STATES CHRONICLE – To most people, polio is something long-eradicated. However, a threat still lies in the remains of the virus, and now scientists have come up with a way to help neutralize it. At the John Innes Center in England, scientists are using plants in the latest of a string of experiments. Their results, while bizarre, are most promising and might prove useful for more than just polio.

 

Traditional Vaccines And the New Polio Vaccine

 

While polio has been eradicated up to 99%, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are still traces of the virus on Earth. To combat possible resurgences of the disease, there needs to be an adequate supply of vaccine kept in stock. Unfortunately, creating the vaccine requires large amounts of the active virus to be held and concentrated into a dormant vaccine. This is expensive and risks a possible escape.

Using a cousin of the tobacco plant, biologists at John Innes introduced viral DNA to the bacteria living in the plant’s soil. The bacteria would then infect the plant and transfer the DNA. Cells in the plant read the genetic material and produced empty “mannequin” copies of the polio virus in its leaves. These leaves were then blended with water to create a liquid solution from which the vaccine material could be extracted. Thus, it opened doors for an effective and cost-efficient new polio vaccine, according to the study team to develop it.

Professor George Lomonossoff of the team at John Innes called the discovery an “incredible” collaboration between animal virology and structural biology. “The question for us now is how to scale it up,” he said.

Since the process works well in making a new polio vaccine, experts predict it may work just as well with all kinds of other viruses, including current threats like Zika.

With such an expensive and risky process involved with making most vaccines today, these new “plant factories” could change the course of Immunology. Scientists are already using plants for several of their health benefits. Now, this latest research may be a major stepping stone in fighting infectious diseases.

Current study results are available in the journal Nature Communications. 

Image Source: Pixabay 

STATES CHRONICLE – The differences between males and females physically can’t be denied. Now, scientists are finding gender-based brain differences are just as evident.

Generalizations, like the notion that women over-think things can be met with opposition today, but there’s emerging evidence that gives this stereotype validity. Scientists discovered through the largest imaging survey ever conducted that the brain differences of women show more activity than those of men.

Brain Differences in Between Genders, Useful in Studying Disease Patterns?

A significant difference lies in women’s increased activity in the cerebral cortex, where most focus and impulse control originates. More activity was also shown in areas that control anxiety and emotion, while men demonstrated higher activity levels in visual and coordination parts of the brain.

The lead author of the study, Amen Clinics founder Daniel Amen, put together a team of researchers that examined around 35,000 brains. Specifically, the scientists looked at the brain scans of 119 healthy volunteers and compared them with 26,683 patients. These exhibited a variety of psychiatric conditions, including ADHD and bipolar disorder.

To determine a basis for where the brain is active while doing concentration tasks, the study examined 128 brain regions. Amen and his team observed the test subjects doing cognitive tasks while 46,034 tests were measured with SPECT or the single photon emission computed tomography. This helped determine the amount of blood flow to the brain.

The results showed striking differences in gender-based brain differences. Males had a higher propensity for problems in conduct and ADHD. In contrast, females showed higher rates of anxiety disorders and depression, which is a warning sign for Alzheimer’s. Presently, women were noted to be more likely to develop this disease.

“The results of the study could lead to a better understanding of Alzheimer’s and of our partners in general,” according to George Perry, editor in chief of the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, in which the research paper was published.

The study may prove to be quite useful in understanding differences in gender regarding other psychological disorders, according to its team.

Image Source: Pixabay 

STATES CHRONICLE – We can’t help loving all puppies and wishing they get all pampered and spoiled by their mothers. However, this is not a good behavior if they are going to train to become guide dogs. Research showed puppies grow up to be better at guiding the blind if they are exposed to ‘tough love’ from their mothers.

Puppies’ relationship with their mother is crucial

If you get to experience more tough situations when you are younger, you naturally grow up better at handling difficult situations. It seems the situation stays the same for puppies. If they are training to become guide dogs, they are more likely to succeed if their mothers hadn’t pampered them.

For the study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers analyzed the behavior of several pups which underwent training to become seeing eye dogs at a special facility located in New Jersey, called The Seeing Eye.

They closely observed 23 dog mothers and 98 puppies by monitoring them both on video and in real life for the first five weeks of their life. Then, they noticed how those pups which their mothers allowed to learn new things on their own grew into great guide dogs.

Tougher dog-moms give birth to better guide dog candidates

On the other hand, those which were much too pampered by their mothers became anxious and easily scared by new things. This didn’t allow them to complete the tough training they had to undergo to become liable to lead the blind.

Among the things they looked at, there was the position in which the mother nursed the pups, how often she groomed them, and how much time she spent with or away from them. Nursing while standing is a key point to help puppies become tough, as they have to struggle more to get to the milk.

Therefore, we shouldn’t feel bad for those puppies who are not as pampered as we want them to be. This will help them grow up brave and become good guide dogs, helping those in need live a life as close to normal as possible.
Image Source: Pixabay

STATES CHRONICLE – You most probably how relaxing yoga can get, and how much it can do both for your body and for your mind. New studies suggest this activity can be much better than we would have thought, as it could have the ability to ease the symptoms of depression. However, this research is only preliminary at the moment.

Does yoga help people with depression?

On Thursday, the American Psychology Association (APA) held its annual meeting in Washington D.C. Among many topics they discussed, they also looked at the link between yoga and depression, and how much the former can help with the latter.

They developed a study which look at the benefic effects of this practice on people suffering from depression. However, their results haven’t been published in a journal yet. Until then, they can only be regarded as preliminary.

Therefore, researchers recommend yoga to people suffering from depression, but only accompanied by other approved methods of therapy. It should be more effective if it is combined with standard treatments as given by a doctor or therapist.

It should always be accompanied by proper therapy methods

Yoga is not a magical method which cures everything, so people should not suddenly stop taking other kinds of treatment in favor of this one. However, researchers managed to collect enough empirical evidence that it helps people with this condition.

The study in question was led by psychologist Lindsey Hopkins from the San Francisco VA Clinical Center. She had 23 male veterans take part in classes of hatha yoga two times a week for a period of eight weeks. This combines exercise with meditation and deep breathing. When the testing period was over, those patients with high levels of depression had had significantly improved their condition.

Therefore, yoga can be a healthy ‘supplement’ and help people deal with depression. If accompanied by proper therapy, this sport can be a perfect solution to ease symptoms and improve the people’s condition.
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STATES CHRONICLE – A team of researchers made a huge discovery which might influence the way we looked at obesity. They suggest the brain might be to blame in the case of obese people, as they have discovered two new sets of brain cells which control our appetite. If they can command us when to be hungry or not, we might be able to find a treatment to combat obesity.

Options for a treatment to control hunger signals

Knowing where hunger comes from is vital if you want to control it, making the development of any kind of drugs much easier. Therefore, scientists think they can develop a treatment which can control our appetite, and turn it off when needed. They could prevent us from getting food when we no longer need it by controlling the hunger signals issued by these cells.

The cells in question are placed in an area of the brain called the dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN). Researchers performed brain scans on mice and looked at how the cells in the DRN react. This is how they observed the cells activated when the mice felt hungry. Also, when they received more food than they needed, these neurons in DRN influenced the feeding behavior.

Do these cells actually influence hunger?

The next step in the research is to find out which neurons present in the DRN control hunger. Other tests might help them find an answer, as they could make other observations. When the mice got full, certain neurons released a substance called glutamate. On the other hand, when they were hungry, neurons released a different chemical, namely GABA.

This discovery offers two alternatives. Either these cells just get triggered by this hunger process and play no role whatsoever, or they influence all this mechanism. Judging from the observations made so far, they might have a role in the entire process, but scientists need more research to find the answer.
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The role of e-cigarettes in quitting smoking has been debated for quite a long time, and a new study brings evidence in favor of one of the theories. Scientists recommend that doctors should include electronic cigarettes in plans for tobacco control, as those who use this method are more likely to succeed in quitting smoking than non-users.

Big sample of participants to answer on e-cigarette use

A new study discovered that people who used electronic cigarettes were more eager to attempt to quit smoking, and more likely to succeed. On the other hand, non-users were less successful. They came up to this conclusion after analyzing data from one of the biggest samples of e-cigarette users.

The study looked at data collected from more than 161,000 participants between 2014 and 2015. They had to answer a survey related to tobacco, included in a population survey conducted by the American Census Bureau. Researchers used the responses of those participants who were still smokers 12 months before taking part to the survey.

Electronic cigarettes are more likely to help you quit smoking

This is how they discovered those people who had been using electronic cigarettes had a 65 percent rate of attempting to quit. Those who didn’t use such a method had only a 38 percent rate of attempting to quit. Also, those who smoked e-cigarettes had a higher success rate, of 8 percent, as compared to only 5 percent among non-electronic cigarette users.

Also, people attempted and succeeded quitting more often in the study period than before. Between 2014 and 2015, the quitting rate was of 5.6 percent, while between 2010 and 2011 it was of 4.5 percent. Given the high number of respondents, researchers concluded that using electronic cigarettes really helps one quit smoking.

The results are quite interesting, since the same rate was predicted for users of special medication to help them quit. However, evidence showed these methods were not effective, as the actual quitting rate was much smaller.
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STATES CHRONICLE – A woman from Portland, Oregon, managed to spark outrage all over the internet after she posted an unusual photo of her breastfeeding her newborn baby. Nothing sounds exaggerated so far, but the woman wasn’t only doing what all mothers do. While breastfeeding, she was also smoking marijuana from a bong.

The breastfeeding bong photo sparked a lot of controversy

Kayla Marlow, like any other mother on Facebook, decided to post a picture of her while breastfeeding her baby. However, the picture doesn’t only show the woman and her newborn, as a friend of hers was also present. This friend, instead of just being around, was helping Marlow take a hit from a bong. This is not something you see every day, so there arose plenty of reactions afterwards.

The woman posted the picture in a Facebook group called CannaParentingSupport.V.420. Members of the group showed unexpected support, but other users thought otherwise. The photo went viral pretty quickly, and everybody started sharing their unwanted opinion on the woman’s parenting methods.

As expected, people started blaming her for being a bad mother, and condemned her from smoking from the bong with her baby around. Of course, harsh words were present, as people didn’t hesitate to call her names and being offensive.

There’s no evidence that marijuana is bad for infants

Is smoking marijuana while breastfeeding actually bad for the baby? Most doctors advise mothers not to do it, but there is no solid proof that this habit harms babies. This is understandable, since marijuana doesn’t have any adverse effects. Also, the quantity of THC consumed by the mothers is most surely not enough to become harmful for the babies.

What could be a problem for babies would be the smoke, as their lungs are too small and fragile to handle it. Therefore, if mothers insist on consuming cannabis products while breastfeeding, they should opt for edibles and avoid getting smoke in the baby’s lungs.
Image Source: Flickr

STATES CHRONICLE – A driver was pulled over by the Washington State police after he engaged in a hit-and-run collision. He had to perform several blood tests, which showed he had 54 times the legal THC limit in his blood. This makes him the man who had smoked the most cannabis before going for a drive for the past eight years.

The man had a huge amount of THC in his blood

On May 20^th, a man aged 53 engaged in a hit-and-run collision around Interstate 5 and 176^th Street in King-Snohomish County, Washington. Several witnesses saw his illicit behavior in traffic and reported it to the police. Twenty minutes later, they stopped him near the county line, and took blood samples for tests.

The results of these tests left everybody amazed. They found 270 nanograms of THC per one milliliter of blood. This is a lot, since the legal limit allowed for drivers older than 21 is of only 5 nanograms of THC per one milliliter of blood. Therefore, the man had exceeded the legal limit 54 times.

Many fatal accidents are caused by driver who smoked before driving

This is not something policemen see every day. For instance, the average quantity of THC found in blood last year was of 3.7 nanograms. The man had the highest quantity of drug found since 2009, putting both his and other people’s life in danger. In 2015, 499 fatal car collisions took place in the state, and 91 of them were caused by drivers who had consumed marijuana before driving.

Policemen could not tell how much marijuana the man had actually smoked, since THC does not build up so easily in blood. It is hard to detect between 3 and 5 hours after it has been consumed. Also, even in the case of chronic users it’s hard for it to make up more than 2 nanograms per milliliter.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons

STATES CHRONICLE – A recent study discovered a new way to detect the onset of dementia, Alzheimer’s, or other diseases leading to cognitive decline. It seems that we have to look at a person’s speech patterns. Becoming less fluent is the first sign, as it appears before memory loss.

Slower speech might be a sign of cognitive decline

This is the first study which links any kind of speech modification with cognitive problems. Any kind of changes in fluency, including especially pauses during speech, show a mildly slower thinking capacity, as well as small issues with memory. These are, actually, the first signs of dementia. What this means is the fact that we could monitor a person’s speech and detect the early signs of cognitive decline.

Older people shouldn’t worry if, one time, they found it harder to find their words. However, if this phenomenon happens often during a shorter period of time, it’s a sign there is a problem. Also, people might find it harder to speak as time passes, and their communication skills are seriously affected.

The study was performed by scientists from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. They monitored the speech capabilities of 400 people who had no signs of cognitive decline, as well as 264 people who were already in the records of Wisconsin’s Registry for Alzheimer’s Prevention. These people were at high risk due to their history of the disease in their families.

Don’t neglect any changes in your speech fluency

Those who already showed small signs of cognitive decline had it a little harder in performing the tests. They were asked to describe images, and used significantly shorter sentences, used more pronouns instead of names, and made frequent pauses followed by “um” or “ah”.

Small signs of cognitive decline are natural after a certain age and, as the study showed, only 15 or 20 percent of these people end up developing Alzheimer’s. However, you shouldn’t neglect any kind of speech changes you might experience, especially if they start slowing down your communication abilities.
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STATES CHRONICLE – If you are trying to lose weight, it might be better to avoid artificial sweeteners. These substances are not only ineffective when it comes to weight loss, but they might also lead to the development of heart disease or other metabolic problems, such as obesity.

Do artificial sweeteners help us lose weight?

A recent study analyzed artificial sweeteners and discovered they might not be a sensible choice to replace sugar. Substances like stevia, sucralose, or aspartame might increase one’s risk of becoming obese over the years.

This is quite the opposite of their intended use, since artificial sweeteners have been developed to combat obesity. They are found in diet drinks or other similar products which people consume when they are trying to lower their sugar consumption and lose weight.

There are more studies on the effects of these chemicals on health, but their results are not consistent. Some of them show a connection between these substances and a higher appetite, but there’s still not enough evidence supporting this hypothesis. Therefore, researchers developed this new study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

Consuming such chemicals increases the obesity risk

This study is more extensive, as it put together data from 37 other studies. These contain around 10 years’ worth of information collected from over 400,000 participants. This is how they discovered the link between artificial sweeteners and an increase in waist circumference and weight.

Also, these chemicals led to more cardiovascular events or problems related to obesity. What researchers couldn’t observe were the deserved effects of artificial sweeteners, namely weight loss or the absence of metabolic problems.

Therefore, researchers warn everybody that artificial sweeteners are not what they seem, and they might lead to the apparition of certain health problems rather than their disappearance. People should avoid consuming the substances and opt for other methods to lose weight.
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