A cure for chronic kidney disease

by Dr. U. Pethiyagoda

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) has been known for decades and has recently assumed alarming proportions in certain areas in the NCP and NWP. Much effort has been expended to determine its likely causes. This includes a project of some four years duration carried out with expertise from the WHO.

Several probable causes have been ascribed from time to time.

These include fertiliser and pesticide residues (specifically cadmium and arsenic), algal toxins, fish consumption, hard water and products of organic decay. Amidst the many controversies, what seems agreed is that some factor in the food chain, most probably from drinking water or food is to blame.

However, it is intriguing that none of the toxic materials, from analysis of blood, urine and tissues of patients is detected in amounts considered damaging in published WHO literature.

Suspect

The most recent collaborative study with WHO is reported to imply that arsenic and cadmium are the prime suspect candidates. Detailed results have not been published yet. Much controversy surrounds the problem as pesticides and fertiliser may be the sources.

The “conspiracy” advocates see the hidden and sinister hand of big business and the bureaucracy behind this while cautious researchers stress the need for incontrovertible scientific evidence before ascribing a cause that may have far-reaching consequences.

While not denying the virtues of precise scientific evidence, it is suggested that when such a widespread and grave health problem surfaces, any method with even the remotest chance of success merits adequate attention.

Tribal dwellers in the upper reaches of the Nile (in Sudan) have for centuries used a method to get rid of turbidity in their drinking water.

The method is broadly as follows: Ripe seeds of the common Murunga (Moringa oleifera ) are cleaned of their skins and other materials and the white kernels are pounded as finely as possible. After sieving, the fine powder is transferred to a bottle that can be stoppered (an aerated water bottle should be fine), water added and the bottle shaken vigorously to yield a milky slurry.

This is allowed a while to settle and the supernatant stored for use. A small quantity of the liquid (well shaken again) is mixed with the bulk water and stirred vigorously for about two to five minutes.

This is apparently important to “activate” the active ingredient. This is not unlike the process of “potentiation” practiced in Homoeopathy. After this, the suspension is stirred for another few minutes from time to time and allowed to rest overnight.

The process effectively removes any suspended silt and thus clarifies the water. The process is simple and much cheaper than alum.

Benefit

Obviously, details of appropriate quantities and procedures to be employed for optimum benefit in our particular case will need to be worked out.

The final step may conveniently be carried out in a clay kalagediya (aluminium to be avioded) and the water used for drinking and cooking. There is no mention in the copious literature that any ill effects or off-tastes have been caused by the procedure. It is therefore perfectly safe.

Intensive investigations of the process (including by reputable Universities in the UK) revealed that apart from removing suspended matter, it also cleared the water of a host of inorganic ions (including several heavy metals), bacteria, even viruses and many organic residues.

Interestingly, if one were to search the hundreds (if not thousands) of quoted references, it will be found that every cause ascribed for the local CKD, may be removed by this method.

One thing that is not immediately clear is whether the water needs to be turbid to begin with - the absorption of other compounds being by some kind of co-precipitation.

One known factor is that the active principle from the seed powder is probably an amphoteric, short chain protein. Hence its ability to combine (or adsorb) a range of diverse dispersed materials, carrying either positive, negative or no charge.

Suffice it to say that Africa now has commercial plantations of Murunga (many locals not being aware reportedly, of it as a delectable vegetable) for use even in large Municipal water bodies for purification!

Gene ‘Bursting’ plays key role in protein production

Scientists have mapped the precise frequency by which genes get turned on across the human genome, providing new insight into the most fundamental of cellular processes - and revealing new clues as to what happens when this process goes awry.

In a study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Leor Weinberger, and his research team describe how a gene's on-and-off switching - called “bursting” - is the predominant method by which genes make proteins.

By gaining an understanding of this underlying mechanism, this discovery has the potential to vastly help researchers learn what happens at the molecular level when this mechanism is disrupted - such as in cancer or when exposed to a particular drug.

The manufacture, or synthesis, of proteins takes place inside every cell. DNA and genes - which house the instructions for making proteins - are stored within the nucleus of each cell. When a gene is switched on, those instructions are transcribed as a copy onto RNA, another type of genetic material that then directs the protein synthesis.Proteins perform a variety of functions within the cell - from the breaking down and digesting fats to resisting foreign invaders, such as bacteria or viruses. The timing and frequency with which a particular protein is synthesised is crucial to maintaining the health of the cell.

“Much like flicking on a light switch, genes get ‘switched on’ at specific intervals to initiate the fundamental biological process of protein synthesis,” said Dr. Weinberger. “Until recently, the process was thought to be continuous - once a gene is switched on, it stays on, churning out protein products at a steady pace like a garden hose.

But recently, some studies have suggested the opposite - that DNA produces RNA molecules in rapid-fire ‘staccato’ bursts. We decided to investigate how common this rapid-fire bursting was across the genome.”

In laboratory experiments, Dr. Weinberger and his team inserted a green fluorescent protein, or “vector,” into the DNA of Jurkat T lymphocytes - a type of white blood cell that helps maintain a healthy human immune system. From this they generated new cells in which the vector was integrated into any one of thousands of gene segments - with each segment glowing green when it was activated, or “switched on.”

This allowed the researchers to see exactly how gene activation occurred across the entire human genome.

“Our analysis reveals support for the “bursting” hypothesis – the genes acted as a sort of strobe light - transcribing RNA in rapid-fire bursts,” said Roy Dar, a postdoctoral fellow and one of the paper's lead authors. “We observed that the bursting frequency increases until, over time, it reaches a particular threshold. At that point higher protein levels are reached by increasing the size of the bursts, eventually coming to a halt when no more protein product is needed. These results are a huge step towards understanding the basic molecular mechanism behind gene regulation.”“Dr. Weinberger and colleagues have shown that there is a single rule governing the behaviour of all genes in the genome. Their findings in human cells complement and extend similar findings made recently in other organisms,” said Arjun Raj, an expert in imaging single molecules within cells.

The team believes that this new-found understanding of this fundamental biological process - that genomic bursts account for the majority of instances of protein production - holds clues to discovering how the disruption of these bursts could be harmful.

“For example, in certain cancers, genes may be switched on at the wrong times, eventually leading to the formation of tumors,” said Brandon Razooky, the paper's other lead author.

“This is also a good example of how the basic science being performed here at Gladstone provides a solid foundation with which to prevent, treat and ultimately cure some of the world's most devastating diseases.”

- MNT

Tomatoes can lower stroke risk - Study

Eating tomatoes can dramatically reduce the risk of having a stroke, according to a new study that provided more support for diets rich in fruits and vegetables.

The key factor appears to be the powerful antioxidant lycopene, according to the Finnish study published in the Neurology journal.

The research - based on data from more than 1,000 middle-aged men, followed for an average of 12 years - indicates that people with the highest levels of lycopene in their blood have a 55 percent lower chance of suffering a stroke.

“This study adds to the evidence that a diet high in fruits and vegetables is associated with a lower risk of stroke,” emphasised study author Jouni Karppi, of the University of Eastern Finland in Kuopio.

Among the 258 men with the lowest levels of lycopene in their blood, nearly one in 10 had a stroke. But among the 259 with the highest levels of the antioxidant, that number fell to around one in 25.

The correlation between lycopene levels and stroke risk was even stronger when the researchers only included strokes due to blood clots, leaving out those caused by haemorrhages.

The participants with the highest levels of lycopene had a 59 percent lower risk of stroke from a blood clot than the men with the lowest levels of the antioxidant.

In total, sixty seven of the men suffered strokes during the course of the study. Researchers looked at a number of other antioxidants – alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, alpha-tocopherol, which is a form of vitamin E, and vitamin A, or retinol - but did not find any link with stroke risk.

- AFP

Brisk walk can reduce heart attacks and stroke risk

Going for a jog or taking a brisk walk every day could reduce your risk of a heart attack or stroke by 50 percent, according to new research.

Scientists studied the health of over 10,000 people for 10 years. They found that people who jogged or who had a higher walking speed had a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, than those who had more sedentary lives or who walked at slower speeds.

Maureen Talbot, Senior Cardiac Nurse at the British Heart Foundation said: “This study reminds us that it is only physical activities that leave us feeling warm or breathing more heavily that are good for our health. “Jogging or walking briskly makes the heart beat faster - exercising the heart muscle - and we should all try to do activities each day which get the blood pumping.

“So if you want to make the walk to work or to the shops part of keeping your heart healthy then try turning it from a leisurely stroll into a power walk to get the benefits.

Maternal depression affects language development in babies

Maternal depression and a common class of antidepressants can alter a crucial period of language development in babies, according to a new study by researchers at the University of British Columbia, Harvard University and the Child Family Research Institute (CFRI) at BC Children's Hospital.

Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the study finds that treatment of maternal depression with serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SRIs) can accelerate babies’ ability to attune to the sounds and sights of their native language, while maternal depression untreated by SRIs may prolong the period of tuning.“This study is among the first to show how maternal depression and its treatment can change the timing of language development in babies,” says Prof. Janet Werker, the study's senior author. “At this point, we do not know if accelerating or delaying these milestones in development has lasting consequences on later language acquisition, or if alternate developmental pathways exist. We aim to explore these and other important questions in future studies.”

The study followed three groups of mothers - one being treated for depression with SRIs, one with depression not taking antidepressants and one with no symptoms of depression. By measuring changes in heart rate and eye movement to sounds and video images of native and non-native languages, the researchers calculated the language development of babies at three intervals, including six and 10 months of age.

Researchers also studied how the heart rates of unborn babies responded to languages at the age of 36 weeks in the uterus.

“The findings highlight the importance of environmental factors on infant development and put us in a better position to support not only optimal language development in children but also maternal well-being,” says Werker, who adds that treatment of maternal depression is crucial. “We also hope to explore more classes of antidepressants to determine if they have similar or different impacts on early childhood development.”

Background

“These findings again remind us that poor mental health during pregnancy is a major public health issue for mothers and their infants,” says co-author Dr. Tim Oberlander, a professor of developmental paediatrics at UBC and CFRI.

“Non-treatment is never an option. While some infants might be at risk, others may benefit from mother's treatment with an antidepressant during their pregnancy.

At this stage we are just not sure why some but not all infants are affected in the same way. It is really important that pregnant women discuss all treatment options with their physicians or midwives.”

Previous research by Werker has found that during the first months of life, babies rapidly attune to the language sounds they hear and the sights they see (movements in the face that accompany talking) of their native languages.

After this foundational period of language recognition, babies begin focusing on acquiring their native tongues and effectively ignore other languages.The current study suggests that this key developmental period - which typically ends between the ages of eight and nine months - can be accelerated or delayed, in some cases by several months. In another recent study, Werker has found that this development period lasts longer for babies in bilingual households than in monolingual babies, particularly for the face recognition aspects of speech.

- MNT