StemCell Therapy

While Beyond Meat debuted in the frozen aisle with beef crumbles and chicken strips (the latter have been dropped), the brand took off after launching refrigerated burgers and sausages designed to sit in the [animal] meat case, with sales in its fresh platform growing 275% in 2019 vs 11.8% growth in frozen.

If the refrigerated plant-based meat category is growing significantly faster, however, the frozen aisle is still the largest section in grocery for plant-based meat and still represents a sizeable opportunity, chief growth officer Chuck Muth told FoodNavigator-USA. Plus, our breakfast sausage patty cooks better from frozen.

The patties (MSRP $4.99 for six) contain 11g protein per serving, with 50% less total fat, 35% less saturated fat and sodium, 33% fewer calories, and 35% less sodium than the leading brand of pork sausage patties, with a base of pea protein and brown rice protein.

Asked about pricing in the plant-based meat segment following rival Impossible Foods move to cut prices to foodservice distributors by 15%, Muth said:

Impossible is quite a bit smaller than us; they are just starting to scale and as they are scaling, they are finding efficiencies and, I assume, bringing their price down accordingly. However their frontline pricing is still significantly higher than ours, so they still have a bit to go, and our pricing is more attractive.

He added:One of our goals is to reduce our pricing, so as we are able to develop more production efficiencies and [increase] capacity, and as we engineer products, we are very much focused on bringing our prices down.

Weve made it our stated goal that at least one of our items will be as cheap or cheaper than animal meat within the next four years or so, and thats the long term goal, to be priced competitively, not just with other plant based meats but with animal meats as well.

So is Beyond Meat sustaining or growing sales velocities in high-profile restaurant chains after the initial excitement or marketing budget wears off?

I think the encouraging thing for us is seeing product expansions in existing chains where we have partnerships, because theyre seeing good results coming in, said Muth, citing the example of Carls Jr and Hardees now offering Beyond Sausage breakfast burritos and egg and cheese biscuits as well as burgers.

He also noted that Dunkin which is rolling out Beyond Sausage sandwiches nationwide after a successful trial had attracted new guests and increased check sizes in part because plant-based products are premium items, but also because customers have proved more likely to pair them with higher-priced beverages such as lattes and cold brew. Its bringing in bigger register rings.

While some big names in QSR have not yet introduced plant-based entrees or breakfast options, they are all monitoring the space closely, he said.

Its more a timing issue than anything, plus they also want something thats unique to them since they are not going to be first to market, so they are thinking about what will differentiate them from the competition. But long term if they see their competitors being successful in this space they are going to have to take a very serious look.

Asked if Beyond Meat were in a position to be able to say yes to every account thats interested, or whether supply constraints were holding the company back, Muth said the firm was expanding in-house extrusion capabilities in the near future and adding more co-packers to its network in the US, Canada, Europe and Asia for downstream patty/sausage formation and packaging.

His comments came as CEO Ethan Brown told analysts last month that Beyond Meat began the year with around $700m in gross revenue capacity, with plans to scale to over a billion by the end of the year.

On the ingredient sourcing front, while Beyond Meat has recently expanded its pea protein sourcing capabilities,it is also exploring multiple other plant-based protein sources for sensory reasons (adding new flavors), nutritional reasons (to balance out amino acid profiles), and supply chain reasons (to diversify), said Muth, who noted that the Beyond Sausage uses a small amount of faba bean protein, while Beyond Beef and Beyond Burgers utilize mung bean and rice protein as well as peas.

As for the innovation pipeline, right now, Beyond Meat is focused on beef, poultry, and pork alternatives including plant-based bacon, said Muth. But down the road wed potentially look at other things.

Quizzed about the brands decision to go on the offensivethis year to tackle the narrative that plant-based meats are highly processed and unhealthy, he said:

We believe in the category and the space and were very positive, you wont hear us bad mouth other plant-based products or brands, but there are a lot of false narratives out there about whats in our products, so we think we have an obligation to talk about whats in our foods, so to understand that things like methyl cellulose [which isused in most plant-based meat products] are in many foods, things like ice cream and baked goods.

We want to make sure that consumers are well informed and to remind people that most foods we eat are processed.

Asked whether it was disingenuous to make a virtue of Beyond Meats all-natural non-GMO credentials [which distinguish it from rival Impossible Foods] given its commitment to science-based messaging and consumer education, he said:

Its not about what we believe, its what our consumers, our shoppers, believe, so were not saying theres anything bad about it [genetic engineering in food production].

Read more:
Beyond Meat rolls out frozen breakfast sausage patties, addresses pricing in plant-based meat sector - FoodNavigator-USA.com

New research from the University of NebraskaLincoln has led to the discovery of a novel gene that improves drought adaptation in wheat a breakthrough that could contribute to increased world food security.

In new research published in Plant Biotechnology Journal, Harkamal Walia, associate professor and Heuermann Chair of Agronomy and Horticulture at Nebraska, and colleagues describe a novel form of a gene obtained from wild wheat that has the potential to improve drought tolerance in cultivated wheat. Introducing this gene into cultivated wheat improved the plant root structure so that it continued to grow in search of water under dry soil conditions.

Wheat is the most widely grown crop in the world and, together with rice, provides more than 50% of the caloric intake of humans globally. Like other crops, wheat is exposed to a wide range of environmental limitations, such as high temperature, disease pressure and drought.

The scavenging nature of wheat root systems during times of drought may have been lost when wild wheats were adopted for agriculture by early humans or as cultivated wheat was bred for improved responsiveness to irrigation and fertilizers during the mid-1900s. This improved responsiveness was key to feeding a booming world population during the 1960s.

As todays producers strive for more crop per drop to feed a world population that is again in the midst of a boom and is expected to grow from about 7.5 billion today to more than 9.6 billion by 2050, it is evident that future crops will need greater drought resilience. The discovery by Walia and his colleagues could represent an important new genetic resource, enabling breeders to recapture this natural survival trait in cultivated wheat. UNL has secured a patent on the discovery via NUtech Ventures, enabling future commercialization of this technology.

The potential impact of the discovery grew substantially when the team found that adding the wild root gene also resulted in plants with larger grains in the absence of drought. Walia and his team were not expecting this, as introducing tolerance to a stress can sometimes result in lost productivity when the stress is absent.

This particular trait may have the opposite effect, which is a benefit in both conditions, Walia said. We are now working to understand the reason behind this surprising finding.

The genetic engineering of wheat plants was performed at Nebraskas Center for Biotechnology.

Walia is one of many researchers worldwide helping to develop a catalog of genes that will contribute to creating more robust plants for the future. Drought response is a complicated trait, Walia said, which involves many genes contributing to survival and productivity when water is limited. He hopes that research in this area will continue to discover new genetic resources that plant breeders and geneticists can use to develop more drought-tolerant crops.

From a genetic improvement perspective, it takes a community to make a crop more adaptive, Walia said. This finding is one piece of a very large puzzle.

The research was spearheaded by doctoral students Dante Placido and Jaspreet Sandhu in the Department of Agronomy and Horticulture. The work was supported by the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the Robert B. Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute.

Continue reading here:
UNL team links wild wheat gene to drought tolerance in cultivated wheat - Grand Island Independent

Dublin, March 10, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Cell Therapy - Technologies, Markets and Companies" report from Jain PharmaBiotech has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The cell-based markets was analyzed for 2018, and projected to 2028. The markets are analyzed according to therapeutic categories, technologies and geographical areas. The largest expansion will be in diseases of the central nervous system, cancer and cardiovascular disorders. Skin and soft tissue repair as well as diabetes mellitus will be other major markets.

The number of companies involved in cell therapy has increased remarkably during the past few years. More than 500 companies have been identified to be involved in cell therapy and 309 of these are profiled in part II of the report along with tabulation of 302 alliances. Of these companies, 170 are involved in stem cells.

Profiles of 72 academic institutions in the US involved in cell therapy are also included in part II along with their commercial collaborations. The text is supplemented with 67 Tables and 25 Figures. The bibliography contains 1,200 selected references, which are cited in the text.

This report contains information on the following:

The report describes and evaluates cell therapy technologies and methods, which have already started to play an important role in the practice of medicine. Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is replacing the old fashioned bone marrow transplants. Role of cells in drug discovery is also described. Cell therapy is bound to become a part of medical practice.

Stem cells are discussed in detail in one chapter. Some light is thrown on the current controversy of embryonic sources of stem cells and comparison with adult sources. Other sources of stem cells such as the placenta, cord blood and fat removed by liposuction are also discussed. Stem cells can also be genetically modified prior to transplantation.

Cell therapy technologies overlap with those of gene therapy, cancer vaccines, drug delivery, tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Pharmaceutical applications of stem cells including those in drug discovery are also described. Various types of cells used, methods of preparation and culture, encapsulation and genetic engineering of cells are discussed. Sources of cells, both human and animal (xenotransplantation) are discussed. Methods of delivery of cell therapy range from injections to surgical implantation using special devices.

Cell therapy has applications in a large number of disorders. The most important are diseases of the nervous system and cancer which are the topics for separate chapters. Other applications include cardiac disorders (myocardial infarction and heart failure), diabetes mellitus, diseases of bones and joints, genetic disorders, and wounds of the skin and soft tissues.

Regulatory and ethical issues involving cell therapy are important and are discussed. Current political debate on the use of stem cells from embryonic sources (hESCs) is also presented. Safety is an essential consideration of any new therapy and regulations for cell therapy are those for biological preparations.

Key Topics Covered

Part I: Technologies, Ethics & RegulationsExecutive Summary 1. Introduction to Cell Therapy2. Cell Therapy Technologies3. Stem Cells4. Clinical Applications of Cell Therapy5. Cell Therapy for Cardiovascular Disorders6. Cell Therapy for Cancer7. Cell Therapy for Neurological Disorders8. Ethical, Legal and Political Aspects of Cell therapy9. Safety and Regulatory Aspects of Cell Therapy

Part II: Markets, Companies & Academic Institutions10. Markets and Future Prospects for Cell Therapy11. Companies Involved in Cell Therapy12. Academic Institutions13. References

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/bzimne

Research and Markets also offers Custom Research services providing focused, comprehensive and tailored research.

See the rest here:
Cell Therapy Insights Report, 2018-2028: Markets, Technologies, Ethics, Regulations, Companies & Academic Institutions - Benzinga

Study lead author Laura Rivera Tarazona, a biomedical engineering doctoral student, worked with Dr. Taylor Ware (left) and Dr. Zachary Campbell on her research that incorporated plant DNA into yeast to give it light-responsive traits.

Combining the powers of the living and the inanimate, an interdisciplinary team from The University of Texas at Dallas has embedded genetically modified yeast into a synthetic gel to create a novel, shape-changing material designed to grow under specific biochemical or physical conditions.

This is definitely a case where the product is more than the sum of its parts, said Dr. Taylor Ware, assistant professor of bioengineering in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science and corresponding author of a paper published in January in Science Advances, the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences open-access journal.

The idea to use the reproductive growth of cells to drive shape change within an inanimate container began with an old, reliable standby: bakers yeast, or Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Yeast was the first eukaryotic organism to have its genome totally sequenced, Ware said. Wonderful tools exist already to modify it genetically. The cells have stiff cell walls, unlike mammalian cells, which make them better for pushing outward on the gel to change its shape.

By genetically modifying the yeast in different ways, the research team created composites that responded to various stimuli.

In proof-of-concept experiments, biomedical engineering doctoral student Laura Rivera Tarazona, lead author of the paper, incorporated plant DNA into yeast to give it light-responsive traits. When the resulting yeast-hydrogel composite was exposed to light, the entire object changed shape as the growing yeast pushed outward on the boundaries of the gel.

The research team also modified the yeast to respond to biochemical stimuli, including amino acids, which are building blocks of proteins.

This combination of animate with inanimate lends itself to interacting with the body in a particularly useful way using cellular mechanisms to drive shape change, Ware said. Given the flexibility of yeast, this composite could be designed to respond to any of countless conditions.

Dr. Zachary Campbell, assistant professor of biological sciences in the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics and a co-author of the study, said the awesome power of yeast genetics made the project possible.

Weve had the ability to make yeast do amazing biological things for a long time, but its only in the past few years that we have had the ability to create strains where gene activity is precisely controlled by light, Campbell said.

Theres a beauty to taking something thats ordinarily so static and endowing it with this capability to transform into other things.

Dr. Zachary Campbell, assistant professor of biological sciences in the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics

The researchers believe the shape-changing response has potential applications as a type of reporter both inside and outside the body.

Where I think this research eventually goes is indicating disease states via detection of proteins and other biomolecules, Ware said.

Ware said shape change could also be used to perform mechanical work to open a container or uncover an adhesive, for example.

Our results are in the very early stage, but the fact that were taking a series of molecular events and transducing them into something mechanical is already exciting in itself, Ware said.

Rivera Tarazona uses a microscope as one of the successful projects is displayed on the monitor in the background.

Campbell added that, although the physical transformations in the composite materials are very slow, capitalizing on genetic manipulations to drive minuscule devices could have additional applications, such as releasing drugs from a capsule in response to a precise biological trigger.

Theoretically, you could use these to detect anything you can detect in nature by combining an existing genetic circuit from another cell type with the yeast, he said. This allows access to a dazzling array of physiological cues.

Theres a beauty to taking something thats ordinarily so static and endowing it with this capability to transform into other things.

Other authors of the research included biomedical engineer Hyun Kim PhD19 and Vandita Bhat, a molecular biology doctoral student graduating this spring.

The work was supported by a grant (R01NS100788) from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, part of the National Institutes of Health, and is partially based on work supported by the National Science Foundation.

More:
Team Creates Shape-Changing Material That Pushes Biological Boundaries - University of Texas at Dallas

The year 2020 marks a milestone in the march of robots into popular culture: the 100th anniversary of the birth of science fiction writer Isaac Asimov. Asimov coined the word 'robotics', invented the much-quoted Three Laws governing robot behavior, and passed on many myths and misconceptions that affect the way we feel about robots today.

A compulsive writer and homebodypossibly, an agoraphobicAsimov hated to travel: ironically, for a writer who specialized in fantastic tales often set on distant worlds, he hadn't been in an airplane since being flown home from Hawaii by the US Army after being released from service just before a test blast of the atomic bomb on the Bikini Atoll. (Asimov once grimly observed that this stroke of luck probably saved his life by preventing him from getting leukemia, one of the side effects that afflicted many servicemen who were close to the blast.)

By 1956, Asimov had completed most of the stories that cemented his reputation as the grand master of science fiction, and set the ground rules for a new field of study called "robotics," a word he made up. Researchers like Marvin Minsky of MIT and William Shockley of Bell Labs had been doing pioneering work into Artificial Intelligence and Robotics since the early 1950s, but they were not well-known outside of the scientific and business communities. Asimov, on the other hand, was famous, his books so commercially successful that he quit his job as a tenured chemistry professor at Boston College to write full-time. Asimov's 1950 short story collection, I, Robot, put forward a vision of the robot as humanity's friend and protector, at a time when many humans were wondering if their own species could be trusted not to self-destruct.

Born in January 1920, or possibly October 1919the exact date was uncertain because birth records weren't kept in the little Russian village where he came fromAsimov emigrated to Brooklyn in 1922 with his parents. Making a go of life in America turned out to be tougher than they expected, until his father scraped together enough money to buy a candy store. That decision would have a seismic impact on Isaac's future, and on robotics research and the narratives we tell ourselves about human-robot relationships to this day.

As a kid, Isaac worked long hours in the store where he became interested in two attractions that pulled in customers: a slot machine that frequently needed to be dismantled for repairs; and pulp fiction magazines featuring death rays and alien worlds. Soon after the first rocket launches in the mid-1920s, scientists announced that space travel was feasible, opening the door to exciting tales of adventure in outer space. Atomic energythe source of the death rayswas also coming into public consciousness as a potential "super weapon." But both atomic bombs and space travel were still very much in the realm of fiction; few people actually believed they'd see either breakthrough within their lifetimes.

Advertisement:

The genre of the stories in the pulps wasn't new. Fantastical tales inspired by science and technology went back to the publication of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein in 1818, which speculated about the use of a revolutionary new energy source, electricity, to reanimate life. Jules Verne, H. P. Lovecraft, H. G. Welles, and Edgar Rice Burroughs all wrote novels touching on everything from time travel, to atomic-powered vehicles, to what we now call genetic engineering. But the actual term, "science fiction," wasn't coined by any of them: that distinction goes to Hugo Gernsbeck, editor of the technical journal, Modern Electrics, whose name would eventually be given to the HUGO, the annual award for the best science fiction writing.13

Gernsbeck's interest in the genre started with a field that was still fairly new in his time: electrical engineering. Even in 1911, the nature of electricity was not fully understood, and random electrocutions were not uncommon; electricians weren't just tradesmen, but daredevils, taking their lives in their hands every time they wired a house or lit up a city street.14 Gernsbeck, perhaps gripped by the same restless derring-do as his readers, wasn't satisfied with writing articles about induction coils. In 1911, he penned a short story set in the twenty-third century and serialized it over several issues of Modern Electrics, a decision that must have baffled some of the electricians who made up his subscribers. At first, Gernsbeck called his mash-up of science and fiction "scientifiction," mercifully changing that mouthful to "science fiction." He went on to publish a string of popular magazines, including Science Wonder Stories, Wonder Stories, Science, and Astounding. (Gernsbeck's rich imagination didn't stretch far enough to come up with more original titles.)

Asimov's father stocked Gernsbeck's magazines in the candy store because they sold like hotcakes, but he considered them out-and-out junk. Young Isaac was forbidden to waste time reading about things that didn't exist and never would, like space travel and atomic weapons.

Despite (or possibly because of) his father's objections, Isaac began secretly reading every pulp science fiction magazine that appeared in the store, handling each one so carefully that Asimov Senior never knew they had been opened. Isaac finally managed to convince his father that one of Gernsbeck's magazines, Science Wonder Stories, had educational valueafter all, the word "science" was in the title, wasn't it?15

Isaac sold his first short story when he was still an eighteen-year-old high school student, naively showing up at the offices of Amazing Stories to personally deliver it to the editor, John W. Campbell. Campbell rejected the story (eventually published by a rival Gernsbeck publication, Astounding) but encouraged Isaac to send him more. Over time, Campbell published a slew of stories that established Isaac, while still a university student, as a handsomely paid writer of science fiction.

When you read those early stories today, Asimov's weaknesses as a writer are painfully glaring. With almost no experience of the world outside of his school, the candy store, and his Brooklyn neighborhood and no exposure to contemporary writers of his time like Hemingway or FitzgeraldIsaac fell back on the flat, stereotypical characters and clichd plots of pulp fiction. Isaac did have one big thing going for him, though: a science education.

By the early 1940s, Asimov was a graduate student in chemistry at Columbia University, as well as a member of the many science fiction fan clubs springing up all over Brooklyn whose members' obsession with the minutiae of fantastical worlds would be familiar to any ComicCon fan in a Klingon costume today. Asimov wrote stories that appealed to this newly emerging geeky readership, staying close enough to the boundaries of science to be plausible, while still instinctively understanding how to create wondrous fictional worlds.

The working relationship between Asimov and his editor, Campbell, turned into a highly profitable one for both publisher and author. But as Asimov improved his writing and tackled more complex themes, he ran into a roadblock: Campbell insisted that he would only publish human- centered stories. Aliens could appear as stock villains but humans always had to come out on top. Campbell didn't just believe that people were superior to aliens, but that some peoplewhite Anglo-Saxons were superior to everyone else. Still a relatively young writer and unwilling to walk away from his lucrative gig with Campbell, Asimov looked for ways to work around his editor's prejudices. The answer: write about robots. Asimov's mechanical beings were created by humans, in their own image; as sidekicks, helpers, proxies, and, eventually, replacements. Endowed with what Asimov dubbed "positronic brains," his imaginary robots were even more cleverly constructed than the slot machine in the candy store.

Never a hands-on guy himself, Asimov was nonetheless interested in how mechanisms worked. Whenever the store's one-armed bandit had to be serviced, Isaac would watch the repairman open the machine and expose its secrets. The slot machine helped him imagine the mechanical beings in his stories.

Although Asimov can be credited with kick-starting a generation's love affair with robots, he was far from their inventor. (Even I, Robot borrowed its title from a 1939 comic book of the same name written by a pair of brothers who called themselves Eando Binder, the name eventually bestowed on the beer-swilling, cigar-smoking robot star of the TV show, Futurama.) But in writing his very first robot story, Asimov was both jumping on a new obsession of the 1920s, and mining old, deep myths going back to ancient Jewish tales of the golem, which was a man made of mud and magically brought to life, as well as stories as diverse as Pygmalion, Pinocchio, and engineering wonders like the eighteenth century, chess-playing Mechanical Turk, and other automatons.

Robots have an ancient history and a surprisingly whimsical one. Automatons have been frog marching, spinet playing, and minuet dancing their way out of the human imagination for hundreds, if not thousands, of years, but it wasn't until the machine age of the early twentieth century that robots appeared as thinking, reasoning substitute humans. The word robotCzech for "mechanical worker"wasn't coined in a patent office or on a technical blueprint, but as the title of a fantastical play by Karel Capek, Rossum's Universal Robots, which was first performed in 1920, the reputed year of Isaac Asimov's birth. In adopting robots as his main characters, and the challenges and ethics of human life in a robotic world as one of his central themes, Asimov found his voice as a writer. His robots are more sympathetic and three-dimensional than his human characters. In exploring the dynamics of human-robot partnershipsas Asimov would do particularly well in detective/robot "buddy" stories, such as his 1954 novel Caves of Steel he invented a subgenre within the broader world of science fiction.

Asimov's humanoid robots were governed by the Three Laws of Robotics. More whimsical than scientific, they established ground rules for an imaginary world where humans and mechanical beings coexisted. Eventually, the Three Laws were quoted by researchers in two academic fields that were still unnamed in the 1940s: artificial intelligence and robotics.

First published by Astounding magazine in 1942 as part of Asimov's fourth robot story "Runaround", the Three Laws stated that:

A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws.

According to Asimov's biographer Michael Wilson in Isaac Asimov: A Life of the Grand Master of Science Fiction (New York, Carrol & Graff, 2005), "Asimov was flattered that he had established a set of pseudoscientific laws. Despite the fact that in the early 1940s the science of robotics was a purely fictional thing, he somehow knew that one day they would provide the foundation for a real set of laws."

The Three Laws would continue to appear not only in the world of robot-driven books and filmslike Aliens (1986), where the laws are synopsized by the synthetic human Bishop when trying to reassure the robot-phobic heroine Ellen Ripleybut by some real-world roboticists and AI researchers, who are now considering how to develop a moral code for machines that may one day have to make independent, life-or-death decisions.

Read more from the original source:
Isaac Asimov, the candy store kid who dreamed up robots - Salon

PARIS A second patient has been cured of HIV after undergoing stem cell transplant treatment, doctors said Tuesday, after finding no trace of infection 30 months after he stopped traditional treatment.

The London Patient, a cancer sufferer originally from Venezuela, made headlines last year when researchers at the University of Cambridge reported they had found no trace of the AIDS-causing virus in his blood for 18 months.

Ravindra Gupta, lead author of the study published in The Lancet HIV, said the new test results were even more remarkable and likely demonstrated the patient was cured.

Weve tested a sizeable set of sites that HIV likes to hide in and they are all pretty much negative for an active virus, Gupta told AFP.

The patient, who revealed his identity this week as Adam Castillejo, 40, was diagnosed with HIV in 2003 and had been on medication to keep the disease in check since 2012.

Later that year, he was diagnosed with advanced Hodgkins lymphoma, a deadly cancer.

In 2016 he underwent a bone marrow transplant to treat blood cancer, receiving stem cells from donors with a genetic mutation present in less than 1 percent of Europeans that prevents HIV from taking hold.

He becomes only the second person to be cured of HIV after American Timothy Brown, known as the Berlin Patient, recovered from HIV in 2011 following similar treatment.

Viral tests of Castillejos cerebral fluid, intestinal tissue and lymphoid tissue more than two years after stopping retroviral treatment showed no active infection.

Gupta said the tests uncovered HIV fossils fragments of the virus that were now incapable of reproducing, and were therefore safe.

Wed expect that, he said.

Its quite hard to imagine that all trace of a virus that infects billions of cells was eliminated from the body.

Researchers cautioned that the breakthrough did not constitute a generalized cure for HIV, which leads to nearly 1 million deaths every year.

Castillejos treatment was a last resort as his blood cancer would likely have killed him without intervention, according to Gupta.

The Cambridge doctor said that there were several other patients who had undergone similar treatment but who were less far along in their remission.

There will probably be more but they will take time, he said.

Researchers are currently weighing up whether or not patients suffering from drug-resistant forms of HIV might be eligible for stem cell transplants in future, something Gupta said would require careful ethical consideration.

Youd have to weigh up the fact that theres a 10 percent mortality rate from doing a stem-cell transplant against what the risk of death would be if we did nothing, he said.

Commenting on The Lancet study, Sharon Lewin, an infectious disease expert at the University of Melbourne, said the findings could provide comfort to patients.

But she advised caution.

Given the large number of cells sampled here and the absence of any intact virus, is the London patient cured? she said.

Unfortunately in the end, only time will tell.

Continue reading here:
Second patient cured of HIV using stem cell transplant treatment - The Japan Times

MENLO PARK, Calif. and NEW YORK, March 11, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Forty Seven Inc. (Nasdaq: FTSV) and Rocket Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: RCKT) announced today that they have entered into a research collaboration to pursue clinical proof-of-concept for Forty Sevens novel antibody-based conditioning regimen, FSI-174 (anti-cKIT antibody) plus magrolimab (anti-CD47 antibody), with Rockets ex vivo lentiviral vector hematopoietic stem cell (LVV HSC) gene therapy, RP-L102. The initial collaboration will evaluate this treatment regimen in Fanconi Anemia (FA), a genetic disease that affects patients capacity to produce blood cells and is associated with an increased risk of leukemia and other neoplasms. RP-L102, Rockets gene therapy approach for FA, involves treatment with patients own gene-corrected blood forming stem cells (hematopoietic stem cells, or HSCs).

Gene therapies for monogenic blood disorders have broad potential. One concern associated with these treatments is the toxicity of pre-therapy conditioning regimens that utilize cytotoxic chemotherapy and/or radiation to destroy existing HSCs and facilitate engraftment of gene-corrected HSCs. Forty Sevens all-antibody based conditioning regimen is designed to address the limitations of current pre-treatment conditioning therapies. These regimens are often associated with serious side effects, including severe infection, cognitive impairment, infertility, endocrine dysfunction, secondary malignancies and organ damage. These toxicities are especially difficult for pediatric patients and are particularly severe for patients with FA, who are more sensitive to the DNA-damaging effects of traditional conditioning agents. Preliminary data demonstrate that RP-L102 may confer efficacy without pre-treatment conditioning. The combination of RP-L102 with Forty Sevens all-antibody conditioning regimen may provide patients an alternate treatment option in situations where conditioning may be advantageous.

We are pleased to enter into this collaboration with Forty Seven, said Jonathan Schwartz, M.D., Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President of Rocket. RP-L102 Process B is currently being evaluated in a registrational trial without the use of conditioning. In parallel, we are assessing incorporation of a non-genotoxic conditioning regimen as a part of Rockets life-cycle management strategy. Forty Sevens novelall-antibodyconditioning regimen could also beapplied to Rockets other lentiviral programs, in which conditioning is more integral to the gene therapy approach.

We are initiating our first in human healthy volunteer study of FSI-174 in the first quarter this year, and are excited to enter into a partnership with Rocket at this time. Rocket is at the forefront of developing gene therapies for high unmet-need diseases, and this collaboration will provide an opportunity to evaluate the benefit of Forty Sevens novel conditioning regimen with Rockets RP-L102 to help FA patients, says Jens-Peter Volkmer, VP of Research at Forty Seven.

This collaboration is in line with our strategy to study our anti-cKIT and anti-CD47, all-antibody conditioning regimen in combination with several different gene therapies, and to establish clinical proof-of-concept in a broad range of transplant indications, said Mukul Agarwal, VP of Corporate Development at Forty Seven.

Maria Grazia Roncarolo, M.D., Scientific Advisor to Forty Seven, commented, The goal of my lifes work is to bring pediatric patients transformative therapies for currently incurable diseases. We believe Rocket Pharmaceuticals commitment to devastating diseases, such as FA, addresses a critical unmet need and Forty Sevens antibody conditioning creates an alternative avenue to deliver this therapy to those patients. We look forward to seeing how this collaboration may help patients in need.

Under the terms of the agreement, Rocket will provide its ex vivo LVV HSC gene therapy platform and Forty Seven will contribute its innovative antibody-based conditioning regimen for the collaboration.

About FSI-174 and MagrolimabFSI-174 is a humanized monoclonal antibody targeting cKIT, which is a receptor that is highly expressed on hematopoietic stem cells. Magrolimab is a humanized monoclonal antibody targeting CD47, which is a dont eat me signal to macrophages and is expressed on all cells. Magrolimab is currently being investigated in Phase 2 clinical trials to treat cancer and has established clinical efficacy in four indications, including myelodysplastic syndrome, acute myeloid leukemia, diffuse large B cell lymphoma and follicular lymphoma, with a favorable safety profile in over 400 patients treated, including some patients treated continuously for over two years. When combined, FSI-174 sends a positive signal to macrophages to target blood forming stem cells for removal and magrolimab disengages inhibitory signals that block phagocytosis. Combination of these antibodies has shown efficient removal of blood forming stem cells, allowing for transplantation in pre-clinical models.

About Fanconi Anemia Fanconi Anemia (FA) is a rare pediatric disease characterized by bone marrow failure, malformations and cancer predisposition. The primary cause of death among patients with FA is bone marrow failure, which typically occurs during the first decade of life. Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), when available, corrects the hematologic component of FA, but requires myeloablative conditioning. Graft-versus-host disease, a known complication of allogeneic HSCT, is associated with an increased risk of solid tumors, mainly squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck region. Approximately 60-70% of patients with FA have aFANC-Agene mutation, which encodes for a protein essential for DNA repair. Mutation in theFANC-Agene leads to chromosomal breakage and increased sensitivity to oxidative and environmental stress. Chromosome fragility induced by DNA-alkylating agents such as mitomycin-C (MMC) or diepoxybutane (DEB) is the gold standard test for FA diagnosis. Somatic mosaicism occurs when there is a spontaneous correction of the mutated gene that can lead to stabilization or correction of a FA patients blood counts in the absence of any administered therapy. Somatic mosaicism, often referred to as natural gene therapy provides a strong rationale for the development of FA gene therapy because of the selective growth advantage of gene-corrected hematopoietic stem cells over FA cells1.

1Soulier, J.,et al. (2005) Detection of somatic mosaicism and classification of Fanconi anemia patients by analysis of the FA/BRCA pathway. Blood 105: 1329-1336

About Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: RCKT) (Rocket) is advancing an integrated and sustainable pipeline of genetic therapies that correct the root cause of complex and rare childhood disorders. The companys platform-agnostic approach enables it to design the best therapy for each indication, creating potentially transformative options for patients contending with rare genetic diseases. Rocket's clinical programs using lentiviral vector (LVV)-based gene therapy are for the treatment of Fanconi Anemia (FA), a difficult to treat genetic disease that leads to bone marrow failure and potentially cancer, Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency-I (LAD-I), a severe pediatric genetic disorder that causes recurrent and life-threatening infections which are frequently fatal, and Pyruvate Kinase Deficiency (PKD) a rare, monogenic red blood cell disorder resulting in increased red cell destruction and mild to life-threatening anemia. Rockets first clinical program using adeno-associated virus (AAV)-based gene therapy is for Danon disease, a devastating, pediatric heart failure condition. Rockets pre-clinical pipeline program is for Infantile Malignant Osteopetrosis (IMO), a bone marrow-derived disorder. For more information about Rocket, please visitwww.rocketpharma.com.

For more information, please visit http://www.rocketpharma.com or contact info@rocketpharma.com

About Forty Seven, Inc.Forty Seven, Inc.is a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company that is developing therapies targeting cancer immune evasion pathways based on technology licensed fromStanford University. Forty Sevens lead program, magrolimab, is a monoclonal antibody against the CD47 receptor, a dont eat me signal that cancer cells commandeer to avoid being ingested by macrophages. This antibody is currently being evaluated in multiple clinical studies in patients with myelodysplastic syndrome, acute myeloid leukemia, and non-Hodgkins lymphoma.

For more information, please visitwww.fortyseveninc.comor contactinfo@fortyseveninc.com.

Follow Forty Seven on social media:@FortySevenInc,LinkedIn

Rocket Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking StatementsVarious statements in this release concerning Rocket's future expectations, plans and prospects, including without limitation, Rocket's expectations regarding the safety, effectiveness and timing of product candidates that Rocket may develop, to treat Fanconi Anemia (FA), Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency-I (LAD-I), Pyruvate Kinase Deficiency (PKD), Infantile Malignant Osteopetrosis (IMO) and Danon Disease, and the safety, effectiveness and timing of related pre-clinical studies and clinical trials, may constitute forward-looking statements for the purposes of the safe harbor provisions under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other federal securities laws and are subject to substantial risks, uncertainties and assumptions. You should not place reliance on these forward-looking statements, which often include words such as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "will give," "estimate," "seek," "will," "may," "suggest" or similar terms, variations of such terms or the negative of those terms. Although Rocket believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, Rocket cannot guarantee such outcomes. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including, without limitation, Rocket's ability to successfully demonstrate the efficacy and safety of such products and pre-clinical studies and clinical trials, its gene therapy programs, the preclinical and clinical results for its product candidates, which may not support further development and marketing approval, the potential advantages of Rocket's product candidates, actions of regulatory agencies, which may affect the initiation, timing and progress of pre-clinical studies and clinical trials of its product candidates, Rocket's and its licensors ability to obtain, maintain and protect its and their respective intellectual property, the timing, cost or other aspects of a potential commercial launch of Rocket's product candidates, Rocket's ability to manage operating expenses, Rocket's ability to obtain additional funding to support its business activities and establish and maintain strategic business alliances and new business initiatives, Rocket's dependence on third parties for development, manufacture, marketing, sales and distribution of product candidates, the outcome of litigation, and unexpected expenditures, as well as those risks more fully discussed in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in Rocket's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, filed March 6, 2020 with the SEC. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. All such statements speak only as of the date made, and Rocket undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Forty Seven Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking StatementsStatements contained in this press release regarding matters that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as will, may, assess, could, believe, and similar expressions (as well as other words or expressions referencing future events, conditions, or circumstances) are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements include those related to the research and development plans for Rockets and Forty Sevens respective platforms and product candidates, the timing and success of Forty Sevens collaboration with Rocket, Forty Sevens plans to pursue clinical proof-of-concept for FSI-174 plus magrolimab with the LVV HSC gene therapy platform, the focus on diseases that have the potential to be corrected with the combination of RP-L102 and Forty Sevens all-antibody conditioning regimen, the tolerability and efficacy of RP-L102, FSI-174 and magrolimab, the timing and success of any future collaborations between Forty Seven and Rocket, Forty Sevens plans to continue development of FSI-174 plus magrolimab, as well as related timing for clinical trials of the same.

Because such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. The product candidates that Forty Seven develops may not progress through clinical development or receive required regulatory approvals within expected timelines or at all.In addition, clinical trials may not confirm any safety, potency or other product characteristics described or assumed in this press release. Such product candidates may not be beneficial to patients or successfully commercialized. The failure to meet expectations with respect to any of the foregoing matters may have a negative effect on Forty Seven's stock price. Additional information concerning these and other risk factors affecting Forty Seven's business can be found in Forty Seven's periodic filings with theSecurities and Exchange Commissionatwww.sec.gov. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and speak only as of the date hereof, and, except as required by law, Forty Seven disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances.

Forty SevenInvestors:Hannah Deresiewicz, (212) 362-1200hannah.deresiewicz@sternir.com

or

Media:Sarah Plumridge, (312) 506-5218fortyseven@hdmz.com

See more here:
Forty Seven and Rocket Pharmaceuticals Announce Research Collaboration for Fanconi Anemia - BioSpace

The first single-cell analysis of the human ovarian cortex revealed six main types of cells, but none of the oogonial stem cells that other researchers say they have isolated, according to a study published earlier this week (March 2) in Nature Communications. These findings are backed by the most advanced technologies, the authors say, and could put to rest a heated debate about the properties of the adult ovary that has raged for more than a decade.

The results of the experiment dont leave a lot of space for different interpretations, says Susana Chuva de Sousa Lopes, a developmental biologist at Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands who served on the PhD dissertation committee of coauthor Sarita Panula but was not involved in the research. It seems, she says, that cells previously identified as ovarian stem cells are in fact perivascular cells, which support blood vessel structure and help regulate blood flow.

But the discoverers of ovarian stem cells in adult mammals and other proponents of the cells existence are not convinced, citing methodological weaknesses of the new study.

Until relatively recently, scientific consensus was that a female mammals oocyte pool is fixed at birth. Adult ovaries, it was assumed, are simply unable to generate new eggs. But in 2004, Northeastern University reproductive biologist Jonathan Tilly and colleagues published findings that appeared to upend this understanding of oocyctes by presenting evidence of ovarian stem cells in adult mice.

A few years later, scientists in China claimed to have also found such germ line stem cells in the ovaries of adult mice, and showed that these cells could differentiate into functional eggs that gave rise to viable mouse pups. And in 2012, Tillys group reported the existence of germ cells in samples of human ovarian tissue, claiming that these cells could similarly generate oocytes in vitro and in vivo when injected into mice.

These findings generated a lot of publicity because they suggested that human fertility wasnt fixed after all. But the data has always been criticized, says Fredrik Lanner, an embryonic stem cell researcher at the Karolinska Institute and a coauthor on the newly published study that failed to find such stem cells.

We quite feel certain to say that in the human adult ovary in this cortex region, there is no cell that would be the oogonial stem cell.

Pauliina Damdimopoulou, Karolinska Institute

While some groups have been able to reproduce the results, others have tried and failed. Debates have erupted over methods, techniques, and protocols, and Tilly and his colleagues have published lengthy replies to those who have challenged their work. Today, the field is more or less divided into two camps regarding the existence of ovarian stem cells, says Chuva de Sousa Lopes.

To try to get to the bottom of the issue, Lanner and his collaborators harvested high-quality ovarian tissue samples from 21 healthy patients of reproductive age and isolated the ovarian cortex, the outer layer of the ovary where researchers claim to have found the elusive stem cells. The team used enzymes to break down the ovarian tissues, yielding 24,000 individual cells in total, then performed single-cell transcriptome and cell surface marker profiling, revealing six main cell types: oocytes, granulosa cells, immune cells, endothelial cells, perivascular cells, and stromal cells. None of the single-cell profiles matched those of reported ovarian stem cells.

When Lanner and colleagues stained the cells with an antibody against DDX4, a germ cell marker that is reported to select for oogonial stem cells, they found that they had instead isolated perivascular cells. The team then stained intact ovarian tissue and saw that the antibody similarly identifies perivascular cells. A comparison of the 24,000 cells to existing transcriptome data from both human fetal ovaries and the ovarian medulla, the inner region of the ovary, also failed to reveal any oogonial stem cells.

We quite feel certain to say that in the human adult ovary in this cortex region, there is no cell that would be the oogonial stem cell, says coauthor Pauliina Damdimopoulou, a cell biologist at the Karolinska Institute. She believes that other researchers have succeeded in using the DDX4 isolation technique to select and culture cells, but that what they have found are in fact perivascular cells and not oogonial stem cells.

This study again highlights that the DDX4 isolation technique is not something that can be used to isolate oogonial stem cells, University of Adelaide cell biologist Keith Jones, who was not involved in the work but coauthored a 2016 papersuggesting that the same antibody does not isolate DDX4 positive cells, writes in an email to The Scientist. It brings into question the existence of such stem cells, and leads us back to the dogma that prevailed previously in the fieldthe adult ovary does not contain oogonial stem cells.

Damdimopoulou also notes that she and her colleagues found that small, mature oocytes can slip through the filtration process, and when cultured, may appear as if they had been generated from stem cells. We think [the oocytes] were there all along from the beginning, she says. The formation of new vasculature by perivascular cells surrounding these oocytes, Chuva de Sousa Lopes suspects, could trigger dormant egg cells to become active and then mature, which might explain the results published by other labs.

Perivascular cells dont undergo meiosis, perivascular cells dont express meiotic genes, perivascular cells dont express germ cell genes.

Jonathan Tilly, Northeastern University

Others are not ready to give up on the idea of ovarian stem cells just yet. Deepa Bhartiya, a stem cell biologist at the National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health in India who was not involved with the research, has been working with ovarian stem cells since 2010 and says that they can be easily detected. Research with sheep ovarian tissues has shown that simple scraping of [the] ovary surface can show the presence of stem cells amongst the ovary surface epithelial cells, she writes in an email to The Scientist. The problem with the new study out of Sweden, Bhartiya says, is the speed at which the researchers spun their cellsmuch too slow to isolate the stem cells, which due to their small size do not pellet down at lower speeds and are therefore unknowingly discarded. Bhartiya writes that the study used novel techniques, but revealed nothing new: if sample preparation is not properone will get negative data.

Tilly argues that there are numerous methodological problems with the study. He says that at this point four independent groups have reported on the existence of oogonial stem cells, showing that the cells can generate new oocytes in both somatic ovarian tissue and outside the body in culture, and that they can undergo complete meiosis, a germ cell-specific event. Perivascular cells dont undergo meiosis, perivascular cells dont express meiotic genes, perivascular cells dont express germ cell genes, he says.

What the field really needs, says Chuva de Sousa Lopes, is more communication among researchers. The scientists that claim there are stem cells in the ovary and the scientists that are against that are somehow not really talking to each other, she says. I wish there would be more open dialogue, because sooner or later all these populations [of cells] will be clarified . . . and things will be more clear.

M. Wagner et al., Single-cell analysis of human ovarian cortex identifies distinct cell populations but no oogonial stem cells,Nat Commun,doi:10.1038/s41467-020-14936-3, 2020.

Amy Schleunes is an intern atThe Scientist. Email her ataschleunes@the-scientist.com.

See the original post here:
Single-Cell Analysis of Ovarian Cortex Fails to Find Stem Cells - The Scientist

By Tom McLaughlin

Lauren Daniel recalls that, as a clinical psychologist working with pediatric cancer patients at the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), she would often arrive in the mornings to do therapy sessions and find that her patients were still sleeping.

It was then difficult for her to sit down with them, she remembers, but the predicament was understandable, since they were frequently woken up throughout the night for a variety of reasons, including vital checks, to urinate, and to get pumps and other medical equipment serviced.

For someone to wake them up during the day, it was torture for them, says the assistant professor of psychology at Rutgers UniversityCamden. They dont want to talk to you at that point.

Daniels understanding and concern would spark a career research interest in the sleep patterns of children with cancer and the connection to patients psychosocial health outcomes.

The RutgersCamden researcher is now leading an international team of sleep researchers to establish research priorities for better understanding the role of sleep in pediatric cancer. The team calls on other researchers to join them in their collaborative efforts in their paper, A call to action for expanded sleep research in pediatric oncology: A position paper on behalf of the International Psycho-Oncology Society Pediatrics Special Interest Group, in the journal Psycho-Oncology.

We are excited to put the call out there, says Daniel, who notes that three of the participating researchers spoke at the 2019 International Psycho-Oncology Society World Congress.

Daniel explains that the pediatric cancer population is thankfully small at any one center, so it is incredibly valuable for researchers to collaborate in pooling data across multiple centers.

The RutgersCamden researcher notes that research on adult cancer patients shows a bidirectional relationship linking negative health outcomes with disrupted sleep and circadian rhythms, as well as compelling evidence showing that improved sleep improves health outcomes in adults. However, she says, little is known about these effects on pediatric cancer patients.

It is essential to increase our understanding because sleep and circadian rhythms are vital components of health and quality of life, write the researchers in their paper. In children without cancer, sleep and circadian disturbances respond well to intervention, suggesting that they may also be modifiable in children with cancer.

In addition to Daniels work with the research group, she recently received a $50,000 grant from the New Jersey Commission on Cancer Research to lead the pilot program Disrupted Sleep and its Association with Symptom Burden and Reduced Engagement in Supportive Care in Pediatric Stem Cell Transplant Patients.

Daniel will work with medical professionals and psychologists on the study at CHOP to collect data on an intervention to improve sleep in pediatric cancer patients undergoing stem cell transplants.

Lauren Daniel

I am grateful for the opportunity to branch out into a new area of research and continue the work that we are doing for patients at CHOP, says Daniel.

The researchers are currently studying how sleep affects the day-to-day symptoms and coping abilities of patients in the peritransplant period, the early stage when cells are starting to graft and grow. The researchers ultimately hope to determine what they can alter to improve sleep patterns of patients and encourage changes in nursing practices accordingly in order to improve psychosocial outcomes.

Even if we can make modest gains, we hope to improve the psychosocial health outcomes in addition to medical outcomes for patients, says Daniel, who adds that there isnt a lot of psychosocial research on these patients, in part because these children are already going through intensive research.

Daniel notes an earlier study found that patients need to be woken up an average of 12 times per night.

In their forthcoming study, says the RutgersCamden researcher, pediatric patients will wear a wristwatch to measure their motion for a two-week period after receiving transplant cells and be asked to complete daily surveys on what their sleep experience was like the night before. Their symptoms, such as nausea, fatigue, anxiety, and depression, will then be assessed every five days. Researchers will also extend the intervals between vital checks and determine the effects on their symptoms.

See original here:
Researcher Calls on Others Worldwide to Join Efforts to Understand Role of Sleep in Pediatric Cancer - Rutgers-Camden NewsNow

As coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) continues to infect more people worldwide, it has also increased the cases of stress and anxiety caused by a coronavirus. People are so scared of going to public places and if someone sneezes near to them, it gives them a little panic attack.

Considering the fast and uncontrollable spread of coronavirus, it is justified that people are under stress. Psychologist finds the occurrence of stress and anxiety in response to any threat as a normal human reaction. But this added stress is extremely harmful to people who are already at risk of certain diseases i.e. heart patients, blood pressure patients, stress and anxiety patients, pregnant women, and immunocompromised patients.

Here are a few suggestions for people, written as per psychological science to deal with the coronavirus related stress and anxiety.

It is a proven scientific fact that the US is going through a rapid increase in intolerance., which makes it difficult for people to cope up with stress. A study based on the H1N1 pandemic of 2009 shows that it was extremely hard for the people to accept the uncertainty of this pandemic situation and as a result that they experience anxiety.

The solution to this problem is by changing the behavior towards small things in routine. Building the patience level is something that not only helps to overcome the anxiety of coronavirus but helps a person to tackle all uncertain situations in life.

Also read- Can Scientists Cure HIV With Stem Cell Therapy?

Although it might not be the first thing that a stressed person would like to hear it is necessary to keep up the struggle in all forms. Distract yourself and involve in various activities that would keep you busy. Watch Netflix, read a book, write something, experiment with cooking, play with your pets, or anything that you like. Engaging yourself in an activity that you like is much likely to reduce the tress and pressure created by anything including the coronavirus outbreak.

One way to overcome the coronavirus related stress is by connecting to the goodness in life and finding meaning in it. Be it relationships, spirituality or anything, focus on what makes you happy and how you have given years to something. It would help you to feel important and life would suddenly look worth it.

It is understandable if someone is fearing what to do if coronavirus shows up in his town. Ending up at quarantine for days doesnt seem like a very good idea but human minds typically estimate the worst situation out of everything. There is plenty of research that explains peoples behavior as they overestimate their conditionsin event of any negative thing. Also, they underestimate their own responsesthat how would they adjust to any difficult situation. But mind it that you are way more resilient than you consider yourself, do not let the anxiety of it shaken you.

Also read- What does Your Period Blood Color Show?

In addition to the common psychological conditioning, you must remember that its a virus-borne disease that could be avoided if you follow a good self-care practice. Follow personal hygiene practices as prescribed by the CDC. Eat healthily, sleep regularly and spend time in exercise. Avoid meeting people unnecessarily and stay away from a person who exhibits any signs of flu or cold.

Prioritizing your behavior with others during this coronavirus outbreak. The coronavirus related stress could be tackled with a combination of psychological and practical approaches together.

It is normal to feel stressed because of the coronavirus outbreak. Disease in all forms is fearful and it is risky for people who are weak or already suffering from a disease. If you think that self-help plans are not working on you, it is better to get professional help. Contact your nearest mental health professional. He might prescribe you with Cognitive behavioral therapyand/orcertain medicines after evaluating your case. All in all, it would lead to successful anxiety treatment.

Continued here:
6Ways to Tackle Coronavirus Related Stress and Anxiety - TheHealthMania

The government has stepped up its efforts to contain the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) by tightening health screenings at borders and testing more people after confirming two cases in a Jakarta suburb over the weekend.

Scientists, however, say there is still a crucial element lacking in the war against the virus: transparency.

A number of scientists have highlighted the importance of involving more people, including independent scientists, in the handling of the virus outbreak, saying it is essential that health authorities work effectively and scientifically.

Ahmad Utomo, a principal investigator at the Stemcell and Cancer Institute in Jakarta, has said that how the authorities are conducting testing is not transparent and not helping the public understand the situation.

The government, he said, needed to write in detail about the sample collection, preservation, transport and quality control.

And if they are going to write a [scientific] paper [on the issue], they must disclose what brand they are using for the PCR testing, he toldThe Jakarta Poston Wednesday, adding that China's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had done exactly that.

Paper publications like the ones in China showed the details of the outbreak, complete with molecular genetic data of the virus.

The Health Ministry has posted updates about the COVID-19 situation atinfeksiemerging.kemkes.go.id. In its latest update, posted on March 4, the ministry mostly explains the global situation of the outbreak and only spares one paragraph (or one pointer) to explain the domestic situation.

The links to the previous updates are all broken.

Indonesia has reported two confirmed cases in the country, even though the government itself has admitted that it was unable to detect infected people since they showed no symptoms and that the incubation period had been extended to more than 14 days.

Critics have said Indonesia should have reported more cases but the government, which claims to have conducted the lab tests according to the WHO standards, has insisted that the number of confirmed cases has not changed.

Achmad Yurianto, a government spokesman for the handling of the virus outbreak, said Indonesia had tested 168 samples as of Wednesday. Two of them, case one and case two, came back positive with COVID-19. We are still studying the 10 other samples. The rest are negative, he said.

When asked about the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test equipment, Yurianto said: I will not tell you the name of the brand.

Utomo deplored Yuriantos response, saying that information regarding the test kit was critical to allow independent parties review its reliability. Some test kits, he said, could be faulty, referring to the ones used by the US Centers for Disease Control.

After insisting that its Jakarta laboratory alone could conduct testing, the ministry decided to let local laboratories in 10 major cities conduct throat swab tests for COVID-19. However, it has yet to allow other scientific organizations, including from universities, conduct testing.

The government argued that such a policy was redundant, saying that scientists had been consulted with in the formulation of the governments policy, including the testing system. It doesnt matter where the testing is conducted, he said, adding that what mattered was the scientists contribution to the crisis management system.

Read also: Calls mount for revival of national outbreak committee over coronavirus fears

The building of Eijkman Institute in Jakarta (Eijkman Institute/File)

Herawati, the deputy for fundamental research at Eijkman Institute, said the institution had all the equipment needed to conduct testing but the government had yet to seek its assistance with the testing of the suspected coronavirus patients.

When the avian influenza outbreak occurred, the government immediately asked Eijkman to also help with the testing of samples from suspected patients, she claimed.

Indonesia, she said, should follow Singapore, where the government and universities are working together to conduct testing for COVID-19.

Indonesia, she said, might be underreporting confirmed cases.

[The two positive cases] I think are just the tip of the iceberg. We have to do more tests. Not because we want to get more patients but we have to make sure that we are ready, our abilities, facilities and everything for pandemic preparation, Hera said.

When asked about whether having local labs do the testing was enough, Hera said: The key is to have an independent laboratory under the command of the Health Ministry for comparison. This is to strengthen transparency, Hera added.

Ahmad concurred with Hera, saying that the government needed to get professional help. At least seek help to conduct supervision. We have many world-class virologists.

Bayu Krisnamurthi, who headed the National Committee for Avian Flu Control and Pandemic Preparedness (Komnas Flu Burung) between 2006 and 2010, also highlighted the importance of an independent laboratory for testing.

"It is important to confirm. This examination laboratory has two critical functions, to identify whether the patient is indeed infected with the virus and whether the virus is still the same, or has it mutated and even to trace the origin of the virus," he said.

Continued here:
Indonesian scientists want government to get professional help in fighting COVID-19 - The Jakarta Post - Jakarta Post

Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPPI) Equities research analysts at Jefferies Financial Group issued their FY2024 earnings estimates for shares of Spectrum Pharmaceuticals in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, March 4th. Jefferies Financial Group analyst M. Raycroft anticipates that the biotechnology company will post earnings per share of $1.59 for the year.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on SPPI. HC Wainwright assumed coverage on shares of Spectrum Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, December 26th. They issued a buy rating and a $11.00 price objective for the company. B. Riley dropped their price objective on shares of Spectrum Pharmaceuticals from $11.00 to $8.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Zacks Investment Research downgraded shares of Spectrum Pharmaceuticals from a buy rating to a hold rating and set a $3.75 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a neutral rating and issued a $4.00 price objective (down previously from $17.00) on shares of Spectrum Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, December 26th. Finally, BidaskClub downgraded shares of Spectrum Pharmaceuticals from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. The stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $11.13.

Spectrum Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:SPPI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.35) EPS for the quarter, missing the Thomson Reuters consensus estimate of ($0.33) by ($0.02). The companys revenue was up NaN% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.30) EPS.

In other Spectrum Pharmaceuticals news, COO Thomas J. Riga sold 11,381 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.37, for a total value of $38,353.97. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 246,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $831,304.86. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 40,764 shares of company stock valued at $123,463. Corporate insiders own 4.17% of the companys stock.

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SPPI. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Spectrum Pharmaceuticals by 1,280.0% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,900 shares of the biotechnology companys stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 6,400 shares during the period. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Spectrum Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in Spectrum Pharmaceuticals by 251.3% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 10,346 shares of the biotechnology companys stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 7,401 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management & Equity Research Inc. acquired a new position in Spectrum Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in Spectrum Pharmaceuticals by 27.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 18,412 shares of the biotechnology companys stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 3,989 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.53% of the companys stock.

About Spectrum Pharmaceuticals

Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc develops and commercializes oncology and hematology drug products. The company offers KHAPZORY, a novel folate analog and the pharmacologically active levo-isomer of d, and 1-leucovorin; FOLOTYN, a folate analogue metabolic inhibitor for peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL); ZEVALIN injection to treat non-Hodgkin's lymphoma; MARQIBO for adult patients with Philadelphia chromosome-negative acute lymphoblastic leukemia; BELEODAQ, a histone deacytelase, or HDAC, inhibitor for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory PTCL; and EVOMELA for use as a conditioning treatment prior to autologous stem cell transplant in multiple myeloma patients.

Read More: Cryptocurrencies

Receive News & Ratings for Spectrum Pharmaceuticals Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Spectrum Pharmaceuticals and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.

Go here to see the original:
Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPPI) Forecasted to Earn FY2024 Earnings of $1.59 Per Share - Redmond Register

A few months ago Victoria Beckham uploaded a picture of kissing herself kissing her daughter Brooklyn on her lips. This was to wish Brooklyns birthday. Although it was meant to be a happy post, but it agitated a new discussion in comments discussing if its okay to kiss your child on lips or not.

Doctors say that it is necessary for children to feel loved and protected in a house. But lip kissing a child might not be the best way to express the parents love towards children they say. Is it really that problematic? Here is what childrens psychologists say on this.

As lips and mouth are considered as personal boundaries of any person, it is necessary to understand that it also applies to children. Kissing on lips even my parents can probably change the understanding of what is personal for a child.

A child psychologist named Charlotte Reznickexplains that when parents kiss their child on lips, it gives a sign that it is okay to do that and anyone can intrude their personal space and do the same without any problem.

But this behavior is not just limited to kissing but also applies to tightly wrap around the body, forced kisses, force food, aggressive tickles, etc. So this type of invasive parents might increase their kid to develop a condition called victim syndrome which practically makes the child unable to say NO and maintain a personal boundary while interacting with others.

Also read- Breakthrough Research Identifies A Potential Treatment For Ulcerative Colitis

Researchers, doctors, and dentists all warn parents to avoid unnecessary physical contact with the child. There are tons of bacteria, viruses, and fungi that are harmless for adults but might cause an infection in children when they re kissed or hugged unnecessary.

Young children have a weak immune system as compared to adults, which is why they are at a high risk of such microbial transmissions, Charlotte Reznickfurther clarifies that a number of extremely dangerous pathogens could be transmitted via saliva which is bad for their health.

When kissing on lips to a child is made common, he may start embracing it as an act of sympathy and may start kissing other people the same way. It is normal for a child to behave the same way as he sees his parents doing whether at home or outside. So this behavior might initiate a child to kiss other children or adults on the lips, the same way as his parents do to him, considering it normal.

Also read- Can Scientists Cure HIV With Stem Cell Therapy?

The psychologistadvisesparents to understand that even if this kissing on lips look like an innocent lovey gesture, the child may learn and mimic it with people without realizing the intimate complications of it. That is why psychologists suggest to kiss your child only on cheeks or forehead and never on lips.

Share your views if you think kissing your child on kiss is acceptable and normal. If you agree, also share until which age this could be done and is the parent-kid kiss onthe lipsacceptable regardless of the gender differences or not.

Read the rest here:
Is it Okay to Kiss your Kids on the Lips? Psychologists Say NO - TheHealthMania

Why would vitamin D lower risk for respiratory illness? Our bodies need adequate vitamin D to produce the antimicrobial proteins that kill viruses and bacteria. If you dont have adequate vitamin D circulating, you are less effective at producing these proteins and more susceptible to infection, says Dr. Adit Ginde, professor of emergency medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and the studys lead author. These proteins are particularly active in the respiratory tract.

Its important to note that there are no clinical recommendations to take vitamin D for immune health, although the standard recommendation for bone health is for 600 to 800 international units per day. (That is the level found in most multivitamins.) In the study of respiratory illness and vitamin D, the dose was equivalent to about 3,330 international units daily.

Vitamin D can be found in fatty fish, such as salmon, and in milk or foods fortified with vitamin D. In general, our vitamin D levels tend to be influenced by sun exposure, skin tone and latitude people in northern areas who get less sun exposure in the winter typically have lower vitamin D. A blood test is required to check vitamin D levels. Less than 20 nanograms per milliliter is considered deficient. Above 30 is optimal.

The bottom line: If you are concerned about immune health, you may consider having your vitamin D level checked and talking to your doctor about whether to take a supplement.

Avoid excessive alcohol consumption. Numerous studies have found a link between excessive alcohol consumption and immune function. Research shows people who drink in excess are more susceptible to respiratory illness and pneumonia and recover from infection and wounds more slowly. Alcohol alters the number of microbes in the gut microbiome, a community of microorganisms that affect the immune system. Excessive alcohol can damage the lungs, and impair the mucosal immune system, which is essential in helping the body recognize pathogens and fight infection. And its not just chronic drinking that does damage. Binge drinking can also impair the immune system.

The bottom line: A cocktail or glass of wine while you are sheltering in place during coronavirus is fine. But avoid drinking to excess. The current U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that alcohol should be consumed only in moderation up to one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men.

Eat a balanced diet and skip unproven supplements. A healthful diet and exercise are important to maintaining a strong immune system. However, no single food or natural remedy has been proven to bolster a persons immune system or ward off disease. But that hasnt stopped people from making specious claims. A recipe circulating on social media claims boiled garlic water helps. Other common foods touted for their immune-boosting properties are ginger, citrus fruits, turmeric, oregano oil and bone broth. There are small studies that suggest a benefit to some of these foods, but strong evidence is lacking. For instance, the bone broth claim has been fueled by a study published in 2000 that showed eating chicken soup seemed to reduce symptoms of an upper respiratory tract infection. A number of small studies have suggested garlic may enhance immune system function. Claims that elderberry products can prevent viral illness also are making the rounds on social media, but evidence is lacking.

Read the original:
Can I Boost My Immune System? - The New York Times

The thought of impending sickness has a lot of people on edge. It brings on anxiety, and when youre anxious, you want to do something to relieve it. Thats why you see stories of people stockpiling toilet paper, and disinfecting wipes, and stealing face masks. (None of those things are going to help them stay healthy by the way)

Like you, I cant avoid seeing and hearing all the stories about how to wash hands, avoid sick people, and use hand sanitizer to protect yourself and your family from coming down with COVID-19.

As a health and wellness expert I agree thats good advice, but I also know theyre missing a bigger part of the story.

Why is no one talking about what you can do to build up your immune system from the inside?

Healing is an inside job. Thats an uninspiring message, so it doesnt make the headlines.

Your health comes from the inside. It always has, and it always will. Its human nature to want a quick fix and to try to make someone else responsible for your health, but in the end, youre the only one who can make yourself healthy or sick.

The science behind boosting your immune system isnt complicated. These are common sense habits that science and the medical community stand behind.

Empowering your health by building it up from the inside will do more to protect you and your family than hoarding toilet paper and face masks.

Ill share with you here what science has to say about strengthening your immune system:

*Moderate exercise strengthens your immune response while excessive exercise weakens it.

Regular, moderate exercise decreases the inflammatory response and increases immune regulation.

Exercise helps move and flush pathogens out of your airways, and it causes antibodies and white blood cells to circulate more rapidly and to the farthest reaches of your vascular system.

Exercise reduces the release of the stress hormone cortisol. Elevated cortisol inhibits your immune system.

The temporary increase of body temperature with exercise may weaken or kill certain bacteria or viruses (similar to your bodys fever response).

Tips:Take a 30 minute brisk walk or bicycle ride, play a sports game, work in your yard, do yoga or pilates.Get 30 minutes of moderate exercise every day. Bonus if you do it outdoors.If your workouts are extreme, scale back. Remind yourself moderate exercise builds up and restores the body while extreme exercise wears it down.

The quality of your food will determine the quality of your health, and the typical American diet is not helping you.

Nutrition is linked to your immune system directly by supplying the building blocks your body needs to function at peak performance, and indirectly by influencing your gut microbiome.

Your gut microbiome is responsible for communication between your brain and your immune system.

The gut microbiome also influences how much cortisol you produce. As mentioned above, too much cortisol weakens the immune response.

The health of your gut biome influences the health of your intestinal wall, and that wall is a physical first line of defense against disease.

The typical American diet is notoriously processed. Its full of calories, but short on nutrition. Micro deficiencies of zinc, selenium, iron, copper, folic acid, or vitamins A, B6 or E are all linked to a weakened immune system.

Tips:Drink an extra 2 glasses of water per day (on top of what you already drink).Eat one more fruit and one more vegetable per day.Stop eating fried food, foods with added sugars, and replace white grains with whole grains.Eliminate all sweetened drinks (naturally or artificially sweetened).Eat fewer restaurant and fast food meals and more homemade meals.Eat a handful of nuts instead of a handful of chips.

You can only know your vitamin D levels from a blood test, but its easy to get, and your doctor should comply if asked. Low vitamin D is more common than you think, and unless severe and chronic, it doesnt give many symptoms.

Low vitamin D results in poor regulation of your adaptive immune system. Thats the part of the immune system that has a memory, and thats the theory behind vaccines, and why you get immunity from chicken pox once youve had them.

Low vitamin D also increases autoimmune function, and that leads to a multitude of autoimmune diseases.

Tips:Spend 1015 minutes in direct sun every other day with major areas of skin exposed.Let your eyes be exposed occasionally to indirect sun by taking off your glasses.Eat more fish, eggs, and mushrooms.If necessary, take a vitamin D supplement after consulting with your health expert.

Chiropractic adjustments boost the immune system response by addressing and correcting neural dysfunction caused by misalignments of your spine.

Your bodys nervous system, endocrine system, and immune system are all linked, and chiropractic adjustments are supporting the nervous system.

Chiropractic adjustments help improve sympathetic-parasympathetic balance.

HIV positive patients that underwent 6 months of chiropractic adjustments had a 48% increase of CD-4 cells compared to the non-adjusted group. CD-4 cells help coordinate the immune response by stimulating other immune cells, such as macrophages.

Tips:Go see your chiropractor for an occasional tune up.If youve never been to the chiropractor, ask your friends for their recommendations.

Meditation is linked to decreased inflammation. Thats good because inflammation decreases immune function.

Meditation increases immune helper cells called CD-4 cells. CD-4 cells (mentioned above as well) act as a communicator to alert the system that pathogens are present.

Tips:Meditate for even 5 minutes a day. Theres more benefit to daily short meditation than occasional hour long meditation.Keep it simple. Sit quietly and comfortably and play some gentle background music or white noise.

Science says 78 hours per night is needed for optimal health.

Deficient sleep not only increases the chances of you getting sick, it also prolongs your recovery.

Your body produces and releases cytokines when you sleep. Cytokines are proteins that target inflammation.

Sleep also affects your immune system indirectly via your gut microbiome (and your gut microbiome affects your sleep). You can see more about that above and also at this post:

You Have 4 pounds of Bacteria in your Gut that Play a Crucial Role in your Sleep and Health Your gut determines the quality of your sleep.

Tips:Make sleep a priority. You deserve it.Follow the other tips in this post and youll sleep better.Check out this piece about getting better sleep:

Cant Sleep? Change How You Think About it

Drinking alcohol changes how your gut microbiome interacts with your immune system. The ultimate result is fewer macrophages (your 1st line defense cells that eat pathogens), T cells (antibodies), and B cells (white blood cells that secrete cytokines).

Alcohol disrupts your intestinal barrier.

Alcohol even reduces the function of your immune cells in your lungs, the tissue thats most affected by COVID-19.

Tips:I guess Im stating the obvious, but simply drink fewer alcoholic drinks of any sort. The more you drink, the more your immune system is adversely affected.

Cigarettesmoke suppresses the immune system leaving smokers to heal more slowly than non smokers.

Smoking has an adverse effect on the antioxidants (such as vitamin C) that circulate through your body.

Smoking of any sort is a direct irritant to respiratory tissues.

Tips:Reducing or stopping all smoking is ideal. At the least, choose forms of delivery that are less irritating to the lungs.

You were born to be healthy. Health is there for you when you stop covering it up with unhealthy life habits.

Boost your health. I promise youll feel more strong and energized and less anxious.

I want to send you my free guide, 5 Days to More Peace, More Prosperity, and More Happiness.Click here to get the guide for free!

Visit me atwww.christinebradstreet.com

Cross posted atChange Your Mind Change Your Life

All images open source from Pixabay.com

Originally posted here:
The Science Behind Improving Your Immune System During the COVID-19 Pandemic - Thrive Global

Please enable Javascript to watch this video

ST. LOUIS - Specialists at SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital have new hope for some cancer patients, through therapy using the bodys own immune system to fight the disease.

Its another addition to therapy options for cancer patients at SLU Hospital, home to the only outpatient bone marrow transplant program in the region, offering some patients the ability to go home each evening rather than face a lengthy hospital stay.

Dr. Mark Fesler is a SLUCare oncologist at SSM Health St. Louis University Hospital which is home to the only outpatient bone marrow transplant program in the region.

Called CAR T-cell therapy, a patients white blood cells the t lymphocyte aregenetically modifiedto attack and destroy cancer cells.

This is quite likely to change the landscape for treatment of blood cancers, says Mark Fesler, MD, director of the Center for Outpatient Blood and Marrow Transplantation at SLU Hospital and a SLUCare physician.

CAR T-cell therapy is FDA approved for some forms of aggressive, refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma and for patients with relapsed or refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia up to age 25.

In CAR t-cell therapy, T cells are taken from a patients blood, genetically modified and a special receptor called a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) are placed on the patients cancer cells. Large quantities of the CAR T-cells are grown in the laboratory and given to the patient through infusion.

While long-term data on success is still being collected, in clinical trialsmore than 80 percent of CAR -T cell therapy patients experienced either a complete (no signs of cancer) or partial (some reduction in the extent of the cancer) response.

This therapy has been in development since the late 1980s and various refinements have come about to improve the efficacy of this treatment, says Dr. Fesler. We are excited to offer this to our patients.

CAR T-cell therapy isnot the right treatment for every patient. Your doctor will consider the type of cancer, past treatments and your overall health before recommending CAR T-cell therapy.

CAR T-cell therapy is only approved to treat two groups of people with certain types of cancer:

Children and young adults up to age 25 with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) that hasnt improved with or has returned after treatment

Adults with aggressive large B-cell lymphoma that hasnt improved with or has returned after treatment.

To learn more about CAR T-cell therapy, click herehttps://www.ssmhealth.com/conditions-treatments/cancer-care-support/treatment-procedures/car-t-cell-treatment

Continue reading here:
SSM Health SLU Hospital offers CAR T-Cell therapy, using the bodys immune system to fight cancer - fox2now.com

With the number of cases of coronavirus and flu on the rise and fatalities increasing globally, it is time to give our immune systems an opportunity to fight better.

No amount of lifestyle intervention will make you invincible, the Independent quoted Dr. Jenna Macciochi, an immunologist at the University of Sussex. But there are plenty of small things you can do to strengthen your immune system.

Heres a list of evidence-based tips that you can follow to improve your immunity:

1. Follow the Mediterranean Diet

Consuming a low-carb Mediterranean diet rich in colorful vegetables and fruits can give you a lot of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory phytonutrients your body requires to ward off infection. The more colorful the vegetables and fruits, the better nutrients you will be getting. Have them whole alongside their skin as it contains the essential fiber that feeds the healthy bugs in your gut that plays a vital role in fighting an infection,The Independent mentioned.

2. Get Enough Sleep

This is a very simple yet important tip that can help boost your immunity levels. When your body doesnt get eight hours of sleep every night, your immune system cannot work the way it should, WTKR shared.

3. Pay Attention to Your Skin Microbiome

High doses of ultraviolet rays can affect the skin microbiome in a negative way and weaken its protective functions. It can also trigger immune suppression in the skin. Also, ensure not to use strong soaps and antibacterial products since over washing might not be good to the skin microbiome. Perfumes and moisturizers might also have an impact. So,make sure you use the right ones, The Guardian advised.

4. Stay Physically Fit

This can not only boost your immunity but also your overall health. Exercise can help mobilize the sedentary white blood cells and enable them to do their surveillance jobs in other parts of the body, according to Prof Arne Akbar, the president of the British Society for Immunology and a professor at University College, London told The Guardian. Older adults are asked to indulge in any kind of exercise that is possible.

5. Get your vitamins

Although Vitamin C cannot help prevent you from getting Coronavirus, it can certainly help during a cold and can decrease the duration. Also,you need to get at least 15 minutes of sunlight a day. Getting the adequate amount of the sunshine vitamin can help your immune system to function properly, Dr. Ryan Light with Greenbrier Family Medicine told WTKR.

When it comes to fruit and vegetable intake, moderation is key. Photo: Reuters

Original post:
5 Effective Ways To Boost Your Immune System To Ward Off Viruses - International Business Times

AFP via Getty Images

Money cannot by immunity, but it can help stave it off. Here's how some are spending to both avoid and protect themselves against coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Lanserhof, a private medical facility at London's Arts Club, a private members club, has seen an 18% jump in the number of inquiries for its Immune Plus Support Infusion. The 300 ($387) session provides an IV infusion which contains a high dose of Vitamin C, as well as "immune-boosting amino acids and also Zinc which plays a crucial role in our immune system functioning well."

Just up the road in London's West End, Club 51, a private gym-come-health club, has issued advice to its clients about how best to protect themselves against viruses. "We produced a report for all of our clients on ten things you can do that can help protect your body against viruses in general," says Jon Denoris, Club 51's founder.

Programs like these are focused on boosting the body's immune system and are not specifically tailored against COVID-19. Club 51's programs are months-long and tailor-made to each client, combining diet, sleep, exercise with supplements like nootropics.

However, Lanserhof says a healthy immune system is the best weapon to fight off any kind of virus, "be that flu, COVID-19 or simply a cold.

"Weaker immune systems are more likely to develop secondary infections such as pneumonia, and thus supporting a strong and healthy immune system through good nutrition, plenty of sleep and exercise as well as IV infusions is key."

Immunity is one thing, but avoidance of the virus is better. Here, again, those with the means are taking extra precautions.

Private jet companies have reported a surge in business since the virus outbreak. Checking-in at private jet terminals and avoiding the circulated air of commercial airliners is a safer option if you really have to travel, as many business executives say they do.

All schools have temporarily closed in Madrid, Spain, to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Avoidance can also be bought for children. Tutors International, which provides elite private tuition services, says it has seen a "massive upswing in requests" since the coronavirus virus outbreak.

"We are putting extra resources into recruiting elite educators able to provide interim private tutoring," says its CEO, Adam Caller. Many of his clients are unable to return home, and others are affected by school closures and changes to examination schedules.

A Chanel mask worn during Paris Fashion Week.

While many take to panic-buying items like toilet-paper, the wealthy have shunned shopping altogether: Luxury retail is expected to take a $33 to $44 billion hit this year as the wealthy stay away from shops. (Many will outsource the buying of essentials like toilet-paper.)

This is most acute in China, which accounts for 40% of the global luxury industry, and Italy, both a manufacturer and luxury-buying tourist hot-spot. The U.K. luxury industry has also suffered for the same reasons, says Walpole, a sector body for British luxury.

Many fear contagion in the retail space. Others see little point in buying things like fashion or jewellery if there is no opportunity to show them off. "I'm just not sure when my next ball will be," says one female financier in London.

The exception to the luxury rule is, bizarrely, fashionable face-masks. The 54 ($69) Airinum Urban Air Mask 2.0 has sold out worldwide. Shoppers are now signing up to a waiting list for these multi-layer masks that claim protection against "airborne particles as small as 0.3m."

Airinum expects to be restocked in July. In the meantime that immune system needs tending to.

Excerpt from:
How The Rich Are Protecting Themselves Against Coronavirus - Forbes

Older adults appear to be more severely at risk from the new coronavirus, while young children seem to be largely spared and understanding why could be crucial to treating people with the illness it causes, according to scientists.

Much remains unknown about COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus that is rapidly spreading around the world, but researchers have seized on a factor that seems to influence the severity of infections: the patient's age.

People over age 60, and particularly those with pre-existing health conditions, appear to be most vulnerable to the virus, which has spread to more than 110,000 people in at least 97 countries.

While that is not particularly surprising, the statistics show that young children have made up very few of the confirmed cases so far, a divergence that isn't true for every illness.

Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak

While the immune systems of older people are typically not as robust as those of younger people, leaving them more vulnerable to a wide variety of illnesses, scientists say they can't definitively say why the coronavirus has been harder on people of advanced ages.

"We're trying to figure out why age is a primary feature of this infection, but from a biological perspective, we don't have that answer," said Dr. Srinivas Murthy, a clinical associate professor in the department of pediatrics at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver.

Understanding that question could help researchers figure out how to treat the illness, particularly in the older populations that appear to be more susceptible to it.

Surgeon General Jerome Adams, speaking Monday afternoon at a news conference, confirmed that the virus had been more severe for older people based on the data currently available.

The first death in the U.S. from COVID-19 was that of a Washington state man in his 50s with underlying health conditions. Since then, the state's health officials have also been battling the spread of the respiratory illness at a nursing facility in Kirkland, where 19 people have died.

Let our news meet your inbox. The news and stories that matters, delivered weekday mornings.

In China, where the coronavirus first emerged, early research also suggests that the coronavirus may pose a graver risk to some populations over others. In a report released last month by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, an analysis of 1,023 deaths out of 44,672 confirmed cases diagnosed through Feb. 11 found that 21.9 percent of deaths occurred among patients who were over 80 years old.

Download the NBC News app for full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak

Most people who have been infected have experienced mild to moderate symptoms, which Murthy said likely means either that the virus is not penetrating beyond the upper respiratory tract or that patients' immune systems are preventing it from reaching deep into the lungs.

It's thought that the virus spreads through close contact, traveling through tiny droplets and secretions when a patient coughs, sneezes or breathes.

Typically, when a virus infects a cell in the human body, the cell's so-called innate immune system kicks in if foreign genetic material is detected. This is considered the body's first line of defense against invading pathogens. The second line of defense is known as the adaptive immune system, which first has to detect foreign invaders before producing antibodies and T cells to counteract the infection.

But as people age, both of those systems can break down.

"We don't truly know why, but as you get older, the functionality of the innate immune system and adaptive immune system wanes," said Timothy Sheahan, an epidemiologist at the Gillings School of Global Public Health at the University of North Carolina.

Go here to read the rest:
Coronavirus is hard on older people and scientists aren't sure why - NBCNews.com

Researchers in Germany and San Francisco believe they have identified an antibody that binds to the brains immune cells and causes them to live longer, divide more quickly and better detect unwelcome substances such as the plaques believed to contribute to Alzheimers.

In a report published in the journal EMBO Molecular Medicine, scientists from the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases, the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet in Munich and Denali Therapeutics in San Francisco said that mice studies showed the antibody can cause the brains immune system to attack amyloid plaque more quickly.

Scientists believe that amyloid plaque buildup is one of the key causes of Alzheimers disease.

We may have found a way to specifically remove particularly harmful forms of amyloid, lead researcher Christian Haass said in a news release.

The researchers studied TREM2, a receptor on cell surfaces to which other molecules can attach. They believe that TREM2 can vary greatly from individual to individual and can increase the risk of developing Alzheimers by putting the brains cellsknown as microgliainto a dormant state, which prevents them from recognizing, absorbing and breaking down plaques and dead cells.

Conversely we suspect that activation of the microglia could help to eliminate plaques and thus combat Alzheimers, Haass said.

TREM2 seems to play an important role, he continued. The receptor apparently helps to switch the microglia from dormant to active mode.

However, Haass cautioned that further studies are required before they can test this approach in clinical trials.

We have shown that our approach can work in principle, Haass said. However, there is still a long way to go before it can be tested in humans and additional data is necessary to validate this approach.

The brains immune cells are increasingly being studied by researchers looking to fight Alzheimers and other dementias. In 2017, Being Patient spoke with Dr. Roxana Carare, a professor of clinical neuroanatomy and experimental neuropathology at the University of Southampton, about how the body clears protein plaques from the brain.

Another recent study found that resetting immune cells could help treat traumatic brain injury by delaying or preventing inflammation.

Read this article:
Harnessing the Brain's Immune Cells to Remove Amyloid Plaques in Alzheimer's - Being Patient