Researchers from LSTM have found that a single genetic mutation causes resistance to DDT and pyrethroids (an insecticide class used in mosquito nets). With the continuing rise of resistance the research, published in the journal Genome Biology, is key as scientists say that this knowledge could help improve malaria control strategies. The researchers, led by Dr Charles Wondji, used a wide range of methods to narrow down how the resistance works, finding a single mutation in the GSTe2 gene, which makes insects break down DDT so it's no longer toxic. They have also shown that this gene makes insects resistant to pyrethroids raising the concern that GSTe2 gene could protect mosquitoes against the major insecticides used in public health. Mosquitoes (Anopheles funestus) are vectors of malaria, and most strategies for combating the spread of the disease focus on control of mosquito populations using insecticides. The spread of resistance genes could hold back efforts to prevent the disease. The authors say that knowing how resistance works will help to develop tests, and stop these genes from spreading amongst mosquito populations. Charles Wondji said: 'We found a population of mosquitoes fully resistant to DDT (no mortality when they were treated with DDT) … Continue reading →

Nicole Gross was so desperate to find relief for her son's near-constant, debilitating seizures that she moved him from Naperville to Colorado so he could receive medical marijuana. Weeks after Chase Gross, 8, started taking a marijuana oil extract through a dropper, his mother said she saw a dramatic decrease in the number of daily seizures he had, allowing him to make developmental leaps such as dressing himself and learning new sign language words, since his condition has left him unable to speak. Gross became so convinced of pot's effectiveness in treating her son's severe epilepsy that she joined a growing number of parents and advocates lobbying Illinois to change its rules not only to add epilepsy to the list of qualifying conditions but to make medical marijuana available to children, as Colorado and several other states do. The drug's positive effects on Chase, his mother said, were "shocking." Public opinion has been shifting in favor of medical marijuana: Twenty states have legalized it, and the vast majority allow children access to it. But its use, particularly among juveniles, remains controversial. Marijuana is illegal under federal law, where it is classified as a dangerous substance with no medical value. While … Continue reading →

S In 1998, there was a groundbreaking study telling parents that their children were at risk of getting autism from vaccines. Parents everywhere collectively gasped. After all, they had been told for years vaccines were the best way to prevent any number of unwanted diseases. Now they find out the very treatment they thought was making their children better could potentially result in devastating consequences, at least in the case of low-functioning Autism. The only problem was that same study published in the Lancet was later retracted. Its author, Andrew Wakefield, was shown to have falsified data. His "science" proved to be fraudulent, and riddled with conflicts of interest. His research was so void of ethics that the British General Medical Council removed him from the medical registry and he's no longer allowed to practice medicine in the United Kingdom. The damage, however, was done. As with so many other societal perceptions based on debunked science, vaccines causing autism is still a very real concern for many parents. In a survey published in Health Affairs in 2011, 30%-36% of parents were concerned that their children were given too many vaccines in the first 2 years of life, and that those … Continue reading →

Yoga for Young at Heart - Heart Disease, Stroke Treatment and Diet Tips in French. Votre cur est un organe tonnant. Il pompe l'oxygne en continu et le sang riche en nutriments tout au long de votre corps, la vie. Nos modes de vie et de... By: Sur Le Yoga … Continue reading →

CHICAGO, Feb. 24 (UPI) -- Giving stroke patients hypertension medication in the first 48 hours after a stroke does not reduce the likelihood of death or disability, U.S. researchers say. Stroke specialist Dr. Jose Biller, chairman of the Department of Neurology of Loyola University Medical Center, said the study involved more than 4,000 stroke patients in 26 hospitals across China, who were randomly assigned to receive blood pressure medications or to discontinue blood pressure medications. At 14 days or hospital discharge, there were no statistically significant differences between the groups in mortality or disability. Blood pressure often is elevated following a stroke, Biller said. "But in most cases, treatment is unnecessary because the blood pressure declines naturally over time, and lowering blood pressure may be contraindicated," Biller said in a statement. "It is important not to overtreat and cause low blood pressure, because the most important objective is to maintain adequate blood flow to the brain." The study, the China Anti-hypertensive Trial in Acute Ischemic Stroke, involved patients who had suffered ischemic strokes, which account for about 85 percent of all strokes. Such strokes are caused by blood clots that block blood flow to a part of the brain. The … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 24-Feb-2014 Contact: Dr Gang Hu Gang.Hu@pbrc.edu 225-763-3053 Diabetologia New research published in Diabetologia (the journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes) shows that diabetes in women is associated with an increased risk of stroke, whereas the data do not show the same association among men. The research is by Dr Wenhui Zhao (the first author), Dr Gang Hu and colleagues at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA. Differences in incidence and mortality between sexes have been reported for various conditions, including stroke. More women than men tend to die from stroke in developed countries. For example, in the USA, 77,109 women and 52,367 men died from stroke in 2010. Women accounted for almost 60% of US stroke deaths in 2010. In the UK, 32,828 women and 20,358 men died from stroke in 2007. The authors prospectively investigated the sex-specific association of different levels of HbA1c with incident stroke risk among 10,876 male and 19,278 female patients with type 2 diabetes in the Louisiana State University Hospital-Based Longitudinal Study (LSUHLS). During a mean follow up of 6.7 years, 2,949 incident cases of stroke were identified. The authors calculated the risk of stroke … Continue reading →