The volcanic eruptions thought responsible for Earth's largest mass extinction - which killed more than 70 percent of plants and animals 250 million years ago - is still taking lives today. That's the conclusion of a new study showing, for the first time, that the high silica content of coal in one region of China may be interacting with volatile substances in the coal to cause unusually high rates of lung cancer. The study, which helps solve this cancer mystery, appears in ACS' Environmental Science & Technology, a semi-monthly publication.
David Large and colleagues note that parts of China's Xuan Wei County in Yunnan Province have the world's highest incidence of lung cancer in nonsmoking women - 20 times higher than the rest of China. Women in the region heat their homes and cook on open coal-burning stoves that are not vented to the outside. Scientists believe that indoor emissions from burning coal cause cancer, but are unclear why the lung cancer rates in this region are so much higher than other areas. Earlier studies show a strong link between certain volatile substances, called PAHs, in coal smoke and lung cancer in the region.
The scientists found that coal used in parts of Xuan Wei County had about 10 times more silica, a suspected carcinogen, than U.S. coal. Silica may work in conjunction with PAHs to make the coal more carcinogenic, they indicate. The scientists also found that this high-silica coal was formed 250 million years ago, at a time when massive volcanic eruptions worked to deposit silica in the peat that formed Xuan Wei's coal.
Article: "Silica-Volatile Interaction and the Geological Cause of the Xuan Wei Lung Cancer Epidemic" pubs.acs/stoken/presspac/presspac/full/10.1021/es902033j
Source: Michael Bernstein
American Chemical Society
суббота, 3 марта 2012 г.
суббота, 25 февраля 2012 г.
California Gov. Schwarzenegger Vetoes Bill That Would Have Required Some Health Care Plans To Cover HPV Vaccination
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) on Sunday vetoed a bill (AB 1429) that would have required every individual or group health care plan that covers cervical cancer treatment also to provide coverage for human papillomavirus vaccination, the AP/Contra Costa Times reports (Young, AP/Contra Costa Times, 10/15). The California Legislature passed the bill last month.
The bill had stated that every health care plan that is issued, amended or renewed on or after Jan. 1, 2008, and that includes coverage for treatment or surgery of cervical cancer also must cover HPV vaccination in compliance with the recommendations of CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. Health plans also would have been required to cover a Pap test, an FDA-approved HPV screening test and an FDA-approved cervical cancer screening test. The measure would have exempted specialized health care service plans from the requirement (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 9/18).
Schwarzenegger in his veto message said, "While I support increased access to preventive services, I cannot support this bill as it may contribute to rising premiums. Further, a mandate is not necessary as [HPV vaccines are] already routinely provided by health plans and insurers" (Schwarzenegger release, 10/14).
The veto message is available online (.pdf).
Reprinted with kind permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation© 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
The bill had stated that every health care plan that is issued, amended or renewed on or after Jan. 1, 2008, and that includes coverage for treatment or surgery of cervical cancer also must cover HPV vaccination in compliance with the recommendations of CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. Health plans also would have been required to cover a Pap test, an FDA-approved HPV screening test and an FDA-approved cervical cancer screening test. The measure would have exempted specialized health care service plans from the requirement (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 9/18).
Schwarzenegger in his veto message said, "While I support increased access to preventive services, I cannot support this bill as it may contribute to rising premiums. Further, a mandate is not necessary as [HPV vaccines are] already routinely provided by health plans and insurers" (Schwarzenegger release, 10/14).
The veto message is available online (.pdf).
Reprinted with kind permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation© 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
суббота, 18 февраля 2012 г.
National Childbirth Trust, Save The Children, UNICEF Form Coalition To Urge U.K. To Ban Infant Formula Advertising
The National Childbirth Trust, Save the Children and UNICEF have formed a coalition to urge the United Kingdom to ban advertising for infant formula, Manchester reports (Manchester, 8/7). Companies are allowed to advertise formula for infants older than six months, but the U.K. Food Standards Agency is reviewing the policy on formula advertising (BBC News, 8/6).
The coalition in a report published Tuesday said that formula companies' advertising tactics are undermining parents who want to breast-feed, as well as confusing parents who are unsure whether to breast-feed or formula-feed their infants (Manchester, 8/7).
According to the coalition, companies are using formula advertisements for infants ages six months to two years to promote formula for younger infants by using the same name and logo on packaging, making the different formulas "virtually indistinguishable" to parents.
According to BBC News, about 76% of mothers in the United Kingdom begin breast-feeding when their infants are born, up from 7% in 2000. However, fewer than half of new mothers are breast-feeding when infants are age six weeks, and about 25% of mothers are breast-feeding when their infants are age six months. It is recommended that infants are breast-fed until they are six months old, BBC News reports.
The coalition is urging FSA to issue a ban, noting that new European Union recommendations say that information on infant formula "should not counter the promotion of breast-feeding." It is uncertain whether FSA will agree to the ban; however, some groups believe that under new restrictions, formula companies will not be permitted to claim that formula is similar to breastmilk.
The coalition in a report published Tuesday said that formula companies' advertising tactics are undermining parents who want to breast-feed, as well as confusing parents who are unsure whether to breast-feed or formula-feed their infants (Manchester, 8/7).
According to the coalition, companies are using formula advertisements for infants ages six months to two years to promote formula for younger infants by using the same name and logo on packaging, making the different formulas "virtually indistinguishable" to parents.
According to BBC News, about 76% of mothers in the United Kingdom begin breast-feeding when their infants are born, up from 7% in 2000. However, fewer than half of new mothers are breast-feeding when infants are age six weeks, and about 25% of mothers are breast-feeding when their infants are age six months. It is recommended that infants are breast-fed until they are six months old, BBC News reports.
The coalition is urging FSA to issue a ban, noting that new European Union recommendations say that information on infant formula "should not counter the promotion of breast-feeding." It is uncertain whether FSA will agree to the ban; however, some groups believe that under new restrictions, formula companies will not be permitted to claim that formula is similar to breastmilk.
Reaction
Ellie Lee, a researcher at the University of Kent who has examined the impact of formula advertising on women's decisions whether to breast-feed, said the advertising is "negligible," adding that the decision was a "pragmatic" one "based on personal circumstances." Belinda Phipps, executive director of NCT, said that formula companies "are finding ways to exploit ambiguity in the law and to continue aggressively marketing their products to parents" (BBC News, 8/6). Phipps added, "We need to close the loopholes, strengthen the law and protect both mothers that plan to breast-feed and those that formula-feed from this commercial tug-of-war for their money" (Manchester, 8/7).
The coalition's report is available online.
Reprinted with kind permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
суббота, 11 февраля 2012 г.
UNFPA Scales Up Efforts To Save Millions Of Women
A new thematic fund for maternal health has been created to boost global efforts to reduce the number of women dying in pregnancy and childbirth. The fund, established by UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, will also encourage developed countries and private sponsors to contribute more to saving women's lives.
Every minute a woman dies due to complications in pregnancy or childbirth, adding up to half a million women dying every year. Another 10-15 million women suffer serious or long-lasting illnesses or disabilities.
"No woman should die giving life," said UNFPA Executive Director Thoraya Ahmed Obaid. "To have a healthy society, you have to have healthy mothers."
In many countries, however, progress in maternal health has been slow. In some, the situation has actually deteriorated over the last 20 years. The reason is insufficient political will and inadequate resources, as women's health is often pushed off the agenda in favour of other priorities.
"It is critical to invest in women if we are to achieve the Millennium Development Goals," said Ms. Obaid. "We urge countries to dedicate more resources to improving national health systems, training skilled birth attendants and promoting family planning. Millions of deaths and disabilities could be prevented, if every woman had access to reproductive health services."
Improving maternal health and reducing maternal deaths are at the heart of Millennium Development Goal number 5.
The thematic fund, which UNFPA has established in partnership with governments, United Nations organizations and other international partners, will help countries increase their access and use of quality maternal health services that would reduce maternal deaths and disabilities. It will also increase the capacity of health systems to provide a broad range of quality maternal health services, strengthen mechanisms to reduce health inequities, and empower women to exercise their right to maternal health.
The thematic fund will focus on supporting 75 countries with the greatest need. The goal is to raise $465 million during 2008-2011.
UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is an international development agency that promotes the right of every woman, man and child to enjoy a life of health and equal opportunity. UNFPA supports countries in using population data for policies and programmes to reduce poverty and to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person is free of HIV/AIDS, and every girl and woman is treated with dignity and respect.
unfpa
Every minute a woman dies due to complications in pregnancy or childbirth, adding up to half a million women dying every year. Another 10-15 million women suffer serious or long-lasting illnesses or disabilities.
"No woman should die giving life," said UNFPA Executive Director Thoraya Ahmed Obaid. "To have a healthy society, you have to have healthy mothers."
In many countries, however, progress in maternal health has been slow. In some, the situation has actually deteriorated over the last 20 years. The reason is insufficient political will and inadequate resources, as women's health is often pushed off the agenda in favour of other priorities.
"It is critical to invest in women if we are to achieve the Millennium Development Goals," said Ms. Obaid. "We urge countries to dedicate more resources to improving national health systems, training skilled birth attendants and promoting family planning. Millions of deaths and disabilities could be prevented, if every woman had access to reproductive health services."
Improving maternal health and reducing maternal deaths are at the heart of Millennium Development Goal number 5.
The thematic fund, which UNFPA has established in partnership with governments, United Nations organizations and other international partners, will help countries increase their access and use of quality maternal health services that would reduce maternal deaths and disabilities. It will also increase the capacity of health systems to provide a broad range of quality maternal health services, strengthen mechanisms to reduce health inequities, and empower women to exercise their right to maternal health.
The thematic fund will focus on supporting 75 countries with the greatest need. The goal is to raise $465 million during 2008-2011.
UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is an international development agency that promotes the right of every woman, man and child to enjoy a life of health and equal opportunity. UNFPA supports countries in using population data for policies and programmes to reduce poverty and to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person is free of HIV/AIDS, and every girl and woman is treated with dignity and respect.
unfpa
суббота, 4 февраля 2012 г.
Australian House Approves Law Allowing Some Forms Of Therapeutic Cloning
The Australian House on Wednesday voted 82-62 to approve a bill that legalizes some forms of cloning of human embryos for stem cell research, the AP/Houston Chronicle reports (McGuirk, AP/Houston Chronicle, 12/6). The Australian Senate in November passed the legislation by a 34-32 vote (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 11/22). Parliament in 2002 approved a law that allows unused embryos from in vitro fertilization treatments to be used for stem cell research but prohibited all types of cloning (AP/Houston Chronicle, 12/6). The new law allows embryonic stem cells to be cloned for research use but bans importing or exporting cloned embryos, Reuters reports. In addition, the law maintains the ban that prohibits placing cloned embryos into a human body or the body of an animal (Grubel, Reuters, 12/6). Prime Minister John Howard and Kevin Rudd, leader of the opposition Labor party, opposed the measure, but members of Parliament were allowed a "conscience vote" on the legislation, meaning members did not have to vote the party's stance, AFP/Khaleej Times reports (AFP/Khaleej Times, 12/6). "I don't think the science has shifted enough to warrant the Parliament changing its view," Howard on Wednesday said, adding, "I think we do live in an age where we have slid too far into relativism, and there must be some absolutes in our society" (Reuters, 12/6). The bill "will enable Australia to stay at the forefront of medical research," Sen. Kay Patterson, a former health minister who drafted the measure, said, adding, "I didn't see how we could accept any treatment derived from this in the future if we didn't allow the research here in Australia." The law will take effect in six months after health and science officials draft guidelines for stem cell research licensing and egg donations, according to Patterson (AP/Houston Chronicle, 12/6).
"Reprinted with permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
"Reprinted with permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
суббота, 28 января 2012 г.
Unique genetic profile helps over-45s get pregnant
Women who have a special genetic profile can conceive spontaneously after the age of 45 years, a scientist said at the 21st annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology today (Tuesday 21 June 2005). Dr. Neri Laufer, from the Haddassah University Hospital, Jerusalem, Israel, told the conference that his team's work to identify a specific gene expression profile linked to later fertility would help understanding of the ageing process, as well as enabling the development of better treatments for infertility in older patients.
Dr. Laufer and colleagues studied a large group of 250 women over 45 who conceived spontaneously. Women are generally not fertile after this age due to ageing of the ovaries, so the scientists thought that there might be some special factor that was allowing these women to conceive. "Mostly they had had a large number of children and also a low miscarriage rate", he said "and these two factors indicated to us that they had a natural ability to escape the ageing process of the ovaries. We decided to see if we could find any differences in gene expression between 8 such women and another 6 women of the same age group who had finished their families at the age of 30."
Using gene chip technology, the scientists found that blood samples from the 8 women had a unique pattern of gene expression that did not exist in the control group. The two main groups of genes expressed in these women were involved in apoptosis (cell death) and in DNA repair mechanisms. "These women appear to differ from the normal population due to a unique genetic predisposition that protects them from the DNA damage and cellular ageing that helps age the ovary", said Dr. Laufer. "What we do not yet know is whether this reproductive success is linked with potential longevity." The women were all Ashkenazi Jews but Dr. Laufer's team does not believe that the gene profile is unique to this group. "We already have preliminary results demonstrating similar results from another group", he said. The team intends to study women from different ethnic, and hence genetic, groups and study their genetic fingerprints against those of the first group.
Identifying women with these genetic fingerprints will enable doctors to know which women are still fertile at an advanced age and may determine the counselling they require, said Dr.Laufer. "However, the question of motherhood over the age of 45 is a delicate and complex one. It is very dependent on the religious and cultural background of the women in question. Our first study group came from an ultra-religious sector which encourages natural conception and discourages contraceptive use. These women would in any event continue to challenge their reproductive system until menopause. But for other groups the ethical implications may be different and counselling on all the aspects of late motherhood will play an important part in determining what is best for the individual woman."
Contact: Mary Rice
marymrcommunication
European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology
Dr. Laufer and colleagues studied a large group of 250 women over 45 who conceived spontaneously. Women are generally not fertile after this age due to ageing of the ovaries, so the scientists thought that there might be some special factor that was allowing these women to conceive. "Mostly they had had a large number of children and also a low miscarriage rate", he said "and these two factors indicated to us that they had a natural ability to escape the ageing process of the ovaries. We decided to see if we could find any differences in gene expression between 8 such women and another 6 women of the same age group who had finished their families at the age of 30."
Using gene chip technology, the scientists found that blood samples from the 8 women had a unique pattern of gene expression that did not exist in the control group. The two main groups of genes expressed in these women were involved in apoptosis (cell death) and in DNA repair mechanisms. "These women appear to differ from the normal population due to a unique genetic predisposition that protects them from the DNA damage and cellular ageing that helps age the ovary", said Dr. Laufer. "What we do not yet know is whether this reproductive success is linked with potential longevity." The women were all Ashkenazi Jews but Dr. Laufer's team does not believe that the gene profile is unique to this group. "We already have preliminary results demonstrating similar results from another group", he said. The team intends to study women from different ethnic, and hence genetic, groups and study their genetic fingerprints against those of the first group.
Identifying women with these genetic fingerprints will enable doctors to know which women are still fertile at an advanced age and may determine the counselling they require, said Dr.Laufer. "However, the question of motherhood over the age of 45 is a delicate and complex one. It is very dependent on the religious and cultural background of the women in question. Our first study group came from an ultra-religious sector which encourages natural conception and discourages contraceptive use. These women would in any event continue to challenge their reproductive system until menopause. But for other groups the ethical implications may be different and counselling on all the aspects of late motherhood will play an important part in determining what is best for the individual woman."
Contact: Mary Rice
marymrcommunication
European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology
суббота, 21 января 2012 г.
Study Offers Hope For Women With ER-Negative Breast Cancer
Women who have estrogen (ER)-negative breast cancer may have more drug-treatment options than previously thought, a Creighton (pronounced Cray-ton) University study suggests. The study is reported in the Oct. 11 online version of the journal Oncogene.
"The prevailing thought is that estrogen signaling is not involved in the development or progression of ER-negative breast cancer and, as a result, hormonal treatments that may follow surgery or radiation are not an effective option for this type of cancer. However, our study suggests that estrogen-signaling is involved, and novel hormonal treatments may help a number of women with ER-negative cancer," said Zhao-Yi "Charlie" Wang, Ph.D., the articles's principal author.
Wang, a professor of cancer research in the Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology and the Department of Pathology at Creighton University School of Medicine, described the findings as very promising. He added that more research is needed.
"About 25-30 percent of all breast cancers are ER-negative," he noted. "ER-negative breast cancers, especially triple-negative ones, are usually very aggressive; young African American women are at particular risk. This is potentially very promising news for these women."
For the study, researchers looked at specimens from 12 human cases of triple-negative breast cancer, known as such because this form of ER-negative cancer lacks estrogen and progesterone receptors and does not express the protein HER2 (human epidermal growth factor receptor 2).
Of the 12 cases, ER-a36, a novel estrogen receptor variant that Wang's laboratory identified and cloned in 2006 (U.S. Patent No. 7,745,230), was highly expressed in 10.
The researchers then investigated the mechanism by which non-genomic estrogen signaling, brought about by ER-a36, contributes to the malignant growth of triple-negative breast cancer cells. Their findings indicate that ER-a36 may play an important role as a diagnostic and prognostic marker to assist in the individualization of breast cancer therapy as well as in the development of new therapeutic approaches.
In addition to Wang, Zoran Gatalic, M.D., Creighton professor of pathology; Semir Vranic, M.D., a former Creighton research fellow; and Ling Ding, M.D., of Zhejiang University School of Medicine in China, were among the co-authors of the article.
The research was supported by the National Institutes of Health and the Nebraska Tobacco Settlement Biomedical Research Program (LB-595 and LB-692).
Source: Creighton University
"The prevailing thought is that estrogen signaling is not involved in the development or progression of ER-negative breast cancer and, as a result, hormonal treatments that may follow surgery or radiation are not an effective option for this type of cancer. However, our study suggests that estrogen-signaling is involved, and novel hormonal treatments may help a number of women with ER-negative cancer," said Zhao-Yi "Charlie" Wang, Ph.D., the articles's principal author.
Wang, a professor of cancer research in the Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology and the Department of Pathology at Creighton University School of Medicine, described the findings as very promising. He added that more research is needed.
"About 25-30 percent of all breast cancers are ER-negative," he noted. "ER-negative breast cancers, especially triple-negative ones, are usually very aggressive; young African American women are at particular risk. This is potentially very promising news for these women."
For the study, researchers looked at specimens from 12 human cases of triple-negative breast cancer, known as such because this form of ER-negative cancer lacks estrogen and progesterone receptors and does not express the protein HER2 (human epidermal growth factor receptor 2).
Of the 12 cases, ER-a36, a novel estrogen receptor variant that Wang's laboratory identified and cloned in 2006 (U.S. Patent No. 7,745,230), was highly expressed in 10.
The researchers then investigated the mechanism by which non-genomic estrogen signaling, brought about by ER-a36, contributes to the malignant growth of triple-negative breast cancer cells. Their findings indicate that ER-a36 may play an important role as a diagnostic and prognostic marker to assist in the individualization of breast cancer therapy as well as in the development of new therapeutic approaches.
In addition to Wang, Zoran Gatalic, M.D., Creighton professor of pathology; Semir Vranic, M.D., a former Creighton research fellow; and Ling Ding, M.D., of Zhejiang University School of Medicine in China, were among the co-authors of the article.
The research was supported by the National Institutes of Health and the Nebraska Tobacco Settlement Biomedical Research Program (LB-595 and LB-692).
Source: Creighton University
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