StemCell Therapy

San Diego researchers have reported a medical milestone: Theyve grown a whole meniscus, the slippery crescent of cartilage that cushions the knee joint.

Animal testing will be needed before the replacement meniscus can be used in people, said Darryl DLima, a Scripps Health physician-scientist who led the study.

Clinical trials will show whether the lab-cultivated meniscus can prevent or delay development of arthritis which commonly occurs when people lose their original meniscus and the accompanying pain and limitations in movement.

If such trials are established, signs of potential effectiveness could emerge as soon as two years into the testing, said DLima, who works at Scripps Clinics Shiley Center for Orthopaedic Research and Education. But it may take up to a decade to be sure.

The lab-grown meniscus contains all the major components of the natural one, DLima said. Made by a printer-like device using high-voltage technology borrowed from textile manufacturing, the meniscus has living cartilage cells embedded in fibers of bovine collagen, a structural protein.

The structure is as necessary as the ingredients to keep the shape of the meniscus amid the stresses it encounters in the knee, DLima said. Merely grinding up the components and molding them into the shape of a meniscus would produce something like cake batter, he said.

We call it the micro-architecture, he added. The Holy Grail has been to replicate the micro-architecture at the macroscopic level.

A physician who holds a doctorate in bioengineering from UC San Diego, DLima is skilled at synthesizing engineering and biology. Colleagues have described him as proficient at looking outside of biology for technologies that can be adapted for biomedical purposes.

DLima and fellow researchers have been pursuing their meniscus work for several years, thanks to various grants.

The details of their milestone achievement were presented last week at the Orthopaedic Research Societys annual meeting in San Diego. There, DLima discussed the types of cells needed for regenerative medicine while the meniscus study itself was discussed by colleague Jihye Baek of The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla.

The meniscus has a limited ability to recover from injuries because its poorly supplied with blood vessels. Minor damage can be repaired, but extensive injury will destroy it.

In some cases, a cadaver meniscus is used to replace the destroyed one. But the cadaver tissue must be tested to see if it contains dangerous pathogens, and it must be of the right size and shape for the patient. And cadaver meniscus transplants have a 50 percent failure rate.

DLima and his team said growing a replacement could be a better option. The meniscus could be custom-made and grown under sterile conditions to ensure its disease-free.

Experiments using artificial meniscus replacements are being tested, but those products will degrade over time, DLima said. In my opinion, theyre the strongest the day you put them in, because artificial materials can only get weaker, he said.

The theory is that a living replacement will maintain itself, making it more durable in the long run.

In any testing, an artificial material will actually beat a biological material, DLima said. Theres no way a bone can stand up to a steel beam. But a steel beam will eventually break, whereas your bone is constantly repairing itself. And thats whats happening in the meniscus.

If his teams research succeeds, it would represent a major triumph in the emerging field of bioprinting, in which individual cells are placed into a specific pattern that resembles natural tissue.

Companies such as San Diegos Organovo have tapped such technology to produce liver and other kinds of tissue for research. The liver tissue can be treated with various experimental drugs to see whether theyre likely to cause liver toxicity in patients. Organovo is also developing bioprinted tissue for future therapeutic uses.

The meniscus is hard to replicate, with cartilage cells woven in with collagen fibers at a microscopic level. This means both elements must be supplied the cartilage cells alone wont suffice. And arraying the cells and fibers in the proper pattern requires great precision.

DLimas team accomplished that feat by borrowing technology used to make textiles and air filters for vehicles. One, called electrospinning, uses high voltages to array fibers into precise positions. Another, known as electrospraying, deposits the cells inside the woven fibers as they are being spun into position.

The electrospinning process required 20,000 volts, but the cells survived because the current is low. Static electricity produce by shuffling across a carpet in cold, dry weather provides a familiar example of this effect the shock can be strongly felt because of the high voltage, but is harmless because of the low current.

The process is not quite the same as traditional bioprinting, DLima said, but the concept is similar.

The new study was funded by Donald & Darlene Shiley and the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine. Scripps Health initiated the study, provided most of the staffing and collaborated with The Scripps Research Institute.

bradley.fikes@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-1020

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Lab-grown meniscus could one day prevent arthritis in knees - The San Diego Union-Tribune

New tool for prognosis, choice of therapy for rheumatoid arthritis Science Daily In rheumatoid arthritis, antibodies are formed that affect the inflammation in the joints. In an article published in the journal Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, researchers at Uppsala University show that antibodies against the cartilage protein ...

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New tool for prognosis, choice of therapy for rheumatoid arthritis - Science Daily

Stem cell therapy can restore sufficient erectile function to allow previously impotent men to have spontaneous intercourse, show results of an early clinical trial.

"What we have done establishes that this technique can lead to men recovering a spontaneous erection -- in other words, without the use of other medicines, injections, or implants," said lead researcher Martha Haahr from Odense University Hospital in Denmark.

Results presented at the European Association of Urology conference in London showed that eight out of 21 participants in the study successfully regained sexual function.

"We are now beginning a larger Phase-2 trial to better evaluate its effectiveness and confirm its safety," Haahr said.

In recent years several groups have worked to develop stem cell therapy as a cure for erectile dysfunction, but until now the improvements have not been sufficient to allow affected men to achieve full sexual intercourse.

Erectile dysfunction to some degree affects nearly half of men between the ages of 40 and 70.

There are several possible causes, including surgery (for example, prostate surgery), high blood pressure, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and psychological problems.

Current remedies -- which include medications such as PDE5 inhibitors (such as Viagra and Cialis), injections, or penile implants -- have some disadvantages, so scientists have been searching to find a way which restores natural sexual function.

The present work focuses on patients with physical damage, caused by surgery (radical prostatectomy) for prostate cancer.

The research group, from Odense in Denmark, used stem cells taken from abdominal fat cells via liposuction (under a general anaesthetic).

None of the 21 men reported significant side effects over the trial period, or in the following year, according to the study.

After isolating the stem cells, they were injected into the corpus cavernosum area of the penis. The patients were able to be discharged the same day.

Within six months of the treatment, eight of the 21 patients reported that they had recovered sufficient erectile function to achieve penetrative sexual activity.

This improvement has been maintained for a year, indicating that this treatment may confer long-term benefits.

"We are the first to use a man's own fat stem cells as a treatment for erectile dysfunction in a clinical trial. The technique has been trialed in animal work, but this is the first time stem cell therapy has allowed patients to recover sufficient erectile function to enable intercourse," Haahr said.

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Stem Cell Therapy Restores Sexual Function In Impotent Men - News18

Livingston County News | Got a Minute?: What is your diabetes risk The Livingston County News The theme is Take it, the ADA diabetes or pre-diabetes risk test; Share it, share this test with those you care about; and Learn it, find out if you are at risk for ... and more »

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Livingston County News | Got a Minute?: What is your diabetes risk - The Livingston County News

Julio Munoz, M.D., FACP 1:04 a.m. MT March 25, 2017

Julio Munoz MD(Photo: Courtesy Photo)

Diabetes affects nearly 30 million people in the United States a stunning 10 percent of the overall population. And recent research reveals that diabetes is now the third leading cause of death, not the seventh, as was previously thought. Perhaps the most concerning statistic is that one in four persons living with diabetes is unaware that they have the disease.

The American Diabetes Association sponsors Diabetes Alert Day to serve as an annual wake-up call. The organization wants to remind Americans about the seriousness and prevalence of diabetes, particularly when the disease is left un-diagnosed or untreated. This year, Diabetes Alert Day is Tuesday, March 28.

The incidence of type 2 diabetes in this country has tripled in the last twenty years. The adoption of sugary diets and sedentary lifestyles has caused the disease to reach epidemic proportions. On the positive side, this condition doesnt have to be a death sentence. Its almost always avoidable, and even reversible, with serious lifestyle changes.

Researchers estimate that, if current trends continue, one in three Americans will have diabetes by the year 2050. Left untreated, diabetes can lead to kidney failure, limb amputations, blindness, and even death. Early diagnosis and treatment is critical to preventing irreversible damage to your health and longevity, so awareness and access to care are the key areas of focus.

Here are the top five ways to keep blood sugar at healthy levels, and to keep type 2 diabetes from impacting you and your loved ones:

If you have a family history of diabetes, you are at increased risk for developing type 2 diabetes yourself. Also, the condition is more common in African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, Asians and Pacific Islanders. Above-average body weight increases diabetes risk for people of all backgrounds.

Only your doctor can tell for sure if you are diabetic or pre-diabetic. As part of your annual health physical, be sure to talk to your doctor about the results of your fasting blood sugar and A1C tests. If your numbers are heading in the wrong direction, you can act quickly to get back on the right track.

If you need assistance in diagnosing or managing your metabolic health, or you just need to be connected with a primary care physician, contact Pecos Valley Internal Medicine at 575-234-9692 or visit http://www.PecosValleyDocs.com.

I would also like to take this opportunity to invite the public to a free Diabetes seminar on Thursday, March 30, at 3p.m. at Carlsbad Medical Center in the private dining room. The seminar will be presented by Susan Dade, RD, LD, CDE and Danielle Weathers, RD, LD, and will include information on healthy diets and eating habits for those living with Diabetes. For more information on the seminar, please call 575-628-5069.

Dr. Julio Munoz is a board certified internal medicine physician with over 30 years of experience.He received his medical degree from Autonomous University of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and completed his residency at Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center in Bronx, NY. In addition to being certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine, Dr. Munoz is also a Fellow of the American College of Physicians (FACP). He is a member of the medical staff at Carlsbad Medical Center.

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The dangers of diabetes - Carlsbad Current-Argus

Earlier this week I was told I was diabetic. When sharing it with people, some felt maybe this was not the type of news the founder of Less Cancer should broadcast.

I am sure that it is exactly the kind of thing to share. Since founding the organization in 2004, I have always been open about some of the lifestyle challenges and risks I have engaged in; from being a chain smoker as a child to having a diet so poor that as a college student at 661/2 and 168 lbs, I was diagnosed with malnutrition.

Since that time I have been far from saved. I did quit smoking twenty-one years ago when my son was born, as he had a respiratory issue that would have prevented me from ever holding him. Fortunately, the doctor that was treating him at the time used his agency to say that I would have to leave my clothes outdoors and take a shower before picking him up. With the help of the patch, I quit right away.

Pancreatic cancer and diabetes have been linked in patients who have had diabetes for less than five years, yet it is unclear if diabetes contributed to the cancer or if the pre-cancerous cells caused the diabetes. Also, research suggests that new-onset diabetes in people over 50 may be an early symptom of pancreatic cancer. (Pancan.org) My sister died of pancreatic cancer at a young age.

Type 2 diabetes has a stronger link to family history and lineage than type 1, although it too depends on environmental factors. If there is a family history of type 2 diabetes, it may be difficult to figure out whether it is due to lifestyle factors or genetic susceptibility. I only know of a few family members with type 2 diabetes, and they were all at an enviably healthy weight.(Diabetes.org)

However, for over twenty years I have been vigilant about eating and serving certified organic foods to my family. For me, sugar is the head-spinning devil. And no matter how healthily I eat around it, its just too tough to burn off a slice of cake. I walk at least a few times a week, and I have started running on the treadmill with a trainer when I am back home in Virginia.

When I heard the news of my diagnosis, I felt ashamed as to how I could not know better. Certainly, I had been warned. I was most angry with myself because, with my very non-profit salary, I understood that I would never really be able to afford the meds for a diabetic. My doctor has given me three months to turn things around.

However there is something even more insidious, and that is isolation.

In my work, without intention or awareness, I seem to have systematically built a wall around myself to the outside world and my own personal needs.

I am immensely grateful for the handful of amazing friends and my immediate family, with whom I am in touch daily. But something strange began happening as I heard from more and more people that I did not know and started connecting with on social media, and then through blogs. In the course of the day, I often speak to more strangers than people I know. I am on the road so much that I often eat alone and have little social contact.

After the United States Congressional Caucus and the Cancer Prevention Workshop this past February, on the only free day I had I met with a few of the cyclists for the bike ride to raise money for Less Cancer. The day of my birthday in Detroitmy big nightwas spent on my laptop, in my hotel. I took a moment to check Facebook and email only to notice an embarrassing amount of birthday wishesbetween social media and email it was well into the hundreds.

As I drove out of town the next day, hurrying to my next stop, I could not help but think how strange it felt to look at all these communications from so many people I did not know-despite being very appreciated. I meet kind and wonderful people each day and I am one of those people that love others more than myself.

As more people get to know me and the work of Less Cancer, I receive accolades but not always from people I know. I feel a need to protect myself by establishing boundaries, thus creating even greater distance between me and the world.

Somehow the more I connect and work with the masses my wall, unseen by the outside seemingly inches higher, insidiously moving further away from filling my metaphoric bucket or addressing some very basic needs.

With a focus outwards on the rest of the world, I move further and further away from my needs.

In trying to understand my diabetes diagnosis, I find myself asking what isolation means to human healthworking alone, traveling alone, and frequently not having any connections beyond people who want to talk to me about my work.

In a report by Soledad OBrien, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said the greatest public health crisis (according to the surgeon general) isnt cancer or heart disease. Its isolationisolation and the affects of being socially disconnected.

I may never know if my diagnosis is hereditary or lifestyle, stress or isolation. You can count on me turning my sights inward as a matter of health. Watching diet and exercise, connecting with friends and asking for help with the work for Less Cancer.

I will be exploring more about isolation as it impacts human health, including diabetes. Diabetes can, in fact, be a cancer risk. Now more than ever, we need to get a handle on these preventable diseases, and it needs to start with me.

Is this my legacy to my children? Is this what I leave thema future knowing that the idea of Less Cancer will be a missed opportunity to turn the steadily increasing incidences of cancer around. A future with a cancer economy?

I am not giving up-if you want to help, please help the work of Less Cancer not because of me but rather because we are doing life-saving work that is making change.

First published in Thrive Global

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Is Diabetes the Disease or the Symptom - Huffington Post

wbur In this 2016 photo, a Chinese doctor Peng Limei looks at a CT scan of a lung cancer patient. (Andy Wong/AP)

This story is part of our "This Moment In Cancer" series. Sign up here to get series updates in your inbox.

A dear friend died of lung cancer this week.

She didnt smoke and she had no other risk factors. A retired nurse and avid cook, she ate an exemplary diet, maintained a lithe figure, and got an impressive amount of exercise climbing mountains and clearing trails.

Her death has left her many friends wondering why her? Her example undercuts the notion that any of us can ultimately do much to avoid an ugly death from cancer.

Dr. Bert Vogelstein of Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions says my late friend exemplifies the 50 percent or so of cancers he calls unpreventable.

"People want a reason why these cancers happen," Vogelstein says. "Well, heres the reason: Cells make mistakes. Thats just bad luck."

Those mistakes are like typos in a giant manuscript. Each time a cell divides, it mis-copies several molecules in the long chain of DNA that makes up our genes. Most of the time these biochemical mistakes are harmless. But sometimes they occur in genes that keep cancer in check. Once some of these mutations accumulate, the cell breaks free of normal constraints on its growth --that is, it becomes malignant.

"People want a reason why these cancers happen. Well, heres the reason: Cells make mistakes. Thats just bad luck."

Two-thirds of the mutations that give rise to cancer are these random copying errors, according to Vogelstein, biostatistician Cristian Tomasetti and their colleagues at Johns Hopkins University. Another 29 percent of cancer-causing DNA damage, they say, comes from environmental and behavioral factors such as cigarette smoking and obesity. The remaining 5percent are hereditary defects.

Vogelstein is a leading light in cancer research. He pioneered the concept that there are genes that suppress cancer and identified mutations in those genes that underlie many cancers.

The Hopkins researchers have been saying for two years that most cancer-causing mutations are these inescapable random errors at the heart of our most fundamental cellular workings. But their 2015 paper was heavily criticized, partly because it considered only U.S. cancer cases --other nations may have different or more environmental triggers. Also, the earlier report left out breast and prostate cancers, two of the most common types, so critics said it wasnt valid to generalize the findings to all cancers.

Their new paper, just published in Science, includes breast and prostate cancer in the 17 cancer types they analyzed. And it incorporates evidence on cancer incidence from 69 countries that account for two-thirds of the worlds population.

"This is the very first time that someone has ever looked at the proportion of mutations within each cancer type and assigned them to these three factors," Tomasetti said during a press briefing, referring to environment, heredity and random copying errors. "I consider this a completely new result compared to our previous one and a really fundamental one."

Their argument relies on a mathematical model that estimates the number of stem cells in each tissue type (the cells that must replicate to renew the tissue) and the number of times these cells divide over a lifetime. The rate of random mutations is fairly constant in different organs, they say, but different tissues turn over at different rates.

For instance, cells that make up the lining of the large intestine renew themselves every four days. That gives them more opportunity to accumulate mutations in the genes that drive cancer than cells in, say, the bone or brain. So it makes sense that colorectal cancer is the fourth most common major cancer, after lung, breast and prostate cancers.

What it doesn't mean

The finding that two-thirds of cancer-causing mutations are due to random mistakes does not mean that two-thirds of all cancers are due to bad luck. Thats because many cancers arise from a mix of factors.

Since it takes several mutational hits to kick-start a cancer, one or more of these might arise from internal random copying errors while others might come from external environmental sources, such as tobacco smoke. An individual born with a mutation that predisposes her to cancer might not get the disease unless or until random mutations in cancer-driving genes accumulate.

Breast cancer is an example of mixed causes. Most of the underlying mutations are due to random mutations, Vogelstein says. Some are due to an environmental factor such as obesity, age of first menstruation or whether a woman breast-fed. And about 10 percent stem from a strong hereditary predisposition, such as a BRCA gene.

Vogelstein says my late friend appears to represent a "pure" case of random bad luck, since smoking and behavioral risk factors were apparently not in play and lung cancer is not known to have a significant hereditary component.

The Hopkins teams findings, they say, are consistent with prior estimates that about 40 percent of all cancers are preventable, 5to 10 percent are due to inherited cancer genes, and around half are not preventable --since theres no way to avoid random DNA copying errors.

But what about environment?

But the work has been controversial up to now, and may remain contentious. It disturbs those who believe that changes in environment and behavior deserve top priority in the war against cancer.

Concluding that bad luck is the major cause of cancer would be misleading and may detract from efforts to identify the causes of the disease and effectively prevent it, Dr. Christopher Wild, director of the World Health Organizations International Agency for Cancer Research, complained after the first Vogelstein-Tomasetti paper came out.

Anne McTiernan of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle remains unconvinced. "They say randomness is a major cause of cancer, and they said it last time," she told The Washington Post. "But the data doesnt convince me."

One group from Stony Brook University in New York did an analysis of the 2015 paper and concluded that extrinsic factors, such as environmental toxins, account for 70 to 90 percent of cancers while intrinsic ones the random copying errors when cells divide are to blame for only 10 to 30 percent.

The leader of the Stony Brook team says hes not convinced by the new report.

Vogelstein is philosophical about his critics. Its never easy to overturn dogma, he said in an interview. Like every new concept or idea that goes dramatically against the current paradigm, it will take awhile. It will take other people doing measurements we havent performed yet or even thought of. And hopefully people will accept it.

Less self-blame?

The implications for the way we think about cancer, and the strategies to fight it, are profound.

Most immediately, it might lessen the self-blame many cancer victims and their families feel --the sense theres something they did, or didnt do, that led to their diagnosis.

We hope this research offers comfort to the literally millions of patients who have developed cancer but who have led near-perfect lifestyles --who havent smoked, who have avoided the sun without sunscreen, who eat perfectly healthy diets, who exercise regularly, whove done everything that we know can be done to prevent cancer but they still get it, Vogelstein says.

Self-blame is particularly poignant for parents of children who get cancer. The Hopkins group believes that childhood cancers are entirely due to random mutations --except for the small percentage related to inherited gene defects.

When such parents read online that cancer is caused by environment or heredity, they often conclude theyre somehow to blame. "That causes a tremendous amount of guilt," says Vogelstein, a practicing pediatrician in his early career.

But the larger implication concerns the best strategy for fighting cancer.

Not preventing but nipping in the bud

Its not that classic prevention efforts, especially smoking cessation and healthier diets, dont deserve our continuing attention. But if around half of all cancers are due to random mutations --the price of biological mechanisms necessary for life --then theres no way to prevent those. That means we need to rely on early detection and treatment to maximize cures and minimize deaths.

We believe the first step in developing these strategies is simply recognizing these enemies exist, there are a lot of them, and theyre already here, inside us, Vogelstein says.

Right now, he says, funding for early detection and treatment is minuscule compared to that devoted to curing advanced, late-stage cancers.

One of the hottest areas of cancer research focuses on spotting the earliest signs of cancer, using such things as liquid biopsies to screen bodily fluids for evidence of cancer-causing mutations or telltale proteins produced by errant genes.

Vogelstein is prominent in this effort and has a personal stake such research. Hes the co-founder of two companies, PapGene and Personal Genome Diagnostics, that are trying to develop such high-tech diagnostics.

But early detection and treatment of cancer is fraught with pitfalls, as controversies over the risk-benefit ratio of mammography to detect early breast cancer and PSA testing for prostate cancer amply show. In large part thats because such tests often find cancers that dont need to be treated --that is, theyd never cause trouble if they werent treated. Doctors call this over-diagnosis.

There is certainly a problem with potential over-diagnosis, Vogelstein acknowledges. But that doesnt mean we should abandon the effort, especially now that were cognizant that many cancers arent preventable.

If Vogelstein and Tomasetti are right, they say, theres really no choice but to focus much more effort on nipping cancers in the bud. That's a long-term project.

Right now, for instance, many cancers are out of the gate and down the road before they're discovered. My friend's lung cancer, like so many with this fearful diagnosis, was too far advanced by the time it was found to even be slowed down by the most aggressive treatment.

So after living the healthiest life you can imagine, she spent her last days coping valiantly with the debilitating effects of the best cancer therapy her doctors could offer. It wasn't enough.

Richard Knox Senior Correspondent, CommonHealth Richard Knox is a senior correspondent for WBUR's CommonHealth.

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A Friend Dies As Scientists Ponder: Just How Preventable Are Most Cancers? - WBUR

Metabolism and epigenetics play role in cancer development Science Daily For the cells this means either unlimited growth, cancer, or death. Researchers ... Although cancer and stem cells can be challenged by chemical inhibition, mechanistic details of how chromatin and metabolites interact are yet to be defined. With both ... and more »

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Metabolism and epigenetics play role in cancer development - Science Daily

Science Daily

Peptide targeting senescent cells restores stamina, fur, and kidney function in old mice Science Daily "Only in senescent cells does this peptide cause cell death," says senior author Peter de Keizer, a researcher of aging at Erasmus University Medical Center in the Netherlands. "We treated mice for over 10 months, giving them infusions of the peptide ... Anti-aging peptide recovers fur growth, kidney health in miceMedical News Today Aging signs reversed in mice by killing senescent cellsThe San Diego Union-Tribune all 108 news articles »

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Peptide targeting senescent cells restores stamina, fur, and kidney function in old mice - Science Daily

By Payal Banerjee

New Delhi, Mar 26 (PTI) The government is set to change a four-decade-old definition of blindness to bring it in line with the WHO criteria and ensure the Indian data on blindness meets the global estimates.

As defined under the National Programme for Control of Blindness (NPCB), a person unable to count fingers from a distance of six metres is categorised as "blind" in India, against the WHOs stipulation of three metres.

"We will bring the definition of blindness at par with the WHOs criteria. Because of the current definition, we project a higher figure of blind people from India at any international forum. Thus India gets presented in a poor light compared to other countries," said Promila Gupta, NPCB Deputy Director General.

Also, she said, the data "we generate under the programme cannot be compared with the global estimates as other countries are following the WHO criteria".

Uniformity in the definition across various regions of the world is a pre-requisite for facilitating collection of population-based data on prevalence of blindness and estimating its global burden, Gupta said.

Further, India has to achieve the goal set by WHO which recommends reducing the blindness prevalence of the country to 0.3 per cent of the total population by 2020.

"The Vision 2020 recommends reducing the prevalence of blindness to 0.3 per cent by the year 2020 to achieve the elimination of avoidable blindness.

"It will be extremely difficult to achieve the WHO goal using the NPCB definition since we will be addressing an extra 4 million individuals, blind due to refractive errors. By adopting the blindness criteria of WHO, India can achieve the goal," said Praveen Vashist, in-charge, Community Ophthalmology at Dr R P Centre for Ophthalmic Sciences at AIIMS.

The Health Ministry is also planning to change the nomenclature of NPCB to the National Programme for Control of Visual Impairment and Blindness.

"The idea is to further strengthen the programme by focusing not only on the blind persons but also those with some kind of visual impairment.

"It urges the member states to strengthen national efforts to prevent avoidable visual impairment through better integration of eye health into national eye health plans and service delivery," Gupta added.

She said India currently has around 12 million blind people against 39 million globally-- which makes India home to one-third of the worlds blind population.

The current definition of blindness was adopted at the time of the inception of the NPCB in 1976.

"The probable reason for keeping 6 meters as cut-off for defining blindness in India was to include economic blindness cases which referred to a level of blindness which prevents an individual to earn his or her wages.

"In contrast, the WHO definition adopts a criteria for blindness that is which hampers the routine social interaction of a person (social blindness)," Gupta said. PTI PLB TIR AAR

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India to tweak definition of blindness to meet WHO stipulation - India Today

Above, Dafne Gutierrez and Father Wissam Akiki, pastor of St. Joseph Maronite Church; below, the relics of St. Charbel visited the parish last year. (StJosephPhoenix.org)

Nation | Mar. 25, 2017

Phoenix Mother: St. Charbel Cured My Blindness

After praying before relics, confession and being blessed with holy oil, Dafne Gutierrez experienced profound healing.

PHOENIX When a Phoenix mother lost her eyesight due to a rare medical condition, she feared she would never be able to see her four children again. But then St. Charbel came to her aid.

Dafne Gutierrez suffered from benign intracranial hypertension (BIH), a condition that causes increased pressure in the brain. In 2012, the increased pressure caused her to lose vision in her right eye. Three years later, in November 2015, the Catholic motherlost sight in her left eye, as well.

Phoenixs local CBS affiliate, KPHO, quoted Gutierrezs plea to God:

For me, I was like, Please God, let me see those faces again. Let me be their mother again. Because I feel like [my kids] were watching me, taking care of me 24/7.

For more than a year, Gutierrez struggled to adjust to her disability, which now included occasional seizures, as well as blindness. Then, in January 2016, when Phoenixs St. Joseph Maronite Church announced that the relics of St. Charbel Makhlouf (also spelled Sharbel) would be visiting the church, Gutierrezs sister encouraged her to visit and to pray for the saints intercession.

Although she is not a member of the Maronite rite, Gutierrez visited the church Jan. 16, prayed before the relics, went to confession and was blessed with holy oil by the pastor, Father Wissam Akiki. Gutierrez recalled that, immediately afterward, her body felt different.

The following morning, she rose and returned to the church for Sunday Mass. Again, she experienced a different sensation.

And early in the morning Jan. 18, Gutierrez awoke with a searing pain in her eyes. She remembers how much they burned. And when her husband turned on the lights, she said the brightness hurt her eyes. She claimed, at 4am, that she could see shadows; but her husband insisted that was impossible because she was blind. He later described what he called an odor of burned meat coming from her nostrils.

According to The Maronite Voice, the newsletter of the Maronite Eparchies of the U.S., That morning she called her ophthalmologist, and she was evaluated the next day. Her exam showed that she was still legally blind, with abnormal optic nerves. Two days later, she saw a different ophthalmologist, and her vision was a perfect 20/20, with completely normal optic nerves. Subsequently, she saw her original ophthalmologist one week later, and her vision was documented to be normal, with completely normal exam.

No Medical Explanation

Dr. Anne Borik, a board-certified internal medicine physician who later testified regarding Gutierrezs healing, was called in by the Church to review the case. Earlier this month, Borik a member of St. Timothys Roman Catholic parish nearby, but who attends St. Joseph Maronite frequently talked by phone with the Register about her findings. She explained that the brain condition Gutierrez suffered from causes the optic nerve to constrict. Once the optic disc the spot at which the optic nerve enters the eyeball is damaged, its too late to fix. Because, when the pressure in the brain reaches high levels, as it did in Gutierrezs case, the optic nerves become strangulated.

Unfortunately, once the blindness occurs, said Borik, its irreversible.

Images of Gutierrezs optic disc revealed significant damage: We have pictures, said Borik, to confirm that the optic disc was chronically atrophied. There was significant swelling, or papilledema.

But after Gutierrezs vision returned, Borik reported, there was no evidence of the aberrations that were evident on earlier images. In the post-healing pictures, Borik said, her optic disc is back to normal. Her vision is completely restored. She has no more seizures. That is why I, as a medical doctor, have no explanation.

A medical committee, led by Borik, undertook a thorough review of Gutierrezs medical records, as well as repeated examinations. The committee wrote, After a thorough physical exam, extensive literature search and review of all medical records, we have no medical explanation and therefore believe this to be a miraculous healing through the intercession of St. Charbel.

Unexpected Healing Strengthens Faith

Borik is enthusiastic about the healing, telling the Register, It has changed my practice! It has changed how I relate to patients. Now, she said, referring to her relationship with those entrusted to her care, prayer is such an important part of what we do.

Father Wissam Akiki, pastor of St. Joseph Maronite Church, had a devotion to St. Charbel (see sidebar below), and he installed a large picture of the saint in the parish shortly after his arrival in 2014. Then, in 2016, he arranged to bring St. Charbels relics to his parish as part of a U.S. tour.

Father Akiki remembers when Gutierrez showed up to venerate the relics. Father Akiki approached her. I heard her confession, he told the Register. We prayed together, and I said to her daughter, Take care of your mom, and your mom is going to see you soon. Then, in only three days, she called the church to report that she could see.

Father Akiki acknowledged that Gutierrezs healing has strengthened the faith and changed the face of St. Joseph Maronite Church. People are coming here to pray, traveling from Germany, Bolivia, Canada, Australia, Jerusalem.

Following the healing, Father Akiki planned to erect a shrine to St. Charbel at his parish, with a two-ton sculpture of the saint cut from a single stone and imported from Lebanon. The shrine will be open seven days a week, 24 hours a day. Father Akiki expectedthat the dedication of the shrine March 26 woulddraw crowds, including Maronite Bishop A. Elias Zaidan, Phoenix Bishop Thomas Olmsted and many local dignitaries.

Bishop Zaidan attributed Gutierrezs recovery to the intercession of St. Charbel. May this healing of the sight of Dafne, he wrote in The Maronite Voice, be an inspiration for all of us to seek the spiritual sight, in order to recognize the will of God in our lives and to act accordingly.

Cristofer Pereyra, director of the Hispanic Office of the Phoenix Diocese, told Fox News that Bishop Olmsted spoke with the doctors and reviewed the case. The bishop wanted to make sure there was no scientific explanation for the miraculous recovery of Dafnes sight, Pereyra reported.

The greatest change, of course, has been for Gutierrez and her children. Since her eyesight was restored, Dafnes life has changed dramatically: She can once again check her children's homework, watch them at play with friends, and manage her household chores without extra assistance.

Her prayer was answered.

Kathy Schiffer writes from Southfield, Michigan.

Who Was St. Charbel?

Born Youssef Antoun Makhlouf in the high mountains of northern Lebanon in 1828, St. Charbel (also spelled Sharbel) was the youngest of five children in a poor but religious family. His baptismal name was Joseph; only when he entered a monastery at the age of 23 was he given the name Charbel, after an early martyr. He studied in seminary and was ordained a priest in 1858. For 16 years, Father Charbel lived with his brother priests; theirs was a communal life of prayer and devotion to God.

In 1875, Father Charbel was granted permission to live a hermits life. In his rugged cabin, for the next 23 years, he practiced mortification and sacrifice often wearing a hair shirt, sleeping on the ground, and eating only one meal a day. The Eucharist was the focus of his life. The holy priest celebrated daily Mass at 11am, spending the morning in preparation and the rest of the day in thanksgiving.

Father Charbel was 70 years old when he suffered a seizure while celebrating Mass. A priest assisting him was forced to pry the Eucharist out of his rigid hands. He never regained consciousness; and eight days later, on Christmas Eve in 1898, Father Charbel died. His body was interred in the ground without a coffin and without embalming, according to the monks custom, dressed in the full habit of the order.

For the next 45 nights, a most unusual event occurred: According to many local townspeople, an extraordinarily bright light appeared above his tomb, lighting the night sky. Finally, after the mysterious light persisted, officials at the monastery petitioned the ecclesiastical authorities for permission to exhume Charbels body. When the grave was opened four months after Charbels death, his body was found to be incorrupt. Twenty-eight years after his death, in 1928, and again in 1950, the grave was reopened, and his body was also found to be without decay.

Numerous medical researchers were permitted to examine the remains, and all confirmed that the saints body was preserved from decay. For 67 years, the body remained intact, even when left outdoors unprotected for an entire summer although it consistently gave off a liquid that had the odor of blood. Finally, though, Charbels body followed the natural course. When the tomb was again opened at the time of his beatification in 1965, it was found to be decayed, except for the skeleton, which was deep red in color.

The inexplicable restoration of Dafne Gutierrezs eyesight is not the first healing credited to St. Charbel. Dr. Anne Borik reported that there have been hundreds perhaps thousands of miracles attributed to the saint.

Pope Francis is said to have a deep devotion to St. Charbel. Last Christmas, Borik reported, the Holy Father asked to have a relic of St. Charbel sewn into the hem of his vestments.

Kathy Schiffer

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Phoenix Mother: St. Charbel Cured My Blindness - National Catholic Register

The treatment is aimed at one of the most common causes of blindness in boys and young men

SCIENTISTS seeking a cure for blindness are testing a groundbreaking gene therapy on British patients.

The clinical trial aims to find a treatment for one of the most common causes of blindness in boys and young men.

Alamy

X-linked retinitis pigmentosa, allows the retinal cells to gradually stop working and eventually die, which prevents the eyes from processing light. There is currently no treatment available for sufferers. The trial, which could feature up to 30 patients, follows success by an Oxford

University team in treating those with another form of hereditary blindness, known as choroideremia.

Last Thursday a 29-year-old man with XLRP became the first patient to undergo the gene therapy procedure at Oxford Eye Hospital.

A virus carries corrective DNA into cells at the back of the eye.

For the treatment to work scientists have to reprogramme a gene called RPGR to make it more stable. The instability of that gene in the retina has previously been a major obstacle to finding a way of tackling the condition.

Prof Robert MacLaren, of Oxford University, said: We have spent many years working out how to develop this gene therapy.

Changing the genetic code is always undertaken with great caution, but the new sequence we are using has proven to be highly effective in our laboratory studies.

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Brit scientists testing 'groundbreaking' therapy that could cure common cause of blindness - The Sun

Biotechnology is a popular trend that can be found in various aspects of our everyday lives. While it is true biotechnology is a very complicated concept to grasp, it is also one of the most promising technologies to be found today. Biotechnology will help our society address some of its greatest challenges moving forward. Below are some very common use cases for biotechnology most people will have come in contact with already.

It is anything but surprising to learn biotechnology has made a big impact on the medical sector over the past few years. Biotechnology, or more specifically, bio-processing, is used to develop new pharmaceuticals which are often difficult to produce due to purity quality control requirements. Some of the more popular biotech pharmaceuticals include Remicade, Rituxan, Prevarn, and Avastin.

Very few consumers give fabrics a second thought, other than to determine whether the material would rub against the skin. Interestingly enough, most fabrics are dyed through a fermentation vat process. Biochemicals are very common in the production of dyes, polyester, and nylon. It is evident there is some form of biotechnology involved in every piece of synthetic clothing we wear today.

Even though biofuel is not as popular as it could be, the concept holds a lot of merit for the future. Biodiesel helps reduce the carbon impact, which is of great importance to the future of our species. To produce biofuel, one needs specific plant-derived sugars which are then fermented using biotechnology to create ethanol. Further advances in the development of biofuel will see the introducing of alternative compoundsto jet fuel.

It may come as a surprise to find out Goodyear Tire is actively exploring the boundaries of biotechnology. Through a partnership with Genencor, the company is researching synthetic rubber created out of mostly renewable raw materials. In doing so, the company hopes to replace the crude oil requirements necessary to produce a single passenger tie.

As unusual as it may sound, some of the foods we consume on a regular basis are a direct result of biotechnology. Most of the products usedin food and [soft] drinks are processed using biochemicals. Sweeteners, flavors and acidity regulators found in nearly every product are just a few examples of how biotechnology is affecting our daily lives. Even the packaging used by supermarkets is made of biochemicals.

It appears very few people are aware of what can be found in alcoholic beverages these days. The production process of alcohol is a clear example of industrial biotechnology. This process involves converting starch to sugar and fermenting the yeast. Both parts are biotechnology in its simplest form. There is a lot more to the beer in a bottle than meets the eye, that much is certain.

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Top 6 Everyday Products Using Biotechnology - The Merkle

PUMA BIOTECHNOLOGY, INC. (NASDAQ:PBYI) Files An 8-K Changes in Registrant's Certifying Accountant Market Exclusive Puma Biotechnology, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company that focuses on the development and commercialization of products for the treatment of cancer. The Company focuses on in-licensing the global development and commercialization rights to over ...

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PUMA BIOTECHNOLOGY, INC. (NASDAQ:PBYI) Files An 8-K Changes in Registrant's Certifying Accountant - Market Exclusive

Home General Health National Nutrition Month: Age-related macular degeneration, rheumatoid arthritis, heart health

March is National Nutrition Month, so to keep you informed about nutrition, we have compiled a list of our top articles discussing nutrition and related topics including age-related macular degeneration, rheumatoid arthritis, and heart health. Here you will learn about foods that will boost your immune system, help you lose weight, and even save money while doing it. Come and learn how various simple changes to your diet can have great effects on your health and overall well-being.

Its often assumed that eating healthy costs a lot of money, meaning if you cant afford big-name superfoods, you end up buying cheaper fast food to satisfy your hunger. Unfortunately, as you know, not eating well can contribute to various health repercussions.

There are many superfoods out there that health experts have advocated for. But what exactly makes a food a superfood? Well, for starters, these foods are often packed with nutrients that work to promote good health. You receive an ample supply of vitamins and minerals known for supporting overall well-being. As mentioned, though, these foods often come with a hefty price tag, which can make healthy eating practices difficult to follow. Continue reading

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a common occurrence for those over the age of 50, but that doesnt mean you cant try to prevent it. In fact, your diet plays a large role in age-related macular degeneration progression and development, so eating the right foods can help you enjoy a clear view for many years to come.

Age-related macular degeneration is a condition that progresses with age. It begins to affect people over the age of 40 by hindering central vision, which is used for activities such as reading and driving. When central vision begins to deteriorate, completing daily tasks becomes quite difficult. Continue reading

Rheumatoid arthritis management can be achieved through an anti-inflammatory diet and Mediterranean diet in order to reduce inflammation. Nutrition plays a vital role in all of our bodily functions and eating the right foods can mean the difference between good or poor health. Many foods are natural healers, so it should be of no surprise that food can play a role in managing rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Overall, rheumatoid arthritis patients are recommended to consume a healthy, balanced diet to maintain a healthy weight. Guidelines found in theNutrition and Your Health: Dietary Guidelines for Americans, fourth edition, describe what kind of diet patients with rheumatoid arthritis should stick to. The recommendations suggest eating a variety of foods, balancing healthy eating habits with physical activity, consuming plenty of grains, fruits, and vegetables, sticking to a low-fat diet, which is also low in saturated fat and cholesterol, moderating sugar intake, and drinking alcohol in moderation. Continue reading

A popular method for dieting is to count calories. Recommended daily calories for a sedentary senior male is around 2,000 and 1,600 for females. Of course, this would increase if a person is active. Counting calories seems like a universal way to lose or maintain weight, but its important to keep in mind every person is different inside and out so what may work for one person may not necessarily be effective for another.

Research is now suggesting that we move away from this popular diet trend and instead opt to promote the nutritional value of food. This way of eating has shown to be more effective in reducing illness and cutting down on obesity. Continue reading

Bottles that allow you to infuse water with fruit and vegetables are all the rage right now, and while nutritionists say there is nothing wrong with that, they do want consumers to understand the real value in drinking, paying for and creating your own infusion type drinks.

Infusion enthusiasts in the United Kingdom were recently introduced to a new twist on flavored water. A market called Whole Foods put three stalks of asparagus in large bottles of water and priced them at six dollars each. Store management quickly admitted it was a mistake and the asparagus water sparked new debate over the question: Are flavored waters really any better than regular water? Continue reading

Related Reading:

Osteoarthritis (degenerative arthritis): Causes, symptoms, and treatment

Heart attack symptoms in women over 50: Facts on women and heart disease

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National Nutrition Month: Age-related macular degeneration, rheumatoid arthritis, heart health - Bel Marra Health

DUARTE>> Dozens of doctors, scientists, businesses and others gathered at City of Hope Thursday for the second California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), Alpha Stem Cell Clinics symposium.

CIRM, the states stem cell agency, has developed a network of Alpha Stem Cell Clinics that focus on innovative stem cell-based therapies. The network of three clinics are located at City of Hope, University of California, San Diego, and UCLA/UC Irvine campuses.

The event served as a way for clinics to share their most recent advancements and successes in stem cell therapy clinical trials, and even hear directly from patients who benefited from some of the trials.

We want to review the trials, but we also want to see what other questions we should be asking, said Dr. John Zaia, the Aaron Miller and Edith Miller Chair in Gene Therapy, and director of the Center for Gene Therapy and principal investigator of City of Hopes Alpha Stem Cell Clinic. How will insurance companies charge or pay for these treatments? How do companies plan to develop these treatments? The symposium provides an opportunity to think about these other aspects.

There were also panel speakers who offered more of a motivational talk, such as Pat Furlong, founding president of Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy, discussing how to remove stakeholder barriers to stem cell therapy treatment.

Furlong had to become her and her sons own advocate when they were diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy at a young age. She found there was no standard of care for the disease and no studies or trials in progress to find a treatment, let alone a cure.

Families just didnt know the questions to ask, she said. At the time, few people cared about rare diseases.

After years of no real hope and losing her sons at 15 and 17 years old, with her and her groups persistence, Furlong said there are now 40 companies researching the disease and millions of dollars have gone into research specifically for Duchenne.

City of Hopes Dr. Behnam Badie, chief of neurosurgery and director of the Brain Tumor Program, and Christine Brown, Ph.D., Heritage Provider Network Professor in Immunotherapy and associate director of the T Cell Therapeutics Research Laboratory, discussed their recent successful treatment of a patient with recurrent multifocal glioblastoma using CAR-T cell therapy.

The case study for this unique type of immunotherapy on the most aggressive form of brain cancer was published in the Dec. 29 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.

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In the Phase I clinical trial, the patient, who did not respond to other types of therapy including radiation and even developed tumors in his brain and spinal cord, was treated with his own genetically modified chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells, injected directly into the tumor and through the ventricular system. The patient experienced remission over 8 months.

City of Hope is one of a few cancer centers in the nation offering studies in CAR-T cell therapy, and is the only cancer center investigating CAR-T cells targeting the specific receptors more common in a majority of glioblastomas.

Dr. Badie and Brown noted that working with CIRM has been instrumental in helping them along with their trial, and not just the funding.

You cant create a good trial without studying the product, said Brown. These are expensive trials. We have to treat these patients and understand what is going on.

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Symposium discusses latest and future of stem cell therapy - The Pasadena Star-News

Early results of a clinical trial suggest that stem cell therapy may be a promising treatment for erectile dysfunction, after the procedure was found to restore sexual function in men with the condition.

The stem cell therapy involves injecting the patients' own stem cells - derived from abdominal fat cells - into the erectile tissue of the penis.

Lead researcher Dr. Martha Haahr, of Odense University Hospital in Denmark, and colleagues found that within 6 months of the procedure, 8 of the 21 men treated were able to engage in spontaneous sexual intercourse.

The researchers recently presented their findings at EAU17 - the European Association of Urology's annual conference - held in London in the United Kingdom.

Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a condition whereby a man has difficulties getting or maintaining an erection in order to engage in sexual intercourse.

According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive Kidney Diseases, around 12 percent of men under the age of 60, and 22 percent of men aged between 60 and 69, have ED.

High blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, chronic kidney disease, and prostate surgery are some of the physical conditions that can cause ED. Psychological issues - such as anxiety, stress, depression, and low self-esteem - can also contribute to ED.

Current treatments for ED include PDE5 inhibitors (such as Viagra), penile implants, and injections. However, Dr. Haahr and team note that all of these therapies can have significant side effects.

As a result, researchers are on the hunt for alternative treatments for ED, and stem cell therapy has emerged as a promising candidate in animal trials.

In their phase I trial, Dr. Haahr and colleagues tested stem cell therapy on 21 men who had ED as a result of undergoing radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer. None of the men had responded to standard medical treatment for ED.

For the stem cell procedure, abdominal fat cells were extracted from each man through liposuction. Stem cells were then isolated from the fat cells and injected into the corpus cavernosum of the penis - the spongy tissue that normally becomes filled with blood during an erection.

Before the stem cell procedure and 6 and 12 months after, the participants' erectile function was assessed using the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) questionnaire. An IIEF score of 5-7 represents severe erectile dysfunction, 12-16 is mild to moderate erectile dysfunction, and 22-25 is no erectile dysfunction.

All 21 men saw their erectile function improve with stem cell therapy: their IIEF score increased from 6 prior to treatment to 12 at 6 months after treatment.

Eight of the men reported that they had been able to engage in spontaneous sexual activity 6 months after stem cell therapy, and this outcome remained evident at 12 months after treatment. These men saw their IIEF score rise from 7 to 14 with stem cell therapy.

"What we have done establishes that this technique can lead to men recovering a spontaneous erection - in other words, without the use of other medicines, injections, or implants," says Dr. Haahr.

Although the study findings are preliminary, the team says that they show promise for stem cell therapy as an effective treatment strategy for ED.

"We are the first to use a man's own fat stem cells as a treatment for erectile dysfunction in a clinical trial. The technique has been trialed in animal work, but this is the first time stem cell therapy has allowed patients to recover sufficient erectile function to enable intercourse," says Dr. Haahr.

"We are pleased with the preliminary outcomes, especially as these men had previously seen no effect from traditional medical treatment and continue to have good erectile function after 12 months follow-up, indicating that this might be a long-term solution.

This suggests the possibility of therapeutic options for patients suffering from erectile dysfunction from other causes. But we need to remember that this is a small trial, with no control group. We're still some time away from a clinically available solution."

Dr. Martha Haahr

The researchers are now in the process of initiating a phase II trial to further investigate the safety and efficacy of stem cell therapy for ED.

Learn how eating more fruits could help to lower the risk of ED.

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Erectile dysfunction: Stem cell therapy restores sexual function in phase I trial - Medical News Today

Msgr. Joseph Prior

By Msgr. Joseph Prior Posted March 24, 2017

(See the readings for the Fourth Sunday of Lent, March 26)

The collect prayer for Sundays liturgy reads: O God, who through your Word reconcile the human race to yourself in a wonderful way, grant, we pray, that with prompt devotion and eager faith the Christian people may hasten toward the solemn celebrations to come. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

This Sunday is known as Laetare Sunday. The term comes from the entrance antiphon: Rejoice, Jerusalem, and all who love her. Be joyful, all who were in mourning; exult and be satisfied at her consoling breast (Isaiah 66:10). In the midst of our observance of Lent we are reminded, as we prepare for the Triduum and Easter, that Christ has triumphed already and we readily recognize the joy of his victory that lasts for all time. The Lenten season helps us to prepare for these celebrations that mark our deliverance from darkness to light, from sin to grace, from death to life.

The readings for the Mass help us in our preparations. We are reminded of Gods saving activity in the life of mankind. We are invited to consider that God does not always act in expected ways. He saving activity supersedes all human expectations.

The first reading comes from the First Book of Samuel and recalls the selection of David as the Lords anointed, who will one day reign as king. He will be a great king, though not without his faults. He will defend Israel from her enemies and strengthen the bonds among the tribes and he will eventually bring peace.

Yet here at the beginning, there are no signs of future greatness. When the Lord sends Samuel to the house of Jesse to find the one, the Lord says: Do not judge from his appearance or from his lofty stature, because I have rejected him. Not as man sees does God see, because man sees the appearance but the Lord looks into the heart.

So Samuel goes and sees the sons. It is not the first-born son, and it is not one of the next six sons who have been gathered. In fact expectations are so low with regard to David that he is not even there. The youngest son is out working in the fields and has to be summoned. When he arrives the Lord says to Samuel: There anoint him, for this is the one!

Jesus, a Son of David through Joseph, likewise was not the obvious one by mans standards. The Pharisees give witness to this attitude in Sundays Gospel reading from the Gospel according to John. In the account of the man born blind, the Pharisees have already determined that it is impossible for Jesus to be doing the Lords work. They determine that Jesus is a sinner because he cured on the Sabbath, thus breaking the Lords law. They refuse to acknowledge that Jesus has delivered the blind man from his blindness.

In their minds it is impossible for Jesus to be the one, for God does not work through sinners. Through their obstinate judgment of Jesus, they are blinded to Gods saving activity among them.

Jesus comes into the world to dispel the darkness of doubt and unbelief. His saving activity is seen in the cure of the man born blind which foreshadows the salvation offered to all.

At the beginning of the account, Jesus is asked about the mans sinfulness. The presumption is that blindness came through sin in this case the sins of his parents since he was born blind. Jesus tells them that physical blindness is not the result of sin. Rather it is this blindness that will allow the glory of God to shine forth in Jesus saving activity.

Jesus tells those disciples: While I am in the world, I am the light of the world. He then goes on to restore sight to the man born blind. The healing is offered, not just for the blind man who will later acknowledge his faith in the Son of Man, but also as a sign for others to see so they too might have faith.

We celebrate the light of the world who is Christ Jesus. The joy is so great that on this Sunday we even use the bright rose-colored vestments to mark it. Lent continues, though, as we journey toward the triduum, the celebration of baptism and the renewal of our own baptismal promises.

The sacred time affords us the opportunity to move from darkness to light, to be healed of our sins and to celebrate worthily the life won for us in Jesus Christ.

***

Msgr. Joseph Prior is pastor of St. John the Evangelist Parish, Morrisville, and a former professor of Sacred Scripture and rector of St. Charles Borromeo Seminary.

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Jesus heals blindness, both physical and spiritual - CatholicPhilly.com

BENGALURU: For all Bioscience graduates pursuing BE, BTech, BSc, MSc, MTech and PhD courses, there is good news for their career. The department of Biotechnology at Sir M Visvesvaraya Institute of Tecnology (MVIT) is organising a three day national seminar on Entrepreneurial Opportunities in Biotechnology from March 23 - 25 at its campus. The seminar that is also open to inquisitive parents, energetic alumni, enthusiastic faculty and industry experts is expected to alleviate the many concerns of graduates and their parents regarding their future prospects and career development. HG Nagendra, professor and head of the Biotechnology department, said: "The focus of education is to not only train the students in curriculum defined skillsets but also to guide them towards realising their higher aspirations." The seminar includes invited plenary talks by subject experts, panel discussions, industry-academia interactive sessions, poster sessions, project idea presentations, several stalls and displays. Cash awards will be awarded to those with best presentations and networking at the seminar.

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MVIT organises three-day national seminar on Biotechnology - Times of India

7 Surprising Arthritis Symptoms Every Woman Needs To Know Prevention.com "Depending on the type of arthritis, if you catch it early your doctor may be able to help you slow its progression," Shea says. Early detection could also give your doc the chance to administer anti-inflammation drugs, or recommend lifestyle changes ...

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7 Surprising Arthritis Symptoms Every Woman Needs To Know - Prevention.com