Australian plant may produce anti-HIV microbicide gel

New Delhi (PTI): A genetically-altered Australian cousin of tobacco plant could become the source of a potent chemical that promises to contain spread of HIV through sexual intercourse a new finding announced today suggests.

The scientists have shown that transgenic versions of a plant Nicotiana benthamiana also known as 'Tjuntiwari' in the native language may be able to produce large quantities of a protein griffithsin which can be used as an anti-HIV microbicide gel.

The protein has shown capabilities of neutralizing HIV as it binds to the virus molecule in such a way that the virus could not disguise itself from the immune system of humans.

Anti-HIV microbicide gel directly targets entry of the virus and averts infection at the surfaces but at present they are being produced using biologicals like bacteria E.coli an expensive process which is not cost-effective.

Scientists across the world were looking for a natural source of the protein for producing anti-HIV microbicide gel which can prevent women from getting sexually transmitted diseases.

The researchers from USA and UK altered the genetic nature of the plant using a tobacco mosaic virus which produced the protein griffithsin.

They infected more than 9,300 plants in the process and managed to extract substantial amount of the protein from the leaves of the transgenic plant.

"The technique can allow researchers to grow sufficient quantities of griffithsin in Nicotiana benthamiana a close relative of tobacco to test the HIV entry inhibitors in clinical trials " Kenneth E. Palmerb, lead researcher wrote in the paper published in the US based journal 'Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.'

If proven effective in clinical trials the protein could provide a new means of HIV prevention the authors say.

Source :- Australian plant may produce anti-HIV microbicide gel

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Hertford Dentist In Healthy Eating Warning

FIVE a day won't keep the dentist away according to a Hertford expert, who claims healthy eating may damage teeth.

Dr Rahul Doshi from cosmetic dentistry specialists The Perfect Smile Studios & Academy in South Street has warned that in a bid to shape up and stick to the healthy eating regime many people maybe neglecting their teeth.

He said: 'In recent years we have been bombarded with press urging us to eat more fruit, and of course for our general health this is a positive thing, but such foods have massive implications for oral health. Other seemingly 'healthy' things we consume such as antacids for example cause severe damage to teeth.

He added: "Heartburn tablets, breath mints, throat lozenges and cough drops all contain high levels of sugar which can cause problems such as cavities.

On packaging these products may simply state sucrose or dextrose, or even corn syrup, all of which are essentially sugar."

He says that when exposed to sugars the mouth's natural bacteria produces an acid which erodes tooth enamel and while a medicinal lozenge may only stay in the mouth for a few minutes the damaging effects last much longer.

The Perfect Smile Academy has won awards for its cosmetic dentistry services in London and has even featured on ITV's This Morning and Living TV's Extreme Makeover programme.

Source :- Hertford Dentist In Healthy Eating Warning

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"Benifits of inlays and onlays over metal fillings"

1. Metal fillings requires more of the natural tooth to be drilled out even if it isn’t decayed so that the tightly packed amalgam will stay put.
2. Additionally with time metal fillings tend to become loose and can even fall out.
3. With inlays and onlays more of the natural tooth can be preserved, since the porcelain will be bonded to the tooth rather than packed into a space.
4. The porcelain of inlays and onlays is matched to your tooth color so more esthetic.
5. Porcelain doesn't conduct heat so there are no worries about hot and cold sensitivities to food and beverages.

Source :- "Benifits of inlays and onlays over metal fillings"

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New drug 200 times more active against tumour cells

Washington (IANS): A new anti-cancer agent, developed by a team of 24 researchers in the U.S., is nearly 200 times more active in killing tumour cells than similar drugs used in recent clinical trials.

The new agent belongs to a class of drugs called bisphosphonates, originally developed to treat osteoporosis and other bone diseases, but recently found to also have potent anti-cancer and immunity-boosting properties.

Drug developers have tried for years to design drugs to inhibit cell survival pathways in tumour cells, focusing on a protein called Ras. Nearly a third of all human cancers involve a mutation in the Ras gene that causes cell signalling to go awry. These efforts have met with limited success.

But bisphosphonates act on other enzymes, called FPPS and GGPPS, which are upstream of Ras in the cell survival pathway. Inhibiting these enzymes appears to be a more effective strategy for killing cancer cells.

When used in combination with hormone therapy in a recent clinical trial, bisphosphonate drug zoledronate significantly reduced the recurrence of breast cancer in premenopausal women. Similar results were reported previously for hormone-refractory prostate cancer.

However, zoledronate quickly binds to bone, reducing its efficacy in other tissues.

"We're trying to develop bisphosphonates that will be very active but won't bind to the bone, because if they bind to the bone they are not going to go to breast, lung or other tissues," said University of Illinois chemistry professor Eric Oldfield, who led the new study.

The study appeared this week in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

Source :- New drug 200 times more active against tumour cells

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Number of people with both TB and HIV up: WHO

New York (PTI): The number of people with both tuberculosis and HIV is twice than what researchers previously estimated, a World Health Organisation report said on Wednesday.

The annual report released by the WHO reveals that one out of four TB deaths is HIV-related, twice as many as previously recognised.

In 2007, there were an estimated 1.37 million new cases of tuberculosis among people living with HIV and 4,56,000 deaths.

"These findings point to an urgent need to find, prevent and treat tuberculosis in people living with HIV and to test for HIV in all TB patients in order to provide prevention, treatment and care. Countries can only do that through stronger collaborative programmes and stronger health systems that address both diseases," said WHO Director-General Margaret Chan.

The report reveals a sharp increase in HIV testing among people being treated for TB, especially in Africa.

In 2004, just 4 per cent of TB patients in the region were tested for HIV, in 2007 that number rose to 37 per cent, with several countries testing more than 75 per cent of TB patients for their HIV status.

This figure reflects an improvement in the quality of the country data, which are now more representative and available from more countries than in previous years.

However, the number of new tuberculosis cases remained stable in 2007 and the percentage of the world's population becoming ill with the disease has continued the slow decline.

Because of increased testing for HIV among TB patients, more people are getting appropriate treatment though the numbers still remain a small fraction of those in need.

In 2007, 2,00,000 HIV-positive TB patients were enrolled on co-trimoxazole treatment to prevent opportunistic infections and 1,00,000 were on antiretroviral therapy.

"We have to stop people living with HIV from dying of tuberculosis," said Executive Director of UNAIDS Michel Sidibe. "Universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support must include TB prevention, diagnosis and treatment. When HIV and TB services are combined, they save lives."

TB/HIV co-infection and drug-resistant forms of tuberculosis present the greatest challenges, the report says and expresses concerns over an increasing shortage in funding.

To meet the 2009 milestones in the Stop TB Partnership's Global Plan, the funding shortfall for these 94 countries has risen to about $1.5 billion.

"The financial crisis must not derail the implementation of the Global Plan to Stop TB. Now is the time to scale-up financing for effective interventions for the prevention, treatment and care of TB worldwide," said Michel Kazatchkine, Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Source :- Number of people with both TB and HIV up: WHO

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Scientists track how cancer cells break free and spread

Washington (IANS): Johns Hopkins researchers have figured out a method to track how cancer cells break free from tissue and spread to other parts of the body. For example, cancer that starts in the breast sometimes spreads to the lungs.

"Studying cell detachment at the subcellular level is critical to understanding the way cancer cells metastasize (spread)," said study's principal investigator Peter Searson, professor of materials science and engineering at Hopkins.

His team's research focuses on a missing puzzle in the common but unfortunate events that can occur in cancer patients like spreading of cancer cells from one part of the body to another.

That's because tumour cells detach and travel through the bloodstream to settle in other tissues. Scientists have learned much about how cancer cells attach to these surfaces, but they know little about how these insidious cells detach because no one had created a simple way to study the process.

Searson and two other scientists from Johns Hopkins' Whiting School of Engineering have solved this problem with a lab-on-a-chip device that can help researchers study cell detachment. With this device, they hope to discover exactly how cancer cells spread.

Source :- Scientists track how cancer cells break free and spread

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'Red meat raises risk of cancer; white meat decreases it'

Melbourne (PTI): Red meat lovers have been warned of being at higher risk of cancer or heart attack, while those who consumes white meat do not have the same effect, a study has said.

According to The Age, the study revealed that Barbeque red meat can cause the most cancer causing 'carcinogens'. The study looked at the diets of more than 500,000 people and a follow-up 10 years later and found those who ate the most red, or processed, meat had a higher incidence of death.

Eating white meat - poultry or fish - did not have the same effect and was associated with a slightly decreased risk. Cancer Council Australia chief executive Ian Olver said that while the study could not be said to show that red meat caused cancer, the apparent link warranted further research.

"Such population studies demonstrate these relationships between red meat and cancer deaths but are not able to prove that one causes the other," he said adding "With red meat, for example, the method of cooking is important.

"For example, more carcinogens would be expected to be produced from barbecue than by slow cooking (while) the other factor predisposing to cancer is the fat content of the meat," he said.

The research, produced as part of the National Institutes of Health-AARP Diet and Health Study, is published in the journal Archives of Internal Medicine.

Source :- 'Red meat raises risk of cancer; white meat decreases it'

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More evidence links diabetes to Alzheimer's risk

Washington (AP): Diabetes can hurt the heart, the eyes and the kidneys. New research indicates a more ominous link:- That diabetes increases the risk of getting Alzheimer's disease and may speed dementia once it strikes.

Doctors long suspected diabetes damaged blood vessels that supply the brain. It now seems even more insidious, that the damage may start before someone is diagnosed with full-blown diabetes back when the body is gradually losing its ability to regulate blood sugar.

In fact the lines are blurring between what specialists call "vascular dementia" and scarier classic Alzheimer's disease. Whatever it is labelled, there is reason enough to safeguard your brain by fighting diabetes and heart-related risks.

"Right now we can't do much about the Alzheimer's disease pathology," those sticky plaques that clog patients' brains, says Dr Yaakov Stern an Alzheimer's specialist at Columbia University Medical Centre. But, "if you could control these vascular conditions you might slow the course of the disease."

The link has staggering societal implications: More than 5 million Americans have Alzheimer's, and cases already are projected to skyrocket in the next two decades as the population ages.

Source :- More evidence links diabetes to Alzheimer's risk

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A heart-warming smile is now easy

Looking good and feeling good is on high priority now to create a lasting and worthwhile impression. When you have a warm smile you can connect even with strangers and they automatically feel that they can approach you without thinking twice. Dentist San Jose is known to be proficient and reliable. Dentist in San Jose understand your problem area and guarantee to fix your problem right without you wasting time and energy. Both Dental health and oral hygiene are very vital. Poor oral hygiene can lead not only to bad teeth and unhealthy teeth but also score of other health problems.

Cosmetic dentists San Jose are well known to deal with any situation. Cosmetic dentists San Jose are very capable you will comfortable with the right dentist. When you choose the right dentist half your problems are already solved. Cosmetic dentistry san Jose has adapted themselves to new techniques and technologies. Choosing a new dentist can be an involved process but it is well worth the effort. Dentistry in San Jose will make sure you get the best treatment available further more because oral hygiene and health is so important.

San Jose holds some of the greatest cosmetic dentists in the world. Dentistry San Jose consists of well renowned professionals who are very sure of the procedures they use. They have advanced in technology as well as their approach. They are very warm and will put to ease as you enter their clinic.

Since looking good has become imperative, so is choosing right. Everyone wants or dreams of looking good whether a celebrity or not. The quality of work done by a Fremont cosmetic dentist is definitely one of the best on the globe.

It is a well-known fact that every individual has a different and unique bite. Dentist in Fremont take care of the overall structure of your mouth and teeth. Gaps in your teeth no longer have to be visible there is a porcelain substance available to fill in your teeth. You smile will turn out even more appealing and vibrant with the right cosmetic dentist at your side. Dentist Fremont is a step ahead in terms of knowledge and technology.

Cosmetic dentist Fremont use dental procedures such as bleaching or teeth whitening, veneers, gum lifting, enamel shaping and bonding. Cosmetic dentistry Fremont use extremely professional procedures which will make you feel vibrant and appealing.

You can return with an energetic smile which can create miracles at the time of need.

Source :- A heart-warming smile is now easy

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Should 'dental therapists' be allowed to drill and extract?

Dentists are concerned about a bill -- cleared a Minnesota Senate committee -- that gives clinicians more responsibility.

Minnesota is poised to become only the second state in the country to allow someone other than a dentist to fill cavities and pull teeth.

The proposal, which cleared a state Senate committee on Wednesday, would create the dental equivalent of nurse practitioners to provide care in parts of the state where dentists are in short supply.

But one big question has yet to be settled: Just how independent should they be?

The Minnesota Dental Association insists that dentists must be on the premises to supervise the new clinicians, known as "oral health practitioners" or dental therapists. But a group called the Minnesota Safety Net Coalition says the new clinicians should be free to work in other settings in order to reach thousands of low-income children and adults who now get no dental care at all.

Last year, the Legislature gave its initial blessing to the idea of a new type of dental practitioner, and asked members of both sides to join in a "work group" to hammer out their differences. But on Wednesday, there was little sign that the debate has eased.

Dr. Scott Lingle, past president of the Dental Association, warned that even a simple tooth extraction can lead to serious complications, and that dental therapists won't be able to handle them without a dentist present. "Essentially, you're playing doctor without going to doctor school," he said.

Another dentist, Dr. Chris Carroll, said in written testimony that the idea "resembles, too much, what is now being done in the lesser developed parts of the world," adding that "it would be reproducing a level of patient care that America evolved away from years ago."

Source:- Should 'dental therapists' be allowed to drill and extract?

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The Right Set of Teeth

The Right Set of Teeth

Wear and tear of teeth takes place, as the days go by. The very popular concept of dental implant has caught everyone’s eye, as it’s a revolutionary method for supporting replacement of teeth. Dental implants are usually used as a stabilization method for the lower denture. Confidence of the wearer has consistently improved with implants as it aids in the stability. For those wanting dental implant procedures, many dental offices in New York City boast of valuable experience in dental implant research and surgery. You can get the proper fit with the right dentist on time or maybe even just one sitting.

Dental implants will give you support with increased confidence, a warmer smile, like just natural teeth along with better ability to eat right. They’re a number of city dentist doctors in New York. Modern technology has immensely widened the horizons and has opened many doors to latest method of exploring the face and for making your teeth even brighter and whiter. With Laser whitening teeth, it helps in enhancing your smile with a relatively painless, simple and easy method.

City dentistry restorative New York makes it quite simpler for the customers who want or require a changed appearance. With the new methods available one does not have to wait for too long, and you can return with an impressive set of teeth at the earliest

With an attractive smile you know that you are one above the rest since it becomes much easier to please other people. We all want a perfect smile, but all depends on the way we maintain our teeth. Tooth loss is something that can affect anyone at any point of time due to various reasons. It can be due to old age, result of an accident and even due to some medical conditions.

With recent times treating tooth loss has become very easy with Restorative dentistry, which is a medical procedure that works towards restoring the condition of your teeth. New York city hosts a number of clinics that work towards helping out people who suffer from any kind of dental problems. In the case of a restorative procedure, it must be done at the earliest as it could lead to being deteriorative. A professional restorative dentist works towards restoring any defect that you may be having in your teeth. Your lost tooth can be restored with a procedure called Dental implant. In dental implant, titanium is placed at the jawbone to facilitate the growth of artificial teeth in place of the missing teeth.

It should be noted that tooth loss could affect one’s speech, social life as well as eating habits. You must make sure you have healthy teeth as it will only help you both internally as well as externally.

Source :- The Right Set of Teeth

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Local dentist visits area schools during National Children's Dental Health Month

Since February is national Children's Dental Health Month--a month-long celebration sponsored by the American Dental Association to promote dental education and awareness for all children--Dr. Scott Gersch, and his dental team visited a number of local elementary schools and spoke to students about dental health and maintaining a beautiful smile.

WESTFIELD--February is national Children's Dental Health Month (NCDHM), a month-long celebration sponsored by the American Dental Association to promote dental education and awareness for all children.

The annual celebration focuses on oral hygiene care, nutritional concerns, prevention, and the importance of regular dental visits.

"By helping children develop a positive attitude and healthy habits, we will provide the tools they need to maintain good oral health throughout their lives and to keep their smiles healthy and beautiful," said Dr. Scott Gersch.

In observance of NCDHM, Dr. Scott Gersch, and his dental team from Gersch Orthodontics, visited a number of elementary schools in Westfield, Cranford, Garwood and Linden and spoke to grades one through four about dental health and maintaining a beautiful smile.

Source :- Local dentist visits area schools during National Children's Dental Health Month

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