Hallelujah- Lindsey Stirling- #aSaviorIsBorn

Alzheimers' Mice Cognitive Function Restored

INTRODUCTION:

Are you an athlete? Have you ever been on a sports team in High School or College? Do you exercise? Almost everyone will say yes to any of these questions and if so many of us have at some time or another drank an energy drink to give us a boost. Recent research in mice have shown that these very energy drinks contain in them a compound that clears Beta Amyloid Plaques of early stages of Alzheimer's in the brain of mice that contain a build up of plaque.

The results of the preliminary tests show that when this compound was added to their drinking water, it cleared the amyloid beta plaques from the mice that were suffering with Alzheimer like symptoms subsequently restoring their cognitive function to normal. Although it is still very early in research, these results give hope in potentially stopping the progression of the disease and in the prevention of amyloid plaques accumulating in the brain which kill off brain cells (a process known as neuro-degeneration).

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

The definition of Alzheimer's Disease, (Thanks to Google Search Engine) is a progressive mental deterioration that can occur in middle or old age, due to generalized degeneration of the brain. It is the most common cause of premature senility. It is a disease that destroys memory and other mental functions. This is the most common form of dementia in which symptoms develop at a very steady state,  becoming increasingly worse as time progresses, becoming so severe as to interfere with a suffers' daily tasks.

RESEARCH: 

EPPS, the chemical in energy drinks, was discovered by researchers in Korea. Their most recent study included adding EPPS to the water mice were drinking from and found that the mice improved in maze tests and the extinction of plaques in their brains. Much more research is needed to see if the compound (similar to taurine- an Amino Acid found in Red Bull and other energy drinks) is effective for humans not just mice. There also needs more work to be done so that there are more chemicals discovered which are similar to EPPS that have the potential of improving dementia in humans. The side effects this compound has on humans is also unknown although none of the mice experienced any bad side effects.

CONCLUSION:

Patients who suffer from Alzheimer's have plaques that have built up over a decade or more causing serious damage and other mental impairments. Teams of researchers everywhere have tried to discover drugs that remove the amyloid plaques. One recent approach has been to design antibodies that bind to these plaques which then break them down.

 

This study has found a new chemical that could help to clear some forms of amyloid, the toxic protein that is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. However, so far this has only been shown in mice, which do not fully replicate several of the important changes that we see in the brains and behaviors of people with dementia. Further expanding our understanding of Alzheimer’s disease all the time, and there are already a number of drugs in clinical testing that are targeted against amyloid. We hope that new findings will one day translate into real treatments for people living with dementia.

 

LINKS:
(A)http://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/dec/08/taurine-like-chemical-restores-cognitive-function-in-mice-with-alzheimers
(B)https://www.google.com/search?site=&source=hp&q=what+is+alzheimer%27s+disease&oq=what+is+alzheimer%27s+disease&gs_l=hp.3..0l10.578.9404.0.9489.28.21.0.0.0.0.758.4062.2-3j4j1j1j1.10.0....0...1.1.64.hp..18.10.4058.0.-K_nF7itJaI
(C)http://www.alz.org/alzheimers_disease_what_is_alzheimers.asp
(D)https://animationscreencaps.com/cinderella-2015/

*These are not my images! They were found on various Tumblr sites~if any are yours please let me know so I can give you credit! Thanks so much~Enjoy~

Virus' New Prey, Cancer

INTRODUCTION:

Melanoma, a type of skin cancer, is one of the most common forms of skin cancer related to skin cancer related deaths. Over exposure to UV light is the cause of melanoma.  According to the National Cancer Institute approximately 74,000 Americans will be diagnosed with melanoma and nearly 10,000 will die from the disease in 2015. (B)

 

Cancer hunting virus preys on cancer creates a new era of treatment for patients world wide. This specific new virus could play a key role in patients diagnosed with cancer and having none of the extreme side effects that chemotherapy causes. Treatments for cancer such as chemotherapy are very difficult on the patients physically emotionally and spiritually.

 

Cancer cells are hard to kill off as they spread quickly throughout the body. Patients often lose hair, have internal bleeding due to chronic nausea, and some even death.The first FDA-approved oncolytic virus therapy, for the treatment of melanoma lesions in the skin and lymph nodes. This treatment targets cancer cells and only cancer cells (leaving the healthy cells alone). The treatment then stimulates the immune system to fight the cancer itself in which T-VEC or  talimogene laherparepvec, (under the brand name IMlygic) uses a modified virus to hunt cancer cells. (A)

 TREATMENT:

The treatment consists of a series of injections in the melanoma lesions. A modified form of the herpes virus is what is being injected into each tumor. The genetic code of the virus was taken from a cold sore of a BioVex employee and then modified to kill only cancer cells. There are two modes of action in which this specifically modified virus can perform. It can attack the cancer cells directly or it can trigger the body's immune system to attack rogue cells once the virus is detected. Once the initial injection is performed, the second is given to the patient 3 weeks later, next additional doses are administered every 2 weeks for at least 6 months. This treatment takes place until there are no remaining lesions to treat or unless another treatment is needed to be performed. (A)

RESEARCH:

Study of 436 participants with metastatic melanoma (in which their tumors were not viable for surgical removal) were used to study the safety and efficacy of Imlygic. Lesions in the skin or lymph nodes were treated with Imlygic or a similar therapy treatment for at least 6 months or until no lesions remained. The results concluded that 16.3% of those who recieved Imlygic had decrease in size of their skin and lymph node lesions lasting for a min of 6 months. Whereas, 2.1% of those who recieved comparative therapy. Unfortunately, Imlygic did not show overall survival or have an effect on melanoma which spread to the brain, bone, liver, lungs, or other internal organs. (B) 

Since Imlygic is a modified version of a live oncolytic herpes virus type of therapy, herpes virus infect is possible. Therefore, this form of treatment should not be given to those with suppressed immune systems or those who are pregnant. Side effects of Imlygic treatment include fatigue, chills, fever, nausea, flu-like symptoms, and pain at the injection site. (B)

 

The Mayo Clinical studied mice who developed large tumors and once injected with the virus were completely absent. Viruses can increase a patients lifespan and even cure diseases such as cancer in the future. Dramatic results are needed from such studies so that treatments like chemotherapy and radiotherapy can be replaced with less traumatic therapies such as T-VEC. (A)

 ALTERNATIVES:

Current Oncological treatments (i.e. chemotherapy, radiotherapy) not only kill cancer cells, however damage the rest of the body. Viruses, on the other hand, can be modified to attack only cancer cells so that patients suffer less and have side effects comparable to a flu's symptoms. Cancer-hunting viruses have long been researched, experimented with, and thought of by scientists, researchers, as well as physicians to treat cancer. (A)

 

CONCLUSION:

Imlygic is a significant step in the battle against cancer. Melanoma lesions that cannot be removed completely by surgery are injected with Imlygic, where it replicates inside cancer cells and causes the cells to rupture and die. (B) There is still much progress being made for Imlygic treatment as well as a current number of several similar treatments in their 3rd stage of clinical testing.

LINKS:

(A)http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/nov/02/fda-approval-imlygic-cancer-hunting-viral-treatment

(B)http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm469571.htm

(C)https://www.cancercommons.org/news/t-vecpembrolizumab-combination-demonstrates-safety-in-melanoma/
(D)https://animationscreencaps.com/brave-2012/

*These images are not mine! They were found on various tumblr sites- if any are yours please let me know so that I can give you credit for them! Thanks so much~

Wednesday Inspiration: Passion

"Passion will drive you crazy, but is there any other way to live?"

Use of Antibiotics : Dangerous or Helpful Aids?

Introduction:

Although, broad spectrum drugs are effective against a wide range of bacteria they also drive antibiotic resistance. When physicians are unsure of the type of infection they are dealing with they use these 'last resort antibiotics'. (A) E.coli for example, which is a type of bacteria that lives in the intestines but, some types of E.coli such as E.coli 0157:H7 causes intestinal infections. Diarrhea, abdominal pain, and fever are just some of the symptoms. Sometimes these symptoms although rare can lead to bloody diarrhea, dehydration, and kidney failure. Intestinal infections are commonly caused by contaminated food or water. Most infections can be treated at home and usually resolve within a few days to a week. (D)

Then there is Klebsiella pneumoniae which is a type of gram negative bacteria that causes different types of healthcare-associated infections. (some examples include: pneumonia, bloodstream infections, wound/surgical site infections, and meningitis) The Klebsiella bacteria have developed antimicrobial resistance to a class of antibiotics known as carbapenems. Just like E.coli, Klebsiella is found in the intestines, but also in human feces. Patients who are recieving care in hospital/healthcare settings through devices such as ventilators, intravenous vein catheters, and those taking antibiotics are at highest risk of a Klebsiella infection. (E)

In recent reports there can be seen an overall rise in consumption of antibiotics through surgeries whereas the number of perscriptions are falling. Between the years of 2010 to 2014 blood stream infections from E.coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae have increased from 13.5% to 17.2%.  Between 2011-14, there was a 6.5% rise in total antibiotic consumption (defined as doses of antibiotics per 1,000 people per day).(A) 

Streptococcus Pneumoniae infections are just some of the small group of bacteria that have shown good results in cutting infections. Their infections have fallen by 23% between 2010 to 2014 which seem to be related to have increased pneumococcal vaccination rates. If one was to look at the molecular level, these forms of mutations can actually prevent an antibiotic from entering the bacterial cell at all. By changing the target molecules that do not bind to the antibiotic or enhancing the efficiency of efflux of mechanisms in the bacteria that allows it to pump a drug back out again. Specific genes can actively degrade antibiotics by limiting their effectiveness once they have entered the cell.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has reported on the global antibiotic resistance because of the serious concern that there could very soon be a very serious threat to public health which has been recently rapidly growing. Diseases that we have thought to be treatable or far from concern could very possibly be a scary new reality. Everyone could be affected by this not just individuals living in poverty or developing countries. Tuberculosis is an example of a disease that used to be of the past is considered fatal now.

Research:

In 2014, most antibiotics in England were prescribed in general practice (74%), followed by prescribing for hospital inpatients (11%), hospital outpatients (7%), patients seen in dental practices (5%) and patients in other community settings (3%). Antibiotic prescribing to hospital inpatients increased significantly by 11.7% and to hospital outpatients by 8.5% between 2011-14. With the exception of general dental practice, antibiotic prescribing increased across the NHS in 2014.

The rising resistance to antibiotics routinely used to prevent patients getting infections during and after surgery is disastrous. It will mean increased risk for operations such as caesareans, hip replacements and appendix removal, and also treatment for cancer patients, who are given antibiotics because chemotherapy drugs undermine their immune system, making them vulnerable to infections.

 

About 32 percent of patients believe that they should stop taking antibiotics when they feel better rather than completing the prescribed course by their physicians, meanwhile over 76 percent of patients think that resistance occurs when the body itself becomes resistant. However, scientific research shows that bacteria grow resistant to antibiotics not humans or animals.

When the PHE released a second annual report on antimicrobial resistance, it supported WHO's survey that revealed a widespread public misunderstanding of antibiotics. The results showed that 64 percent of individuals have the misconception that antibiotics can actually cure common cold and flue whereas antibiotics have no impact on viruses. Subsequently, it is clear to see how antimicrobial resistance is quickly becoming a major threat to delivery of healthcare across the globe. 

The Ebola epidemic in West Africa puts into perspective the global antibiotic resistance pandemic. In 2014, the Ebola virus accounted for over 11,000 fatalities making it officially the most devastating outbreak virus in history. A rough estimate of 700,000 lives have lead to death worldwide because of the antibiotic resistant bacteria. Unless drastic changes are made, this number of annual deaths is predicted to rise to 10 million by 2050 where numbers of bacteria which are already fully resistant to every clinical antibiotic available are growing.

Scientists from San Diego Institute of Oceaneography have collected samples of marine life from the ocean floor, 20,000 feet below the surface of the pacific ocean in the coast of California. Within the small clumps of sediment, they found micro-organisms that can one day give us an answer to one of the most urgent issues in modern healthcare.

Professor Otto Cars described resistance to antibiotics as “a silent tsunami, crumbling down the pillars upon which modern medicine is built.” Cars, who has spent decades campaigning for awareness on the topic, describes the problem as one of complacency. While antibiotic consumption has increased by 36% in the past decade, no new classes of these drugs have been discovered since the 1980s. In June, the World Health Organisation unveiled a global action plan to tackle antibiotic resistance. One of the stated aims is to have a whole new class of antibiotics in development by 2019.

Over the past 80 years, the main focal point of the search for new antibiotics has been soil microbes, and the variety of substances they produce to kill each other as part of their ongoing chemical warfare. But until recently, we haven’t been especially adept at keeping them alive in the lab for long enough to obtain their weapons for our own use.

Meanwhile, scientists in Germany as well as in the United States have developed a method that has led to the discovery of teixobactin. This substance is believed to have the potential of becoming the very first new antibiotic since 1987. It has the ability to destroy some of the most dangerous drug resistant bacteria (i.e MRSA). Teixobactin has a very low potential for developing a resistance but it is ineffective against the most difficult to treat family of all bacteria, the gram-negative bacteria. Gram negative bacteria develop resistance at an incredible rate due to their rapid DNA sharing. This has evolved in gram negative bacteria as an extra protective membrane and a sophisticated efflux.

Scientists have been shifting their focus to organisms who live thousands of feet beneath the ocean surface. These specific organisms have evolved their own ways of defending against microbes where most of them are still unknown. Anthracimycin is a compound that is produced by a bacterium living in the pacific ocean which has given scientists potential however finding such compounds is just a minor aspect of the challenge.

The number one problem is finding compounds that are not toxic or harmful to humans. It is well known that bacteria, humans as well as all living creatures have the same biochemical mechanisms essential to life. This is what antibiotics usually target. Killing a bacterium is to poke a hole in its membrane. However, discovering something that specifically pokes holes in bacteria and NOT human cells is another challenge.

Gibbons feels the WHO’s 2019 deadline is unrealistic. “There’s a lot of work from simple testing to safety testing, and then animal models involving mice or rabbits, before you even think about a clinical trial. And you have to prove that you can generate enough of the substance itself. So I doubt we’ll see any new classes of antibiotics until 2021 or 2022 at the very least.”

Others are instead looking at redesigning old, discarded antibiotics to increase their stability and effectiveness. Some were originally abandoned because they only worked on a small handful of bacteria, but now it’s thought that a range of more narrow spectrum treatments may be a better way to avoid driving resistance.Lee is currently researching spectinomycin, an antibiotic introduced in the 1960s to treat gonorrhoea, before being cast aside as it only worked in massive doses. He believes that a remodeled version has the potential to work well against a range of respiratory tract infections and sexually transmitted diseases.

“The drug has always been very safe, and fifty years on we now know its crystal structure,” he says. “So we can exploit that along with all the old knowledge from the pharmaceutical companies who tried to develop it in the 1980s, to improve its design and help it access the target bacteria more effectively.” Of course, some bacteria will eventually become resistant to spectinomycin and other old antibiotics, but Lee believes that it is possible to design these drugs so this comes at an evolutionary cost to the bacteria.

Tuberculosis:

Tuberculosis should be treatable within 6 month period once individuals are given a prescribed course of drugs including isoniazid and rifampicin antibiotics. However, there is a resistance to these medications as well as a wide range of pharmaceuticals used to treat the disease. Because of this recent obstacle, a multi drug resistant TB has emerged, "XDR-TB" and a total drug resistant TB officially confirmed in India. Many countries have run out of treatment options for their patients such as those in South Africa and have to choice but to discharge the patients from the hospitals without proper treatment. As of today, 92 countries are reported to being resistant to TB hitting the global scale mark with XDR-TB.

Gonorrhoea: 

Gonorrhoea is a sexually transmitted infection. It used to be easily treatable but once penicillin and tetracycline, however since the bacteria behind the disease developed high levels of resistance that now there is only one drug left to treat it. Even this antibiotic, ceftriaxone, is becoming less effective. With last-resort drugs losing their impact, this sexually transmitted infection (STI) could spread throughout the population.

Klebsiella:

Klebsiella is a common bacterium that is part of the group of bacteria with the 'apt' acronym of Eskape. that causes a range of conditions such as pneumonia, UTIs, septicaemia, meningitis, as well as diarrhea. Their ability to avoid the effects of antibiotics which are used against them. The 'apt' acronym stands for the names within the bacterial group members: Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus; Klebsiella pneumoniae: Acinetobacter baumannii; Pseudomonas aeruginosa; and Enterobacter. Klebsiella are just some examples of this group. Although MRSA is a concern it is declining in hospitals. Eskape pathogens are causing more and more problems. As the WHO report highlighted, routine hospital visits or treatments could result in these previously treatable bacteria having fatal consequences.

Typhoid:

Typhoid is a somewhat rare disease for humans because of the routine vaccinations against typhoid are performed. There are a large amount of people affected by typhoid, around 21.5 million people per year.  Since people are always traveling to developing countries and travel to  areas with increased sources of infection has become more common. This has affected more than 5,000 American lives as they have become infected after ingesting contaminated foods or drinks.

Typhoid consists of a typhoid fever where the bacterium salmonella typhi although typically treated with antibiotics have been increasing their resistance to multiple antibiotics. Reduced susceptibility to fluoroquinolone class of drugs and the emerging of multi drug resistance has complicated the treatment of infections. (especially those from South Asia). There is good news as the vaccination for typhoid does in fact exist, however it is critical for people to be vaccinated before getting onto a plane. 

Syphillis and Diphtheria:

Although resistance to these diseases is yet to emerge, public awareness of them has reduced as a result of effective treatments. But in an era of resistance there is always the potential for them to return as a serious public health threat. Although rates of syphilis are low, they have been increasing in the UK since 1997. This STI is currently treated by a single injection with penicillin, but resistance to this antibiotic has developed in other diseases. Imagine the impact if it happened again. The fever and chills of diphtheria are mainly prevalent in the developing world, but with travelers contracting typhoid even though a vaccine is available, the same could happen with diphtheria.

CONCLUSION:

“The most common way this happens is through the acquisition of genes from other resistant bacteria,” says Gerry Wright, a chemical biologist at McMaster University in Ontario, Canada. “Bacteria are very promiscuous and the most shocking thing we’ve realised over the past 60 years is just how rapidly this gene sharing occurs. They often acquire these resistance genes in packages, giving them resistance to multiple antibiotics at the same time, and that’s a major problem in hospitals. Resistance also develops through chance mutations during DNA copying when bacteria reproduce. This is believed to be how bacteria became resistant to rifampin, a drug used to treat tuberculosis.”

Since antibiotics are harder for bacteria to develop a resistance against, mutated bacteria can bypass the drug however they do not live very long. So you could become infected but it won’t be as virulent and threatening. Developing a new product from scratch or even rewiring an old one comes with substantial costs and challenges, and so there are many scientists focusing exclusively on ways to make our existing antibiotics useful once more against resistant bacteria. One popular idea is combination therapy – combining multiple drugs together to form a cocktail mix which is both more potent and difficult to evade.

By continuing the discovery of specific genes essential for the life of the bacterium that interact with multiple other genes in the cell in a complex web-like fashion. By combining antibiotics with other molecules and using these combinations to target this web in various random fashions, perhaps we can unexpectedly improve antibiotic activity or overcome bacterial resistance in new ways. Such random screening required vast numbers of drug combinations to be tried and tested, a thankless needle-in-a-haystack task which would have taken years of labor in decades gone by. But with 21st century robotics technology, Wright and his colleague Eric Brown are able to screen thousands in a mere afternoon.

There can still be unexpected drawbacks as it is often hard to match the exposure of two drugs at the site of infection to see the desired effect.. Wright and Brown thought they’d struck gold with a combination of the antibiotic tetracycline with a drug called imodium, used to treat diarrhea. Imodium enhanced tetracycline’s ability to penetrate bacteria, but further testing showed this only worked in the gut, limiting its usefulness.  “The alternative is to have one drug that simultaneously hits several , often related bacterial targets making resistance harder to develop,” Lee says. “This is a serendipitous strategy applied by many currently successful antibacterial agents including fluoroquinolones and beta-lactam antibiotics. But from a de novo discovery angle this is technically much harder to do.”

As a result, some feel the right combinations of drugs have major advantages when it comes to developing viable products. Given that the individual drugs themselves are known to be safe, and can be produced in large quantities at a reasonable cost, the path from lab to clinic should, in theory, be much faster and less expensive. Wright believes combination therapy is the main way forward, just as combinations of antiviral drugs proved to be the way to control HIV. “With multiple molecules, bacteria often have to develop resistance to each one. And with three or even four molecules together, there’s less and less chance of this actually happening.”

Antibiotic resistance is a problem we can all help to reduce. Good hand hygiene when visiting people in hospital helps. Only taking antibiotics when prescribed by a doctor is crucial; as is always completing a full course if you do have to take them. In addition, doctors themselves should only be prescribing these medicines when patients truly need them. These may be small things, but if we all do them it will have an impact and maybe prevent a future where treatable diseases become fatal once more.

Links:

(A) http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/nov/16/last-resort-antibiotics-growing-threat-healthcare-report

(B)http://www.theguardian.com/society/blog/2015/aug/21/antibiotic-resistance-the-race-to-stop-the-silent-tsunami-facing-modern-medicine

(C) http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/may/09/6-diseases-becoming-resistant-to-antibiotics

(D) http://www.healthline.com/health/e-coli-infection#Overview1

(E)http://www.cdc.gov/HAI/organisms/klebsiella/klebsiella.html

*Please note! These are not my images! They were found on various sites. Please let me know if any are yours so that I can give you credit for them! Thanks so much & enjoy~

Robin Williams: Dementia with Lewy Bodies VS Alzheimer's

 "You are only given a little spark of madness. You must not lose it"~ R. Williams  

 

D is not a rare disease. It affects an estimated 1.4 million individuals and their families in the United States, but many doctors or other medical professionals still are not familiar with LBD. - See more at: http://www.lbda.org/learn_about_lbd#sthash.KJTg8Hv4.dpuf

D is not a rare disease. It affects an estimated 1.4 million individuals and their families in the United States, but many doctors or other medical professionals still are not familiar with LBD. - See more at: http://www.lbda.org/learn_about_lbd#sthash.KJTg8Hv4.dpuf

Many people did not know what Robin Williams, beloved actor and inspiration to all, was suffering quietly alone. He suffered from depression, paranoia,  Parkinson's Disease, as well as dementia. These symptoms describe dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB). The symptoms fluctuate in their intensities in very unpredictable ways. DLB is the second most common cause of dementia in older individuals, where Alzheimer's is the first. (A)

 According to the LBDA (Lewy Body Dementia Association) there are 3 common symptoms: some will begin with movement disorder leading to Parkinson's Disease then later to dementia. (diagnosis: Parkinson's Disease Dementia), another group of individuals will have cognitive/memory disorder that could easily be mistaken for Alzheimer's Disease, but time will show more distinctive characteristics that leads to LBD. Next, is the smalls group of this disease who at first show neuropsychiatric symptoms (e.x: Hallucinations, behavioral problems, and have a hard time with more complex mental activities) (B)

• Some individuals will start out with a movement disorder leading to the diagnosis of Parkinson's disease and later develop dementia. This is diagnosed as Parkinson’s disease dementia.
• Another group of individuals will start out with a cognitive/memory disorder that may be mistaken for AD, but over time two or more distinctive features become apparent leading to the diagnosis of ‘dementia with Lewy bodies’ (DLB).
• Lastly, a small group will first present with neuropsychiatric symptoms, which can include hallucinations, behavioral problems, and difficulty with complex mental activities, also leading to an initial diagnosis of DLB.

Regardless of the initial symptom, over time all three presentations of LBD will develop very similar cognitive, physical, sleep and behavioral features. - See more at: http://www.lbda.org/content/10-things-you-should-know-about-lbd#sthash.O4YsoqVj.dpuf

 

LBD can have three common presentations:

• Some individuals will start out with a movement disorder leading to the diagnosis of Parkinson's disease and later develop dementia. This is diagnosed as Parkinson’s disease dementia.
• Another group of individuals will start out with a cognitive/memory disorder that may be mistaken for AD, but over time two or more distinctive features become apparent leading to the diagnosis of ‘dementia with Lewy bodies’ (DLB).
• Lastly, a small group will first present with neuropsychiatric symptoms, which can include hallucinations, behavioral problems, and difficulty with complex mental activities, also leading to an initial diagnosis of DLB.

Regardless of the initial symptom, over time all three presentations of LBD will develop very similar cognitive, physical, sleep and behavioral features. - See more at: http://www.lbda.org/content/10-things-you-should-know-about-lbd#sthash.O4YsoqVj.dpuf

"To live...To live would be an awfully great adventure." ~Williams as Peter Pan in Hook  

Individuals who suffer from Parkinson's disease have symptoms of shaking tremors, slow movements of their limbs, and shuffling style of walk. Lewy bodies were found in people with Parkinsons. Lewy bodies are microscopic clumps of protein (aka: alpha-synucein) where under specific conditions- still unknown to scientists and physicians- accumulate in the nerve cells of the brain. This accumulation involving the brainstem, midbrain structures, and substantia nigra accounts for the loss of Dopamine (a neurotransmitter) in the brain leading to Parkinson's Disease. Recent studies show that Lewy bodies do in fact affect other parts of the brain that can occur in autonomic and PNS producing symptoms of low blood pressure, constipation, and sweating. These symptoms are very commonly known as vegetative symptoms. (A)

The most common symptoms of LBD include impaired thinking, fluctuations in cognition(attention or awareness), visual hallucinations,sleep disorders, behavioral and mood symptoms i.e. depression, anxiety, agitation, delusions, paranoia), and changes in autonomic body functions (i.e blood pressure control, temp regulation, bladder and bowel function) (B)

Impaired thinking, such as loss of executive function (planning, processing information), memory, or the ability to understand visual information.

Fluctuations in cognition, attention or alertness;

Problems with movement including tremors, stiffness, slowness and difficulty walking

Visual hallucinations (seeing things that are not present)

Sleep disorders, such as acting out one’s dreams while asleep

Behavioral and mood symptoms, including depression, apathy, anxiety, agitation, delusions or paranoia

Changes in autonomic body functions, such as blood pressure control, temperature regulation, and bladder and bowel function.

- See more at: http://www.lbda.org/content/10-things-you-should-know-about-lbd#sthash.O4YsoqVj.dpuf

DLB diagnosed patients have lewy bodies within the cerebral cortex. The symptoms begin with mild, fluctuating disturbances in attention and wakefulness. The individual will appear vague, drowsy or confused as their interests decrease and inabilities to reason and carry out daily tasks. (Similar to Apathy but is mistaken for depression). R. Williams' visuo-perceptual function was also affected as he would get bruising from bumping into objects. He would also have very life like hallucinations which is common in 80% of cases. (A)

"No matter what people tell you... words and ideas CAN change the world"~ Williams in Dead Poets Society

 As the lewy body disease progresses, general cognitive impairment and dementia get worse although it occurs in a fluctuating pattern of intervals. The hallucinations that these individuals suffer from can be life threatening, confusing as well as frustrating as to why they are unable to recognize familiar faces or strangers. Some have hallucinations as a form of nightmares which develops in part as a specific sleep disorder. The initial diagnosis of Parkison's disease is dementia followed by symptoms of short term memory failure, alzheimer's diseass pathology in the brain, and the walking nightmares people like Williams suffered with on a daily basis. (A)

 

 "Please, don't worry so much, because in the end, none of us have very long on this earth"~ Williams in Jumanji

If DLB is so common, why did it take so long for physicians to recognize it in Williams? Unfortantely, lewy bodies are extremely difficult to see in the brain using conventional methods such as staining. 

"You will always have bad times, but they will wake you up to things you weren't paying attention to"~Williams 

Trials for DLB have been rare because there is a lack of compounds to test. A preoccupation with targeting Alzheimer's and a reluctance of regulatory bodies to recognize DLB are just some of the obstacles researchers face. Because of Robin William's, pharmacological trials for DLB, will increase public awareness. Families will now search for organizations that provide information, advice, advocacy, and support for research activity. DLB is the key to unlock the key to BOTH parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease. (A)

"Never say goodbye because goodbye means going away and going away means forgetting"~Peter Pan, Neverland

Links:
(A)http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/robin-williams-had-dementia-lewy-bodies-so-what-it-and-why-has-it-been-eclipsed
(B) http://www.lbda.org/learn_about_lbd

*These images are not mine they were found on various tumblr sites! If any are yours please let me know so that I can give you credit~ Thanks so much!

Wednesday Inspiration: How the worst moments in our lives make us who we are

Medicare vs. Medicaid

Medicare (What is it?): Administered by the US federal government, Medicare is a national social insurance program, that has been implemented since 1966. About 30 private insurance companies provide health insurance for Americans who are 65 and older. These individuals have worked and paid into the system since their first job. Medicare also provides health insurance for younger people who have disabilities, end stage renal disease, and amyotropic lateral sclerosis. Medicare covers about half of the health care charges of those who qualify and are enrolled in the Medicare program. The rest of the approved charges have to be paid in either with forms of out of pocket coverages. Such out of pocket coverages vary on a case by case bases depending on the amount of health care the patient needs. Long term, dental, hearing, and vision care are uncovered services of Medicare. 

Medicaid(What is it?) : The Health Insurance Association of America (HIAA) describes Medicaid as a 'government insurance program for people of all ages whose income and resources are insufficient to pay for health care.' It other words, it is a social health care program for families and individuals who have low income as well as limited resources. Medicaid is funded by both the state and federal government, and as of today it is the largest source of funding for medical and health-related services. The states-which manage the funding from the state and federal government- decide who is eligible for the program. These individuals must be US citizens or legal permanent residents. Adults, children, and individuals with certain disabilities are included in this criteria. (Poverty alone does not qualify individuals for Medicaid)

Links:

*These images do not belong to me! They were found on various tumblr sites! IF any are yours- please let me know so that I can give you credit for them! Thanks so much~

Layla Richards: Designer Cells Impact

Introduction: 

One year old Layla Richards suffering from an aggressive form of leukemia is the first to be treated with designer immune cells that were genetically engineered to wipe out her cancer. Given only months to live after the failure of conventional treatments, a miracle has occured. (A) Layla was treated in London by specialists at Great Ormond Street Hospital (aka: GOSH).  They were unsure whether the treatment would work, curing the disease, or delaying its progression but knew that only time would tell. However, there are still many concerns about this type of treatment for all children. Nevertheless, this is a huge leap for new gene engineering technology. (A) When Layla was born, within 3 months she developed fast heartbeat, did not drink her milk, and cried more than expected. Blood tests revealed she had acute lymphoblastic leukemia (aka: ALL) being the most aggressive form that doctors have ever seen.(A) A doctor who cared for Layla, Sujith Samarasinghe, stated that only ~25% of children survive such aggressive forms of leukemia. Next day, Layla was given chemotherapy and had a bone marrow transplant to replace her damaged blood cells. Despite all the conventional treatments, the disease returned.(A)

Research: 

Researchers from UCL showed that modified cells had an anti-cancer effect on mice with leukemia. They gave one vial of the cells to baby Layla through the approval and consent from emergency ethics committee and her parents. Once approved, she recieved 1mL infusion of genetically engineered immune cells taking the infusion a total of 10 minutes. The vial of cells came from donated T cells (which were kept frozen) or more commonly known as WBCs (have vital role in human immunity). However, before the infusion, the cells were given an added gene so that the cells target the leukemia cells. As suspected, the doctors predicted that if the infusion did in fact work, Layla would develop a rash (an indication that the cells were having an effect).  (A) Results: Two months passed, and Layla was still clear of leukemia which allowed doctors to give her a second bone marrow transplant to replace her entire blood and immune system. The treatment had wiped both out so this was necessary and vital part of the whole process. Thirty days later and she was healthy to go home. Doctors and researchers are now inspired to modify the therapy so that they can treat other blood disorders and the various types of cancers that exist. Clinical trials of the cells could be a huge step forward in treating both leukemi and other cancers. (A) 

Concluding Remarks: 

“Re-engineering a patient’s immune cells to target cancer has shown real promise in a small number of patients with leukaemia. This trial has adapted this treatment so that it’s easier to make, and now we need to see if this new approach is effective. Finding a way to make this work in other types of cancer is the next big challenge.(A)”

Links:

(A)http://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/nov/05/baby-girl-is-first-in-the-world-to-be-treated-with-designer-immune-cells

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