By Darren Quick

22:26 January 19, 2011

Researchers have used an axolotl oocyte extract to reactivate tumor suppressor genes and stop cancer growing

By Darren Quick

23:38 July 21, 2009

No need to worry, it’s just a nuclear blast

According to a report in the Israeli newspaper, Yediot Ahronoth, US and Israeli researchers have developed a drug that offers protection from the damaging effects of radiation sickness. The medication could not only provide effective protection in the event of a nuclear or “dirty bomb” attack, but it could also enable cancer patients to be treated with more powerful doses of radiation.

Experiments carried out by Professor Andrei Gudkov, Chief Scientific Officer at Cleveland BioLabs, and his team exposed more than 650 monkeys split into two groups to a radiation dosage equal to the highest dosage sustained by humans as a result of the Chernobyl disaster. Of the group that didn’t receive the cure 70% died, with the survivors suffering from the obvious effects of radiation sickness. However, almost all the monkeys in the group given the medication survived, with most of them exhibiting no side effects.

The tests also showed that injecting the medication between 24 hours before exposure to 72 hours after exposure produced similar results, although Prof. Gudkov emphasized that the drug doesn’t provide 100% protection against radioactive damage. Another test, which involved giving the drug to humans without exposing them to radiation, showed no signs of side effects and indicated the drug is safe for human use.

The medication is the end result of an idea Prof. Gudkov had in 2003 to use protein produced in bacteria found in the intestine to protect cells from radiation. Five years and much hard work later has produced a medication that works by suppressing the “suicide mechanism” of cells hit by radiation, while at the same time enabling them to recover from the radiation-induced damage that triggered the suicide mechanism in the first place. The medication itself is not a vaccine, but a preventative drug that is administered as one or a series of injections.

Thanks to a shortened test track approved for bio-defense drugs Prof. Gudkov’s company expects to complete a set of expanded safety tests by mid-2010, with the medication expected to be approved for use by the FDA within a year or two, provided experiments continue at the current rate.

Israeli news site, YNet News, points to the strategic military advantage such a breakthrough would deliver as well as the medical importance of the medication, which could allow cancer patients to be exposed to greater doses of radiation offering a more powerful weapon in the fight against the disease. The medication could also provide some comfort for those situated close to nuclear power stations.

Source: YNet News, Cleveland BioLabs.

Sourced & published by Henry Sapiecha

Coleus is found to be effective in skin conditions as eczema and psoriasis.

Coleus is mainly indicated in cardiovascular diseases like hypertension, congestive heart failure and angina.

Studies have indicated the use of coleus for asthma, intestinal colic, uterine cramps, as well as painful urination.

Coleus can aid in weight loss due to its ability to breakdown stored fat as well as inhibit the synthesis of adipose tissue, additionally, it increases thyroid hormone production and release thereby increasing metabolism.

Ophthalmic preparation of forskolin to the eyes lowers eye pressure thus reducing the risk of Glaucoma.

Coleus can aid in digestive and malabsorption disorders through its ability to stimulate secretion of saliva, hydrochloric acid, pepsin, amalyase and pancreatic enzymes and increase nutrient absorption in the small intestine.

Sports nutrition, Weight management, Lean body mass development

Sourced & published by Henry Sapiecha

Nux vomica is recommended for upset stomach, vomiting, abdominal pain, constipation, intestinal irritation, hangovers, heartburn

Botanical Name : Strychnos Nux Vomica
Family Name : Loganiaceae
Common Name : Nux-vomica, Poison Nut, Snake-wood, Strychnine Tree, Quaker Buttons, Ma Qian Zi
Part Used : Bark, Leaves, Seeds
Habitat : Found throughout india in deciduous forests.
Product offered : Seeds
Uses : Strychnos nux vomica is recommended for upset stomach, vomiting, abdominal pain, constipation, intestinal irritation, hangovers, heartburn, insomnia, certain heart diseases, circulatory problems, eye diseases, depression, migraine headaches, nervous conditions, problems related to menopause, and respiratory diseases in the elderly. In folk medicine, it is used as a healing tonic and appetite stimulant. Nux vomica is a common homeopathic medicine prescribed for digestive problems, sensitivity to cold, and irritability. The senses of smell, touch, hearing and vision are rendered more acute, it improves the pulse and raises blood pressure and is of great value as a tonic to the circulatory system in cardiac failure. It is used in pruritis and as a local anodyne in inflammations of the external ear. The powdered seeds are employed in atonic dyspepsia. The leaves are applied as a poultice on sloughing wounds and ulcers.
They are also used in the preparation of medicated product for the hair and scalp.

Sourced & published by Henry Sapiecha

Specifications: Product Description Gloriosa superba (Lindl) Family: Colchicaceae Common names: Flame lily (E), isimiselo (Z), Vlamlelie (A) Gloriosa superba is a striking tuberous climbing plant with brilliant wavy-edged yellow and red flowers. There is also a more bushy, yellow-flowered form. The name Gloriosa comes from the word gloriosus, which means handsome and superba form the word superb clearly alluding to the beautiful flowers which appear from November to March. Naturally it occurs in semi-shade areas among bush on hillsides along the Cape coast, Natal, Swaziland, Northern Province, Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. Flame lilies are grown commercially for a chemical compound. They are also used by certain people to treat intestinal worms, bruises, infertility, skin problem and impotence. It is also said that sap from the leaf tip is used for pimples and skin eruptions .

Older folk who suffer from depression don’t need a drug, a hug, or a room in an senior’s home.

Just let them eat their fatty meats and fish by the bucketload!

A fresh study proves again what’s been said all along — the best way to get your groove back is to put fat back on the menu.

It’s true at any age, but the latest study looks at seniors: Iranian researchers recruited 66 who suffered from moderate to somewhat more severe depression, then gave them either a placebo or a 1-gram fish oil supplement containing 300 mg each of DHA and EPA.

That’s not a lot — you can and should get more — but the new study shows it’s a pretty good start, because the patients who got the supplement saw more relief from their depression as measured by a standardized 15-question survey than those given the placebo.

Side note: Anyone who can diagnose a serious mental disorder in 15 questions is full of it, and I don’t mean fish oil.

But that’s an argument for another day.

In any case, none of this surprises me — and if you’re a longtime reader, it won’t surprise you either. The only real surprise here is that researchers think this is still worth studying.

It’s not.

The verdict was in long ago — fish oil, cod liver oil, omega-3 fatty acids or whatever other name you want to sell it under is essential to the human brain at any age… and the shift away from these fats in the diet has been disastrous.

Don’t expect a mea culpa from the mainstream on this any time soon — they’re still pushing bunny chow despite the fact that it hasn’t made anyone thinner, happier or healthier.

Save your own noggin — enjoy your fats, and take a quality omega-3 supplement.

Algae pigment chases dementia marker

Big Pharma’s going to hate this — and that means I love it already: One of the tiniest and most humble creatures on the planet could hold the key to preventing Alzheimer’s disease.

It’s an algae called Haematococcus pluvialis, and it sits literally at the bottom of the food chain.

Because of its pink pigment, which comes from the antioxidant astaxanthin, anything that eats this algae also turns pink… as do the creatures that eat those creatures, and so on.

Think shrimp, salmon and flamingos.

But to explain how it works, I’m going to have to take you from the bottom of the food chain to the brink of cutting-edge science, where researchers have been investigating a compound called phospholipid hydroperoxides.

It’s called PLOOH for short, but don’t snicker at the name — this stuff is deadly serious: It builds up in the red blood cells of dementia patients.

Now, Japanese researchers say astaxanthin can actually flush all that extra PLOOH right out of your system (OK, you can snicker a little).

In a double-blind experiment, 30 healthy volunteers between the ages of 50 and 69 years old were given either a placebo or 6 or 12 mg of astaxanthin a day for 12 weeks.

While the placebo patients had no change in PLOOH, those given the astaxanthin saw their levels plunge by between 40 and 50 percent, with those who took the higher dose getting the biggest benefit, according to the study in BMJ.

Since dementia can take so many years before it manifests, it may be decades before anyone can say for certain whether astaxanthin will stop it.

But there’s no reason to wait — because by then, it might be too late for you. And besides, there’s enough research on its other benefits that I’ve already been calling this stuff “the alpha antioxidant.”

And with 500 times the antioxidant power of vitamin E, it’s easy to see why.

Studies have found that astaxanthin can protect everything from your heart to your eyes — and since it’s sat at the bottom of the food chain for millions of years, you might sat it’s been time-tested by Mother Nature herself.

You can’t beat that kind of lab work!

Age-Related Macular Degeneration: the leading cause of blindness in the aging population
· Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Diseases: two of the most important neurodegenerative diseases
· Cholesterol Disease: ameliorates the effects of LDL, the “bad” cholesterol
· Inflammatory, chronic viral and autoimmune diseases
· Dyspepsia
· Semen fertility improvement
· Muscle function
· Sunburn from UV light
· Normalization of cardiac rhythm
· Anti-hypertension agent
· Stress management
· Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH)
· Stroke: repairs damage caused by lack of oxygen.

A demand for natural ASTAXANTHIN is now emerging in the fast-growing, multi-billion dollar nutraceutical market; in particular, increasing evidence suggests that ASTAXANTHIN was shown to be a much more powerful antioxidant than vitamins C and E, or than other carotenoids such as beta-carotene, lycopene, lutein and zeaxanthin, among others.
The enhanced activity of ASTAXANTHIN may stem from its molecular structure. ASTAXANTHIN belongs to the xanthophyll group of carotenoids, or the oxygenated carotenoids (see other members of the group in Fig. 1). The hydroxyl and keto functional groups (see Fig. 1) present in the ending ionone ring of ASTAXANTHIN may be responsible for its uniquely powerful antioxidant activity and for its ability to span the membrane bilayers as a direct result of its more polar configuration relative to other carotenoids (3,10-14). Carotenoids with polar end groups like ASTAXANTHIN span the lipid membrane bilayer with their end groups located near the hydrophobic-hydrophilic interface, where free-radical attack first occurs.

FACTS PROVE GOV REGULATORS WRONG ABOUT ZINC & COLDS

The FTC and FDA have come down hard on the makers of zinc-based lozenges and other supplements over the years, hitting them with big-time fines over claims this mineral can beat the common cold.

Well, looks like apologies are in order… because a new analysis finds those claims were spot-on: Zinc can shorten the length of the cold, lessen the symptoms and severity, and even help you avoid getting sick in the first place.

Researchers from the Cochrane Collaboration looked at 13 clinical trials and two preventive studies published over the decades, and found solid evidence that zinc stops the cold virus from replicating.

When the virus can’t reproduce, you get better — and the Cochrane researchers say that, overall, zinc reduces cold duration by about a day.

But that benefit could be bigger — a lot bigger — if you take your zinc the moment the sniffles first hit: Some studies have shown it can slash cold duration almost in half.

The researchers also found that zinc supplements taken over five months slashed the odds of getting colds and reduced school absenteeism in children.

People who took zinc also used fewer antibiotics when they caught colds — but if your doc ever tries giving you or your children antibiotics for the common cold, politely decline… and then find a new doc, or at least a bag of zinc lozenges.

Listen, I’m no fan of the supermarket cold cures that have been fined and punished over the years.

They charge too much and you get too little — often with a sugary coating to boot.

But the question has to be asked: Now that it turns out zinc claims were based on science after all, will the feds refund all those fines and penalties?

Curcumin is a disease-fighting superstar

What is it about when I don’t eat Indian food. It smells like death, and they simmer that stuff all day long — a slow torture that robs meat and vegetables of all their nutrients.

But there’s one secret in their sauce you’ll want to share — because a common Indian spice just so happens to contain one of the world’s most powerful disease-fighting anti-inflammatory compounds: curcumin.

It’s so good it almost sounds like an old snake oil pitch: “It heals your pain! It saves your eyes! It keeps your mind sharp! It can protect your heart! Hurry, hurry, hurry ladies and geee-entlemen, because this miracle cure can even keep the cancer away!”

But what if it’s all true?

Let me start with that pain relief, because I know from your letters and emails how many of you are fighting daily battles with your joints.

Researchers gave 100 osteoarthritis patients either NSAIDs or NSAIDs along with a supplement that had 200 milligrams of curcumin at its heart.

The patients who got only the meds had no improvement… while those who got the curry pills not only had less pain and better mobility, they also managed to slash their NSAID use.

The researchers believe curcumin might even replace the drugs completely for many osteoarthritis patients, according to the new study in Alternative Medicine Review.

But since other studies have found that curcumin by itself can beat other forms of pain, including rheumatoid, I don’t know why anyone would even mess around with NSAIDs in the first place.

So far so good — but that’s only the beginning, because this stuff could also explain why India has such a low rate of Alzheimer’s disease.

One of the hallmarks of the condition is the formation of amyloid beta plaques in the brain, but one study found that curcumin is like a plaque-seeking missile — hunting the plaques, binding to them… and stopping them cold.

I’m running out of room here, but I’m not done — because other recent studies have found that curcumin may prevent cataracts, fight tumors, aid stroke recovery and even lower your risk of obesity (let’s not get too carried away with that last one — all the turmeric in Asia won’t save your belly from a carb-loaded lifestyle).

Usually, I’d say get your nutrition from food. But since I don’t like curcumin on my steak and eggs — blech! — I get mine from supplement.

You do the same, and you’ll even avoid that curry stink.