TORONTO, Aug. 26, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CB2 Insights (CSE:CBII; OTCQB: CBIIF) (CB2 or the Company), announced today that it has entered into a Business Services Agreement with the Freas Medical Advisors (FMA) to expand medical services in Maryland. FMA is also investigating geographic expansion of its relationship with CB2 across other US States.

As part of CB2s Direct Primary Care services (DPC), patients pay an annual fee of $199 per year for unlimited access to a network of healthcare providers for a range of primary care and urgent care needs. Additionally, the Company offers additional insurable services on a fee for service basis. In partnership with FMA, CB2 will benefit from direct access to a network of pain management, general healthcare, and nursing home facilities servicing thousands of patients per year, seeking complementary healthcare offerings.

FMA represents a team of healthcare entrepreneurs who bring over 40 years of experience in business and US healthcare operations. With strong ties to regulatory bodies within Maryland, the FMA network of practices include Novus Pain Management Center and Flagship Rehabilitation, among others. In addition to building a strong patient referral network, FMA will leverage its connections, network, and resources to help build and maintain a strong business model for CB2 in Maryland.

In coordination with this partnership, Dr. Haroon Hameed will take the role of Medical Director for Maryland for CB2s medical services business. Dr. Hameed is a board-certified Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation doctor with over 7 years as an Interventional Pain Specialist in Florida, Maryland, and Virginia. In addition to supporting clinical efforts, Dr. Hameed will also play a critical role in supporting CB2s research initiatives in Maryland and has co-authored a number of peer-reviewed publications to date.

We are beyond excited to be working with FMA in Maryland. It is one of the leading healthcare groups in the state and greatly accelerates CB2s growth therein. Its strong ties to community healthcare networks, regulatory bodies and proven business acumen are going to significantly help in CB2s strategy to become a leader in US integrative healthcare. We are hopeful that this partnership model in Maryland can be replicated across the other 11 states in which CB2 operates. said Prad Sekar, CEO, CB2 Insights.

The FMA has been active in the US healthcare space for over 40 years. Our goal is to continue to build new innovative healthcare models that will help the overall improvement of patient health outcomes. What CB2 is offering with its unique DPC and insurable services model, coupled with their approach to integrative healthcare and alternative therapies aligns well with what we believe will be a key driver in the post-COVID US healthcare environment, and we are looking forward to actively building on this vision with them, said Dustin Freas, Executive Director, Freas Medical Advisors.

About CB2 Insights

CB2 Insights (CSE:CBII OTCQB:CBIIF) CB2 Insights is a healthcare services and technology company, working to positively impact patient health outcomes. Our mission to mainstream alternative health treatments into traditional healthcare by recognizing the need for patient treatment diversity, and the impacts of integrating alternative and conventional medicine. The Company works primarily to roster and treat patients who are seeking alternative treatments due to the ineffectiveness of conventional medicine, and the inability to find support through their existing care network, or in some cases, inability to access a primary care network. Medical services offered by the Company are defined as Integrative medicine, where we work to understand the real world evidence for the safety, impact and effectiveness of medical treatments including plant based medicines that often lack sufficient research and therefore adoption by conventional healthcare providers.

To support patient care and positive health outcomes, the Company is also focused on advancing safety and efficacy research surrounding alternative health treatments by monitoring and assessing Real-World Data (RWD) and providing Real-World Evidence (RWE) through our proprietary technology, data analytics, and a full service contract research organization.

The Companys primary operations are in the United States, with application to its insights, technology and research services deployed in other International markets including Canada, United Kingdom and Colombia.

The Companys disciplined operating model allows patients to receive access to care in a time efficient and cost-effective manner. Utilizing virtual telehealth and over 30 physical brick and mortar clinics, the Company currently treats over 100,000 patients across 12 States. Utilizing proprietary technology and data analytic platforms, the Company is able to monitor, study and assess a variety of healthcare treatments and products for the safety, efficacy, and effectiveness. The Company believes it is well positioned to be the research and technology partner of choice for multiple stakeholders including Big Pharma, Life Sciences, Regulatory Bodies and Payors within the traditional and integrative medical industry.

Forward Looking Statements

Statements in this news release that are forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties concerning the specific factors disclosed here and elsewhere in CB2s filings with Canadian securities regulators. When used in this news release, words such as "will, could, plan, estimate, expect, intend, may, potential, believe, should," and similar expressions, are forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, statements regarding the Companys unaudited financial results and projected growth.

Although CB2 has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements, there can be other factors that cause results, performance or achievements not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended, including, but not limited to: dependence on obtaining regulatory approvals; investing in target companies or projects which have limited or no operating history and are subject to inconsistent legislation and regulation; change in laws; reliance on management; requirements for additional financing; competition; hindering market growth and state adoption due to inconsistent public opinion and perception of the medical-use and recreational-use marijuana industry and; regulatory or political change.

There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate or that management's expectations or estimates of future developments, circumstances or results will materialize. As a result of these risks and uncertainties, the results or events predicted in these forward-looking statements may differ materially from actual results or events.

Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this news release are made as of the date of this release. CB2 disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise such information, except as required by applicable law, and CB2 does not assume any liability for disclosure relating to any other company mentioned herein.

No securities regulator or exchange has reviewed, approved, disapproved, or accepts responsibility for the content of this news release.

Read more from the original source:
CB2 Insights Partners with the Freas Medical Advisors to Expand Healthcare Services in Maryland - GlobeNewswire

In an effort to become an Asia hub for pharmaceutical inspection and distribution, contract manufacturer Bushu Pharmaceuticals is pouring $100 million into the expansion of its Misato, Japan plant over the next 5 years.

Bushu is nearly done building its 42,000-square-foot cold chain warehouse in Misato. Upgrades include 8 new packaging lines, new inspection stations, and IT improvements to its production automation and laboratory information management systems. When construction is complete, the company will have 12 inspection stations for pre-filled syringes, and 7 stations each for liquid vials and lyophilized vials. In total, 23 stations will be supported by cameras.

We are excited about our capital expansion plans, Bushu COO Tadao Takano said in a prepared statement. Our Asia hub strategy is coming to life. The added space and additional inspection lines will allow us to bring more of our clients bulk products into the country, which will make their logistics and supply chain systems much more efficient. Nicole DeFeudis

RUCDR Infinite Biologics broke away from Rutgers University on Wednesday, and relaunched as Infinity BiologiX (IBX). The company will still conduct regenerative medicine and oncology research at the Rutgers campus but its now financially independent.

Rutgers University approved the sale of RUCDR in June. Andrew Brooks, an adjunct professor at Rutgers and former RUCDR COO, will remain at the helm as IBX CEO and CSO. RUCDR alums Robin Grimwood and Russell Hager will serve as president and COO, and executive VP of strategic operations, respectively. Viking Global Investors contributed a significant infusion of growth capital, according to the company.

In May, RUCDR became the first to get a EUA for a saliva-based Covid-19 test a method that Brooks touted as quicker and more scalable than nasal swabbing. The company has since developed an at-home saliva-based test with partners Spectrum Solutions and Accurate Diagnostic Labs.

The transition to IBX enables us to scale and innovate at a pace which will increase our footprint both here in the U.S. and abroad. RUCDR has made a profound impact in academia and industry in the areas of genomics, biological sciences, and medicine. We now look forward to the immense opportunity ahead as an organization independent from Rutgers while maintaining our core academic drive and mission, Grimwood said in a prepared statement. Nicole DeFeudis

Rakuten Medical, a biotech focusing on a form of cancer therapy known as photoimmunotherapy, has acquired a company that produces and commercializes a large range of catheters.

The biotech announced the acquisition of Medlight SA on Wednesday morning, emphasizing the need to ensure access to a supply chain vital to the development of diagnostics and therapeutic light technologies. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Wednesdays deal also brings Medlights network of subcontractors for optical devices on board and gives Rakuten more comprehensive oversight of its developmental supply chain.

Rakutens lead program is dubbed ASP-1929, which received fast track designation from the FDA. The candidate is an antibody-drug conjugate comprised of the antibody cetuximab, which binds to epidermal growth factor receptors, and a dye that locally activates the antibody through a non-thermal red light emitted via laser. ASP-1929 is currently in Phase III for the treatment of recurring head and neck cancers. Max Gelman

See original here:
Bushu plans $100 million expansion for pharmaceutical inspection facility; RUCDR breaks away from Rutgers University, relaunches as IBX - Endpoints...

Susan Brown, Herman M. Cohn Professor of Agriculture and Life Science and head of Cornells apple breeding program, holds an apple variety used for making rose cider. Credit: Allison Usavage/Cornell University

If you were on Cornells Ithaca campus last fall, you might have found a few cafes with wooden crates full of fruit simply labeled Apple A. The apples have distinctive russet skin dotted with white spots. Take a bite and youll get a complex, nutty sweetness thats not quite like any apple youve ever tasted.

So why does it have such an unremarkable name? Because Apple A isnt ready for the grocery store quite yet. Breeding, licensing and retailing new produce are all complicated processes, and convincing consumers to trade their favorites for something new isnt much easier.

But over the years, the innovative plant breeders at Cornells College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) have created more than 290 fruit varieties and 165 vegetable varieties. From breeding new varieties that will wow consumers, to marketing those varieties to get them to peoples plates, theyre offering farmers, producers and consumers foods that taste better, have longer growing seasons and are more resistant to threats from diseases, insects and weather.

Susan Brown, Herman M. Cohn Professor of Agriculture and Life Science and head of Cornells apple breeding program, tests the firmness of a new apple variety. Credit: Allison Usavage/Cornell University

When plant breederPhillip Griffithsstarted at CALS in 1999, he says, he and his colleagues focused almost exclusively on breeding plants for disease resistance, higher yields and the other traits growers wanted.

Now the bar is moving even higher, says Griffiths, associate professor in the horticulture section of the School of Integrative Plant Science (SIPS). In recent years, he says, theres been more interest in developing products that are aimed at what consumers want, too.

This shift has opened the door for CALS breeders to show the creative side of their expertise. Right now, the food system is wide open to change, unlike at any point in my lifetime, Griffiths says. Anything can happen.

In 2004, Griffiths decided to grow new varieties of tomatoes that would offer consumers more diverse color and flavor choices. I was originally interested in coming up with a finger-shaped tomato that could be a substitute for baby carrots, he says. But the new fruit didnt grow quite the way he was hoping.

When researchers cross-breed plants to enhance or minimize certain traits, its a genetic gamble to land the winning combination of characteristics. A plant with one desirable quality, like taste, crossed with a plant that has another ideal trait, like texture, might produce offspring that has one, both or neither of those qualities. And traits can skip generations and reappear months or years later.

Phillip Griffiths, associate professor of horticulture, has been developing chili pepper tomatoes that come in seven different colors. His other edible inventions include a Galaxy Suite of heirloom tomatoes and new varieties of cabbage, kale and radishes. Credit: Isabel Branstrom/Cornell University

By combining different shapes, I eventually developed tomatoes that looked exactly like chili peppers, Griffiths said. But he wasnt discouraged by the odd shape. He was inspired. Since tomatoes and chili peppers are two of the most popular foods in the world, I thought it might have a lot of appeal.

This variety still needs a few more years to ensure that offspring remain stable from generation to generation, so that farmers and consumers receive a predictable product. From idea to market, this variety will amount to some 15 years of breeding work.

Marketing a new creation also presents a substantial challenge.

One of the biggest obstacles for breeders is that consumers and the food production pipeline dont recognize specialty crops as unique products.

I could rattle off 50 different cultivars of butternut squash, but most are sold under the commodity name of butternut squash, saysMichael Mazourek, Ph.D. 08, associate professor in the plant breeding and genetics section of SIPS. You can come up with a better variety, but if people dont recognize it, you can be stuck clawing for traction and impact in the market.

Different breeding lines of butternut squash are cut open before testing their performance in the oven. Credit: Row 7 Seed Company/Cornell University

Part of the problem is that most breeders efforts tend to be invisibly absorbed into the commercial food chain. Researchers might give their budding varieties unique names, says Mary Kreitinger, executive director of theVegetable Breeding Institutein the plant breeding and genetics section of SIPS. But unless a seed company markets our variety by name, we usually have no way to track it and dont know how or where it gets to consumers.

Mazourek broke through the anonymity barrier by partnering with Manhattan chef Dan Barber and grower Matthew Goldfarb to co-foundRow 7 Seed Company. Their goal is to bring diverse produce to farms and consumers by working with chefs who embrace new ingredients.

I did it to fill a void in the market, says Mazourek, who gets no money from or equity in the company. I like to create things that stand out, and we use enjoyment of flavor to drive change.

Now Honeynut squash a smaller, more flavorful variety of butternut squash that Mazourek helped develop has earned name recognition on the national market.

Credit: Clive Howard/Cornell University

Establishing a new variety in the marketplace is still an uphill battle, and not always in a breeders best interests, says Jessica Lyga, senior licensing and business development officer at Cornells Center for Technology Licensing. We do market research, she says, to see if the new variety would be just another entry among 200 in a commodity market or a shining star thats clearly better than whats out there.

Credit: Clive Howard/Cornell University

Consumers are willing to try a new type of apple once, saysSusan Brown, the Herman M. Cohn Professor of Agriculture and Life Science and head of Cornells apple breeding program. But repeat sales determine if a new apple can make a dent in an already competitive market.

For SnapDragon, one of Browns best-known apple varieties, the decision to go big was easy. The first time I bit into it, I said, Oh my gosh, and everyone who tried it agreed, she says. Ive never been so confident in a fruit.

The apple was released in 2015, following the 2014 release of another variety, RubyFrost. Crunch Time Apple Growers, a cooperative open to all growers in New York state, formed a partnership with Cornell and licensed the rights to grow and sell both of Browns varieties. Crunch Times marketing team then leveraged social media to generate interest among its audiences.

In 2018, Crunch Time doubled the volume of SnapDragon sold over the previous year. Its on track to double again. RubyFrost is also recording strong, steady growth. SnapDragon has been a hit on the international market, as well, including in Canada, Israel and Vietnam.

CALS breeders aim to help New York state farmers thrive, by making crops more sustainable and produce more diverse, says Mazourek, and CALS researchers work closely with farmers on every aspect of crop selection and growing. As academics, we want to help understand the world more clearly, Mazourek says. But in the end, we want our work to translate into better lives.

Still, the occasional consumer hit is welcome.

Perhaps the next one is sitting in a wooden crate labeled Apple A.

Read the original:
From Seed to Supermarket: What Does It Really Take to Put Produce on Your Plate? - SciTechDaily

CHI Memorials mobile lung CT coach will visit the following locations in Hamilton County in July: Wednesday, July 15 9 a.m.-2 p.m.CHI Memorial Family Practice Associates, 6800 Harrison Park, Chattanooga; Friday, July 17 9 a.m.-noonOpen Screening Day, 2115 East 3rd St., Chattanooga; Wednesday, July 22 9 a.m.-2 p.m.Life Care Center of Hixson, 5798 Hixson Homeplace, Hixson; and Tuesday, July 28 9 a.m.-2 p.m.CHI Memorial Integrative Medicine Associates, 1238 Taft Hwy., Signal Mountain.Officials said, "All patients will wear a mask and are asked to bring their own if they have one. A mask will be provided if a patient does not already have one."Lung cancer screening is a test to look for signs of lung cancer in otherwise healthy people. The low-dose CT scan shows a 3-D image of your lungs that is clearer and more detailed than regular x-rays, allowing doctors to diagnose lung cancer at its earliest stage, before there are any symptoms. This is when lung cancer is most curable. The whole process takes less than ten minutes and there is no need to do anything special to prepare for the screening.

"The low-dose CT lung cancer scan has been shown to improve survival by 20 percent according to The National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) by the National Cancer Institute (NCI)."Factors that put you at high risk of developing lung cancer include: age 50 or greater; smoking history; family history of cancer; or exposure to cancer causing agents (asbestos, diesel fumes, Radon, coal smoke, soot, etc.)."Private insurance companies cover lung cancer screening for high-risk individuals. Medicare and Medicaid also cover lung cancer screening. Grant funds are available for eligible uninsured and under-insured people to have the low-dose lung CT screening."If you feel you are at risk, call us at 423-495-LUNG (5864) to discuss if a lung screening is right for you, or to schedule an appointment."

Read more from the original source:
BREATHE. EASY. Mobile Lung CT Coach To Visit Hamilton County At Various Sites During Last 2 Weeks Of July - The Chattanoogan

NEW YORK, July 7, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --A new textbook, Medical Marijuana: A Clinical Handbook (Wolters Kluwer, September 2020), provides an objective look at the history and science of the plant and strips away the cultural and political baggage that often clouds any meaningful examination of cannabis's therapeutic value.

The authors, Drs. Samoon Ahmad and Kevin P. Hill, wrote the book to provide clinicians with the most accurate information available on cannabis and empower them to give their patients the best advice on treatment. Cannabis continues to be the single most misunderstood plant on Earth. It has been cultivated and used for thousands of years yet remains not just enigmatic but deeply polarizing.

"Both sides of the argument often fail to see through the fog of the culture war, and both sides are at times guilty of being more intent on winning a political argument than approaching the issue with a clear head and an agenda couched solely in the tradition of empiricism and science," Drs. Ahmad and Hill write in Medical Marijuana. "This book hopes to change that."

Both authors have extensive clinical experience and impressive resumes. Dr. Hill is an addiction specialist and currently Director of the Division of Addiction Psychiatry at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard University, and author of Marijuana: The Unbiased Truth About the World's Most Popular Weed. Dr. Ahmad is a practicing physician in New York City, Founder of the Integrative Center for Wellness, and a Professor of Psychiatry at NYU Grossman School of Medicine. He has also written extensively about PTSD and coauthored multiple books, including recent editions of Kaplan & Sadock's Pocket Handbook of Clinical Psychiatry and Kaplan & Sadock's Pocket Handbook of Psychiatric Drug Treatment.

The authors focus on tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is the intoxicating substance in cannabis and typically the focal point of medical marijuana programs. They also examine the relevant science on many other cannabinoids found in the plant, especially cannabidiol (CBD). Included in the book is detailed analysis of local and federal laws governing the use of cannabis and a state-by-state guide for clinicians and patients. They have also created a companion website, cannabistextbook.com, that will monitor changes to local, state, and federal regulations as they occur, and share recently published cannabis-related research.

"This timely medical marijuana clinical handbook is the most comprehensive and best book on the topic in my opinion," said Stephen Ross, M.D., Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Addictive Disorders and Experimental Therapeutics Research Laboratory at NYU Grossman School of Medicine. "Excellently written, the book provides an enormous amount of concise and clinically relevant information on everything related to medical cannabis including historical and regulatory aspects, the dizzying diversity of the many cannabis constituent components, review of the endocannabinoid system, relevant pharmacology, therapeutic preparations and the existing and potential clinical applications of medical cannabis throughout medicine, psychiatry and neurology."

The book enables clinicians to easily find information that is pertinent to specific body systems and disciplines. It also provides a wealth of information about the plant itself. The book begins by examining its classification, morphology, history and constituents. It then moves on to a cultural history of cannabis in the United States to provide a context for the regulations and laws currently governing its use. The book then describes the body's endocannabinoid system and the pharmacological profile of CBD and THC before moving on to specific applications for cannabis in specialty practices such as:

Finally, the authors describe the dangers of excessive cannabis use and potential adverse effects.

"It is our hope that we can eliminate unwarranted stigmas that continue to hound this quirky plant and to dispel any notions that cannabis is either a miracle drug or the devil's weed," the authors write. "If nothing else, we hope to provide our peers in the medical community with some degree of clarity so that they can make decisions based on the best available evidence and pass on accurate information to [their] patients."

About the Authors

Samoon Ahmad, M.D.is Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at NYU Grossman School of Medicine and serves as Unit Chief of Bellevue Medical Center's Inpatient Unit. A practicing physician for over twenty-five years, Dr. Ahmadhas dedicated his professional life to helping individuals find balance in their mental and physical well-being.He founded the Integrative Center for Wellness to execute his innovative vision of incorporating psychiatric treatments with holistic therapiesincluding nutritional therapy, yoga, meditation, acupuncture, and plant-based medicinesto emphasize wellness of both the body and the mind.He specializes in treating patients with depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, ADHD, stuttering, and weight management issues.

Kevin P. Hill, M.D., M.H.S.is an addiction psychiatrist and Director of the Division of Addiction Psychiatry at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Hill has conducted clinical research and written on a wide variety of topics including medical cannabis, cannabidiol (CBD), and addiction to alcohol, cannabis, and opioids. As a leading cannabis expert, he has spoken nationally and appeared often on radio and television on the topics of cannabis policy and treatment, offering a balanced, evidence-based stance on these issues.

Reviews

"Drs. Ahmad and Hill are to be congratulated on producing a book that is a complete and thorough guide to cannabis, is most timely and highly informative, and will appeal to a large audience."

-Benjamin Sadock, MD, Menas S.Gregory Professor of Psychiatryat the NYU Grossman School of Medicine and NYU Langone Health

"This timely medical marijuana clinical handbook is the most comprehensive and best book on the topic."

-Stephen Ross, MD, Director of the Addictive Disorders andExperimental Therapeutics Research Laboratory and Associate Professor of Psychiatry at NYU Grossman School of Medicine

"The authors have written an extremely comprehensive book that will give readers a more nuanced appreciation of cannabis. This includes its potential therapeutic value, its effects on the endocannabinoid system, and the parts it has played in cultures throughout the world."

-Joyce Cenali, Founding Partner & COO of Big Rock Partners, a strategic advisory firm

"Though written primarily for healthcare practitioners and clinicians, anyone hoping to gain a greater understanding about cannabis and its therapeutic applications will find this work extremely informative and helpful."

-Marion Mariathasan, CEO of Simplifya, the leading regulatory and compliance software platform serving the cannabis industry

Medical Marijuana: A Clinical HandbookBy Samoon Ahmad, M.D., and Kevin P. Hill, M.D., M.H.S.

Publisher: Wolters KluwerPublication Date: September 2020Price: $69.99/hardcoverISBN: 9781975141899 hardcover

Contacts: Kimberly Macleod [emailprotected] 917-587-0069

Joe Flattery [emailprotected] 917-474-2689

SOURCE Integrative Center for Wellness

Originally posted here:
MEDICAL MARIJUANA: A CLINICAL HANDBOOK Provides Readers the Most Up-to-Date Insights on the Science of Cannabis and Its Medicinal Use - PR Newswire...

Dr Shyam Bhat is a pioneer of integrative medicine and holistic psychiatry in India. He is also a published writer and a trustee of the Live Love Laugh Foundation set up by the leading Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone. He spoke to Scroll.in on the psychological aspects of reading in the context of a protracted crisis like the Covid-19 pandemic. Excerpts from the interview:

What kind of impact can a prolonged global health crisis like the Covid-19 pandemic have on peoples minds?The human brain is engineered for survival. In this respect, we are like every mammalian species, our brain always subconsciously scanning the environment for signs of threat. Consider that you are walking down the road, perfectly relaxed, when suddenly a raging dog attacks you. Without a moments hesitation, without even thinking about it, you react. Threat-signalling in the brain creates a state of hypervigilance, a state of acute alertness and sensitivity to other possible threats.

Just above your kidneys are the adrenal glands, which release stress hormones in response to a threat, including adrenaline. Your brain and body are now in survival mode, in what is popularly called the fight or flight response. Your heart beats faster, your muscles tighten, your joints are poised, your pupils dilate, your sweat glands are hyperactive, while inside your body, your organs are responding equally vigorously to the impending attack. Your liver releases glucose and protein into the bloodstream to allow your blood to clot more easily in case you sustain injury. Human beings dominate the planet because of our unique neurology our brain has the ability to think about the future, to predict, forecast, prepare and plan. But this great power is also our greatest burden for not only can we sense imminent threat, we also suffer pain due to a future threat.

This tendency to think of negative outcomes is worsened in times of uncertainty and ambiguity. Without enough information to guide its predictive mechanisms, your brain signals threat, and this is experienced as anxiety and stress. Research shows that the brain actually signals less threat in situations where there is certainty of pain, compared to a situation where there is uncertainty about the outcome. In other words, we are less troubled by the certainty of a bad outcome, compared to not being sure.

Our brains right now cannot see a certain future: what will happen, when will the pandemic end, what does it mean for our lives?

When the threat is continuous, slow-burning and subtle, as it is with this pandemic, these ancient neural systems no longer serve a purpose. Fight and flight are compounded by the freeze response something that an animal resorts to when there is no escape from the threat. This chronic state of alarm is what people call stress, a word so commonly thrown around that it has lost its potency to remind us that it is a debilitating life-sapping condition.

Over time, a person may begin to experience several symptoms of stress, but often remain oblivious to them. Persons who are under stress commonly feel impatient, irritable, prone to anger, body aches and pains, fatigue, insomnia, worrying and overthinking, inability to focus and concentrate and on edge. Internally, the condition affects metabolic functioning, increases blood sugars and the risk for diabetes, elevates blood pressure and the risk for heart disease and weakens the immune system, making us more vulnerable to viral infections. Unchecked, stress can lead to clinical depression and anxiety disorders, amongst other mental illnesses.

Is there an established link between reading and mental illness? Does a regular reading habit help lessen mental health issues like anxiety and depression?Reading is one of those everyday activities that we take for granted, but if you pause to consider what is happening when you read words on a page, you will realise that this simple act is actually very complex, even magical. When you read, you look at shapes on a page, variations of a small number of letters, and it evokes in your mind visions and thoughts, transporting you to a different world. Unlike visual entertainment like TV, reading requires engagement and work by the consumers brain. It is a complex act, with several brain regions working together to create a world inside the head that can be as, if not more, rich in emotional texture than lived experiences.

With the visual cortex receiving the images, the temporal lobes translating them into verbal information, the frontal cortex interpreting and predicting the unfolding narrative, the memory centres of the brain evoking autobiographical memory, the autonomic nervous system altering itself in response to the emotions being evoked, reading is a virtual reality experience that no technology has yet replicated.

Reading is a workout for the brain. And just as physical exercise decreases the risk of diabetes and heart disease, regular reading decreases the risk of conditions such as dementia, and improves memory, concentration, and mood. This is especially relevant in these times of Covid.

In one research study, people who read long fiction (not short fiction) had better tolerance of ambiguity and uncertainty, and an improved ability to think creatively. In an uncertain time like this, reading can help cope with the stress and also help think of creative solutions to life challenges. Reading also helps deal with isolation, by making the reader feel connected with other worlds.

The practice of prescribing books for mental health is probably as old as books themselves. In many ancient wisdom traditions, stories were used to impart deep insights about the world. Zen stories, Sufi Stories, the Panchatantra tales, fables from all over the world were powerful vehicles for the dissemination of morals, life lessons, and wisdom, and, centuries later, books continue to be relevant.

Although books by themselves cannot treat clinical depression, they help as catalysts in therapy, improving the insights one can derive from the therapeutic process.

Has reading ever been formally incorporated in your therapy? If so, how?In what is called bibliotherapy, a therapist prescribes books selected for a number of reasons: narratives of people who have suffered similarly, novels that help a person understand the subtle contexts of their problem, and self-help books that might explore topics that have come up in therapy and so on.

The prescription is highly individual and variable, more an art than a science. The therapist has to have read widely and must understand the clients inner world in order to recommend the right book. Following the reading, the therapist will gauge the clients reactions to the book which will help reveal the themes of their underlying psychological conflict. Some questions I would ask include: What was your reaction to the theme of the novel? What did you like or not like about the protagonist? Which characters did you identify with and why?

Do you think the pandemic has made people start reading again? That is, has it become a choice that has often won over say Netflix or Amazon Prime?It depends on the emotional state and temperament of the person. Those struggling with anxiety and stress will find it difficult to read, because anxiety interferes with the brains ability to focus and concentrate. The desire to distract themselves from stress will impel such people to consume media passively, by watching a show or scrolling absently through social media.

Just like sugar is easier to digest than whole grains, although it is unhealthier, visual and social media is easier to digest for the brain than most books. Unfortunately, this sugar candy for the brain makes it even harder to focus, creating a vicious cycle that results in people turning away from books and spending more time with a screen.

What kinds of books do you see people turning to during and after the pandemic and why?Pop science, books on catastrophes, and fiction of various kinds.

Long-form work full of complex ideas will be avoided by many people during the pandemic. However, there will be significant exceptions to this: for instance, a work of nonfiction that offers relevant information about an issue that people are facing today will find resonance, such as accounts of previous pandemics, narratives of challenging times such as wars and economic uncertainty. Popular science books exploring virology, the immune system or infections, and books about dealing with the emotional reactions to uncertainty and stress would also appeal to readers.

Readers may also turn to fiction for respite from the incessant stress of Covid, or to process the fears and anxieties evoked by the pandemic. Themes that resonate particularly with the reader during this time include dealing with isolation and loneliness, global catastrophes, and fantasy fiction with a completely different, self-contained universe into which the reader can escape.

Others may seek a thrilling or fearful narrative to help them process their own fears. From a psychological perspective, movies and books that are scary or thrilling offer a safe space which people can work through and let go of fears, sort of like a ride on a roller-coaster which is scary but at the same time exhilarating.

A subgenre that will likely appeal to readers is post-apocalyptic fiction: stories set in worlds affected by major global catastrophe. These stories recreate, in a heightened fashion, the atmosphere of our times: the feeling that the world has changed irrevocably and that something surreal is happening, but they also serve as a reminder of the ability of humans to rebound, adapt and thrive in difficult situations.

What role does the visual appeal of a book, be it cover design or colour schemes, play in times like these? Do you think readers are likely to pay greater attention to it? People tend to judge a book by its cover, and not just in these times. Research shows that the more emotional we are, the more impulsive we become. Covid-induced stress will result in people wanting to make quicker decisions, and therefore the impact of the cover and title may be more relevant than in other times.

How is the impact of reading different from that of the screen experience?The theorist Marshall McLuhan famously said, The medium is the message. What he meant was, whenever a new medium is devised, it is not the content that shapes the mind, but the medium itself. To consume something on a screen through images and sound is not the same as consuming it through the written word.

Watching a show on a screen is a much more passive experience compared with reading, which requires personal engagement. While reading, the brain transforms the words on the paper into imagery, which engage senses like vision, touch, and sound, cognitive abilities like logical thinking, memory, and interpretation, as well as what we call the theory of mind, which is the ability to understand other peoples thoughts and feelings

The visual medium does this without the brain having to do any of the heavy lifting, so the experience is far more passive.

Do you feel that more people are taking to writing rather than reading in order to overcome their anxieties?Writing can improve ones mental health, particularly a form of writing called expressive writing where one writes whatever is on ones mind without inhibiting or censoring oneself, so that ones true feelings and emotions are put out there rather than suppressed within. Research shows that this form of writing reduces stress and even improves some markers of physical health, such as blood pressure and the immune system.

The pandemic with its consequent lockdowns and social isolation is creating a situation that might make people feel very lonely, but its also an opportunity for them to introspect and embark on creative projects. During the 1665 plague, Isaac Newton famously retreated to his family home for a year and emerged with his world-changing insights on gravity.

So there is historical precedent we can use all our alone time for creative endeavours such as writing. Of course, the amount of time that a person can get depends on their life situation. It is a privilege that many will be denied due to economic hardship and stress.

Has there been a shift in your own reading habits owing to the pandemic? What have you been reading during the lockdown?My reading habits havent changed significantly. I continue to read both fiction and non-fiction. However, one book I read, clearly influenced by the pandemic, was a historical account of the world during the Spanish Flu, Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How It Changed the World.

Can books on mental health and wellness have the same efficacy as consulting a mental health professional? For many life issues, a well-written and insightful book can have a powerful impact. The right words at the right time can create epiphanies that have the capacity to transform a person. Books can help people better understand themselves and others, and develop insights on how to handle difficult feelings and relationships. However, for people suffering from clinical issues, a book cannot replace a mental health professional.

What is your honest opinion of books on mental health and well-being written, edited and published locally? Do you have any suggestions for editors acquiring in this genre?I am happy to see the number and quality of the books in this space in India. I would recommend that editors seek narratives of people who have personally experienced mental turmoil, along with writing that blends insights from western therapy and psychology/psychiatry with ancient Indian writing, including literature from yoga psychology and Vedanta.

This series of articles on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on publishing is curated by Kanishka Gupta.

Go here to read the rest:
Reading helps cope with stress and provides creative solutions in the uncertain times of Covid-19 - Scroll.in

Patanjali Ayurvedas claimed cure for COVID-19 has been criticised for making unsubstantiated claims of efficacy. However, can ayurveda, or alternative medicine in general, be evaluated in the same way as modern medicine? Jacob Koshy discusses the question with Dr. S.P. Kalantri and Dr. Bhavana Prasher. Edited excerpts:

Dr. Prasher, could you begin by explaining what really is the process of testing a new investigational drug in ayurveda? Does it follow the phased system of clinical trials as in modern medicine?

Bhavana Prasher: There are two aspects to the use of ayurvedic drugs for clinical use. Some are those described in classical text and listed in the Drugs and Cosmetics Act of India. These have formulations that prescribe use in certain [conditions]. These are classical medicines that have been used for several hundreds of years in our country as well as in many parts of the world. If these drugs are to be used for a new condition, as we are seeing in the case of COVID-19, and there is some textual evidence to suggest that they could be useful, then they can straight away progress to human trials. We dont need studies on toxicity or pre-clinical aspects as these are already well-understood. However, if the drug is an entirely new formula, for a new set of conditions, then it has to follow the same path of toxicity, pre-clinical efficacy and subsequent clinical trials.

In a typical drug trial, an investigational drug is tested on various groups. Theres phase one, phase two... all the way up to multicentre phase three, etc. Then, it is medical statistics that decides whether the drug is actually safe and measurably improves outcomes. You also have to separate out the placebo effect. Do those same standards also apply to ayurveda?

Bhavana Prasher: For evaluating safety and efficacy, there is no difference in testing standards. But when it comes to trial design, what is an effective placebo for COVID-19? Right now, I dont think theres any medicine, or standard of care, that we can reliably compare a new drug with. However, as far as the trial design is concerned, what is more important is the outcome measures that you decide. In the context of disease management, it is not the case that one drug would work for the entire population and a single one would be useful for that patients lifetime. Drugs are evaluated based on what specific endpoint is expected. There is a very clear-cut flowchart or diagram given by the CCRS (Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences) guidelines. They say that the drug must not ignore the parameters on which it is judged by modern medicine.

Dr. Kalantri, In the case of COVID-19, several drugs are being re-purposed by pharmaceutical companies. Many times, drugs are hyped as potential antivirals, and they edge through the appraisal process by the expected outcomes being changed. We saw that in the case of remdesivir. So, dont you think that in some sense, you know, the pharmaceutical drugs, have it slightly easier, and a higher burden of proof is applied on alternative medicine?

S.P. Kalantri: Well, a science is a science is a science. I have great respect for ayurveda and its basic philosophy gels well with the Eastern approach of health and disease, in sharp contrast to the Western approach. But my point is that any drug or any intervention must figure out if the drug is safe and effective. For that, you need to follow certain rules. By merely drawing from experience in the past, quoting literature for which the drug might have worked in the past, does it mean that this drug will be as simple, as effective for a new disease? Ebola would be a great example. We thought that certain drugs worked well in Ebola and then we tried to extrapolate the results of those drugs to COVID-19, but they did not work. So often, what works in petri dishes might not work so far as actually human beings are concerned. My point is that no matter what branch you are practising, whether it is modern medicine or alternative medicine, comprising unani, siddha or homeopathy, there are certain scientific principles that absolutely must be followed. These scientific principles are basically aimed at making sure that you are minimising the bias as much as you can.

In the pharmaceutical world, normally what happens is, results of a trial are peer-reviewed and published in a journal. Independent experts can then evaluate the drugs benefits or non-efficacy. How often does that happen in alternative medicine? Are negative results reported?

Bhavana Prasher: There is a problem in that ayurvedic research publications dont appear as frequently in high-impact journals. However, I think that in general there is a paucity of negative outcomes being published and is not really a problem of ayurveda alone. Ayurvedic knowledge does not just come from experience but also relies on extensive documentation.

There are several universities and research counsellors who keep doing clinical trials that appear in ayurveda journals and thesis reports of research students. There is definitely the case that this reporting needs to be upgraded and the quality of journals improved.

Also read | Ayush Ministry lens on Baba Ramdevs COVID-19 cure

It is now well-understood that when disease reaches a certain level, you need technological interventions like, in the case of COVID-19, ventilators and pulse oximeters. However, ayurveda and other branches of alternative medicine mostly rely on natural concoctions. So, how do you integrate devices that are known to be life-saving into an ayurvedic framework?

Bhavana Prasher: They are absolutely integrated into the ayurvedic framework. I would recommend you to visit any of the modern ayurvedic institutes where the examination of the patient with respect to all these objective methods is very much adopted. There is no allergy to modern technological devices being integrated in the clinical protocols of ayurveda. Nevertheless, ayurveda also retains the methodology of assessment of disease in ayurvedic style, which is not only about focusing on the virus, but also looks at the baseline health parameters like diet and sleep. These are the immediate indicators of whether treatment is working.

Also read | Patanjali to sell Coronil as 'immunity booster,' not 'cure for COVID-19'

Dr. Kalantri, is there a way in which these two systems of medicines can be integrated? Or are they two different schools that cannot really exist under one roof but can only run parallel paths?

S.P. Kalantri: I guess an integrated approach would be a win-win situation for both disciplines because modern medicine approaches treatment from a left-brain perspective it is more rational, more analytic, more structured. Ayurveda has a holistic, more intuitive approach. It takes into consideration the person as a whole. So, while modern medicine is obsessed with a cell, or an organ, or a disease, which is a part of a body, ayurveda considers the person as a whole and believes that the whole is more important than some of the parts that it is composed of. I completely agree with this. But when we are integrating them, we should not forget the principles of science and ethics.

The way the Patanjali trial was publicised, the results were shared with the media without getting published. The most meaningful outcome we are looking at from a drug is that it should be able to save lives. A strength of modern medicine is that it looks very strongly at these endpoints (saving lives and recovery). We need to look at the large trials conducted in the last two months, the solidarity trial and the recovery trial. Both not only produced some positive results, but [the researchers] also had the humility and transparency to say that hydroxychloroquine does not work, remdesivir does not reduce mortality, the dual combination of antiviral drugs does not work.

Editorial | Science vs nonsense: On Patanjalis COVID-19 claim

Dr. Prasher, would you agree that the benefits of Patanjalis drug were hyped? And didnt it do more harm to ayurveda in the process?

Bhavana Prasher: In the case of this particular trial, I would agree that their claims were disproportionate to what was clinically proved. However, I would disagree with Dr. Kalantri in that if we are indeed looking purely at how many lives are saved, I do not know if, anywhere, ayurvedic medicine has even had a chance of [being tested] in ICUs. So, the Patanjali trial was only restricted to mild and moderate cases; all asymptomatic cases were only mildly positive, so as an endpoint, they could only test viral clearance.

There arent tests allowed anywhere where ayurveda can be tested in severe or critically ill situations which could improve outcomes. A confidence has to be built in the modern medical world as well as in society that these things can be tested in those conditions as well.

Also read | FIR against Baba Ramdev, others on COVID-19 cure claim

Ayurveda is said to be a highly personalised system of medicine. So, by definition, can treatments so customised to an individual be sold to a general population? Modern medicine, on the other hand, recommends a drug for anyone who presents a certain set of conditions.

Bhavana Prasher: Personalisation refers to the disease type or the stage of severity. If, for a given presentation, a certain drug has been useful and tested, then it can be given to others. But the clinical indication has to be very clear. However the one-drug-fits-all notion in modern medicine is itself getting challenged everyday.

Both ayurveda and modern medicine are systems of medicine. However, their products are frequently in the hands of commercial pharmaceutical companies, who deploy similar means to sell more and extol benefits over harm. So, does that undermine medicine in both systems?

S.P. Kalantri: I completely agree. In the case of a drug called Favipiravir, that has now been approved, the company charges 13,000 for a 14-day therapy for a drug that only addresses fever and cough. Most people in our country can never afford such a drug. We must, at this time, de-link this nexus between pharmaceutical companies and medicine.

Bhavana Prasher: In the desperation for a panacea, drugs that are given over the counter compromise with the principles of treatment in Ayurveda too. This does create a lot of problems and sometimes can bring more harm than benefit.

Dr. Bhavana Prasher is an ayurveda doctor and senior scientist at the CSIR-Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology; Dr. S.P. Kalantri is a Professor at Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, Wardha

Follow this link:
Can alternative medicine be subject to modern rigour? - The Hindu

Press release from the Office of Congressman John Garamendi:

June 19, 2020

WASHINGTON, DCToday, Congressman John Garamendi (D-CA) secured key provisions to rebuild California's transportation infrastructure, increase resilience to the effects of climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure passed the "Investing in a New Vision for the Environment and Surface Transportation (INVEST) in America Act," a 5-year, nearly $500 billion investment in our nation's infrastructure and key component of the "Moving Forward" infrastructure plan unveiled by Congressional Democrats earlier this year. The bill now heads to the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives, where it is expected to pass with strong Democratic support in early July.

"We must modernize California's transportation network and address the climate crisis with infrastructure that is smarter, safer, made to last and reduces greenhouse gas emissions," said Congressman Garamendi. "The key provisions I secured in this 5-year highway bill will make our roads, bridges, and public transit more resilient to climate change and better meet our state's future transportation needs. California is the fifth largest economy in the world, and it's time that our public infrastructure looked the part. Rebuilding our nation's aging infrastructure with American workers and materials remains a top priority for me in Congress."

"California has a long and successful track record performing federal responsibilities for environmental decisions and approvals under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Through 'NEPA Assignment,' California has been able to cut the regulatory burden on thousands of transportation projects, saving months and even years in approving environmental documents. Congressman Garamendi's efforts will help us deliver transportation projects more efficiently, save the taxpayers money and speed our economic recovery from COVID-19," said Secretary David S. Kim, California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA).

The INVEST in America Act safeguards our environment and prepares our critical infrastructure to withstand the impacts of climate change by:

Congressman Garamendi, a senior member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, secured the following key provisions in this Highway Bill (H.R.2):

This press release was produced by the Office of Congressman John Garamendi. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Read the original here:
Garamendi Secures Major Wins For California And The Environment In Infrastructure Bill - Patch.com

A cheap, readily available steroid drug reduced deaths by a third in patients hospitalized with Covid-19 in a large study, the first time a therapy has been shown to possibly improve the odds of survival with the condition in the sickest patients.

Full data from the study have not been published or subjected to scientific scrutiny. But outside experts on Tuesday immediately embraced the top-line results. The drug, dexamethasone, is widely available and is used to treat conditions including rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, and some cancers.

In a statement, Patrick Vallance, the U.K. governments chief scientific adviser, called the result tremendous news and a ground-breaking development in our fight against the disease. Scott Gottlieb, a former commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, called it a very positive finding in an interview on CNBC. I think it needs to be validated, but it certainly suggests that this could be beneficial in this setting.

advertisement

Atul Gawande, the surgeon, writer and public health researcher, urged caution, tweeting, after all the retractions and walk backs, it is unacceptable to tout study results by press release without releasing the paper.

The study randomly assigned 2,104 patients to receive six milligrams of dexamethasone once a day, by mouth or intravenous injection. These were compared to 4,321 patients assigned to receive usual care alone.

advertisement

In patients who needed to be on a ventilator, dexamethasone reduced the death rate by 35%, meaning that doctors would prevent one death by treating eight ventilated patients. In those who needed oxygen but were not ventilated, the death rate was reduced 20%, meaning doctors would need to treat 25 patients to save one life. Both results were statistically significant.

There was no benefit in patients who didnt require any oxygen. The researchers running the study, called RECOVERY, decided to stop enrolling patients on dexamethasone on June 8 because they believed they had enough data to get a clear result.

Dexamethasone is the first drug to be shown to improve survival in COVID-19, Peter Horby, one of the lead investigators of the study and a professor in the Nuffield Department of Medicine at the University of Oxford, said in a statement. He added that the drug should now become the standard treatment for patients with Covid-19 who need oxygen. Dexamethasone is inexpensive, on the shelf, and can be used immediately to save lives worldwide.

A different arm of the same study showed on June 5 that hydroxychloroquine, widely touted as a potential Covid treatment, had no benefit in hospitalized patients. Yesterday, based in part on those results, the Food and Drug Administration revoked an Emergency Use Authorization for using hydroxychloroquine in those patients.

From the start of the pandemic in March, researchers have focused on two different stages of Covid-19, which will likely require very different interventions. Some drugs are designed to directly combat the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, that causes the disease. The first medicine shown to have a benefit, remdesivir from the biotech firm Gilead Sciences, falls into this category, even though, because it must be given intravenously, it has been tested in hospitalized patients. Remdesivir shortens the course of infection, but has not been shown to save lives.

After patients have become profoundly sick, the problem starts to become not only the virus but their own immune system, which attacks the lungs, a condition called acute respiratory distress syndrome, or ARDS. For these patients, doctors have believed, they would need to dampen patients immune response even as they fought the virus.

Initially, excitement in this area fell on new and expensive drugs, such as Actemra, a rheumatoid arthritis drug from Roche that is used to treat a similar condition caused by some cancer immunotherapies. But a study in patients who needed oxygen showed no benefit from a similar drug, although another arm in sicker patients is continuing. The National Institutes of Health is conducting a study of an Eli Lilly pill targeting rheumatoid arthritis, an extension of the study that showed remdesivir has a benefit.

Dexamethasone, which reached the market 59 years ago, seemed an unlikely candidate to help these patients; it was seen as too crude a way of tamping down the immune system. In guidelines for physicians treating the disease, the NIH doesnt even mention the therapy.

Studies that are testing other medicines may now need to incorporate the use of the drug, which could complicate analyzing the results. A spokesperson for Regeneron, which is testing Covid-19 drugs focused on both attacking the virus and dampening the immune system, said the companys studies are written so that when a new medicine becomes the standard of care, it becomes available to patients in the trial.Some studies have shown a benefit for using dexamethasone in acute respiratory distress syndrome not related to Covid-19, although the benefit was smaller than in RECOVERY.

The result, should it hold up to further scrutiny, shows the benefit of the strategy of Horby and Martin Landray, the Oxford researchers who designed the study, leveraging the U.K. health system to start a study of multiple inexpensive potential Covid-19 therapies including hydroxychloroquine, dexamethasone, and also some older HIV medicines. Several months into the Covid-19 pandemic, two of the most important results come from this single study.

Neither of those results, however, have been scrutinized or published.

Follow this link:
Major study finds steroid reduces deaths in patients with severe Covid-19 - STAT

Sleep wrinkles aren't your average fine lines: While expression lines can form overtime from repeatedly moving your face, these wrinkles form exclusively from your sleeping positionsay, if you curl up on your side or sleep on your stomach, face smashed into the pillow. That's why one study on facial aging identified a distinct set of wrinkles that form from sleep alone, which brings us to the anecdotally dubbed "sleep wrinkles."

It makes sense, no? If you sleep with your face smashed into the pillow for eight or some hours each night, that's quite a long time for the delicate skin on your face to endure that pressure. Not only that, but the skin is more permeable at night, which means it is more vulnerable to transepidermal water loss (also why you might opt for a heavier night cream to seal in moisture; nighttime skin care is no joke). This means your skin is not only experiencing friction, but may dry out faster, too. All things considered, of course you may wake up to some folds across your skin.

Now, those indents tend to fade when you're young, as your plump skin is chock-full of collagen and can quite literally bounce back from the pressure. (Think of a firm mattress molding to your weight as you sleep, then filling out once you leave your cozy bed.) But as you grow older and your collagen levels start to decline, you may notice those lines stick around well after midmorning.

See the article here:
So Sleep Wrinkles Are A Thing: Here's What It Says About Your Skin - mindbodygreen.com

With America on lockdown the past two months, many people turned to the woods for safe isolation and social distancing. And now as sections of the country reopen and summer approaches, the outdoors will be filled with hikers, campers, hunters and fishermen. It will also be filled with ticks that may be carrying the bacterial infection that spreads Lyme disease to humans and pets.

Unlike a mosquito bite where people know immediately if they have been bitten, a tick bite may go undetected; and one of the challenges with Lyme disease is that symptoms may not appear for two to six weeks. That makes it critically important to take steps to avoid catching the disease and to know its warning signs so treatment can begin early when it is most effective.

"While not all deer ticks cause Lyme disease, it is still smart to avoid areas where deer ticks live, especially wooded, bushy areas with long grass," said Sean McCloy, M.D., a family medicine physician with an expertise in Lyme disease at the Integrative Health Center of Maine. "You can decrease your risk of getting Lyme disease with some simple precautions, such as wearing shoes, long pants tucked into your socks, a long-sleeved shirt, a hat and gloves. And after spending time in vulnerable areas you should always check your clothing, yourself, your children and your pets for ticks; and remove any that you find as soon as possible with tweezers. Only a minority of tick bites leads to Lyme disease; but the longer the tick remains attached to your skin, the greater your risk of getting the disease."

For those who are bitten by an infected tick, early warning signs include fever, headache, fatigue, joint pain, swollen lymph nodes, weakness in the limbs and a characteristic skin rash often in a bull's-eye pattern. If untreated, new symptoms could include neurological problems and, though less common, heart problems (such as an irregular heartbeat), eye inflammation, liver inflammation and severe fatigue.

"If you think you've been bitten and have signs and symptoms of Lyme diseaseparticularly if you live in an area where Lyme disease is prevalentit is critical to get tested as treatment is more effective if begun early," said Robert Dracker, M.D., chairman of the heart, lung and cancer committee for the Medical Society of New York and medical director of Summerwood Pediatrics and Infusacare Medical Services in New York. "Fortunately, new tests are available that are easy to administer and provide results faster than ever."

Leading the way in Lyme disease testing is the innovative Sofia 2 Lyme FIA test. This in-office test provides a patient as well as his or her physician with indicative results within minutes as opposed to days, which has historically been the norm. Performed in the privacy of a doctors office or local clinic, it is also the only test that can get results from a simple finger prick of blood. The test was developed by Quidel, a California-based diagnostic healthcare manufacturer and one of the nations leaders in developing rapid diagnostic health solutions.

"Given that the vast majority of patients tested are negative, getting results quickly will mean discernable peace of mind and remove a significant weight off a persons shoulders," said Dr. Dracker. "Not having to wait days for test results allows physicians and nurse practitioners to more rapidly treat those patients with positive results while more quickly pursuing other diagnosis and treatment for those who test negative."

Patients seeking more information are encouraged to contact their private physician to find out more about the availability of this innovative new test in their area. More information on Quidel may be obtained at quidel.com.

About Quidel Corporation

Quidel Corporation serves to enhance the health and well-being of people around the globe through the development of diagnostic solutions that can lead to improved patient outcomes and provide economic benefits to the healthcare system. Quidels products aid in the detection and diagnosis of many critical diseases and conditions including not only Lyme disease but, among others, influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, strep A, herpes, pregnancy, thyroid disease and fecal occult blood. Quidels research and development engine is also developing a continuum of diagnostic solutions from advanced immunoassay to molecular diagnostic tests to further improve the quality of healthcare in physicians offices and hospital and reference laboratories. For more information about Quidel, visit quidel.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200602005149/en/

Contacts

Jim Yeager424-644-0225 (office)818-264-6812 (mobile)jim@breakwhitelight.com

Read the rest here:
Knowing Signs and Symptoms of Lyme Disease Is Critical for Early Detection and Treatment, Says Industry-Leading Quidel - Yahoo Finance

This contribution is a part of the $50 million commitment from Southern Company and its subsidiaries to historically black colleges and universities

ATLANTA, May 26, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --Southern Company Gas and the Southern Company Gas Charitable Foundation are donating $1 million toward academic expansion and efforts to provide greater equity in healthcare led by Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM).

Southern Company Gas Logo (PRNewsfoto/Southern Company Gas)

This gift, part of MSM's Expansion into the Future Initiative, enables the medical school to strengthen its academic offerings and research enterprise, including its budding Natural Products Research Center and the development of an Emerging Pathogens Research Team focusing on topics such as coronaviruses.

"As our communities continue to be impacted by the coronavirus and work to recover from what has become a global health crisis, Southern Company Gas recognizes the immediate need to support institutions seeking solutions while addressing critical health equity issues," said Kim Greene, chairman, president and CEO of Southern Company Gas. "We support MSM's cutting-edge research and education model, which fosters greater inclusion in not only healthcare, but ultimately our entire society."

According to a study led by amfAR and the Center for Vaccine Innovation and Access and data from the U.S. Census Bureau, black Americans represent 13.4% of the U.S. population, but counties with higher black populations account for more than half of all COVID-19 cases and almost 60% of deaths. MSM's efforts to improve diversity in the medical profession, research into health challenges facing minority communities and service to underserved communities play a critical role in addressing racial inequality.

The academic expansion initiative will provide the campus community with state-of-the-art facilities that effectively integrate technology and foster collaborative learning among students, faculty, and staff. It will also support MSM's research portfolio focused on infectious diseases such as COVID-19, as well as cancer, cardiovascular disease and neuroscience, among other topics critical to improving the health of underserved communities.

"Our existing virology research's success may help to establish an even larger U.S and global structure examining emerging pathogens of all types and how we can identify and address them," says Professor Vincent C. Bond, chair of the Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry, and Immunology at MSM. "Our integrative approach to health care allows us to translate the discoveries made in labs, to the bedside of patients, and then to the communities we serve."

Recently celebrating its 45th anniversary, MSM has made monumental strides increasing the class size of each of its degree-granting programs, including the Medical program, Graduate Education in Biomedical Sciences, Graduate Education in Public Health and Physician Assistant Studies.

Higher education plays a critical role in driving economic wellbeing; however, studies have shown one approach to ending the cycle of poverty caused by our nation's long history of racial inequity considers quality education and healthcare. This is why earlier this year Southern Company Gas and its parent company, Southern Company, announced plans to donate $50 million to historically black universities and colleges to support career readiness and develop future leaders.

Story continues

For more information on Southern Company Gas' efforts to support COVID-19 relief, visit scgcares.org.

About Southern Company GasSouthern Company Gas is a wholly owned subsidiary of Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE:SO), America's premier energy company. Southern Company Gas serves approximately 4.2 million natural gas utility customers through its regulated distribution companies in four states and approximately 700,000 retail customers through its companies that market natural gas. Other nonutility businesses include investments in interstate pipelines, asset management for natural gas wholesale customers and ownership and operation of natural gas storage facilities. For more information, visit southerncompanygas.com.

About the Southern Company Charitable Gas FoundationThe Southern Company Gas Charitable Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to supporting those who are transforming lives by tackling complex challenges with revolutionary vision. Every year, the Charitable Foundation donates millions of dollars in grants to organizations that align with Southern Company Gas' values and that passionately work to improve the lives of the communities the company serves. As an independent, nonprofit philanthropic foundation, the Southern Company Gas Charitable Foundation is funded solely by Southern Company Gas through shareholder dollars.

About Morehouse School of MedicineMorehouse School of Medicine (MSM), located in Atlanta, GA exist to improve the health and well-being of individuals and communities, increase the diversity of the health professional and scientific workforce, and address primary health care through programs in education, research, and service, with emphasis on people of color and the underserved urban and rural populations in Georgia, the nation,and the world. MSM is among the nation's leading educators of primary care physicians and has twice been recognized as the top institution among U.S. medical schools for its dedication to the social mission of education. The faculty and alumni are noted in their fields for excellence in teaching, research, and public policy, and are known in the community for exceptional, culturally appropriate patient care. Morehouse School of Medicine is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award doctorate and master's degrees.

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/southern-company-gas-donates-1-million-to-morehouse-school-of-medicine-to-support-the-advancement-of-health-equity-301065194.html

SOURCE Southern Company Gas

Read more:
Southern Company Gas donates $1 million to Morehouse School of Medicine to support the advancement of health equity - Yahoo Finance

In the times when India is grappling due to the COVID-19 situation, swarms of locust attacking various parts of the country is another formidable challege the country has to tackle. According to the Agriculture Ministry, nearly 15 districts in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh have experienced locust attacks which are still active.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare on Wednesday informed that locust control operations have been stepped up in affected states to combat the menace.

"Amidst a wave of locust swarms sweeping across western & northwestern India, Department of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare has stepped up locust control operations in affected states of Rajasthan, Punjab, Gujarat & Madhya Pradesh," said the Agriculture Ministry in a press release.

The ministry further added: "As of today, there are active swarms of immature locust in Barmer, Jodhpur, Nagaur, Bikaner, Ganganagar, Hanumangarh, Sikar, Jaipur Districts in Rajasthan and Satna, Gwalior, Seedhi, Rajgarh, Baitul, Devas, Agar Malwa district of Madhya Pradesh."

The ministry further informed that till 26 May, control operations against locusts done in 47,308-hectare area at 303 places in Rajasthan, Punjab, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh by Locust Circle Offices (LCO) in coordination with District Administration and State Agriculture Department.

Read the original:
Swarms of locust still active in 15 districts of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh - Free Press Journal

As the world grapples with the continuing challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, a multi-institutional initiative has been formed to support a broad range of research aimed at addressing the devastation to global public health, including projects by six MIT faculty.

Called the Massachusetts Consortium on Pathogen Readiness (MassCPR), and based at Harvard Medical School (HMS), it was conceived to both battle the myriad effects of SARS-CoV-2 and prepare for future health crises. Now, MassCPR has announced more than $16.5 million in funding to support 62 research projects, all with the potential for significant impact in fighting the pandemic on several fronts.

MassCPR includes scientists and clinicians from Harvard, MIT, Boston University, Tufts University, and the University of Massachusetts, as well as local biomedical research institutes, biotech companies and academic medical centers. The projects selected in the initial round of funding were based on the MassCPRs primary scientific and clinical focus areas: the development of vaccines, therapies and diagnostic tools, clinical management, epidemiology and understanding how SARS-CoV-2 causes disease.

Of the projects selected, six are led by MIT faculty:

Lee Gehrke, the Hermann von Helmholtz Professor of Health Sciences and Technology, MIT Institute for Medical Engineering and Science (IMES), a professor at HMS and a member of the faculty at the Harvard-MIT Health Sciences and Technology program (HST), will receive funding for work to develop a simple and direct antigen rapid test for SARS-CoV-2 infections. A Cambridge-based startup, E25Bio, which is using technology developed by Gerhke, has been working on a paper-based test that can deliver results in under half an hour. Gehrke, the CTO of E25Bio, says that the funding will help to accelerate the final stages of producing and introducing this test into patient care. We have been working on diagnostic tests overall for over 10 years, Gehrke says. We started working on a Covid test as soon as the news came of potential danger back in January. Gehrke says that the test is manufacturing-ready and that they have conducted small-scale manufacturing runs with a local Massachusetts-based company that will be able to scale up once clinical tests are complete. E25Bio has submitted the test to the FDA for emergency use authorization.

Angela Belcher, head of the Department of Biological Engineering, the James Mason Crafts Professor of Biological Engineering and Materials Science and Engineering, and a member of the Marble Center for Cancer Nanomedicine at the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, will also receive support for her research proposal, Novel nanocarbon materials for life-development of distributable textiles that filtrate/neutralize dangerous viruses/bacteria to protect medical professional and civilians from virus pandemic disease.

Jianzhu Chen, a professor in the Department of Biology, also a member of the Koch Institute and a co-director of the Center for Infection and Immunity at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was selected for a project focusing on enhancing mRNA-based coronavirus vaccines with lymph node-targeted delivery and neutralizing antibody-inducing adjuvant. Chen says that the grant will help fund proposed research aimed at devising an effective vaccine, and that the money will help us to jumpstart our research on SARS-CoV-2, as well as vaccines to address other pathogens.

Bruce Walker, professor of the practice at IMES and the Department of Biology, founding director of the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT, and Harvard, and Phillip T and Susan M Ragon Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, will receive support for research on A highly networked, exosome-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccine.

Feng Zhangs project, Development of a point-of-care diagnostic for COVID-19, was also selected. Zhang is the James and Patricia Poitras Professor of Neuroscience and a professor of brain and cognitive sciences and biological engineering at MIT, an investigator at the McGovern Institute for Brain Research, and a core member of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard.

Siqi Zheng, the Samuel Tak Lee Associate Professor in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning and faculty director of the Center for Real Estate will receive funding for research on quantifying the role of social distancing in shaping the Covid-19 curve: incorporating adaptive behavior and preference shifts in epidemiological models using novel big data in 344 Chinese cities. Zheng calls the funding crucial in research that will compare different regions and how people react to social and physical distancing during a pandemic, and will examine various government policies aimed at controlling the spread of the virus.

See the rest here:
Six from MIT awarded research funding to address Covid-19 - MIT News

Natures way vsinfection: 5 health basics to fight COVID-19

MANILA, Philippines With novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) still rearing its ugly head, more pieces of advice on how to fight it the natural way are in order.

According to Integrative Medicine practitioner Dr. Joel Lopez of the J. Lopez Medical Group Inc., while physical distancing, washing hands often, regularly sanitizing places and things, wearing face masks and using hand sanitizers are the norm in preventing COVID-19, these alone cannot beat the deadly coronavirus. We must go beyond the surface and check our lifestyle.

Nobody is talking about building our immune system, said the doctor who can be reached via his official site, Jlopezmd.com. Those who suffer or die from corona have a weaker immune system.

He reminded everyone to go back to five health basics that will boost the immune system.

The first is an anti-inflammatory, plant-based diet. But although a vegan diet makes you lose excess weight, Lopez advised those with Type O blood which is majority of people against totally foregoing meat.

They need this amino acid called L-carnitine, from the root word carne or meat. Just make sure the source of meat is grass-fed or organically-fed livestock free from hormones and antibiotics, Lopez said.

Hydration is another weapon to fight infection. Lopez took note that a lot of people dont drink enough water to detoxify themselves. They dont realize that dehydration manifests itself in such common problems as headaches, muscle stiffness and painful joints. And chances are, they dont feel these symptoms until their body is 50 percent dehydrated.Besides water, Lopez recommended green tea, ulong tea, matcha white tea and black tea.

How much water do you need? Lopez said its half your body weight in ounces. For instance, someone who weighs 150 pounds needs 75 ounces of water.

Exercise is another weapon. Lopez recommended aerobics and walking are enough. Tai Chi, yoga, and taking five to 10,000 steps are also good. Those who lift weights, however, must rest in-between sessions and limit their exercises to every other day.

Sleep, said Lopez, is just as crucial. According to the doctor, we need at least seven-and-a-half to eight hours of sleep at night, when our body repairs and regenerates itself. It is at this time that our body releases the hormone melatonin, which helps us rest better. He added that our body also secretes growth hormones when we sleep.

To help the body manufacture melatonin, Lopez said its essential that we keep the bedroom dark, and go to sleep by 11 p.m. at the latest.

As for call center agents or hospital workers in the graveyard shift, Lopez recommended getting seven-and-a-half to eight hours of sleep during the day help make up for the lack of sleep at night.

Finally, theres sunlight. Lopez pointed out that living in a tropical country like the Philippines doesnt exempt us from having Vitamin D deficiency.

He pointed out that hundreds of people living in tropical countries have been tested positive for chronic auto-immune diseases like chronic fatigue, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

So, he urged everyone to go outdoors and enjoy the sunlight before 9 a.m. or after 3 p.m. for their dose of vitamin D. Those who miss the sun in the morning can still get their dose of vitamin D in the afternoon. Otherwise, one must take vitamin D food supplements.

The battle against infectious disease never stops. And the beauty of it all is that our best weapons are free. We dont have to spend a fortune. All we need do is adopt a healthy lifestyle.

RELATED:How to keep your sanity during quarantine: Psychologist gives tips

How to stay healthy during quarantine: Makati Med doctor gives tips

Read the rest here:
Natures way vs infection: 5 health basics to fight COVID-19 - Philippine Star

We're healing our broken system of healthcare.The Novis Health Franchise Model delivers health care that is both highly effective and highly accessible for patients.

CENTENNIAL, Colo. and ST. LOUIS (PRWEB) May 07, 2020

Novis Health and MindBody Talent today announced a strategic partnership focused on recruiting and integrating qualified healthcare professionals into the innovative Novis Health model of franchising the development of Functional Medicine healthcare practices across the United States. Working closely with a network of medical practice service providers and franchising experts, Novis Health has created the first franchise model of its kind in North America.

The companies aim to proliferate much-needed Functional Medicine services through individual healthcare practices and area development strategies in key target areas across the U.S. The Novis Health Blueprint is based on successful practice prototypes in South Carolina and Colorado. The unique franchise model will enable rapid practice start-ups or conversions of existing practices in a consistent delivery methodology that focuses on the highest quality of patient care.

A Return to the Roots of Optimum Health ManagementFunctional Medicine is the field of health care focused on treating complex diseases, chronic health problems and promoting healthy living by focusing on the root causes of illness and the biological foundations of good health. Practitioners of Functional Medicine provide a holistic system alternative to the conventional allopathic medicine approach of diagnosing symptoms and prescribing pharmaceutical products or surgeries that has dominated the American healthcare system since the 1950s.

In her landmark book, A Nation of Unwell Whats Gone Wrong, Dr. Kristine Gedroic, MD equates the allopathic approach that she and other practitioners learn in conventional medical schools to masking root causes and unplugging the smoke alarm while underlying fires of illness burn uncontrolled. In contrast, the Functional Medicine field facilitated by the Novis Health and MindBody Talent partnership seeks to transform U.S. healthcare from the illness focus that is perpetuated by conventional medicine to the wellness focus facilitated by Functional Medicine practitioners. A rising wave of patients, caregivers and healthcare practitioners are also seeking that transformation.

A Rising Tide of Interest and NeedAccording to the 2020 Industry Report of Functional, Integrative & Naturopathic Medicine, the healthcare fields commonly referred to as Functional, Integrative or Lifestyle Medicine are estimated to become an $89 billion industry in 2020, growing six times from its level of $14.7 billion in 2012. Patients and their caregivers are displaying a rising hunger for alternatives to allopathic medicine and the negative consequences of pharmaceutical-centric health care.

The 2020 Industry Report found a 5000% increase in Google searches for integrative care over the last five years. The Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine reports a 2,200-patient waitlist. The University of California at San Francisco Osher Clinic sees 10,300 patients annually and reports a four-month waitlist for services. The Report predicts that there will be over a million Integrative Medicine practitioners in the U.S. in 2020. Medical schools and credentialing boards are scrambling to enhance Functional Medicine education and board certifications.

Unique Franchise Model Benefits Patients and PractitionersNovis Health is addressing the explosion in demand for Functional Medicine solutions through its delivery of a turnkey healthcare franchise model that gets practices up and running quickly, as well as economically for both patients and practitioners. The Novis Health Blueprint surrounds healthcare practitioners with everything they need to ramp up new practices or convert existing practices into high performance centers for patient care.

Doctors and advanced care providers should not have to worry about sorting through the hundreds of details involved with starting, ramping and running their practices, explains Dr. Ryan Valencic, CEO of Novis Health. Healthcare practitioners want to spend as much of their time as possible with patients. Thats where their patients need them to focus their time and energies as well. The Novis Health model enables the management of high-performance healthcare practices that are able to optimize patient-facing time, to the benefit of patients and practitioners alike. Our model delivers healthcare that is both highly effective and highly accessible for patients.

More efficient practice management enables practitioners to devote their time and attention to the hallmark of the Functional Medicine discipline getting to the root causes of what is making people sick and facilitating reversals in the disease process. Enhancing quality time with patients enables treating the whole person nutritionally, physically, emotionally and spiritually, rather than just the disease theyve been labeled with by the conventional medicine approach.

Novis Health has chosen an initial focus on the areas of hypothyroidism, autoimmune diseases, diabetes, immune system management and whole food nutrition because those tend to be linchpins in the process of serious disease management, recovery from chronic illness and identifying pathways to healthy living.

Talented Professionals are the Key to GrowthNovis Healths partnership with MindBody Talent was created to source, recruit and integrate top Functional Medicine practitioners and administrative personnel into Novis Health practices.

Our plans for growth are based on finding and recruiting the best physicians, advanced care providers and administrators in the country, explained Dr. Valencic. MindBody Talent shares our vision, as well as a commitment to our aggressive growth plans. They have exactly the right skills, experience and knowledge in our field to keep our practices supplied with key talent.

MindBody Talents principals agree. We founded MindBody Talent with a driving passion to return our country to a state of wellness and vitality, explained Robin Stewart, CEO and Managing Director of MindBody Talents Recruitment and Placement practice. We recognized that same passion in the mission of Novis Health. Our partnership creates a perfect synergy in supporting practices and practitioners who serve on the front lines of the long overdue Healthcare Revolution that is sorely needed across America.

In addition to recruitment services, MindBody Talent will support Novis Health practices with a baseline of consistent training, personnel on-boarding and operational readiness services. Depending on the needs of individual practices, MindBody Talents service lines can be activated individually or in combination to fuel the effectiveness of Novis Health practices and the growth of patient panels for practitioners. The range of MindBody Talents plug-and-play services include:

Connecting with Novis Health

Practice Professionals: Qualified Functional Medicine practitioners and practice administrators who are interested in learning more about practice positions and franchise opportunities, contact Robin Stewart at Robin@MindBodyTalent.com or 310-890-7489.

Patients and Caregivers: Patients, patient advocates and caregivers who are interested in learning of Novis Health practices coming to your area, contact Dr. Ryan Valencic at dr.v@novis-health.com or 814-233-9387.

About Novis HealthChallenging the Health Care Status Quo. Novis Health has created the first Functional Medicine franchise model in North America. Grounded in the discipline of Functional Medicine and focused on the key linchpins of optimum health, Novis Health is rapidly growing a nationwide model for health care that is revolutionizing how patient conditions are evaluated, assessed and treated. Specialties in the cardinal areas of hypothyroidism, autoimmune diseases, diabetes, immune system management and whole food nutrition ensure that patients receive effective recovery and pathways to optimum health that last. Our franchise Blueprint enables our wisdom and successful practices to be shared and scaled across the United States with a consistent high-quality level of patient care.

Visit Novis Health on the web and social media: Website: http://novis.health/franchise/ Facebook (Patients): https://www.facebook.com/novishealth/ Facebook (Practitioners): https://www.facebook.com/NovisHealthFranchise/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/novishealth/ YouTube: Novis Health, LLC

About MindBody TalentMindBody Talent is a rare collaboration of seasoned professionals from the fields of Healthcare, Health Sciences, Hospitality, Wellness and Senior Living. Through a platform of integrated services, we blend our experiences in traditional western medicine, eastern health philosophies and native wisdom into a focus on Functional, Integrative and Lifestyle Medicine problem-solving. Our client base and talent pools include a nationwide network of Wellness industry practitioners, medical practices, hospitals, wellness centers and forward-leaning senior living communities. Our driving passion is to unite the best talent on the planet into the next generation of Mind-Body Wellness for the communities we serve.

Visit MindBody Talent on the web and social media: Website: https://mindbodytalent.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mindbody-talent Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MindBodyTalent/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/MindbodyTalent Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mindbodytalent/

ContactsMedia and Investors

Novis HealthDr. Ryan Valencicdr.v@novis-health.com 814-233-9387

MindBody TalentRichard Hoffmann Rich@MindBodyTalent.com 314-202-0033

See the original post here:
Novis Health and Mindbody Talent Form Franchise Recruiting Partnership - PR Web

A microbiome fingerprint method allows tracking of mothers microbial strains inherited by infants.

Casey Morrow, Ph.D.Microbial communities in the intestine also known as the gut microbiome are vital for human digestion, metabolism and resistance to colonization by pathogens. The gut microbiome composition in infants and toddlers changes extensively in the first three years of life. But where do those microbes come from in the first place?

Scientists have long been able to analyze the gut microbiome at the level of the 500 to 1,000 different bacterial species that mainly have a beneficial influence; only more recently have they been able to identify individual strains within a single species using powerful genomic tools and supercomputers that analyze massive amounts of genetic data.

Researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham now have used their microbiome fingerprint method to report that an individualized mosaic of microbial strains is transmitted to the infant gut microbiome from a mother giving birth through vaginal delivery. They detailed this transmission by analyzing existing metagenomic databases of fecal samples from mother-infant pairs, as well as analyzing mouse dam and pup transmission in a germ-free, or gnotobiotic, mouse model at UAB, where the dams were inoculated with human fecal microbes.

The results of our analysis demonstrate that multiple strains of maternal microbes some that are not abundant in the maternal fecal community can be transmitted during birth to establish a diverse infant gut microbial community, said Casey Morrow, Ph.D., professor emeritus in UABs Department of Cell, Developmental and Integrative Biology. Our analysis provides new insights into the origin of microbial strains in the complex infant microbial community.

The study used a strain-tracking bioinformatics tool previously developed at UAB, called Window-based Single-nucleotide-variant Similarity, or WSS. Hyunmin Koo, Ph.D., UABDepartment of Genetics and Genomics Core, led the informatics analysis. The gnotobiotic mouse model studies were led by Braden McFarland, Ph.D., assistant professor in the UAB Department of Cell, Developmental and Integrative Biology.

Braden McFarland, Ph.D.Morrow and colleagues have used this microbe fingerprint tool in several previous strain-tracking studies. In 2017, they found that fecal donor microbes used to treat patients with recurrent Clostridium difficile infections remained in recipients for months or years after fecal transplants. In 2018, they showed that changes in the upper gastrointestinal tract through obesity surgery led to the emergence of new strains of microbes. In 2019, they analyzed the stability of new strains in individuals after antibiotic treatments, and earlier this year, they found that adult twins, ages 36 to 80 years old, shared a certain strain or strains between each pair for periods of years, and even decades, after they began living apart from each other.

In the current study, several individual-specific patterns of microbial strain-sharing were found between mothers and infants. Three mother-infant pairs showed only related strains, while a dozen other infants of mother-infant pairs contained a mosaic of maternal-related and unrelated microbes. It could be that the unrelated strains came from the mother, but they had not been the dominant strain of that species in the mother, and so had not been detected.

Indeed, in a second study using a dataset from nine women taken at different times in their pregnancies showed that strain variations in individual species occurred in seven of the women.

To further define the source of the unrelated strains, a mouse model was used to look at transmission from dam to pup in the absence of environmental microbes. Five different females were given transplants of different human fecal matter to create five unique humanized-microbiome mice, which were bred with gnotobiotic males. The researchers then analyzed the strains found in the human donors, the mouse dams and their mouse pups. They found four different patterns: 1) The pups strain of a particular species was related to the dams strain; 2) The pups strain was related to both the dams strain and the human donors strain; 3) The pups strain was related to the human donors strain, but not to the dams strain; and, importantly, 4) No related strains for a particular species were found between the pup, the dam and the human donor. Since these animals were bred and raised in germ-free conditions, the unrelated strains in the pups came from minor, undetected strains in the dams.

Hyunmin Koo, Ph.D.The results of our studies support a reconsideration of the contribution of different maternal microbes to the infant enteric microbial community, Morrow said. The constellation of microbial strains that we detected in the infants inherited from the mother was different in each mother-infant pair. Given the recognized role of the microbiome in metabolic diseases such as obesity and type 2 diabetes, the results of our study could help to further explain the susceptibility of the infant to metabolic disease found in the mother.

Co-authors with Koo, McFarland and Morrow in the study, An individualized mosaic of maternal microbial strains is transmitted to the infant gut microbial community, published in Royal Society Open Science, are Joseph A. Hakim, UAB School of Medicine; David K. Crossman and Michael R. Crowley, UAB Department of Genetics; J. Martin Rodriguez, UAB Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases; and Etty N. Benveniste, UAB Department of Cell, Developmental and Integrative Biology.

Support came from the University of Alabama School of Medicine, National Institutes of Health grants CA194414 and NS116559, a UAB Neuro-Oncology Support Fund award, and an American Cancer Society Institutional Research Grant through the ONeal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB.

View post:
Individualized mosaics of microbial strains transfer from the maternal to the infant gut - The Mix

There are so many different ways to enjoy coffee from whipped emulsions to fancy pour-overs. When it comes to your heart health, though, theres one way cardiologists recommend preparing your coffee over other methods.

In a new study published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, researchers looked into the coffee-drinking habits of more than 500,000 Norwegian men and women. And they found something interesting about how coffee preparation methods may impact your health. Particularly in terms of drinking your coffee filtered or unfiltered.

Among the participants, 59 percent drank filtered coffee, 20 percent drank unfiltered coffee, 9 percent drank both types, and 12 percent didnt drink coffee at all. And its clear that filtered coffee wins: Unfiltered brew was associated with higher mortality than filtered brew, and filtered brew was associated with lower mortality than no coffee consumption, wrote the study authors. The amount also made a difference. Among coffee consumers, the reference group of 1 to 4 cups a day of filtered brew had the lowest mortality, and >9 cups a day of unfiltered brew had the highest mortality.

So, whats the deal with unfiltered coffee? The study authors wrote that its been found to contain high amounts of compounds called diterpenes (like cafestol and kahweol), which can raise your LDL cholesterol levels. The types of coffee youd primarily drink unfiltered are those made with a French press where the coffee grounds steep in hot water. The good news is most of the coffee you drink is probably already filtered.

Integrative medicine expert Andrew Weil, MD, touched on the topic years ago and said filtered coffee gives you the least amount of those cholesterol-raising compounds, as most of it is left in the filter. And after speaking to a colleague, he came to the conclusion that even if your cholesterol levels are of concern, you can still have coffee. It might just be a good idea to cut back a little and save unfiltered methods for special occasions.

The benefits of coffee, explained by a dietitian:

Read the rest here:
This is the best way to prepare coffee for your heart health - Well+Good

Text Size:A- A+

New Delhi: Scientists at the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) will launch two separate trials to test if a drug used to treat sepsis and liver cirrhosis can stop Covid-19 infection from progressing in asymptomatic patients and whether the same drug can prevent recurrence of the infection in patients who have recovered.

The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has research teams across the world scrambling to find a treatment or vaccine for the disease that has no known cure. Since developing a new treatment from scratch can take years, researchers are looking to repurpose existing drugs to help patients fight the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19.

The drug to be used for the trials is known as Sepsivac, which was developed by the CSIR in partnership with pharmaceutical company Cadila in 2007.

Also read: Govt plans to test whether ashwagandha, mulethi, guduchi will help fight Covid-19

In an earlier interview, Ram A. Vishwakarma, director, CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine (IIIM) in Jammu, told ThePrint that his team is set to test whether the drug can reduce the risk of death in critically-ill Covid-19 patients.

This trial has now started at the PGIMER, Chandigarh, while AIIMS, Delhi, and AIIMS, Bhopal, will launch the trial later.

There will be another trial of patients who have tested positive, but have no symptoms. These people will be given this drug as a vaccine, so that their disease does not progress, and they do not end up in hospitals, Vishwakarma told ANI Wednesday.

A third trial of the drug will be for people who have already been cured as it is now known that the virus can stay in patients for upto a month.

people who have been released from hospital will be given this as a vaccine, so that they dont redevelop this infection, he said.

Vishwakarma explained to ThePrint that to fight viruses there are usually two approaches developing a drug against the virus itself or creating an immunomodulator, which helps the immune system in fighting off the virus.

Sepsivac falls in the second category, Vishwakarma said.

The drug is synthesised by culturing a bacteria called Mycobacterium w in a large scale, which is inactivated by heat. A number of proteins on the surface of the bacteria triggers a desirable immune response, he said.

Sepsis is a condition that happens due to an overactive or inflammatory immune response that occurs when a pathogen enters the blood plasma, leading to organ dysfunction that can be fatal.

Caused by gram-negative bacteria, sepsis has a pathology similar to that of Covid-19, Vishwakarma said.

Initially our body tries to defend itself against viruses by using its innate immune system. After 4-5 days, when the body cannot fight off the pathogens, it employs a higher level of defence which is what causes the cytokines storm, he said.

Cytokines are small proteins secreted as a result of different types of interactions between cells. In the novel coronavirus infection, this heightened release of cytokines is common in critically ill patients.

This high level of immune response starts to damage the bodys organs. That is what is causing the multi-organ failure that we are seeing in Covid-19 patients, Vishwakarma said.

Also read: Modi govt advises homoeopathy, Unani to prevent coronavirus that has no known cure yet

ThePrint is now on Telegram. For the best reports & opinion on politics, governance and more, subscribe to ThePrint on Telegram.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel.

The rest is here:
CSIR to test sepsis drug in asymptomatic Covid patients and those who have recovered - ThePrint

New Delhi: As the field of alternative medicine gains immense popularity in the wake of COVID-19, the ancient practice of Ayurveda with India as its land of origin can don the role of quiet yet powerful armed forces in the fight against the coronavirus, according to a seasoned Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine from Weill Cornell Medical College in New York.

Weill Cornell Medicine is the biomedical research unit and medical school of Cornell University, a private Ivy League university and according to Dr Bhaswati Bhattacharya, practising Ayurveda is like approaching the disease from the perspective of air, water, land and time.

"This is elaborated in a chapter on epidemics known as janapada-uddhvansa in ancient classic medical texts. The daily lifestyle of a survivor includes cleaning the air, using clean water properly, cleansing the land, and becoming aware of time," Bhattacharya told IANS in an interview.

Alongside this pillar of lifestyle guidelines are a pillar of wisdom for food (ahara) and a pillar of medicines for epidemics.

According to Bhattacharya who is Fulbright Specialist in Public Health-Integrative Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College, Ayurveda does not focus on the virus.

"It focuses on the person, the host. Every seed that can grow will not grow in every soil. Ayurvedic wisdom says to empower the soil of the body so that the virus cannot take hold. This is pure personalised medicine at its best," she emphasised.

The Ministry of AYUSH in India has proposed to include Ayurveda solutions in the district level contingency plans being drawn up to contain Covid-19 in all districts across the country.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his recent address to the nation advised everyone in his 7-point appeal to follow the guidelines issued by the Ministry of AYUSH to help build immunity against the coronavirus pandemic.

Bhattacharya said that cleansing the air includes fumigation, the use of flames in homam, daily diyas, and any burning of herbs, especially those with anti-viral or poisonous properties.

"Burned ajwain is used in eye remedies and can be used in a dhoopana, along with neem, haldi, garlic and onion peels, and coconut husk. Opening doors and windows in the morning after rising brings in fresh air allows concentrated particles to leave," she said.

Known in vernacular languages as jutha, etho, ushta, enjalu, eccam, aintha and engili, among others, many Indians know rules of washing hands, feet and face at certain times of day and around certain activities.

"We know how to bathe before cooking, before eating, and after using the toilet. We know to not touch our faces while cooking or touching children and persons outside the household. We know to wash our hands after handshakes," Bhattacharya elaborated.

Keeping the land clean around our homes requires removal of inorganic waste, planting of trees, leaving water and food for birds, and consciously ensuring that the space breathes clean air regularly. Fumigation around the home precipitates the particles of germs that hover.

The awareness of time is developed by regular meditation, yoga and appreciation of quiet and calm.

"During pandemics, people who are not mentally resilient require extra assistance, breaking down with low thresholds for trauma and showing poor stress management," Bhattacharya told IANS.

Ayurveda also offers guidelines for food during epidemics, stressing that we should keep our guts clean.

We should eat simple foods, healthy foods, and foods that do not disrespect the environment.

According to her, gradually shifting toward eating vegetables, whole grains and pulses, and using less ingredients is advised. Adding raisins (draksha), coriander (dhanya) leaves, prunes, spinaches (saag), palak and dark green leafy vegetables to the diet helps the bowel push contents down and out.

To prevent illness, Ayurveda says to keep gut clean using foods.

"If you need extra help, try taking 1 tsp of triphala with hot water at night. If you need more help, contact an ayurvedic physician. You can take 1 tsp of dashmul powder with 1 tsp of psyllium husk with hot water at night. The main goal is to have large bowel movements daily and get the gut clean," she advised.

To keep the prana-vaha-srotas (ENT+respiratory system) clean, make a bitter kada/kara/kwatha.

Decoctions at sunrise and sunset are a ritual for cleaning the nasal passages by stimulating the bitter taste buds, which turns on the airway's immune machinery.

"Guduchi/giloy (Tinospora cordifolia) is the best plant for boosting immunity during this pandemic and is found in many forms," she said.

For more specific symptoms, such as lower airway breathing difficulty, middle airway asthma, or upper airway, special formulations such as Soma Asava, Yashi Churna, Agasthya Haritaki Rasayan, Pushkarmoola asava, Vasa Avaleha, and Chitraka Haritaki Avaleha exist.

According to her, Ayurveda is not a chemistry-based science.

"It includes ecology, geology, biology, botany, and many other modern sciences which are disconnected. Trusting Ayurveda as an overall approach is trusting that all sciences are deeply connected," said Bhattacharya who hold a Ph.D in Ayurveda from Banaras Hindu University and has been affiliated with Mount Sinai School of Medicine and Wyckoff Heights Medical Center.

Continued here:
Ayurveda armed to silently fight COVID-19: Indian researcher in US - Onmanorama