‘Safe in 30 seconds’ , as new test detects major ‘date rape drug’ in your glass itself

Chemists at the National University of Singapore have developed a unique test to detect one of the major ‘date rape drugs’ , Gamma Hydroxy Butyric acid (GHB) in any beverage. Date rape drugs , also called predator drugs are sedatives which cause loss of consciousness and possibly amnesia , used widely for recreational and criminal purposes.Earlier tests involved chromatographic separation and subsequent testing, which required some bit of geeky apparatus and minimum 10 minutes, both of which are obviously the last things you have sitting in a club with a spiked drink in your hand. In this test, the ‘sensor’ when added to the drink makes GHB change its color to orange.

The team , from 17 fluorescent compounds , finalized what they call ‘GHB Orange’ , after testing all of them with drinks laced with various concentrations of GHB. The efficiency of ‘GHB Orange’ was determined by mixing with samples of various beverages , alcoholic, non alcoholic, colorless and colored ,containing GHB , which were differentiated from non spiked drinks by adding the sensor.
For transparent or translucent drinks, the difference was easy to make out with the naked eye, but in case of colored drinks , additional light was required to detect the color change.

The team is hoping to develop a commercial kit based on this tech, which is one which all clubbers really should be looking out for , keeping your safety in mind…

 

Source : DailyMail

The Little Engines That Could

Stem cells can redevelop into multiple cell types in the body. They can also be used as a repair system inside the body for tissues and can replenish other cells already present. When stem cells divide, each cell that comes from the division can remain a stem cell or transform into another cell type with a new function—such as transforming into a red blood cell or brain cell. For a cell to be considered a stem cell it must contain two unique properties:
 1) it must be able to renew itself through cell division—even after long periods of inactivity;
 2) under certain conditions it must be able to transform into multiple cell types, such as bone marrow, tissues or organs.
Scientists have historically worked with two types of stem cells: embryonic and somatic (non-embryonic). Stem cells carry unique regenerative properties and have a high potential for curing disease. While the research is ongoing, researchers are much closer to using stem cell therapies to treat patients.

About the Author - Written by Dr. Joseph Purita, founder of The Institute of Regenerative and Molecular Orthopedics and a pioneer in the use of the laser in orthopedic surgery.

Take care of your veggies' schedule, their nutrients are very punctual!

Ever felt the guilt of plucking a fruit from a tree, or while eating one bought from the market, thinking how it must have hurt the plant as it got separated from the fruit? Jokes apart, this is one new finding that will give weight to non vegetarians , who are constantly under seige of the 'vegy boys' for killing animals and all that. Guess what? It is found that fruits and vegetables plucked from the plants are actually 'alive', in a sense at least, even later on. That is untill you eat 'em!!! *May God forgiveth thou*

Well not actually alive and kicking or anything, it just means that the fruits show the same biological response to day and night post plucking, as they would while clinging on to their plant parts. According to Janet Braam from Rice University, the fruits were found to indulge in changes in physiology due to their circadian rythm even after being harvested. A phenomenon initially found in cabbage, it was later found in lettuce, spinach, sweet potatoes, carrots and blueberries.

So the consequence is that fruits and vegies subjected to light and dark end up staying fresh for long, with more nutrients available at certain time of the day. What purpose could it have for the plants? Not for being eaten and for the 'greater good' of humanity of course. It's found that fruits under normal circadian rhythm after breaking off show changes in physiology which prevents them from being eaten by insects (check this out, even plants hate bugs!!)

So the consequence is that one is advised to not keep fruits and vegetables in dark cupboards, or even in fridges, and subject them to normal day and night patterns, in an innovative way of course to prevent over ripening. Another aspect to be taken care of is the time of harvesting them, which is decided based on when there is max concentration of nutrients, freezing them at that time to preserve the ultra beneficial phytochemicals. So next time you pop a fruit in your mouth (like I am doing with Litchis ), remember that you need to think of the fruit's time table as well.

Intel 'inside' (literally) your body -microchip detects 50 diseases accurately

Processor and microchip giant Intel is taking its motto 'Intel inside' quite seriously, to the effect that it is currently researching and developing a microchip that is placed inside the body, and detects accurately more than 50 diseases. In collaboration with Stanford University School of Medicine, Intel's Biosystem's group, headed by Dr. Madhu Verma, is developing a microchip, the types used in computers, which analyzes various disease related proteins and peptide chains present in the blood, to diagnose diseases.

The chip is embedded inside the arm, and in contact with blood, it analyzes the peptides , with its surface itself covered with around 9000 peptides, and the data is then fed into a computer, along with gauging the related possible symptoms. These peptides were embedded on the silicon chip the same way as normal chips are done with, using photo-lithography technique.

Before joining hands with Intel, Stanford researchers were trying glass to stick peptides on and do the detection process, after which Intel came in. Earlier skeptical on its success, it soon turned out much better than the earlier one, with silicon having advantage over glass being relatively non sticky towards other peptides, as well as providing way to embed peptides more closely, and thus save more space. Use of microchips always gives a chance of improvement in the detection system.“If we couple these Intel arrays with an electronic detection method, for example, we could have real-time sensing over a period of minutes,” said Dr.P.J. Ultz, Associate Professor at Stanford.

In the research program, it was tested on the disease Lupus , which is a highly variant auto immune disorder. Leaving the technicality aside, with the help of the chip using various amino acid sequence combinations, they found out the sequence that antibodies look for, as well as the modifications to find out specific binding sites.
This will make way for better targeted drugs, by manipulating and seeing results accurately at the amino acid where required. Researchers are now looking to use this to design better influenza vaccines with better immune response.

Research is being done so as to embedded an Integrated Circuit inside the chip, so as to make it function as a mini computer itself, and conclude while present inside. Also it is being tried to make it connect to a smartphone or any other computing device wirelessly. Although clinical trials will take another 2 years to complete, but its success could pave way to better and early diagnosis, even in the field, ensuring better chance of treatment for patients.

Source : Stanford Medical University

'Like cures like' principle could treat AIDS!

It's just a start currently, and far from the clinical trials stage itself, a scientist at Australia's Queensland Institute of Medical Research has created a protein , modifying one from the HIV virus, that inhibits the replication of the virus itself!. The original HIV 1 Tac protein has been transformed into what is called ' Nullbasic', by Dr David Harrich led team , which successfully inhibited the virus in lab. That would mean no indefinite antiretroviral drug regime fr HIV +ve patient, saving them from suffering from AIDS. Animal trials are scheduled for later this year.

“This is like fighting fire with fire,” Associate Professor Harrich said. “If this research continues down its strong path, and bear in mind there are a many hurdles to clear, we’re looking at a cure for AIDS.”
A paper of this research was published in the journal Human Gene Therapy, and can be accessed online for free

Restoring hearing in mammals by regenerating auditory hair cells

To give some technical info, auditory cells are located in cochlea in the inner ear, and translate auditory wave disturbances into nerve signals , sending them to the brain to be interpreted. And they are pretty fragile, and their destruction due to loud noise, or maybe some toxins, cancer, is irreparable, causing the most common form of hearing loss- the sensorineural hearing loss, untill now, with researchers at Massachusetts Eye and Ear and Harvard Medical School have found a drug which has the ability to stimulate the regeneration of these hair cells, from stem cells.

The drug inhibits a protein called "Notch", which stimulates the stem cells to form new hair cells, causing partial hearing recovery, as done in mice. The researchers are excited to have made it possible for the first time in adults, paving way for better treatment for permanent deafness in the future

Their article has been published in Neuron . Watch the video for more information.


Source: Massachusetts Eye and Ear

Harmful effects of cosmic rays on brain researched

Future manned deep space missions would expose astronauts to levels of radiation that can accelerate the onset of Alzheimer's disease (Image: NASA, JAXA)

Unlike the later on discarded "space madness" problem , studies now have shown that the cosmic rays to which astronauts will be exposed during future manned missions could cause cognitive problems and  even hasten the onset of Alzheimer's Disease. This is an addition to the already large list of possible effects of cosmic rays, along with cancer risk, impact on cardiovascular and skeletomuscular system, which have been found in the research funded by NASA since the last 25 years in this field.

A team from the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, led by M. Kerry O’Banion, M.D., Ph.D., which has been working with NASA for over eight years, focused on the impact of high-mass, high-charged (HZE) particles. Unlike hydrogen protons that are produced by solar flares and which astronauts can take precautions against with appropriate warning, HZE particles are propelled through space at very high speeds from the force of exploding stars. They come in various forms, including iron particles, which is the one the researchers chose to examine.
“Because iron particles pack a bigger wallop it is extremely difficult from an engineering perspective to effectively shield against them,” said O’Banion. “One would have to essentially wrap a spacecraft in a six-foot block of lead or concrete.”

As a part of the research, mice were exposed to various levels of various radiations, and then tested for various cognitive faculties, in which many irradiated ones failed.The brains of the mice also showed signs of vascular alterations and a greater than normal accumulation of the protein “plaque” beta amyloid, the accumulation of which is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease.“These findings clearly suggest that exposure to radiation in space has the potential to accelerate the development of Alzheimer’s disease,” said O’Banion. “This is yet another factor that NASA, which is clearly concerned about the health risks to its astronauts, will need to take into account as it plans future missions.”

This  sure is a concern for NASA , who are planning for a manned mission to mars in 2025, and will have to start thinking of ways to prevent from this soon, soon enough for its efficacy to be verified as well in time.
The team’s study appears in the journal PLOS ONE.
Source: University of Rochester Medical Center, Gizmag

Targeted drug treatment for malaria with NanoMal's handheld blood analyzer

Anopheles mosquito after taking a snack (Photo: US Center for Disease Control and Prevention)

NanoMal, a small UK based company is developing a hand held device which will detect malaria , along with checking DNA markers that suggest which antimalarial drug would be most effective. If fielded, such a device could help alleviate the 200+ million cases of malaria per year, as well as prevent some of the nearly one million deaths associated with malarial illness. Malaria, a protozal disease, with Anopheles mosquito as its vector, is 5th most likely cause of death in developing nations.

Map of the world showing the primary range of malaria infestation with dark red regions indicating drug resistant malaria, lighter red regions resistance to older drugs, yellow regions showing no drug resistance, and grey regions being malaria-free (Photo: Percheire via Wikipedia)

This project, funded by EU, involves researchers from St. George's University, the University of London, the Newcastle-based QuantuMDx Group, the University of Tuebingen, and the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, and are developing way to make the device perform a full screening panel, including identification of which of the five parasitic species is involved and what levels of drug 

resistance should be expected. 

Mock-up of the NanoMal blood analysis unit (Photo: Nanomal)

It is projected to perform the test in aroud 20 minutes, and costs would be of levels of a smartphone. What's great is that this device will be adaptable for other disease diagnosis as well

The malaria-causing Plasmodium falciparum parasites in human blood cells (Photo: US Center for Disease Control and Prevention)

There is currently no approved malaria vaccine, although several experimental versions are currently in clinical trials. While several classes of antimalarial drugs exist, in the wild the malarial parasite is quickly developing resistance to their effects, including artemisinins, the most powerful class of anti-malarial drugs. As a result, combination therapies are increasingly being used to slow the process whereby malarial parasites gain resistance to a particular drug.

Ongoing research has established that certain combinations of genes in the parasite's DNA are associated with various types of drug resistance. The Nanomal unit will sample the DNA from a drop of blood with a MEMS-like apparatus then opening the cell walls of the blood cells and of the malarial parasites found within. The malarial DNA is selectively grown using PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) amplification, until enough material is available for analysis. The small scale of the reaction vessels on the chip allows sufficient analysis material to be grown in minutes rather than the hours required by table-top reactors.

The PCR material is then processed by a microscopic gene sequencer that is built to search for two things – genes identifying the parasite's species, and gene sequences corresponding to drug resistance. This is accomplished by unraveling the DNA into long straight sections that are passed through channels in proximity to nanowires.

These nanowires are treated along their length with regions of molecular probes which encode the DNA sequences being searched for. When they appear, the DNA adheres to the nanowires, driving an electrical signal that identifies the gene sequence that has been found. The Nanomal unit contains a large number of such nanowires, resulting in a gene sequencer that can perform a relatively thorough analysis that points away from the parasite's strengths, and toward an effective treatment regimen.

According to Elaine Warburton, CEO of QuantuMDx, "placing a full malaria screen with drug resistance status in the palm of a health professional's hand will allow instant prescribing of the most effective anti-malaria medication for that patient. Nanomal's rapid, low-cost test will further support the global health challenge to eradicate malaria."

To be effective in the poorer nations suffering from malarial epidemics, the cost of a diagnostic and treatment analysis must be affordable. A single-test diagnostic cartridge is currently expected to cost about US$18, although plans are underway to provide the units through donations where necessary. Clinical trials of the device should begin within three years.

Source: NanoMal via FierceMobileHealthCare.com , Gizmag

Hopefully the drug to treat more than 50% of all types of cancers is on the cards!

Cancer has been one of the highly researched against diseases , with researchers trying hard , with the most ingenious methods tried till date, to try to find some sort of cure for this disease... a cure that has actually a curing rate higher than that of luck, and which causes more good than harm , seeing the consequences of chemo and radiotherapy.Also most therapies are for the common cancers in initial stages, like breast cancer, etc, but are totally useless in case of other cancers, some of which are rare.
For a long time now, researchers have been trying to identify the the various genetic anomalies , which cause cancer formation , and had come across what Dr Gary Gilliland of Merck call "the cell's angel of death" - a gene named p53- which they had found to be inactivated by some proteins binding to it, causing cell death, or apoptosis to not occur.



Now, three pharmaceutical firms, Merck, Roche and Sanofi,  are racing against each other to test for the efficacy of a new compound that Dr Debussche's team struck upon at University of Michigan in 2009, which showed remarkable results in mice, clearing of tumors in a week , after just one dose. This compound manages to cleave the protein bound to the gene and causes cell to 'self destruct'.
This trial is first of its kind, as it is targeting many types of cancers at once, and not the usual single target trials. Merck has started testing for the efficacy of dosages and is doing trials on patients of acute mylogenous lukemia.


If the trials fail to show any effect, they will have to reluctantly admit defeat. But still, there is great hope for the patients of rare types of cancers , for whom there are no cures due to unprofitablity of the research for the various pharmaceutical firms , for a better and safer cure in the future. Even if this fails, at least the idea based on which the research was going on can be taken on to find other more efficient cures

Molecule linking two hormones effectively treats obesity in mice

An study led by Indiana University has found that linking two hormones into a single molecule could lead to improved treatments for medical conditions such as obesity (Photo: Shutterstock)

With health authorities saying the world is facing an obesity epidemic and with a recent major study finding that – for the first time – more people now die from obesity-related illnesses like heart attacks and strokes than malnutrition, scientists have been tackling the fat problem.

Recent approaches to this problem include looking at ways to slow down the biological clock and converting calorie-storing white fat cells into heat-generating brown fat cells. Now, a new study has found that linking two hormones into a single molecule could lead to improved treatments for medical conditions such as obesity.

The research was carried out by chemistry professor Richard DiMarchi at Indiana State University and Matthias Tschop, professor of medicine and director of the Institute of Diabetes and Obesity, Helmholtz Center Munich, Germany.

The findings show that the female steroid estrogen, which enters cells and directly affects nuclear DNA, can be engineered to be more effective in treating obesity and diabetes by combining it with glucagon-like peptide 1, or GLP-1, creating a single molecule with fewer side effects.

GLP1, a peptide hormone from the digestive system, is used in drugs to treat Type II diabetes. These drugs improve blood sugar control and can lead to some weight loss, but not enough to be used as weight-loss drugs. Similarly, estrogen is another hormone that can cause weight loss by regulating receptors in the brain but its side effects increase the risk of cancer, particularly of breast and ovarian cancers. As a result, it is not really used for weight loss.

DiMarchi and Tschop combined the GLP1 with estrogen in obese lab mice and found that the combination was more effective in producing weight loss than when used on their own. The GLP1, they found, acted as a “medical chaperone” for the estrogen, taking it to the hypothalamus and pancreas which metabolize foods. The precise targeting and synergy between the peptide and steroid hormone in combination as a single molecule reduced the likelihood of the estrogen producing cancers or growing tumors.

"We find that combining the hormones as a single molecule dramatically enhanced their efficacy and their safety," DiMarchi said. "The combination improves the ability to lower body weight and the ability to manage glucose, and it does so without showing the hallmark toxicities associated with estrogen."

The research also opens the possibility of targeted steroid hormones being used to treat other diseases, where side effects had prevented therapeutic use in the past.

The next obvious step for DiMarchi and his researchers is to test other combinations of peptide and steroid hormones to see how broad an approach medicine can take in treating conditions. There is still a lot they don’t know about how they can work together and whether it’s safe.

DiMarchi says research will continue to focus on the biological action and identifying a suitable drug that can be used in further studies on humans.

The team's study has been published in Nature Medicine.

Source: Indiana University , Gizmag

Sonic "invisible scalpel" could be used for non-invasive surgery

A confetti-sized artificial kidney stone, with a sub-150-micrometer hole bored into it using the focused sound beam

First of all, how can non-invasive surgery even be possible? After all, even in the case of minimally-invasive laparoscopic surgery, small incisions are still made in the skin. Nonetheless, that’s just what scientists from the University of Michigan are proposing. They believe that it could be achieved by using a beam of sound, which would be emitted through the skin to a highly-focused point within the body – and they’ve already created such a beam and used it.

Focused sound waves are already used in the field of medicine, for doing things such as non-invasively shattering kidney stones and prostate tumors. These waves can generally only be focused to a point no smaller than several millimeters across, however. This means they wouldn’t work at all well for performing delicate surgery.

By contrast, the U Michigan sound beam can be focused down to a point measuring just 75 by 400 micrometers. At that size, it can manipulate individual cells, and could perhaps avoid coming into contact with nerve fibers – if that were possible, the patient wouldn’t experience any pain during the operation.

To create the beam, the researchers used an optoacoustic lens, that converts pulsed laser light into high-amplitude sound waves. Ordinarily, these waves wouldn’t be powerful enough to be of much use. To amplify them, the scientists coated the lens with a layer of carbon nanotubes and a rubbery material known as polydimethylsiloxane. The nanotubes absorb the laser light, and respond by generating heat. That heat causes the polydimethylsiloxane to rapidly expand, which in turn gives a boost to the sound waves passing through it.

Those waves have a frequency 10,000 times higher than that which humans are able to hear. When focused on a target, they produce shockwaves and micro-bubbles. These create pressure, which can be used to blast or cut away that target. The sound waves currently used for things like kidney stones, by contrast, work by producing heat, not mechanical pressure.

In tests of the technology, the scientists have successfully detached a single ovarian cancer cell, and bored a hole measuring under 150 micrometers into an artificial kidney stone – in less than one minute. Down the road, it is hoped that “micro ultrasonic surgery” could be used to remove items such as tumors or arterial plaque deposits, or even to deliver medication to individual cells.

A paper on the research was recently published in the journal Scientific Reports.

Source: University of Michigan , Gizmag

Want better posture? There's an app for that

When you think of smartphone accessories, images of Otterboxes, camera lenses, and health monitors may dance through your head. Smartphones can also, however, be used to change habits. Startup Lumo BodyTech hopes to do just that, with the Lumoback posture-correcting gizmo.

Back feedback

The accessory doesn't massage, perform electrotherapy, or inject morphine into your sore back. It doesn't really do anything at all, apart from reminding you to sit up straight. This, however, is the biggest key to avoiding or reducing lower back pain.

You wear the Lumoback accessory on your waist. If you slouch, it vibrates. It also connects via Bluetooth to a mobile app (featuring "a friendly avatar named Lumo") to track your long-term progress.

Slouching is one of the biggest cause of lower back pain, and it can kickstart a chain reaction that leads to upper back and neck slouching. Lumoback acts as a private coach, giving you gentle nudges to nip that poor posture in the bud.

Breakthrough or novelty?

If the simple idea sounds appealing, you aren't alone. The team just raised $5 million for further development of Lumoback. This follows a successfulKickstarter campaign, where the entrepreneurs took in over US$200,000. Back pain is serious business.

The Lumoback accessory isn't cheap, at $149. There are also many other devices that perform similar functionality. But if you don't want to bother monitoring your own posture – and like the idea of a stick-figure coach living in your iPhone – you may find the Lumoback to be worth the investment.

Source: Lumoback, via AllThingsD , Gizmag

Micro-bubbles may help prevent heart attacks and strokes

Micro-bubbles have been used to identify inflamed sites in arteries, which can lead to dangerous plaque deposits (Image: Shutterstock)

Heart attack and stroke-causing plaque deposits in the arteries are typically preceded by an inflammation of the arteries in those same areas. Therefore, if doctors could be aware of those inflamed regions before plaque deposits formed and problems such as chest pains arose, a lot of hardship could potentially be avoided. Well, that soon may be possible, thanks to some tiny bubbles.

In tests conducted at the University of Missouri’s College of Veterinary Medicine, assistant teaching professor Isabelle Masseau started out with perfluorocarbon gas-containing, lipid-shelled “micro-bubbles.” Each of those bubbles measured just two to three microns in diameter.

She proceeded to attach antibodies to the micro-bubbles, and then injected them into the bloodstream of pigs with heart disease. The antibodies were drawn to inflammatory sites in the pigs’ arteries, and caused the bubbles to stick to them. Using ultrasound, she was then able to pinpoint the locations of those gathered bubbles, as the gas within them reflected back the ultrasound signal.

“Because this procedure was successful in pigs, it also could potentially be reproduced in humans as well,” Masseau said. “While it would still be a few years away, injecting targeted micro-bubbles into a human and then scanning them with an ultrasound would be a very simple procedure and could potentially help save lives.”

If further animals tests over the next few years are also successful, human trials may then begin.

A paper on the research was recently published in the journal Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. Also taking part in the study were Prof. Doug Bowles and Prof. Michael Davis.

Source: University of Missouri , Gizmag

Human immune system proteins shown to suppress HIV

'If this could be used as a treatment one day, it is conceivable that patients would only need to take traditional drugs until the virus is controlled'

To survive HIV you need a cocktail of expensive drugs that often have side effects. That could change with research out of The Rockefeller University where scientists have found that harnessing proteins from the human immune system can suppress the virus in mice. Potentially, this could lead to a therapeutic approach to treating HIV that does not require a daily application of drugs.

Florian Klein and his colleagues in Michel Nussenzweig's Laboratory of Molecular Immunology found that a combination of five different antibodies – proteins the human immune system uses to fight infection – could suppress HIV-1 replication and keep the virus at bay for a 60 day period after termination of therapy.

Potent antibodies have previously been found to prevent HIV from infecting non-human primates, raising the possibility that this could lead to a vaccine for humans. However, there has been a school of thought that these would have no effect on infections.

The recently discovered potent antibodies (or "broadly-neutralizing antibodies") used by Klein's team were identified and cloned from HIV-infected patients whose immune systems showed an unusually high ability to neutralize HIV.

“Antibodies had been written off as a treatment for HIV/AIDS because previous studies showed only a limited effect on controlling the virus,” says Klein. “But that was before these more potent antibodies were discovered. We wanted to readdress this question using these new tools.”

HIV-1 is difficult to control because it continually mutates to evade the immune system's attacks. The new antibodies – which target HIV-1's surface protein gp160 – were however found to be effective when used in combination. One antibody alone wasn't enough to quell the virus. Indeed, a mix of three wasn’t enough. But five of them, all firing together, were powerful enough to stop the gp160 from mutating and attaching itself to a host cell.

The next step is to tune the therapy for humans. For this study, the researchers used "humanized" mice which carry functioning human genes, cells and tissues, are standard fare in laboratories requiring small animal models in biological and medical research for human therapeutics. Normal mice don't have the right receptors to be infected with HIV-1.

“Although HIV-1 infection in humanized mice differs in many important aspects from infection in humans, the results are encouraging to investigate these antibodies in clinical trials,” says Klein. “It also may be that a combination of antibodies and the already established antiretroviral therapy is more efficacious than either alone.

“If this could be used as a treatment one day, it is conceivable that patients would only need to take traditional drugs until the virus is controlled, and then receive antibodies every two to three months to maintain that control. We’re eager to explore if a benefit in HIV-1-treatment can be achieved in humans.”

The findings are published in the Journal Nature.

Source: The Rockerfeller University , Gizmag

UCLA smartphone attachment detects food allergens

If you’re the parent of a child with food allergies, you know how terrifying they can be. Such allergies can be life threatening and, despite food labeling laws, it isn't always possible to be certain some potentially deadly ingredient isn't lurking in an item. In an effort to improve on the bulky and complex allergen detectors currently available, researchers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have developed a device called the iTube that turns a smartphone into an allergen sensor.

Developed by a team led by Aydogan Ozcan, associate professor of electrical engineering and bioengineering at UCLA , the iTube attaches to a smartphone and detects food allergens with laboratory-level sensitivity. The device weighs about 40 grams (1.41 oz) and can detect a number of allergens, including peanuts, almonds, eggs, gluten and hazelnuts.

It is not, however, very simple to use and the test takes some time. Though the iTube can measure a sample’s allergen concentration in a second, preparing the test sample takes 20 minutes and several steps, so you won’t be using this to check your daughter’s chicken nuggets at the drive through.

The iTube detects allergens by means of colorimetric assay. That is, it works by chemically coloring the allergens in a solution and then measuring them by the concentration of the color. To analyze food, a sample is ground up by the user and mixed with hot water and an extraction solvent in a test tube. After this is allowed to settle for a several minutes the sample is mixed with a series of chemical reagents. The prepared sample and a control tube are then placed in the device, lit by LEDs and measured optically using the phone’s camera and an app that compares the sample and control to measure allergen concentrations. The test tells whether allergens are present and quantifies this in parts per million.

The test results are location and time stamped and the app uploads the data to iTube servers to create a personalized allergy database for statistical analysis.

"We envision that this cell phone–based allergen testing platform could be very valuable, especially for parents, as well as for schools, restaurants and other public settings," Ozcan said. "Once successfully deployed in these settings, the big amount of data – as a function of both location and time – that this platform will continuously generate would indeed be priceless for consumers, food manufacturers, policymakers and researchers, among others."

The iTube has been tested on samples of commercially-available cookies to determine if peanuts were present. The results are published online in theLab on a Chip journal.

Source: UCLA , Gizmag

Filler makes old skin cells act young again

The latest development in the quest for eternal youth concerns that most visible sign of aging – the skin. Scientists at the University of Michigan (U-M) have found that it might be possible to slow the decline of aging tissue by focusing not on the cells but on the stuff that surrounds those cells. By adding more filler to the fiber-filled area around the cells, they were able to make the skin cells of senior citizens act like younger cells again.

Adding more filler to the fiber-filled area around the cells could slow the decline of aging tissue (Photo: Shutterstock)

In animals, the extracellular matrix, or ECM, acts like the scaffold for the skin cells. The ECM is created by tiny fibrils of collagen called fibroblasts, which are produced by the cells. What happens to all of us over time, as skin ages, is that the ECM becomes fragmented. As a result, our cells lose their connections to that scaffold. And with no support from that scaffold, their decline is accelerated.

The scientists from U-M's Department of Dermatology injected the skin of 21 volunteers in their 80s with a filler often used cosmetically to reduce facial wrinkles. This filler bolsters the ECM, filling in the spaces left by aging. They found that the fibroblasts began expressing collagen-related genes. With more collagen produced, the ECM became less fragmented. Indeed, the entire layer of skin grew thicker and more blood vessels were created, nourishing the cells.

“Fragmentation of the extracellular matrix plays an important role in skin aging, but by altering the matrix using an external filler and increasing the internal pressure, we’ve shown that we can essentially trigger a signal for cells to wake up,” said Gary Fisher, Ph.D., the Harry Helfman Professor of Molecular Dermatology and the study’s senior author.

There are some limitations with the study. The researchers were not looking at the skin on the faces of their subjects, which is the area that gets the most exposure to ultraviolet light. That’s why we can see the effects of aging most markedly on someone’s face. Instead, the scientists focused on skin from an area that had almost never seen the light of day – the buttocks.

It’s for this reason they say that the research doesn't suggest we should be using this cosmetic filler through the body. Rather, the researchers believe a better understanding of the ECM should lead to new discoveries for better prevention and treatment of damaged skin cells.

The team's study was published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology

Source: "University of Michigan

Pacemaker-like device being trialled as Alzheimer's treatment

Scientists are looking into treating Alzheimer's disease by applying tiny shocks to the brain, via an implantable device (Image: Shutterstock)

The process of deep brain stimulation involves using a pacemaker-like implanted device to apply controlled mild electrical pulses to specific areas of the brain. In recent studies, it has been used – with some success – to treat conditions such as Parkinson's disease, major depression and Tourette syndrome. Now, in the ADvance Study, researchers at several research centers are exploring its use in restoring memory function to people with Alzheimer’s disease.

ADvance so far involves 20 test subjects in Canada and the U.S., all of whom are between 55 and 80 years of age, and have mild Alzheimer's. Five of those people have already received the implants at Toronto Western Hospital, with a sixth subject becoming the first American recipient last Thursday, at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore.

The main part of each device is a neurostimulator, that is implanted under the skin in the chest. Two wires run from that unit and up the neck, under the scalp and through two holes in the skull, to a region of the brain known as the fornix. The fornix is involved in bringing information to the hippocampus, which is where memories are created, and where some of the earliest symptoms of Alzheimer’s are detected. Using this DBS-f (deep brain stimulation of the fornix) setup, tiny electrical impulses will applied to the fornix at a rate of 130 per second – the recipients will apparently not be able to feel them.

All of the test subjects will receive regular physiological, psychological and cognitive assessments, along with having brain imagery gathered, for a period of 12 months after receiving their implants. However, only half of those peoples’ devices will be turned on for that period. Neither the test subjects nor the researchers conducting the evaluations will know which people are in the “on” or “off” groups. After the one-year period, however, people in the “off” group will have the option of getting their device turned on for the remainder of the study.

The ADvance Study was initiated by Toronto-based medical tech company Functional Neuromodulation, Ltd., with the DBS-f implants supplied by project partner Medtronic. Along with Toronto Western and Johns Hopkins hospitals, other participating institutions include Banner Alzheimer's Institute in Phoenix, the University of Florida Center for Movement Disorders and Neurorestoration, and the University of Pennsylvania.

Additional test subjects are still needed – anyone who’s interested can learn more at the ADvance website.

Sources: Functional Neuromodulation, Johns Hopkins Hospital via Dvice

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HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Hydra's immortality gene sheds light on human ageing

By Leon Gettler

December 9, 2012

4 Pictures

Dorian Gray move aside, scientists have discovered that the immortal hydra polyp might help produce advanced rejuvenation therapies for humans (Photo: CAU/Fraune)

The tiny freshwater polyp Hydra is a remarkable creature. It does not show any signs of ageing and appears to be immortal. Researchers from Kiel University have examined this phenomenon and uncovered an important link to the ageing process in humans that could lead to the development of advanced rejuvenation therapies.

How does the polyp Hydra do this? It accomplishes the feat of apparent immorality by reproducing through budding rather than mating. Each polyp contains stem cells capable of continuous proliferation. Without this endless supply of regenerating stem cells, the animals could not reproduce.

Geneticists at Kiel University, together with the University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein, discovered that the same longevity gene that makes the hydra immortal may also explain why humans get older, and more infirm.

"Surprisingly, our search for the gene that causes Hydra to be immortal led us to the so-called FoxO gene," says Anna-Marei Böhm, PhD student and first author of the study.

All animals and humans have a FoxO gene. Until now, no one has been able to work out if FoxO plays a role in ageing and why human stem cells become fewer and inactive with increasing age. The growing inactivity of stem cells as we age is critical. Because our stem cells lose the ability to proliferate and form new cells, ageing tissue cannot regenerate any more. As a result, our muscles decline.

The Kiel researchers examined FoxO in several genetically modified polyps: Hydra with normal FoxO, with inactive FoxO and with enhanced FoxO. The scientists found that animals without FoxO possess significantly fewer stem cells.

“Our research group demonstrated for the first time that there is a direct link between the FoxO gene and ageing“, says Thomas Bosch from the Zoological Institute of Kiel University, who led the Hydra study. “FoxO has been found to be particularly active in centenarians – people older than one hundred years – which is why we believe that FoxO plays a key role in ageing – not only in Hydra but also in humans.”

The study has produced two conclusions. First, the FoxO gene plays a key role in the maintenance of stem cells and thus determines the life span of all animals. Secondly, the ageing and longevity of organisms depends on two factors: the maintenance of stem cells and the maintenance of a functioning immune system.

The hypothesis can’t be verified yet on human beings as that would require genetic manipulation. Nonetheless, the research is a big step forward and more studies on the Hydra and the FoxO gene are planned which could lay the foundations for the development of advanced rejuvenation therapy for humans in the future.

Source: Kiel University , Gizmag

Nanostructured fabric could protect women against pregnancy and HIV

While condoms are the only things that protect against both unwanted pregnancies and HIV, a lot of people aren’t big fans of stopping to put them on. Additionally, women are sometimes put in an awkward role, needing to pressure the man to use the thing – although female condoms certainly do exist, their bulkiness makes them rather unpopular. Now, however, a team of scientists from the University of Washington are working on a type of dissolvable fabric that could be used by women both for contraception and HIV protection.

The researchers started by mixing dissolved FDA-approved polymers and HIV-fighting antiretroviral drugs, and putting the resulting gooey solution in a syringe. In a process known as electrospinning, they then ejected the solution from the syringe and into an electrical field. This caused the solution to stretch into thin, nanometer-scale fibers that flew through the air, eventually sticking to a collecting plate. The fibers were then collected, and made into a stretchy fabric.

When inserted vaginally or used to coat something like a vaginal ring, the fabric blocks the passage of sperm and releases the drugs. By varying the production technique, it can be made to either dissolve within minutes for immediate use, or to dissolve over the course of a few days, allowing for birth control pill-like sustained protection.

Fibers containing different types of drugs could conceivably be mixed together in one piece of fabric, to provide protection against a variety of sexually-transmitted diseases. Multiple HIV-fighting drugs could also be combined in individual fibers, to protect against drug-resistant strains of the virus, and to keep such strains from developing.

Last month the team received a grant of almost US$1 million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, to develop the technology further. They plan on getting an electrospinning machine to make butcher paper-sized sheets of the fabric, and spending a year testing various combinations of antiretroviral drugs and contraceptives. The best-performing combinations will then go into a final version of the fabric.

It is intended mainly for use in places like Africa that have high rates of HIV, although it could certainly also find more widespread use.

Source: University of Washington via PopSci , Gizmag

Researchers find way to suppress certain types of memories

Researchers at Canada’s Western University have found a way to effectively block certain types of memories (Image: Shutterstock)

We’re all carrying around some cringe-inducing memories that we’d rather forget. But for those suffering Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), recalling certain memories can provoke fearful, emotional experiences. By the same token, some memories can remind those battling drug addiction of the rewarding effects of the drug and trigger a relapse. Researchers at Canada’s Western University have found a way to effectively block these types of memories that could lead to better treatments for both conditions.

Using a rat model, neuroscientists at Western University’s Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry found that they could completely prevent the recall of both aversive and reward-related memories by stimulating a sub-type of dopamine receptor called the “D1” receptor in the prefrontal cortex.

Importantly, unlike the process used in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind that permanently erased certain memories, the Western University team’s approach only controls the spontaneous recall of the aversive and reward-related memories, leaving the actual memory intact.

“The precise mechanisms in the brain that control how these memories are recalled are poorly understood, and there are presently no effective treatments for patients suffering from obtrusive memories associated with either PTSD or addiction,” says Nicole Lauzon, a PhD candidate in the laboratory of Steven Laviolette. “If we are able to block the recall of those memories, then potentially we have a target for drugs to treat these disorders.”

Lauzon and Laviolette describe their findings, which appear in the journalNeuropharmacology, in the video below.

Source: Western University , Gizmag