Revolutionary mobile phone to detect breast cancer
Radical new technology has been reportedly developed in Israel which would enable an ordinary mobile phone to diagnose breast cancer and various types of heart disease.
Nitzan Yaniv, an Israeli psychologist who developed the technology, has found that by installing new software and adding a basic infrared camera, a mobile phone could be transformed into a highly effective diagnostic tool. This would offer far more accurate results than self-checks many women do themselves, and the results of the scan could be immediately transferred to a medical laboratory for analysis. This could then determine whether further checks were necessary, thus detecting the disease in the early stages and reducing the risk of it spreading.The diagnostic tool is the infrared camera, and it uses two techniques, both of which have proven effective in diagnosing breast cancer. One analyzes temperature differences in different parts of the breast, while the other analyses oxygen flow to areas of the breast. More techniques are now being developed and tested in order to detect the device’s ability to identify heart problems as well as breast cancer. Israeli phone operator, Cellcom, is currently working to integrate the infrared sensor technology into cameras currently built into many mobile handsets. It is a revolutionary piece of technology due to the fact that the mobile phone can be the affordable equivalent of a biofeedback machine. The device is yet to be approved by the FDA.
Walnuts to enhance lipid profile in Type 2 diabetes
The results of a randomized study have shown that adding walnuts to a low-fat diet improves the lipid profile for patients with Type 2 diabetes.
Linda Tapsell and colleagues from the National Center of Excellence in Functional Foods, University of Wollongong, NSW, Australia, have stated that walnuts are distinguished from other nuts due to their higher polyunsaturated fat and α-linolenic acid (ALA) content, as well as a high amount of the antioxidant γ-tocopherol. The study has shown that the high dietary polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) has a mechanistic influence on insulin action and energy metabolism, and thus replacing trans or saturated fatty acids (SFAs) with PUFAs reduces the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.
In this study, 58 adults with Type 2 diabetes were randomized to one of three dietary advice groups, each with 30% energy as fat (low fat, modified low fat and modified low fat inclusive of 30 g of walnuts per day). All three groups were advised to consume fish and five daily portions of fruits and vegetables. Body weight, percentage body fat, blood lipids, glycosylated hemoglobin, total antioxidant capacity and erythrocyte fatty acid levels were measured at baseline and at 3 and 6 months.
It was confirmed that the group that consumed 30 g of walnuts daily had a higher dietary polyunsaturated–saturated fat ratio, as well as a significantly greater increase in high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol:total cholesterol ratio. They also had a 10% reduction in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol.
The three groups were similar in changes in body weight, body mass index (BMI), percentage body fat, total antioxidant capacity and haemoglobin A1c levels.
Increased muscular strength may decrease risk of the metabolic syndrome
It has been reported that increased muscular strength is associated with a decreased risk of developing the metabolic syndrome. According to Radim Jurca and colleagues from the Cooper Institute, TX, USA, in addition to improvements in skeletal muscle strength, endurance, power and neuromuscular function, resistance exercise contributes to the prevention and management of atherosclerotic coronary heart disease, hypertension, diabetes and mild obesity.
During the study, 3233 men aged 20– 80 years, who were initially free of the metabolic syndrome, had two or more clinical examinations, including baseline muscular strength and a cardiorespiratory fitness assessment. During the follow-up procedure, it was found that 480 men had developed the metabolic syndrome defined on the basis of the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III criteria. Compared with the lowest-strength category, the highest-strength category was associated with a 44 and 39% lower risk of incident of the metabolic syndrome in men with normal weight and over-weight or obese men, respectively.
It was stated that potential benefits of greater muscular strength (presumably through resistance exercise training) should be considered in the primary prevention of the metabolic syndrome, especially since muscular strength was inversely associated with incidence of the metabolic syndrome, independent of age and body size.
Study limitations including the lack of detailed information on resistance exercise habits and medication usage, and the possibility that metabolic syndrome is defined by different criteria, might result in diverse findings. Thus, randomized controlled trials among diverse populations are required in order to examine the possible role of resistance exercise training in preventing development of the metabolic syndrome and other related disorders.
Vitamin D linked to healthier lungs
Higher amounts of vitamin D could help make it easier to breathe, according to researchers at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. New findings of a study led by Peter Black, Associate Professor of the university’s Department of Medicine, suggest that people with higher levels of the vitamin in their systems showed better lung function than those with lower levels. While the vitamin, which people mainly get from sunlight, is linked to lung health, the exact relationship is yet to be determined.
However, although there is a definite relationship between lung function and vitamin D, it was pointed out that it remains unclear whether increases in vitamin D through supplements or dietary intake will actually improve lung function in patients with chronic respiratory diseases.
The study involved analyzing information from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which collected data on 14,091 people from 1988–1994. Their analysis found those who had higher levels of vitamin D were able to inhale and exhale more air. It was found that levels of the nutrient were higher among men and lessened as people aged or gained weight.
As well as from sunlight, vitamin D can also be found in certain foods such as fortified beverages, oily fish (e.g., salmon and mackerel) and dietary supplements. Other recent studies have suggested that vitamin D may help strengthen bones as well as prevent some cancers and other disorders such as multiple sclerosis.
Renal disease: lowering blood pressure may be more important than drug choice
According to a report from a meta-analysis, the current guidelines recommending angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) or angiotensin-II receptor blockers (ARBs) for patients with renal disease are not supported by available evidence. Instead, lowering blood pressure may be more important than the specific choice of an antihypertensive agent.
Guidelines suggest that ACEIs and ARBs are the drugs of choice for the treatment of hypertension in patients with renal disease. However, Juan Casas and colleagues from University College London (London, UK), found that there seemed to be little justification for the drugs as first-line choices for renoprotection in diabetes on the basis of efficacy and that residual uncertainty still exists about the inherent value of these drugs in other renal disorders.
The study involved searching electronic databases up to January 2005 for randomized trials evaluating the effects of antihypertensive drugs on progression of renal disease. The primary discrete end points were doubling of creatinine and end-stage renal disease (ESRD), and the secondary continuous markers of renal outcomes were creatinine, albuminuria, and glomerular filtration rate (GFR). Placebo-contolled trials were used in order to compare them with those seen in active comparator trials.
It was found that, in comparison with other antihypertensive drugs, ACEIs or ARBs had a relative risk of doubling creatinine to 0.71 and a small benefit on ESRD. Larger studies showed a smaller benefit for ACEIs or ARBs. In patients with diabetic nephropathy, comparative trials showed no benefit of ACEIs or ARBs on the doubling of creatinine, ESRD, GFR or creatinine amounts. In placebo-controlled trials, ACEIs or ARBs showed greater benefits than in comparative trials for all renal outcomes, but there were also substantial reductions in BP favoring ACEIs or ARBs.
Therefore, there seems to be little justification for ACEIs or ARBs to be first-line choices for renoprotection in diabetes on the basis of efficacy, and residual uncertainty still exists about the inherent value of these drugs in other renal disorders. It was proposed that the benefits of ACEIs or ARBs on renal outcomes in placebo-controlled trials probably resulted from a blood pressure-lowering effect, and so in view of the analysis, treatment decisions for hypertension in renal disease should be based on the blood pressure-lowering effect, comparative tolerability and cost of antihypertensive treatment.
FDA approves first once-daily therapy for the treatment of severe primary IGF-I deficiency
It has been announced that the FDA has approved Insmed’s orphan drug, IPLEX™ for the treatment of growth failure in children with severe primary insulin like-growth factor (IGF)-I deficiency (primary IGFD) or with growth hormone (GH) gene deletion who have developed neutralizing antibodies to GH. Insmed is a biopharmaceutical company that focuses on the discovery and development of drug candidates for the treatment of metabolic diseases and endocrine disorders with unmet medical needs.
IPLEX is now the only approved once-daily IGF-I replacement therapy available to treat children with severe short stature. It consists of mecasermin rinfabate, the human recombinant of the naturally occurring protein complex of IGF-I and IGF binding-protein (IGFBP)-3. IPLEX mainly treats primary IGFD which includes a variety of genetic and acquired conditions in which the action of GH is absent or attenuated resulting in low serum levels of IGF-I.