More than 30,000 neuroscientists from around the world gathered in Washington, D.C., November 15–19 for the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience. Presentations covered the science of nerves and brains on scales from molecules to societies. From among the first day’s presentations, Science News staffers report on the latest neural insights into psychopaths, liars and baby rats separated from their mothers, as well as new research on how a tiny parasite disrupts rats’ ingrained fear of cats and how a rat mother’s favoritism for outgoing pups influences developing social skills.
Morality askew in psychopaths’ brains
Psychopaths display a dangerous mix of impulsiveness, grandiose thinking, callousness toward others and manipulative skill. They also show neural responses related to moral insensitivity and a keen interest in moral violations, new studies find.
Researchers led by Kent Kiehl of the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque carted portable brain-scanning equipment to a New Mexico prison, where they recruited inmates who either did or did not qualify as psychopaths on an extensive questionnaire. Participants underwent scanning as they viewed images that depicted moral violations, such as a drunken driver or one man attacking another with a knife, or images that contained no moral violations, such as an angry driver.
Functional MRI scans showed reduced neural activity in 21 psychopathic inmates, relative to 21 non-psychopathic inmates, in brain regions linked to attaching emotional meaning to others’ acts and to reading others’ intentions in social situations, says study coauthor Alek Chakroff, a New Mexico graduate student in psychology. Psychopaths identified moral pictures and rated the severity of moral infractions as accurately as non-psychopaths did. These findings are consistent with the possibility that psychopaths intellectually evaluate the meaning of moral situations without experiencing any emotional reactions to those situations, Chakroff suggests.
In a second study, Kiehl’s group found that 25 psychopathic inmates displayed a signature neural electrical response a fraction of a second after viewing images of moral violations, indicating heightened attention to those images. A smaller version of this response appeared in non-psychopathic inmates. Moral violations draw psychopaths’ intense interest even before they have time to become consciously aware of what they’re seeing, Chakroff hypothesizes. —Bruce Bower
Parasite twists rats’ innate fear of cats…
In a dangerous game of cat and mouse, the most important player turns out to be a parasite. Researchers have known for some time that the parasite Toxoplasma gondii is a puppeteer that can force a rat to go against its own instincts and become attracted to the scent of cat urine. http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.NET Now scientists have discovered the regions of a specific part of the rat brain called the amygdala involved in this parasite-imposed death wish.
Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire Toxo can only reproduce in the gut of a cat, which poses a logistical nightmare for the rat-dwelling parasite. To get into the cat, Toxo tricks rats into acting recklessly in the presence of their feline predators. Up until now, researchers have known little about the brain regions involved in this behavioral switch. A team led by Patrick House at Stanford University reports that they have identified two distinct regions of the brain, one important for fear and the other responsible for attraction, that are activated in Toxo-infected rats after they smell cat odor.
“You see two pathways [the fear and the attraction pathways] light up,” explains House. Surprisingly, the attraction region of the rat brain is similarly activated when a male rat encounters a female, suggesting that Toxo may fool the rat into mistaking the smell of cat urine for the odor of a potential mate. Although the research is far from over, the findings give researchers new clues to the workings of Toxo’s mysterious mind control. —Laura Sanders
…while early separation from mother mutes it
Young rats separated from their mother at a crucial age are not appropriately afraid of dangerous situations later, shows a new study led by Yoav Litvin of the University of Hawaii at Manoa. The finding may hold implications for understanding why some people engage in high-risk activity. In the rat world, one of the highest-risk behaviors is sniffing around a hungry cat. Usually, when rats encounter a whiff of cat (or other threats), they freeze. But a rat pup that has been separated from its mother for the early part of its life doesn’t show the usual amount of fear. What’s more, these maternally deprived rats do not learn to freeze as quickly as a rat raised with plenty of maternal love.
The rats that showed this deficit were separated from their mothers for three hours a day from day two to day 13 of their lives, which the researchers think could be a critical period for development of a particular part of the brain, the hypothalamus, that is involved in fear conditioning. Steve Siviy of the University of Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania, who researches playful behavior in rats, likens these maternally deprived rats to kids who grow up in “crummy neighborhoods” whose mothers work two jobs. The researchers think that because these rats may expose themselves to more dangerous situations, they may set themselves up for a cycle of more emotional stress, not to mention bodily harm. —Laura Sanders
Deciding to lie, or not
Honest people don’t need to worry about being led into temptation, a new study suggests. To investigate whether honesty is an act of will or an inherent grace, Joshua Greene of Harvard University and colleagues scanned the brains of 25 people told they were participating in a study to see if a monetary reward made people better at predicting the future. Participants were prompted to predict the outcome of a coin toss. Sometimes they had to say this call out loud, sometimes were asked what they had guessed after the toss was completed. They were told they would win a set dollar amount when they predicted correctly. A control group of participants always said their prediction out loud, and thus had no opportunity to cheat.
As expected, the control group accurately predicted heads or tails about 50 percent of the time. The group that had the opportunity to cheat was “correct” about 66 percent of the time, with some participants “predicting” heads or tails with 90 percent accuracy. When these participants who tended to lie most actively chose not to lie, the brain scans showed significant activity in the prefrontal brain regions associated with decision making. Non-cheaters, who always told the truth, lacked this activity. The research team did wonder if these people “were really honest or just clueless,” says Greene. Post-experiment interviews confirmed that the honest people were aware of the opportunity to cheat. “When it comes to honesty, it seems to be more grace than will,” Greene says. —Rachel Ehrenberg
Moms favor outgoing pups, with consequences
Your mother probably does love your outgoing siblings more. A new study of rats shows that outgoing offspring got more attention from their mothers than did their more shy siblings.
Brothers and sisters have similar genes and grow up in a similar environment, but have differently personalities. Christina Ragan of Pennsylvania State University and her colleagues wanted to know if parental favoritism could affect personality. Previous research has shown that rat pups whose mothers licked them a lot were less susceptible to stress than pups from mothers that didn’t spend as much time grooming them. Ragan watched mother rats interact with their pups and counted how often each pup in a litter was licked in the first week of life. She found large differences in maternal attention, with the most-groomed pups in a litter getting two to three times more attention from mom than the least licked sibling, Ragan showed in a presentation at the neuroscience meeting.
Notably, usually the pups that got the most maternal attention sought it. Ragan found no connection between maternal attention and the amount of a stress hormone each pup produced. But she did find that pups that got the most attention from mom were also quicker to approach stranger rats. Pups that got less attention took longer to seek social contact with an unfamiliar rat. The difference between siblings evened out in adulthood. Ragan also saw that pups that actively sought attention from their mothers, but didn’t get it, hung back from interacting with rats they didn’t know. “Early interactions with mom can influence later social interactions,” she says.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Thursday, April 16, 2009
applications 5.app.993 Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
If fertility had a shape, this would be it.
Scientists have figured out the exact shape of part of a protein that sits on the outside of the egg and aids in fertilization. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire The results, which may ultimately lead to new contraceptives and treatments for infertility, appear in the Dec. 4 Nature. http://Louis1J1Sheehan.us
On its quest to fertilize an egg, a sperm cell must first get through the outer layer of the egg. Proteins composing this outer layer — called the zona pellucida — have two major jobs during fertilization. The first is to recognize that a sperm cell is from the correct species, and the second is to tighten into a solid shell that seals off the egg as soon as the first lucky sperm penetrates. http://Louis1J1Sheehan.us This barrier prevents other sperm from fertilizing the egg, an event that would be lethal.
While some key players in the zona pellucida are known, scientists continue to search for clues on how sperm and egg join. “We still don’t understand the molecular nature of the initial interactions between the sperm and the egg,” says researcher Sarah Conner, of the University of Birmingham in England.
A research team led by Luca Jovine at the Karolinska Institute in Huddinge, Sweden aimed to examine a small part of the process in great detail. In mice and humans, each of the key zona pellucida proteins — called ZP2 and ZP3 — has a piece called the ZP-N domain. Mice that lack either of the two key zona pellucida proteins that have the ZP-N domain are completely infertile. The ZP-N domain is required for the initial formation of the coat of proteins around the egg, without which fertilization is impossible. ZP-N may also help proteins “tighten the net” around the egg to prevent another sperm from entering, says Jovine.
Jovine’s team solved the structure of a mouse ZP-N region using a technique called X-ray crystallography, which identifies the three-dimensional location of every atom in a protein. Once the researchers knew the ZP-N region’s shape, they compared it to the structures of other, unrelated proteins. The team found that the type of fold in the ZP-N is a twist on a well-known protein shape called the immunoglobulin domain.
Paul Wassarman, a researcher at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, calls the new structure data an “extremely important contribution to the area of fertilization.”
And it turns out that the ZP-N region is not just important for fertilization. Solving the ZP-N structure could have “widespread implications,” says Wassarman, who originally identified the key zona pellucida protein ZP3. Hundreds more proteins have shapes similar to the one seen in ZP-N, says Wassarman, including proteins in the brain and some implicated in cancer. But the most immediate task will likely be to use the ZP-N structure data to solve mysteries of conception.Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Such applications to human fertility will require much more study. Jovine cautions that knowing the structure of the mouse ZP-N is “just a first step.” But female contraceptives targeted to the zona pellucida proteins on the egg could theoretically prevent any sperm from fertilizing the egg. Such an approach would be much more specific than current hormone-based forms of contraception, says Jovine. These kinds of studies could result not only in a new way to prevent fertilization, but also in new ways to promote conception in cases of infertility.
“There’s going to be a lot of work coming out in the next couple of years,” Wassarman predicts.
Scientists have figured out the exact shape of part of a protein that sits on the outside of the egg and aids in fertilization. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire The results, which may ultimately lead to new contraceptives and treatments for infertility, appear in the Dec. 4 Nature. http://Louis1J1Sheehan.us
On its quest to fertilize an egg, a sperm cell must first get through the outer layer of the egg. Proteins composing this outer layer — called the zona pellucida — have two major jobs during fertilization. The first is to recognize that a sperm cell is from the correct species, and the second is to tighten into a solid shell that seals off the egg as soon as the first lucky sperm penetrates. http://Louis1J1Sheehan.us This barrier prevents other sperm from fertilizing the egg, an event that would be lethal.
While some key players in the zona pellucida are known, scientists continue to search for clues on how sperm and egg join. “We still don’t understand the molecular nature of the initial interactions between the sperm and the egg,” says researcher Sarah Conner, of the University of Birmingham in England.
A research team led by Luca Jovine at the Karolinska Institute in Huddinge, Sweden aimed to examine a small part of the process in great detail. In mice and humans, each of the key zona pellucida proteins — called ZP2 and ZP3 — has a piece called the ZP-N domain. Mice that lack either of the two key zona pellucida proteins that have the ZP-N domain are completely infertile. The ZP-N domain is required for the initial formation of the coat of proteins around the egg, without which fertilization is impossible. ZP-N may also help proteins “tighten the net” around the egg to prevent another sperm from entering, says Jovine.
Jovine’s team solved the structure of a mouse ZP-N region using a technique called X-ray crystallography, which identifies the three-dimensional location of every atom in a protein. Once the researchers knew the ZP-N region’s shape, they compared it to the structures of other, unrelated proteins. The team found that the type of fold in the ZP-N is a twist on a well-known protein shape called the immunoglobulin domain.
Paul Wassarman, a researcher at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, calls the new structure data an “extremely important contribution to the area of fertilization.”
And it turns out that the ZP-N region is not just important for fertilization. Solving the ZP-N structure could have “widespread implications,” says Wassarman, who originally identified the key zona pellucida protein ZP3. Hundreds more proteins have shapes similar to the one seen in ZP-N, says Wassarman, including proteins in the brain and some implicated in cancer. But the most immediate task will likely be to use the ZP-N structure data to solve mysteries of conception.Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Such applications to human fertility will require much more study. Jovine cautions that knowing the structure of the mouse ZP-N is “just a first step.” But female contraceptives targeted to the zona pellucida proteins on the egg could theoretically prevent any sperm from fertilizing the egg. Such an approach would be much more specific than current hormone-based forms of contraception, says Jovine. These kinds of studies could result not only in a new way to prevent fertilization, but also in new ways to promote conception in cases of infertility.
“There’s going to be a lot of work coming out in the next couple of years,” Wassarman predicts.
Monday, April 13, 2009
pose 6.pos.3 Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Babies delivered by cesarean section a week or two before the recommended 39 weeks of pregnancy face a heightened risk of respiratory problems and other complications, researchers report in the Jan. 8 New England Journal of Medicine. http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.ORG Being born late isn’t good either, the study finds. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Scientists consider normal human gestation to be 39 to 40 weeks, which is about nine months. Doctors have adopted some leeway in this calculation, considering a baby to be “full term” if delivered at 37 weeks or later.
But past research had raised questions about early deliveries, and practice guidelines urge women to hang on until 39 or 40 weeks before delivering. Mainly, this extra time allows for full development of the fetus’ lungs. http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.ORG
In the new study, obstetric gynecologist Alan Tita of the University of Alabama at Birmingham and his colleagues collected birthing data at 19 medical facilities in the United States. The team identified more than 13,000 cases in which a woman had delivered by elective (nonemergency) cesarean section at 37 weeks or later, having had a previous cesarean delivery at some point. The researchers excluded from the analysis women who had medical problems, had an emergency cesarean or had already begun labor before undergoing a cesarean.
Roughly one-third of these women delivered before reaching the 39-week point in the pregnancy. The researchers found that 15 percent of babies delivered at 37 weeks had a complication, compared with 8 percent of those delivered at 39 weeks. Complications included respiratory problems, low blood sugar and a blood infection, or the need to go to the intensive care unit, get resuscitated, put on a ventilator or stay in the hospital more than five days.
Common complications were respiratory distress and transient tachypnea. Infants with these complications struggle to breathe and have trouble clearing fluid from their lungs. One or the other of these problems showed up in the 37-week group more than twice as often as in the 39-week babies.
Meanwhile, the researchers found that 11 percent of babies born at 38 weeks — one week short of nine months —had complications, a rate somewhat higher than the 8 percent of the 39-week group.
Those born at 40 weeks were not more likely to have problems, but babies born after 41 or 42 weeks faced risks similar to those born at 38 and 37 weeks, respectively.
A closer look at these women shows that those delivering earlier were more likely to be married, white and privately insured than those delivering at 39 weeks or later, says obstetric gynecologist Michael Greene of Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, who didn’t participate in the study. The early deliverers may have placed a premium on having their own doctors perform the cesarean, which requires planning and scheduling, he says.
The risks of such early deliveries are now clearer, Tita says. “This study brings some of these problems to the fore. Hopefully, with this publication, some of these practices will change,” he says.
But there remains at least one major confounding factor in all this: The risk of stillbirth is greatest at 39 weeks or more. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire Roughly one in 1,000 full-term births end in stillbirth. These cases of fetal death can be traced to many factors, including bacterial infections, umbilical cord problems, trauma, drug or alcohol consumption by the mother or high blood pressure in the mother.
Biology also plays a role in stillbirth risk. As a fetus grows, its metabolic needs increase and it demands more nourishment and oxygen, says Bryan Richardson, an obstetric gynecologist at the University of Western Ontario in London, Canada. As the fetus begins to tax its nutrient supply, he says, “its tolerance for an emergency lessens,” and that increases the risk of stillbirth should a problem strike very late in pregnancy.
Delivering a viable fetus at 37 or 38 weeks eliminates the risk of stillbirth occurring later. But it remains unknown whether avoiding the slight risk of stillbirth outweighs the other risks shown in this study that result from early delivery, says Greene. “This is interesting and useful information, but the stillbirth risk is not accounted for,” he concludes.
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* This is excellent information. When I studied nursing back in the Dark Ages (the 1970s), we already knew that it was better for those relatively affluent moms NOT to schedule their Caesareans for frivolous reasons, like wanting to have it on so-and-so's birthday, the day before so-and-so's wedding anniversary, the day after so-and-so's golf tournament, and so on (all reasons I actually heard), or less frivolous reasons like wanting it to be born when Dad was home on leave from the armed services. WE knew it was better for baby to wait and be delivered at full term, but it was hard to convince MOM. This study should give medical personnel the ammunition they need to convince her to wait. Unless, of course, there's a MEDICAL reason to deliver early.
Scientists consider normal human gestation to be 39 to 40 weeks, which is about nine months. Doctors have adopted some leeway in this calculation, considering a baby to be “full term” if delivered at 37 weeks or later.
But past research had raised questions about early deliveries, and practice guidelines urge women to hang on until 39 or 40 weeks before delivering. Mainly, this extra time allows for full development of the fetus’ lungs. http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.ORG
In the new study, obstetric gynecologist Alan Tita of the University of Alabama at Birmingham and his colleagues collected birthing data at 19 medical facilities in the United States. The team identified more than 13,000 cases in which a woman had delivered by elective (nonemergency) cesarean section at 37 weeks or later, having had a previous cesarean delivery at some point. The researchers excluded from the analysis women who had medical problems, had an emergency cesarean or had already begun labor before undergoing a cesarean.
Roughly one-third of these women delivered before reaching the 39-week point in the pregnancy. The researchers found that 15 percent of babies delivered at 37 weeks had a complication, compared with 8 percent of those delivered at 39 weeks. Complications included respiratory problems, low blood sugar and a blood infection, or the need to go to the intensive care unit, get resuscitated, put on a ventilator or stay in the hospital more than five days.
Common complications were respiratory distress and transient tachypnea. Infants with these complications struggle to breathe and have trouble clearing fluid from their lungs. One or the other of these problems showed up in the 37-week group more than twice as often as in the 39-week babies.
Meanwhile, the researchers found that 11 percent of babies born at 38 weeks — one week short of nine months —had complications, a rate somewhat higher than the 8 percent of the 39-week group.
Those born at 40 weeks were not more likely to have problems, but babies born after 41 or 42 weeks faced risks similar to those born at 38 and 37 weeks, respectively.
A closer look at these women shows that those delivering earlier were more likely to be married, white and privately insured than those delivering at 39 weeks or later, says obstetric gynecologist Michael Greene of Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, who didn’t participate in the study. The early deliverers may have placed a premium on having their own doctors perform the cesarean, which requires planning and scheduling, he says.
The risks of such early deliveries are now clearer, Tita says. “This study brings some of these problems to the fore. Hopefully, with this publication, some of these practices will change,” he says.
But there remains at least one major confounding factor in all this: The risk of stillbirth is greatest at 39 weeks or more. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire Roughly one in 1,000 full-term births end in stillbirth. These cases of fetal death can be traced to many factors, including bacterial infections, umbilical cord problems, trauma, drug or alcohol consumption by the mother or high blood pressure in the mother.
Biology also plays a role in stillbirth risk. As a fetus grows, its metabolic needs increase and it demands more nourishment and oxygen, says Bryan Richardson, an obstetric gynecologist at the University of Western Ontario in London, Canada. As the fetus begins to tax its nutrient supply, he says, “its tolerance for an emergency lessens,” and that increases the risk of stillbirth should a problem strike very late in pregnancy.
Delivering a viable fetus at 37 or 38 weeks eliminates the risk of stillbirth occurring later. But it remains unknown whether avoiding the slight risk of stillbirth outweighs the other risks shown in this study that result from early delivery, says Greene. “This is interesting and useful information, but the stillbirth risk is not accounted for,” he concludes.
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* Comment
Found in: Biology and Body & Brain
Share & Save
* slashdot slashdot
* digg digg
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Comments 1
* This is excellent information. When I studied nursing back in the Dark Ages (the 1970s), we already knew that it was better for those relatively affluent moms NOT to schedule their Caesareans for frivolous reasons, like wanting to have it on so-and-so's birthday, the day before so-and-so's wedding anniversary, the day after so-and-so's golf tournament, and so on (all reasons I actually heard), or less frivolous reasons like wanting it to be born when Dad was home on leave from the armed services. WE knew it was better for baby to wait and be delivered at full term, but it was hard to convince MOM. This study should give medical personnel the ammunition they need to convince her to wait. Unless, of course, there's a MEDICAL reason to deliver early.
team 1.tea.983 Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Avalanches, vicious winds and sub-zero temperatures aren’t the only extremes endured by those who climb Mount Everest. Hypoxia, a lack of oxygen that can lead to cell death, also threatens. But a study of people ascending Mount Everest’s slopes suggests that some humans are especially tolerant of low oxygen levels, perhaps because their bodies use oxygen more efficiently. http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.INFO The findings, reported in the Jan. 8 New England Journal of Medicine, could inform the treatment of critically ill patients struggling to breathe in hospitals.
The new work reports the lowest recorded blood oxygen levels in a nonhibernating mammal. It is also one of the first analyses to come out of a much larger investigation of more than 200 people who made the trek to Everest in an effort to understand how the body adapts to low oxygen levels.
Patients suffering from cystic fibrosis, septic shock and other critical ailments often have severely low levels of blood oxygen. Treatment often involves administering oxygen with a mask, or mechanically ventilating the lungs, a harsh procedure that can do more harm than good, says Michael Grocott of University College London, lead author of the new study. But because the health of such patients is compromised and many variables are involved, studying the effect of low oxygen alone isn’t easy.
“So many things are going on that separating out oxygen is difficult,” says Grocott. Basic questions still loom, he says. “Why do some people adapt well while others seem to struggle?”
Typically studies of how the body responds to low levels of oxygen are conducted in a hypobaric chamber that simulates the effects of high altitudes. But Grocott’s team surmised that the expense and persuasion required to get 200 healthy people to sit in a metal box for three weeks might be skirted if those people could be convinced to climb the 5,300 meters to the Everest base camp. The Caudwell Xtreme Everest expedition was born. In April and May of 2007 more than 200 people, age 18 to 73, made the trek, making themselves available to more than 60 doctors and scientists aiming to get at why some people fare better than others in the thin air at the tallest peak on Earth.
access
Enlargemagnify
TESTING THE ASCENTClimbers of Mount Everest stop at the Balcony (8,400 meters) to give blood samples to researchers. Data from this work show that people who can reach this altitude tolerate the lowest known blood oxygen levels observed in nonhibernating mammals.Caudwell Xtreme Everest
The research team sampled blood, analyzing oxygen and carbon dioxide levels, pH and concentrations of lactate and hemoglobin. Ten subjects were sampled in London (75 meters above sea level). Nine were sampled at the Everest base camp (5,300 m). These individuals, all healthy climbers, then tackled Everest’s southeast ridge. Small shelters were constructed along the route and blood was taken from climbers’ groin arteries. Samples were taken at Camp 2 (6,400 m), from six people at Camp 3 (7,100 m) and finally at what is known as the Balcony (8,400 m) from the four people who made it to the summit and were available for testing (8,848m). Samples taken higher than the base camp were quickly brought to a lab set up at Camp 2 for analysis. Bad weather prohibited taking samples at the summit.
Supplemental oxygen was used only at or above 7,100 m, but samples were only taken after people had been breathing the ambient air for several minutes or hours.
At the highest altitudes, the subjects showed an impressive adaptive response, says Grocott. Most people would pass out after two to three minutes in such altitudes, these climbers were not only conscious, but also clearly communicated by radio and performed complication-free sampling. The blood oxygen levels of the four tested climbers were startlingly low — the lowest a mere 19.1 millimeters mercury, the researchers report. In patients, levels below 60 mm Hg are cause for concern, Grocott says.
The findings suggest that the amount of oxygen alone isn’t the secret to physiological success. Other factors could be how much oxygen a person’s hemoglobin can carry, or the efficiency of the cellular factories known as mitochondria, which use the oxygen.
“There’s a significant possibility that some people may just be more efficient,” Grocott says.
Even among the four climbers tested at 8,400 meters, there was individual variation in measured variables such as blood oxygen levels and pH. This physiological variation among people fits with recent work done by Cynthia Beall of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland.
“This shows that healthy people have a huge range of variation in being able to respond to stress,” says Beall. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Her investigations of the physiology of Tibetans and other highlanders suggest that a major gene is involved in how much oxygen hemoglobin transport throughout the body. (The Everest team is also looking into the genetics of adaptation to high altitudes.)
Beall tips her hat to the field team. “To have the audacity to think about doing this work — and then to do it! I’m very impressed. The difficulty of taking the measurements alone, and adapting the equipment — they did a beautiful job.” http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.INFO
The results suggest that at high altitudes the problem isn’t the lack of oxygen, but the body’s ability to deliver and use it, comments Paul Firth of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. An analysis of mortality rates on Mount Everest by Firth and colleagues appeared in the British Medical Journal in December. http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.INFO “People don’t run out of gas,” he says, “the delivery deteriorates.” Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
The new work reports the lowest recorded blood oxygen levels in a nonhibernating mammal. It is also one of the first analyses to come out of a much larger investigation of more than 200 people who made the trek to Everest in an effort to understand how the body adapts to low oxygen levels.
Patients suffering from cystic fibrosis, septic shock and other critical ailments often have severely low levels of blood oxygen. Treatment often involves administering oxygen with a mask, or mechanically ventilating the lungs, a harsh procedure that can do more harm than good, says Michael Grocott of University College London, lead author of the new study. But because the health of such patients is compromised and many variables are involved, studying the effect of low oxygen alone isn’t easy.
“So many things are going on that separating out oxygen is difficult,” says Grocott. Basic questions still loom, he says. “Why do some people adapt well while others seem to struggle?”
Typically studies of how the body responds to low levels of oxygen are conducted in a hypobaric chamber that simulates the effects of high altitudes. But Grocott’s team surmised that the expense and persuasion required to get 200 healthy people to sit in a metal box for three weeks might be skirted if those people could be convinced to climb the 5,300 meters to the Everest base camp. The Caudwell Xtreme Everest expedition was born. In April and May of 2007 more than 200 people, age 18 to 73, made the trek, making themselves available to more than 60 doctors and scientists aiming to get at why some people fare better than others in the thin air at the tallest peak on Earth.
access
Enlargemagnify
TESTING THE ASCENTClimbers of Mount Everest stop at the Balcony (8,400 meters) to give blood samples to researchers. Data from this work show that people who can reach this altitude tolerate the lowest known blood oxygen levels observed in nonhibernating mammals.Caudwell Xtreme Everest
The research team sampled blood, analyzing oxygen and carbon dioxide levels, pH and concentrations of lactate and hemoglobin. Ten subjects were sampled in London (75 meters above sea level). Nine were sampled at the Everest base camp (5,300 m). These individuals, all healthy climbers, then tackled Everest’s southeast ridge. Small shelters were constructed along the route and blood was taken from climbers’ groin arteries. Samples were taken at Camp 2 (6,400 m), from six people at Camp 3 (7,100 m) and finally at what is known as the Balcony (8,400 m) from the four people who made it to the summit and were available for testing (8,848m). Samples taken higher than the base camp were quickly brought to a lab set up at Camp 2 for analysis. Bad weather prohibited taking samples at the summit.
Supplemental oxygen was used only at or above 7,100 m, but samples were only taken after people had been breathing the ambient air for several minutes or hours.
At the highest altitudes, the subjects showed an impressive adaptive response, says Grocott. Most people would pass out after two to three minutes in such altitudes, these climbers were not only conscious, but also clearly communicated by radio and performed complication-free sampling. The blood oxygen levels of the four tested climbers were startlingly low — the lowest a mere 19.1 millimeters mercury, the researchers report. In patients, levels below 60 mm Hg are cause for concern, Grocott says.
The findings suggest that the amount of oxygen alone isn’t the secret to physiological success. Other factors could be how much oxygen a person’s hemoglobin can carry, or the efficiency of the cellular factories known as mitochondria, which use the oxygen.
“There’s a significant possibility that some people may just be more efficient,” Grocott says.
Even among the four climbers tested at 8,400 meters, there was individual variation in measured variables such as blood oxygen levels and pH. This physiological variation among people fits with recent work done by Cynthia Beall of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland.
“This shows that healthy people have a huge range of variation in being able to respond to stress,” says Beall. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Her investigations of the physiology of Tibetans and other highlanders suggest that a major gene is involved in how much oxygen hemoglobin transport throughout the body. (The Everest team is also looking into the genetics of adaptation to high altitudes.)
Beall tips her hat to the field team. “To have the audacity to think about doing this work — and then to do it! I’m very impressed. The difficulty of taking the measurements alone, and adapting the equipment — they did a beautiful job.” http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.INFO
The results suggest that at high altitudes the problem isn’t the lack of oxygen, but the body’s ability to deliver and use it, comments Paul Firth of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. An analysis of mortality rates on Mount Everest by Firth and colleagues appeared in the British Medical Journal in December. http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.INFO “People don’t run out of gas,” he says, “the delivery deteriorates.” Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Saturday, April 11, 2009
mrsa 9.mrs.11001.2 Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
A sunburn and sand between the toes may not be all you take home from a day at the beach. An antibiotic-resistant strain of bacteria known as MRSA lurks in ocean water and perhaps in sand, Lisa Plano of the University of Miami’s Miller School of Medicine reported February 13 at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
In a talk titled “What happens at the beach doesn’t always stay at the beach,” Plano reported on an epidemiological study of beachgoers. Of 1,303 adult bathers at a popular beach in south Florida, 37 percent came into contact with the usually harmless Staphylococcus aureus microbe in the ocean water. http://Louis-j-sheehan.com Each of the study participants waded into the ocean, dunked underwater three times and collected a sample of the surrounding seawater in a clean jug. http://Louis-j-sheehan.com
Researchers then analyzed the seawater samples to find out what bacteria hitched a ride. A small percentage of the S. aureus samples proved to be the particularly dangerous strain of the microbe MRSA, which plagues hospitals, prisons and locker rooms.
Preliminary evidence suggests that S. aureus is also present in the beach sand.
Follow-up interviews with study participants turned up no links between exposure and subsequent infections. “You shouldn’t fear the beach,” Plano says. “Go. Have fun. Embrace it.” To prevent “sharing your organisms” with other beachgoers and to protect yourself from the bacteria, Plano recommends showering with soap before and after a beach visit.
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Comments 6
* Fortunately Cathy, there is a new chemical being researched that comes from a sea sponge and blocks all bacteria from resistance to antibiotics. So far they are testing it on every single bacteria, and so far it has cleared the way for antibiotics to do the work they have faltered in recently. I am sure that that must have been a terrifying ordeal; I can't imagine the feelings at having to see both you and the rest of your family attacked by this infection. Have you seen "Lorenzo's Oil"? It is a very moving film and I think your family of all people could identify with it. Good luck in fighting the infection, more people need to know about these things.
Tyler Albers Tyler Albers
Feb. 19, 2009 at 4:59pm
* Hello everyone,
Our family was viciously attacked by MRSA and we nearly lost all of our lives.
We almost lost our oldest son to it within 72 hrs.
MRSA also attacked my youngest son and myself.
The boils that my son's had grew to the size of small grapefruits and destroy the flesh in the surrounding area.
As you can imagine we were horrified. We sought out medical intervention and antibiotics failed to help. our doctor threw several antibiotics at my son's infection. The antibiotics failed to keep the infection from coming back.
After speaking to an infectious disease doctor, doing my own research and networking with others struggling with MRSA,
I came to the conclusion that MRSA is rapidly evolving and becoming resistant to all antibiotics.
At that point we decided to run from this vicious cycle of throwing antibiotics at an antibiotic resistant infection. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
We prayed and researched until we found something that would save our family.
MRSA was literally eating away at us and what we found stopped MRSA from killing us. It is called Allimed, stable allicin.
This is the first time in history that allicin in garlic has been stabilized.
Since we used Allimed we did not need further medical care though we informed our doctors of our decision and continued under their observation.
We dealt with MRSA ourselves and have not had it return for any of us in 3 years.
Before using Allimed the boils were coming every few weeks.
If we are to survive this era of resistant bacteria, then we will have to think outside the box. What once saved us from infections (antibiotics), is now killing us. The very nature of antibiotics encourage bacterial resistance.
Shortly after Penicillin was discovered, bacteria became resistant and now we find ourselves in the vicious cycle of throwing more and more antibiotics at resistant bacteria. http://www.fda.gov/Fdac/features/795_antibio.html
We must see that the era of antibiotic success is now leaving us. If we don't have our eyes wide open, mankind may not survive this pandemic.
I hope our story will help to save lives as our family was saved.
Since our family's recovery, we have been helping others to recover worldwide.
I welcome emails from anyone who wants our help.
God bless, Cathy
Cathy@optimalhealthusa.com
Our MRSA recovery and more info: http://optimalhealthusa.com/
Scientific Research Files:
Current news reports regarding stable allicin:
250 people recover from MRSA using stable Allicin:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,365884,00.html
Current news reports regarding stable allicin:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7531978.stm
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Dj6C6aEyrYk
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=KSObBa5b0Bw&feature=related
EUROPEAN SOCIETY OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY
http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/eccmid15/abstract.asp?id=37436
Abstract, Dr. Ronald Cutler:
http://optimalhealthusa.com/files/ALLICIN_MRSA_DRCutler_Paper_1_.pdf
Cathy P Cathy P
Feb. 18, 2009 at 8:51pm
* Where would one get MEDlhoney and/or herbal MRSA treatment? Is there a website or a recipe to make these products? I am interested.
Nina Ravey bert
Feb. 17, 2009 at 5:05pm
* Both my older sons have had MRSA during their college football careers. The first one who had MRSA in 06 was on and off antibiotics for 10 months until we found MEDIhoney and he fianlly got rid of it. He uses Medihoney when ever he has a spot that looks like staph. My middle son just had MRSA in October very quickly turned serious and need surgery and IV antibiotics. The same infectious disease MD saked why I needed him because I have my MEDIhoney and let me put it on the wounds. He missed one week of practice and one game. Mrsa cleared fast with Phisohex, Medihoney and @ IV antibiotics. He also uses medihoney on all skin injuries and wounds.
linda weinmaster linda weinmaster
Feb. 16, 2009 at 6:47pm
* Jo, I don't think there is a cure yet. This is not an infection you can treat this infection lightly. If the bug gets into your circulation, they spread rapidly in the body result in abscess in organs like bones, brain and kidney. You need to treat it fast and properly with high dose antibiotics.
I have worked as a doctor for 25 years, seen children dying with this infection. If we don't find a cure fast then we are all in trouble. The bug is bringing medical profession to its knees.
Kadiyali Srivatsa Kadiyali Srivatsa Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Feb. 16, 2009 at 4:40am
* There is a cure for this and it is not getting around because it is too cheap... no money in a "cure". I got it and used it. It will kill on contact and not leave a scar.
There are also a lot of herbal remedies that will take care of the problem without discomfort. alkavitahealth is one place another is to simply google "herbal MRSA treatment"
In a talk titled “What happens at the beach doesn’t always stay at the beach,” Plano reported on an epidemiological study of beachgoers. Of 1,303 adult bathers at a popular beach in south Florida, 37 percent came into contact with the usually harmless Staphylococcus aureus microbe in the ocean water. http://Louis-j-sheehan.com Each of the study participants waded into the ocean, dunked underwater three times and collected a sample of the surrounding seawater in a clean jug. http://Louis-j-sheehan.com
Researchers then analyzed the seawater samples to find out what bacteria hitched a ride. A small percentage of the S. aureus samples proved to be the particularly dangerous strain of the microbe MRSA, which plagues hospitals, prisons and locker rooms.
Preliminary evidence suggests that S. aureus is also present in the beach sand.
Follow-up interviews with study participants turned up no links between exposure and subsequent infections. “You shouldn’t fear the beach,” Plano says. “Go. Have fun. Embrace it.” To prevent “sharing your organisms” with other beachgoers and to protect yourself from the bacteria, Plano recommends showering with soap before and after a beach visit.
* |
* Comment
Found in: Biomedicine, Environment and Science & Society
Share & Save
* slashdot slashdot
* digg digg
* facebook facebook
* yahoo yahoo
* del.icio.us del.icio.us
* reddit reddit
* google google
* technorati technorati
Comments 6
* Fortunately Cathy, there is a new chemical being researched that comes from a sea sponge and blocks all bacteria from resistance to antibiotics. So far they are testing it on every single bacteria, and so far it has cleared the way for antibiotics to do the work they have faltered in recently. I am sure that that must have been a terrifying ordeal; I can't imagine the feelings at having to see both you and the rest of your family attacked by this infection. Have you seen "Lorenzo's Oil"? It is a very moving film and I think your family of all people could identify with it. Good luck in fighting the infection, more people need to know about these things.
Tyler Albers Tyler Albers
Feb. 19, 2009 at 4:59pm
* Hello everyone,
Our family was viciously attacked by MRSA and we nearly lost all of our lives.
We almost lost our oldest son to it within 72 hrs.
MRSA also attacked my youngest son and myself.
The boils that my son's had grew to the size of small grapefruits and destroy the flesh in the surrounding area.
As you can imagine we were horrified. We sought out medical intervention and antibiotics failed to help. our doctor threw several antibiotics at my son's infection. The antibiotics failed to keep the infection from coming back.
After speaking to an infectious disease doctor, doing my own research and networking with others struggling with MRSA,
I came to the conclusion that MRSA is rapidly evolving and becoming resistant to all antibiotics.
At that point we decided to run from this vicious cycle of throwing antibiotics at an antibiotic resistant infection. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
We prayed and researched until we found something that would save our family.
MRSA was literally eating away at us and what we found stopped MRSA from killing us. It is called Allimed, stable allicin.
This is the first time in history that allicin in garlic has been stabilized.
Since we used Allimed we did not need further medical care though we informed our doctors of our decision and continued under their observation.
We dealt with MRSA ourselves and have not had it return for any of us in 3 years.
Before using Allimed the boils were coming every few weeks.
If we are to survive this era of resistant bacteria, then we will have to think outside the box. What once saved us from infections (antibiotics), is now killing us. The very nature of antibiotics encourage bacterial resistance.
Shortly after Penicillin was discovered, bacteria became resistant and now we find ourselves in the vicious cycle of throwing more and more antibiotics at resistant bacteria. http://www.fda.gov/Fdac/features/795_antibio.html
We must see that the era of antibiotic success is now leaving us. If we don't have our eyes wide open, mankind may not survive this pandemic.
I hope our story will help to save lives as our family was saved.
Since our family's recovery, we have been helping others to recover worldwide.
I welcome emails from anyone who wants our help.
God bless, Cathy
Cathy@optimalhealthusa.com
Our MRSA recovery and more info: http://optimalhealthusa.com/
Scientific Research Files:
Current news reports regarding stable allicin:
250 people recover from MRSA using stable Allicin:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,365884,00.html
Current news reports regarding stable allicin:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7531978.stm
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Dj6C6aEyrYk
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=KSObBa5b0Bw&feature=related
EUROPEAN SOCIETY OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY
http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/eccmid15/abstract.asp?id=37436
Abstract, Dr. Ronald Cutler:
http://optimalhealthusa.com/files/ALLICIN_MRSA_DRCutler_Paper_1_.pdf
Cathy P Cathy P
Feb. 18, 2009 at 8:51pm
* Where would one get MEDlhoney and/or herbal MRSA treatment? Is there a website or a recipe to make these products? I am interested.
Nina Ravey bert
Feb. 17, 2009 at 5:05pm
* Both my older sons have had MRSA during their college football careers. The first one who had MRSA in 06 was on and off antibiotics for 10 months until we found MEDIhoney and he fianlly got rid of it. He uses Medihoney when ever he has a spot that looks like staph. My middle son just had MRSA in October very quickly turned serious and need surgery and IV antibiotics. The same infectious disease MD saked why I needed him because I have my MEDIhoney and let me put it on the wounds. He missed one week of practice and one game. Mrsa cleared fast with Phisohex, Medihoney and @ IV antibiotics. He also uses medihoney on all skin injuries and wounds.
linda weinmaster linda weinmaster
Feb. 16, 2009 at 6:47pm
* Jo, I don't think there is a cure yet. This is not an infection you can treat this infection lightly. If the bug gets into your circulation, they spread rapidly in the body result in abscess in organs like bones, brain and kidney. You need to treat it fast and properly with high dose antibiotics.
I have worked as a doctor for 25 years, seen children dying with this infection. If we don't find a cure fast then we are all in trouble. The bug is bringing medical profession to its knees.
Kadiyali Srivatsa Kadiyali Srivatsa Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Feb. 16, 2009 at 4:40am
* There is a cure for this and it is not getting around because it is too cheap... no money in a "cure". I got it and used it. It will kill on contact and not leave a scar.
There are also a lot of herbal remedies that will take care of the problem without discomfort. alkavitahealth is one place another is to simply google "herbal MRSA treatment"
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