of traits and diseases may not be limited to DNA

January 20, 2009 By Rajesh 3 Comments

London, January 20 (ANI): A new study conducted by scientists at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) suggests that DNA may not be the only carrier of heritable information, and that a secondary molecular mechanism called epigenetics may also account for some inherited traits and diseases.

The researchers say that their findings challenge the fundamental principles of genetics and inheritance, and potentially provide a new insight into the primary causes of human diseases.

A trait or disease is called heritable if genetically identical twins are more similar to each other than genetically different twins.

In molecular terms, heritability has traditionally been attributed to variations in the DNA sequence.

Dr. Art Petronis, head of the Krembil Family Epigenetics Laboratory at the CAMH, conducted a comprehensive epigenetic analysis of 100 sets of genetically identical and genetically different twins in the first study of its kind.

“We investigated molecules that attach to DNA and regulate various gene activities. These DNA modifications are called epigenetic factors,” said the lead researcher.

His study demonstrated that epigenetic factors – acting independently from DNA – were more similar in identical twins than their non-identical counterparts, suggesting that there was a secondary molecular mechanism of heredity.

The epigenetic heritability might help explain currently unclear issues in human disease, such as the presence of a disease in only one identical twin, the different susceptibility of males (e.g. to autism) and females (e.g. to lupus), significant fluctuations in the course of a disease (e.g. bipolar disorder, inflammatory bowel disease, multiple sclerosis), among numerous others.

“Traditionally, it has been assumed that only the DNA sequence can account for the capability of normal traits and diseases to be inherited,” says Dr. Petronis.

“Over the last several decades, there has been an enormous effort to identify specific DNA sequence changes predisposing people to psychiatric, neurodegenerative, malignant, metabolic, and autoimmune diseases, but with only moderate success. Our findings represent a new way to look for the molecular cause of disease, and eventually may lead to improved diagnostics and treatment,” the researcher added.

The study has been published in the online edition of the journal Nature Genetics. (ANI)

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Tom Cruise giving potty training to daughter Suri!

January 9, 2009 By Rajiv Gupta Leave a Comment

Melbourne, Jan 9 (ANI): Tom Cruise along with wife Katie Holmes is giving potty training to daughter Suri.

Talking in a wide-ranging interview in Weekend Australian Magazine, the actor revealed that he sure knows his stuff.

Cruise revealed that he and Katie don’t use star charts and other reward systems for their 2-year-old daughter and instead prefer the potty-in-the-room technique, a popular approach that is relatively self-explanatory.

In fact, the couple find potty books, a class of toddler fiction where a happy ending is marked by both a conclusive fairytale romance and a successful bowel movement, quite helpful.

“The potty books are really good for getting them excited about it. You know, she’s taking the diaper off, getting ready,” The Australian quoted Cruise as saying in the interview with Christine Jackman.

And Cruise is hoping that, no matter how much time it takes, Suri would soon learn her potty-lessons.

“You can’t have that ‘it must happen now’ approach. Somehow that always ends up in wasting more time,” said Cruise has. (ANI)

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Genetic markers associated with ulcerative colitis risk identified

January 9, 2009 By Rajiv Gupta 1 Comment

London, Jan 9 (ANI): A team of International researchers has identified genetic markers associated with risk for ulcerative colitis.

Ulcerative colitis is a chronic, relapsing disorder that causes inflammation and ulceration in the inner lining of the rectum and large intestine.

The most common symptoms are diarrhea (oftentimes bloody) and abdominal pain. Ulcerative colitis and Crohn”s disease, another chronic gastrointestinal inflammatory disorder, are the two major forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

The new findings bring researchers closer to understanding the biological pathways involved in the disease and may lead to the development of new treatments that specifically target them.

“Our identification of some of the genes that lead to ulcerative colitis are giving us a first look into the causes of this debilitating disease and provides strong leads as to improved diagnosis and treatment,” Nature quoted lead author Dr. John D. Rioux, a professor of medicine at the Université de Montréal and the Montreal Heart Institute, as saying.

Since IBD tends to run in families, researchers have long thought that genetic factors play a role.

The researchers performed a genome-wide association study of hundreds of thousands of genetic markers using DNA samples from 1,052 individuals with ulcerative colitis and pre-existing data from 2,571 controls, all of European ancestry and residing in North America.

Several genetic markers on chromosomes 1p36 and 12q15 showed highly significant associations with ulcerative colitis, and the association evidence was replicated in independent European ancestry samples from North America and southern Italy.

Nearby genes implicated as possibly playing a role in ulcerative colitis include the ring finger protein 186 (RNF186), OTU domain containing 3 (OTUD3), and phospholipase A2, group IIE (PLA2G2E) – genes on chromosome 1p36, and the interferon, gamma (IFNG), interleukin 26 (IL26), and interleukin 22 (IL22) genes on chromosome 12q15 that play an important role in inflammation.

RNF186 and OTUD3 are members of gene families involved in protein turnover and diverse cellular processes. PLA2G2E, IFNG, IL26 and IL22 are known to play a role in inflammation and the immune response.

The researchers also found highly suggestive associations between ulcerative colitis and genetic markers on chromosome 7q31 within or near the laminin, beta 1 (LAMB1) gene, which is a member of a gene family known to play a role in intestinal health and disease, and confirmed previously identified associations between ulcerative colitis and genetic variants in the interleukin 23 receptor (IL23R) gene on chromosome 1p31 and the major histocompatibility complex on chromosome 6p21.

The study is published in the advance online journal Nature Genetics. (ANI)

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