StemCell Therapy

Nafeez Ahmed explores the troubling implications and assumptions of the Governments AI-driven gene programme.

In Part 1 of this investigation, I looked at how the convergence of an AI Superstate and corporate interests with health data lies at the heart of a new frontier for profit and surveillance. But the Governments response during the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed something even more profoundly disturbing: a fascination with genomics which moves from a merely descriptive tool to something so prescriptive it verges on eugenics.

The NHSX app is simply one project with a questionable design which appears to result from the Governments much wider project to remake the NHS.

At the core of the new NHSX AI drive is the goal of predictive, preventive, personalised and participatory medicine, according to an NHSX document published in October 2019. Pivotal to this AI-driven transformation is genetics:

Key to unlocking the benefits of precision medicine with AI is the use of genomic data generated by genome sequencing. Machine learning is already being used to automate genome quality control. AI has improved the ability to process genomes rapidly and to high standards and can also now help improve genome interpretation.

The NHS Genomic Medicine Service is starting with a focus on cancer, rare and inherited diseases,but its broader goal is far more comprehensive. Initially, the hope is that genomics will expand to cover other areas, such as pharmacogenomics, which looks at how an individuals genes influence a particular biological process that mediates the effects of a medicine, according to The Pharmaceutical Journal.

But the end-goal is to convert the NHS into a health service oriented fundamentally around the role of genetics in disease. The aspiration is that from 2020, and by 2025, genomic medicine will be an embedded part of routine care to enable better prediction and prevention of disease and fewer adverse drug reactions. The GMS aims to complete five million genomic analyses and five million early disease cohorts over the next five years.

By 2025, genomic technologies will be embedded through multiple clinical pathways and included as a fundamental part of clinical training. As a result, it is hoped that there will be a new taxonomy of medicine based on the underlying drivers of disease.

But, this entire premise is deeply questionable. There is little evidence that the underlying drivers of disease are primarily genetic.

Last December, a study in the journal PLOS One found that genetics usually explains no more than 5-10% of the risk for several common diseases. The study examined data from nearly 600 earlier studies identifying associations between common variations in the DNA sequence and more than 200 medical conditions. But its conclusion was stark: more than 95% of diseases or disease risks including Alzheimers, autism, asthma, juvenile diabetes, psoriasis, and so on could not be predicted accurately from the DNA sequence. A separate meta-analysis of two decades of DNA science corroborated this finding.

The implication is startling: that the entire premise for the billions of pounds this Government is investing in building a new privatised NHS infrastructure for AI-driven genomic medicine is scientifically unfounded.

The obsession with genetics can be traced directly back to the Prime Ministers chief advisor, Dominic Cummings.

Cummings set out his vision for the NHS in a February 2019 blog, which although previously reported on has not been fully appreciated for its astonishingly direct implications. While focusing on disease risk, the blog flagged-up Cummings hopes that a new NHS genomics prediction programme would ultimately allow the UK to, not just prevent diseases, but to do so before birth in effect a nod toward the selective breeding techniques at the core of eugenics.

They are using the COVID-19 crisis to erect a corporate superstate powered by mass surveillance and AI. Their grim ambition is to reach into the very DNA of every British citizen.

His vision for what a genomics-focused NHS would look like bears startling resemblance to the core ideas of eugenics the discredited pseudoscience aiming to improve the genetic quality of a human population by selecting for superior groups and excluding those with inferior genes. Its worst manifestations were exemplified by the Nazis.

In the blog, Cummings wrote:

Britain could contribute huge value to the world by leveraging existing assets, including scientific talent and how the NHS is structured, to push the frontiers of a rapidly evolving scientific field genomic prediction. He called for free universal SNP [single-nucleotide polymorphis] genetic sequencing as part of a shift to genuinely preventive medicine, to be rolled-out across the UK. This approach holds the promise of revolutionising healthcare in ways that give Britain some natural advantages over Europe and America.

Later in the post, Cummings allowed himself to speak more directly to what natural advantages could actually entail. He claimed that a combination of AI-driven machine learning with very large genetic sampling could enable the precise prediction of complex traits such as general intelligence and most diseases.

The two scientists Cummings cited as the primary sources for his vision were educational psychologist Robert Plomin and physicist Steven Hsu.

Plomin, described by Cummings as the worlds leading expert on the subject, is a renowned scientist. But he also has a history of association with the eugenics movement, according to Dr David King, founder of Human Genetics Alert and previously a molecular biologist. (Sir David King, the former chief scientific adviser to the UK Government, has also criticised the genome sequencing goldrush).*

When The Bell Curve a book advocating the genetic inferiority of African Americans was published, Plomin was a key signatory to a statement defending the science behind the book, explained Dr David King in a paper for the non-profit watchdog Human Genetics Alert. The statement carefully avoided explicitly endorsing The Bell Curves racist conclusions (aptly summarised by Francis Wheen as black people are more stupid than white people: always have been, always will be. This is why they have less economic and social success), while failing to repudiate them. Plomins fellow co-signatories included several self-proclaimed scientific racists, Philippe Rushton and Richard Lynn. Plomin has also published papers with the American Eugenics Society and spoken at several meetings of the British Eugenics Society (the latter rebranded itself as the Galton Institute in 1989) both of which advocated racial science.

In December 2013, Plomin was called as an expert witness to the House of Commons Education Select Committee, where he called for the Government to focus on the heritability of educational attainment. Twenty-five minutes into the session, Dominic Raab who as Foreign Secretary and First Secretary has stood in for Boris Johnson during his period of absence due to COVID-19 prompted Plomin to focus more specifically on explaining his views about genetics, intelligence and socio-economic status.

Just two months before Plomins parliamentary testimony, a 237-page dossier by Cummings then a top advisor to Education Secretary Michael Gove was leaked to the press. The paper claimed that genetics plays a bigger role in a childs IQ than teaching and called for giving specialist education as per Eton to the top 2% in IQ. Pete Shanks of the Centre for Genetics and Society described Cummings policy proposal as a blatantly eugenic association of genes with intelligence, intelligence with worth, and worth with the right to rule.

The Cummings dossier which cites Plomin extensively further reveals that, according to Cummings, he had invited Plomin into the DfE [Department for Education] to explain the science of IQ and genetics to officials and ministers.

The Education Select Committees report shows that, at the time of Plomins testimony, the Government was resistant to these views. But, the position appears to have changed since then, with figures such as Cummings, Raab and Gove now at the seat of power under Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Plomin would go on to work with Steven Hsu, who was involved in a major Chinese genome sequencing project based on thousands of samples from very high-IQ people around the world. The goal was to identify genes that can predict intelligence. Hsu went on to launch his own company, Genomic Prediction. In slide presentations about his work from 2012, Hsu approvingly quoted British eugenicist Ronald Fisher, closing his slides with the following quotation: but such a race will inevitably arise in whatever country first sees the inheritance of mental characters elucidated. Hsus slides, wrote David King, include plans for a eugenic breeding scheme using embryo selection to improve the overall IQ of the population.

Yet, on his blog, Cummings confirmed that Hsu has recently attended a conference in the UK where he presented some of these ideas to UK policy-makers. Among the ideas Hsu presented to Cummings colleagues in Government was that the UK could become the world leader in genomic research by combining population-level genotyping with NHS health records. Hsu further claimed that risk prediction for common diseases was already available to guide early interventions that save lives and money.

Hopefully the NHS and Department for Health will play the Gretzky game, take expert advice from the likes of Plomin and Hsu and take this opportunity to make the UK a world leader in one of the most important frontiers in science, enthused Cummings.

Plomins claim that intelligence is determined primarily by genes contradicts a vast body of scientific literature, and is largely overblown. One of the latest studies debunking Cummings hopes was led by the University of Bristol and published in March. Based on a sample size of 3,500 children, the study found that polygenic scores (which combine information from all genetic material across the entire genome) have limited use for accurately predicting individual educational performance or for personalised education.

The study did not dismiss a role for genes outright, noting genetic scores modestly predictededucational achievement. The problem was that these predictions were less accurate than using standard information known to predicteducational outcomes, such as achievement at younger ages, parents educational attainment or family socio-economic position.

Last November, Hsus Genomic Prediction began touting new report cards to its customers. The cards displayed alleged results of genetic tests containing warnings that embryos might have low intelligence, grow up to be short, or have other conditions such as diabetes. But, according to the MIT Technology Review, the company has struggled both to validate its predictions and to interest fertility centres in them. In the month prior to Hsus grand announcement, the first major study to test the empirical viability of screening embryos, led by statistical geneticist Shai Carmi of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, concluded that the technology is not plausible.

The lack of scientific substantiation has not stopped Cummings from suggesting a more interventionist vision for the NHS, which could be accused of paving the way for a new form of eugenics. In his February 2019 blog, he wrote: We can imagine everybody in the UK being given valuable information about their health for free,truly preventive medicinewhere we target resources at those most at risk, and early (evenin utero) identification of risks. This passage appears to nod to the core eugenics notion of selective breeding using embryo selection. Cummings even went further to endorse the goal of editing genes to fix problems.

In a further telling but slightly more well-known passage, Cummings characterised the genomics programme as a precursor to more realistic views about IQ and social mobility: It ought to go without saying that turning this idea into a political/government success requires focus on A) the NHS, health, science, NOT getting sidetracked into B) arguments about things like IQ and social mobility. Over time, the educated classes will continue to be dragged to more realistic views on (B) but this will be a complex process entangled with many hysterical episodes. (A) requires ruthless focus.

This passage affirms that Cummings approach is deliberately deceptive. The focus on health and the NHS is revealed as a cover for a longer-term vision to usher in more realistic views about things like IQ and social mobility. The passage also lifts the rock on Cummings weakest point that he fears that public attention on these more realistic views could sidetrack the broader strategy before it reaches fruition.

In the words of Dr David King, Cummings deference to Hsu, who openly advocated eugenics breeding programmes, suggests that the Prime Ministers chief advisor clearly favours this strategy for Britain; of course, this is precisely what all the European countries were trying to achieve in the heyday of eugenics to overcome their imperialist competitors by improving the national stock.

This, it seems, is the essence of Cummings ambition to use the NHS genomics prediction programme as a mechanism to provide Britain natural advantages over Europe and America.

And in this context, it is impossible to ignore the implications of Cummings appointment of Andrew Sabisky to a senior role advising Boris Johnson. When Johnsons spokespeople were asked repeatedly whether the Prime Minister would condemn Sabiskys sympathies for racist eugenics, he repeatedly refused. Sabisky later stepped away from the role.

The COVID-19 pandemic has now provided the Government with the opportunity to double down on its goals of extending genome sequencing across the UK population.

While genomic sequencing of the Coronavirus is undoubtedly an important scientific task to map and understand it, the crisis fits neatly into Cummings call for a ruthless focus on the NHS as a vehicle for Britains genetic enhancement.

On 23 March, when the UK finally instituted a lockdown at least three weeks after being informed that hundreds of thousands of people (and potentially up to a million) people were at risk of death from its previous policy of herd immunity, the Government launched a new scientific research consortium coordinated by Cambridge University along with the Wellcome Sanger Institute, the NHS and Public Health England.

The consortium would gather samples from patients confirmed with COVID-19 and send them to genetic sequencing centres across the country to analyse the whole genetic code of the samples. The project was billed breathlessly as an essential step in being able to control the pandemic and prevent further spread.

Unsurprisingly, it has done no such thing. Instead, six weeks later, the UK has ended up with the highest COVID-19 fatality rate in Europe.

As the death toll approaches the same level of British civilian casualties during the Second World War, the Governments strategy has privileged ambiguous, extortionate high technology solutions, pouring hundreds of millions of pounds into powerful private sector players with no transparency or due process. Meanwhile, traditional, proven, public health strategies such as better border controls, or extensive contact tracing and testing by scaling up local capacity, were inexplicably delayed for months.

On 13 March, the Government launched a new partnership between the NHS, Genomics England, the GenOMICC consortium, and US biotech giant Illumina, to conduct a nationwide human whole genome sequencing study targeting COVID-19 patients in 170 intensive care units.

The Governments new genome sequencing partner, Illumina, has previously produced genetic sequencing systems marketed to police agencies in China to facilitate its genetic profiling of the minority Uyghur population in Xinjang the largest system of discriminatory, ethnically-targeted biometric surveillance using DNA ever created.

It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that Dominic Cummings and his fellow ideologues in Government are hell-bent on pursuing a pseudo-scientific vision that has been years in the making.They are using the COVID-19 crisis to erect a corporate superstate powered by mass surveillance and AI. Their grim ambition is to reach into the very DNA of every British citizen.

Dominic Cummings was contacted for this article, but is yet to reply.

*This article was corrected to remove a confusion between Sir David King, the former government chief scientific adviser, and Dr David King, the molecular biologist who isthefounder and Director of Human Genetics Alert.

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WHITEHALL ANALYTICA THE AI SUPERSTATE: Part 2 Is COVID-19 Fast-Tracking a Eugenics-Inspired Genomics Programme in the NHS? - Byline Times

May 12, 2020

As we prepare to confer their degrees this week, were celebrating this years graduates by highlighting members of the class and their accomplishments. Congratulations to the Class of 2020 on everything you have achieved.

MAKING THEIR MARK: Each year, as our students prepare to receive their degrees, we take a moment to gather some members of the graduating class for some parting thoughts on their time here. This year was not a typical year, as everyone has had to get used to remote learning, social distance, and a virtual degree conferral. Despite these challenges, our students have still managed to find perspective on how they have grown in the last four years and what they will take with them in the next phase of their lives.

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It's Wednesday and week five of remote classes and online learning, so we're checking in with Rochester students to ask: How are you? Starting online classes has definitely been an adjustment, but it is actually going a lot better than I thought it would. While I miss my favorite campus study spots dearly (a piece of my heart currently resides in the Periodical Reading Room), I've been able to set up a nice spot in my dining room where I can focus pretty well. I appreciate how accommodating and creative my professors have been while adapting to zoom. One of my professors even made a class drinking game, where you bring your favorite health beverage to class and have to drink every time a dog barks, a parent walks in, the wifi goes out, etc. While this is not the senior spring I imagined, I'm so grateful for the continued support of my friends, family, and professors despite the distance between us, whether that is six feet or 600 miles. Rachel Goodman 20 (@rgoody21) is a health, behavior and society and psychology double major from Needham, Massachusetts Swipe for a video message from Rachel and her sweet pupper named Pepper! Hi, everyone! Im Rachel Goodman and Im coming to you from Needham, Massachusetts, with my good boy, Pepper. I hope everyone is staying safe, healthy, and practicing social distancing. I know Ive gone through the big list of important activities. I have watched Tiger King, I cleaned my closet, I re-downloaded the House Party app, but Im starting to run out of some ideas, so if you have any quintessential quarantine activities, please let me know. Just a message to my fellow seniors: Im thinking of you right now. It is a tough time, it is weird. I am feeling it, too. But lets continue to hang in there, check in on each other, and support each other through this. So, in the meantime, please stay safe, stay home, and wash your hands.

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Class of 2020, we see you. In the weeks leading up to the conferral of their degrees, we meet members of this year's graduating class to hear how they're doing. #UR2020 I'm currently at home with my brother and parents. It's been nice to spend time with my brother, and I have really been enjoying my mom's delicious home cooked South Indian food. I've finally gotten back to reading for pleasure, something that I couldn't do in college. Since leaving the River Campus I've found myself missing unexpected things. I miss the trees on the Academic Quad, and the view of the clocktower from the Douggie steps. Some things I knew I'd miss, like studying with people in Rush Rhees, or those random run-ins with friends around campus. Remote learning has been interesting. The freedom to watch lectures whenever I want has been nice, but I've found that lab classes are difficult to transmit virtually. These past several weeks I've been adjusting to our new reality. I've realized that, moving forward, its up to each person to find the motivation and drive to help others who are affected by the COVID-19 crisis and create the best possible future after this pandemic. I know that the Class of 2020 is up to the task. I've spent four years learning how amazing they are. Vennela Pandaraboyina 20 (@vennela98) is a cell and developmental biology major from Acton, Massachusetts Swipe to see Vennela enjoying one of her favorite remote learning activities.

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Class of 2020, we see you. In the days leading up to the conferral of their degrees, we meet members of this year's graduating class to hear how they're doing. #UR2020 I remember during my college admission process when the University of Rochester asked me what would I contribute to campus to make it Ever Better. I answered with positivity and my annoying knack for optimism. During these trying times, I look to those qualities again to help me and my peers move forward as best as we can. Since being home, I've been able to expand my fleet of plants, try and fail at different cooking masterpieces, and resume my love for art and painting. I know it's not as great as being on campus surrounded by friends, but if Rochester taught us anything during those cold months, it is resiliency, and I know our community will come out stronger and better together. Rita Pecoraro 20 (@rita_pecoraro) is a financial economics major from Cheyenne, Wyoming. She also served as treasurer for the SA Appropriations Committee this year Swipe (and sound on!) to hear the Students Association's Zoom rendition of "YMCA."

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THIS IS ONLY THE BEGINNING: For the last four years, Jamal Holtz 20 has called Rochester his home, and from the moment he set foot on campus, he knew he wanted to make an impact here. I always said, when I step onto any community, says Holtz, who was elected to serve as Students Association president in his senior year. I make it a community that I live in, not a community that I just come for four years and leave.

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Class of 2020, we see you. In the weeks leading up to the conferral of their degrees, we meet members of this year's graduating class to hear how they're doing. #UR2020 "Looking back on my time at the University of Rochester, Im filled with love and gratitude for the incredible people and memories I have made through being on the womens lacrosse team. This team brought me everything, from teaching me to work hard and to never give up, to bringing me my best friends. There was never a dull moment on this team, and in particular, this year we really would had something special. I cant put into words how incredibly grateful I am to have been able to spend the amount of time that I did with this specific group of women; they have helped me grow not only as an athlete, but as a person and that is a credit to each and every person on this team. The fact that the other seniors and I did not have this sport and team to come back to is heartbreaking. There was so much left to accomplish this season, so many laughs to be had, bus rides to take, blue/gold challenges to win. But I am so grateful for the times we did have, and I would not change a thing about these last three and a half years; I know I will always have a family with these people and I cannot wait to see what they achieve in the years to come. " Maggie McKenna 20 (@mags_mckenna) is a financial economics and mathematics double major from Brighton

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Class of 2020, we see you. In the weeks leading up to the conferral of their degrees, we meet members of this year's graduating class to hear how they're doing. #UR2020 Im still living in Rochester, in an off-campus apartment. It has been hard staying motivated, but creating art makes me to feel productive. Im artistically inspired frequently these days. I hate whats going on, but I do my best work when I am sad. I guess its good to know something positive can come from something negativeand have tangible evidence of that idea. I get lonely, but this is the first time Ive ever had a full space to myself and a big fear about graduating and being a real person was how lonely I would be. I used to think I could never lively myself, but I am, and its OK, and even nice at times. I think a big part of why being alone is awful, is FOMO (fear of missing out). But since no one is allowed to see each other, there isnt really anything to miss out on. The hardest part is imagining what life would have been at school. Sitting on the quad in the sun, surrounded by my peers, bopping from one set of friends to the next, just being with each other. Daniela Shapiro 20 (@cds.art) is a philosophy major from West Orange, N.J., and the author of the graphic novel "The Stories of Survivors."

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Class of 2020, we see you. In the weeks leading up to the conferral of their degrees, we meet members of this year's graduating class to hear how they're doing. #UR2020 "Since the abrupt end of my final semester on campus, I've been home in Chicago completing the rest of my coursework. The biggest benefit that I've gotten from being home are the nightly meals my mom prepares, and the quick access I have to talk and laugh with my 16-year-old brother. The biggest challenges have been having the self-discipline to focus in class and not open additional tabs on my laptop while my professor speaks. It can be easy to get relaxed with online classes, so I've been taking extra measures to stay on my toes. What's helped me most with focusing has been playing library white noise to drown out any distractions in my home. This has been the best option for me to feel isolated, and ultimately zone out. As a graduating senior, the biggest takeaway has been to take everything at face value, and to always put in what you want to get out. Rochester indubitably prepared me for the real world and has definitely sharpened my work ethic and who I am as a person. Though it's disappointing knowing my senior year won't end the way I hoped, I have a great sense of closure knowing that the relationships I built will last for years to come." Swipe for more words of wisdom from Eugene Eugene Nichols III '20 (@ginonichols) is a communications and social advocacy major from Chicago, Illinois

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MOVE-IN DAY: Four year ago, the Class of 2020 arrived at the Universityready to move in, get started, and make their mark. As we celebrate all that theyve accomplished, lets enjoy this look back on their first day as Yellowjackets so we can appreciate how far theyve come.

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Class of 2020, we see you. In the weeks leading up to the conferral of their degrees, we meet members of this year's graduating class to hear how they're doing. #UR2020 Remote learning has been a really odd adjustment to make. I've taken over my parents dining room table and pretty much made it my own office. I'm just trying to make it through these last few days and find time to get outside and stay active. Of all my college experiences, those related to being a member of Rochesters track and field program easily represent some of my most meaningful and defining ones. That's what made it so bittersweet when my time as an athlete came to an abrupt end in March. While I fully understand the need for the social distancing measures required to contain COVID-19, it will always sadden me that I missed out on some of those pivotal moments and memories with this truly special team. My first year, I tore my ACL early during the indoor season. At the time, I was afraid that along with losing the rest of the year, I had lost the opportunity to join the team culture. Instead, I was met with so much support from my teammates and coaches and ultimately made some of the friendships I hope to carry with me long after college. Being able to come back and represent the team at championship and national meets and trying to push myself to lead by example has been a tremendous privilege for me. I am so proud to have been a member of this team. Swipe to see how Lonnie continues her track and field workouts from home Lonnie Garrett 20 (@lonnie_garrett) Chemical engineering major from Columbia, Maryland

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Class of 2020, we see you. In the weeks leading up to the conferral of their degrees, we meet members of this year's graduating class to hear how they're doing. #UR2020 Switching to remote learning has been smooth for my computer science classes. My professors are able to deliver lectures over Zoom and we can continue to do our programming assignments. Unfortunately, all of my musical performances have been cancelled, and it can be challenging to stay productive during my practice sessions. I'm grateful that I was able to move a marimba from @eastman.school to my apartment in Rochester, so that I can keep practicing. I probably walk past Eastman once a day, and Im used to seeing 100 other students on the street. So its weird to know that the concert halls and practice rooms are empty. My percussion professor is inviting professional percussionists and composers from all around the world to join us for studio class over Zoom, which is a great learning opportunity. I'm looking forward to the day when I can attend a concert and play for people again! Swipe to hear Olivers stylings on the marimba Oliver Xu 20, 20E (@oxuperc) Dual degree student majoring in percussion and computer science from Livonia, Michigan

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Class of 2020, we see you. In the weeks leading up to the conferral of their degrees, we meet members of this year's graduating class to hear how they're doing. #UR2020 Im at home in Atlanta with my parents and brother, and were all quarantining together. Im comfortable, Im happy, and Im supported by them. Its incredible to see how this pandemic is affecting the world. As an international relations major, Ive always been interested in how certain events are so powerful that they can change how our world works. Most significantly, I think we are being forced to reflect on how much we care about things that we can barely seebe it climate change, the global refugee crisis, or a microscopic virus. Like many, I miss life on campus, whether it be joking with friends in passing, or grabbing lunch with classmates. But, amid these personal struggles and letdowns, I believe it is also important for us to see how we are all part of a bigger whole in this world. By realizing this, perhaps there can be a silver lining to the crisis. Swipe to hear more from Nate Nate Leopold 20 (@nate.leo) International relations and political science double major from Atlanta, and a four-year member of the Yellowjackets mens soccer team

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Class of 2020, we see you. In the weeks leading up to the conferral of their degrees, we meet members of this year's graduating class to hear how they're doing. #UR2020 Transitioning to life at home has been quite the adjustment. Im used to spending many hours a day in a silent library and now Im in upstate New York with my two very cute, but not so very quiet puppies! My mom and brother are also here, and we are all healthy, so I feel very blessed. At first, I was able to spend my extra free time hiking, but now most trails are closed. So, Ive resorted to painting scenes from my favorite hikes instead! Heres a painting Im working on right now of Lake Road in Keene Valley. Finding motivation to finish my senior spring semester online has certainly been a challenge. Plus, Im an extreme extrovert, so I miss being around lots of people! My friends and I hold weekly Zooms to stay connected and we usually end up laughing for about three hours each time. Im looking forward to being able to hug all my friends and family again. Stay safe and healthy everyone! Swipe to see Amandas video: I took at an awesome hike in northern Lake George right before many trails got closed. I went with my friend Lauren. We drove separately and hiked 10 feet apart the whole time. Super views!!" Amanda Guido 20 (@amandaguidoo) Molecular genetics major from Lake George, New York

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Class of 2020, we see you. In the weeks leading up to the conferral of their degrees, we meet members of this year's graduating class to hear how they're doing. #UR2020 I got the news that school was over when I was in the middle of a match. I felt extremely overwhelmed and sad. Knowing that was going to be my last match ever, I had to pour my heart out to end things with a win. There were so many events to look forward to this season, and so many more memories to make with my teammates. However, looking back at it, I'm grateful to have been part of this experience and have so many good memories and times with my teammates and best friends. Im staying on the River Campus. Ive walked across campus to get mail, and its pretty sad and quiet. I spend most of my time in my dorm, but I go on runs every evening around Genesee Valley Park. Im also trying a lot of different restaurants around Rochester. Nothing feels real anymore. Every day feels the same. Yifan Shen 20 (@yi.f.shen) Microbiology and business double major from Taichung, Taiwan, and a member of the Yellowjackets' tennis team

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Class of 2020, we see you. In the weeks leading up to the conferral of their degrees, we meet members of this year's graduating class to hear how they're doing. #UR2020 Im staying in the house Ive been renting in Rochester the past year and a half. Before all of this happened, I usually spent only a few hours each day in my room sleeping. If I was awake, Id be on campus going to classes, working at WRUR (as chief engineer), or hanging with friends. Now, Im here all of the time. Remote classes are going well. It really helps that lectures are recorded so I can rewatch something if I need clarification on a topic. And Ive been extremely appreciative of my professors' willingness to conduct class in a way that allows students to ask questions whenever they need. Im also a TA for Engineering in Antiquity, taught by professor Renato Perucchio. I attend Zoom class lectures so I know what students have covered, and Ive expanded my office hours. The events of this semester are shocking. My hope is that our expanded availability will help provide some sense of normalcy and support throughout the rest of this semester. Nathan Nickerson 20 is a mechanical engineering major from Wilmington, Delaware

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Class of 2020, we see you : NewsCenter - University of Rochester

BERKELEY, Calif., May 14, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --Entering its 17th year as the premier thought leader conference for investors, entrepreneurs and other experts at the intersection of aging and technology, Mary Furlong & Associates addresses the coronavirus global pandemic by taking its What's Next Longevity Venture Summit virtual. The virtual event offers an expanded audience an online learning and networking experience with leading authorities on the future trends in the $8 trillion U.S. longevity economy.

"For almost two decades our conference has been known as the event where deals get done, companies get financed, and great leaders get discovered," said Mary Furlong, a successful entrepreneur and author in aging whose What's Next conferences have been the platform for someparticipating entrepreneurs to go on to build sustainable brands with over $100 millionin revenue,several being financed right at the conference. "This year our focus is on the global disruption of COVID-19 as the key issue of our time - the social isolation of older adults and the role technology can play is going to accelerate innovation in this space and we're thrilled to deliver the key players in a new virtual environment that encourages the collaboration and funding opportunities that will be needed."

The two-day virtual conference offers online participants specially curated live panel discussions on June 24-25 with top investors in venture, private equity, government and corporate and a special panel on female investors; analysts presenting the latest research briefings; entrepreneurs discussing pivots that worked; and other experts analyzing the new lens on telehealth, cannabis, home care, senior housing and other longevity market issues. Keynote speakers include: Ken Dychtwald, author and co-founder of AgeWave, Nancy LeaMond of AARP, David Rhew of Microsoft and Jean Accius of AARP. In addition, virtual attendees receive exclusive access beginning June 24 to the newly created What's Next Academy Sessions of pre-recorded thought leader panel discussions on the impact and opportunities in aging since the coronavirus pandemic.

The virtual conference also includes three competitions looking at innovation to address COVID-19 in the older population including the What's Next Innovation Challenge sponsored by AARP Innovation Labs; the $10,000 Business Competition with an elite judging panel and the Pitch for Distribution where start-up companies hope to earn a chance to meet with organizations that can help scale their business.

A long-term sponsor of the What's Next events, John Hopper, chief investment officerof the Ziegler Link-Age Funds and a 2020 Business Competition judge said, "We're proud to be a 7-year sponsor of the What's Next events and have made numerous investments in companies that have grown out of this competition and conference, including past winners and finalists Life Site, Embodied Labs, Vynca and Vital Tech. In light of COVID-19, we know some of the fastest growing companies providing critical products and services to seniors are in the area of telehealth and virtual training and care coordination."

The What's Next Longevity Venture Summit is produced by Mary Furlong, founder and CEO of Mary Furlong & Associates along with co-producers Lori Bitter, founder of The Business of Aging, and Sherri Snelling, CEO of Caregiving Club.Top sponsors include: AARP Innovation Labs, Ageless Innovation, Great Call, CareLinx, Great Call, Home Instead, Simple Meds, CABHI, Nationwide, VitalTech, Medterra CBD, CareMerge, Movano Inc. iN2L, Hamilton CapTel, Thrive, Ziegler-Linkage, WAHVE, My Family Channel and Bindix. See the event agenda and full list of speakers and sponsors at: https://www.boomerventuresummit.com/

Media Contact:Lori Bitter 415-652-9884[emailprotected]

SOURCE Mary Furlong & Associates

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Leading Conference for Investors and Entrepreneurs in the $8 trillion US Longevity Economy Goes Virtual - PRNewswire

In what I can only assume is a rational response to watching a sweaty Chris Cuomo deliver the news every day from our basement, my father recently suggested that I start studying for the GRE. He is nervous about the vague, nebulous thing we call the economy, and more than that, he is nervous about the prospects that Ihis sociology major daughtermight have in whatevers left of it after the pandemic. Its just good to have options, he says. The University, if its extended deadlines are any indication, agrees. The assumption underlying both of these concerns is a commonplace one: It is the assumption that the academy will stand for a long time. Come hell or high water, the U.S. News and World Reportrankings will be released next year, and they will serve us all well. Education endures.

The very longevity of the institution is precisely what makes Professor Kimberly Kay Hoangs recent op-ed so infuriating. The piece has rightfully been denounced by graduate students and professors alike as arrogant tenure-splaining, an erasure of the years of graduate student organizing it took to get almost the median income in Illinois, and perhaps most simply, just plain bad sociology. No less a member of the sociological cannon than Max Weber once remarked that [w]hether a lecturer ever attains the position of a full professor, let alone a scientific assistant becoming director of an institute, is simply a matter of chance. True, luck is not the only factor, but it plays an unusually predominant roleI can hardly think of another career in the world where chance plays such an outsize part. It is nothing short of outrageous, given the incisive structural analysis that characterizes sociology, to hear a professor in the field make an argument condoning the logics of meritocracy.

This university and those like it will be around for a long time. And given that, shouldnt our imperative be to make it as palatable as it can possibly be? If the academic job market is as punishing as everyone says, doesnt it behoove us to take this unprecedented moment to advocate for its restructuring, or for some collective insulation against precariousness? To quote poet Anne Boyer, This virus makes what has always been the case even more emphatically so. There is always a balancing act between preparing for how the world is and how we wish it were, I know, but in balancing, we must be careful to never legitimize the former and never abandon the latter.

Legitimation, unfortunately, is the least of what Hoangs op-ed does. It does nothing for graduate students, current and aspiring, to hear from a tenured professor that it is our job right now to analyze the situation were trying to survive, or to lower our expectations for the future. It does nothing to hear that we are privileged, because Hoang is more so. (And Im sure that all the graduate students who are planning to write subpar dissertations have been thoroughly moved by her op-ed to do otherwise.)

Writing that [i]f you feel that [producing an outstanding dissertation] is too much of a challenge, or is otherwise detrimental to your mental health, this is the time to think about alternative careers that are suitable to your personal and professional goals is not simply tough loveit is exactly how the market will explain away students who dont make it out of Ph.D. programs, with no thought or regard as to why. Hoangs words are an acquiescencea capitulation and reductive furthering of a deeply flawed system.

In her Sociological Theory class in the fall, Hoang enthusiastically extolled us undergraduates to theorize from a place of conviction. She told us that good sociology came from righteous beliefs. I am of the conviction that the academy needs the people who would be dissuaded from its ranks by her op-ed far more than those people need the academy. I am of the conviction that we should not step over the corpses of others to compete in academia. I am of the conviction that there is space in the ivory tower for people to not just work, but to live and heal and recover and grieve.

Its a shame Hoang is not convinced of the same.

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The Academy's Longevity Should Incentivize Reform - The Chicago Maroon

The New England Patriots have won 11 straight AFC East titles, but some expect that impressive streak to come to an end in 2020 as the post-Tom Brady era begins.

Their biggest competition is expected to be the Buffalo Bills, who finished 10-6 in 2019 and added some talent in the offseason, most notably star wide receiver Stefon Diggs.

With Brady gone and Buffalo seemingly getting better, Hall of Fame Bills quarterback Jim Kelly believes this is the year his former team overtakes New England for the division crown.

Download the MyTeams app for the latest Patriots news and analysis

If they dont, then somethings wrong,Kelly said on CBS Sports Radio's The Zack Gelb Show. I mean, Tom Brady is not there to block you anymore. So that, to me, is huge. I think Tom of course is getting older, getting old, but he still can play. I tried to talk him into retirement like two, three years ago, but he just wouldnt listen to me. I dont know why.

"But now that Bradys gone, I definitely do think the Bills are the team to beat, even though you look at the Jets, theyre getting better. Miami with Tua (Tagovailoa) coming in, I think theyre going to be better. And of course, (Bill) Belichick will have his team ready to play. So well see what happens at the quarterback position in New England."

Despite Kelly's confidence, the Bills have been cautiously optimistic as they ready for life without Brady in the division. Head coach Sean McDermott still believes New England should be considered the favorite, and general manager Brandon Beane has been wary of counting out Bill Belichick's team.

Barring any surprises, it'llbe 2019 fourth-round draft pick Jarrett Stidham replacing Brady at quarterback and looking to extend that AFC East title streak to 12.Stidham has taken only a handful of snaps as an NFL QB, but he's made quite the impression on his teammates behind the scenes. His former teammates at Auburn also have raved about his work ethic.

The Patriots (+115) are still favored over the Bills (+145), according to DraftKings Sportsbook.

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Seymour jokes about the real secret to Brady's longevity - NBCSports.com

SEATTLE, May 13, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --SOLIUS, a developer of innovative light therapy technologies focused on mitigating vitamin D deficiency, today announced investment from Human Longevity, Inc. (HLI) into its Series B financing.

The SOLIUS technology stimulates the production of vitamin D in the skin using a narrow spectrum of ultraviolet B (UVB) light. Vitamin D has a wide range of impact on systemic health, and supports physical, mental and immune function. SOLIUS delivers safe and effective light therapy using a personalized dosing system while filtering out nearly all other ultraviolet light. The SOLIUS technology can produce 10x more vitamin D than the sun, using 100x less ultraviolet energy. This technology is also an effective solution for at risk populations unable to absorb vitamin D orally.

HIL is a pioneer and leader in the delivery of data-driven, predictive precision health intelligence. Wei-Wu He, PhD, Executive Chairman, HLI stated: "We are excited to invest in SOLIUS as its mission is to provide the benefits of the sun without the harmful rays to unlock the healing powers of the human body. Investing in SOLIUS is another example of HLI's expertise in aggregating and leveraging technologies designed to demonstrably increase health, performance and lifespan. I welcome SOLIUS to our emerging ecosystem of longevity and performance-focused companies."

Bob Wise, SOLIUS CEO, said "Humans need sun exposure to stay healthy, and the benefits of the sun cannot be fully replicated with hormone replacement, such as oral vitamin D supplements. We are excited to partner with HLI in developing technologies that prevent disease and improve human health."

ABOUT SOLIUSSOLIUS was founded to advance the understanding of photobiology and the impact that ultraviolet light has on the human body. SOLIUS is dedicated to developing light therapies that stimulate the production of hormones via the skin. The SOLIUS products aim to improve health for people affected by conditions scientifically correlated with a reduction in sun exposure and vitamin D deficiency. For more information, visit http://www.solius.com.

About HLIHuman Longevity, Inc. (HLI) is a genomics-based, health intelligence company empowering proactive healthcare and enabling a life better lived. HLI's business focus includes the Health Nucleus, a genomic-powered, precision medicine center which uses whole-genome sequencing analysis, advanced imaging, and blood analytics, to deliver the most complete picture of individual health.

Contact: [emailprotected]

SOURCE SOLIUS

solius.com

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SOLIUS Announces Investment from Human Longevity Inc. to Support Mission of Improving Health, Performance, and Longevity. - PRNewswire

The cost of implementing a robust operations and maintenance (O&M) strategy for hydropower accounts for a relatively small percentage of the value of electricity generated. However, failure to implement adequate and sufficient O&M can result in very high costs due to increased losses of production (direct and indirect) and higher needs for rehabilitation and equipment replacement.

This article first appeared inESI AfricaIssue 2-2020.Read thefulldigimaghereorsubscribe to receive a print copy here.

The development of hydropower continues throughout the world, with some 22GW of hydropower being added in 2018, bringing the worlds hydropower capacity to around 1,290GW. In 2018, the estimated generation from these facilities amounted to 4,200TWh, or some 16% of the worlds electricity production.

A key distinguishing feature of hydropower is its potential longevity. A hydropower facility can operate for 100 years or more, compared with 20-30 years for most other generation technologies. This article outlines the best O&M strategies that can be applied to maintain the longevity of hydropower plants through a step-by-step approach.

Step 1: Diagnose existing O&M arrangements, budgets and owner/operator capabilities

For existing hydropower fleets, assess the condition and performance of theassets and services, including risks related to major equipment and need for replacement and repairs. The intended outcome of the diagnosis is toidentify what aspects of O&M need to be improved, and to establish whether the owner needs external assistance for operation of its assets.

Carrying out the diagnosis is also a good preliminary tool for assessing the status of the existing equipment, prioritising rehabilitation and, if needed, launching related feasibility studies to improve performance and ensure future safe operation. Diagnosis of an existing fleets performance can focus on contractual or standard industry key performance indicators (KPIs).

When financing a new facility to be added to an existing fleet, considerationshould be given to the current fleets O&M performance record. This will help guide the O&M strategy for the new facility, and possibly trigger changes to the O&M strategy for the existing fleet. Where the new project is a stand-alone facility, including those developed by an independent power producer (IPP), the same KPIs can be assessed on past or existing facilities for which the IPP team has or had responsibility.

Step 2: Define the objectives to be achieved through the implementation of the O&M strategy

Meeting the define objectives based on the diagnosis in Step 1 should be seen as a long-term goal that may require multiple iterations, such as changes in the operational management of facilities, short- and medium-term maintenance, and refurbishment, or the upgrading of the facilities. In order to ensure that a companys business plan does not become too focused on only one or two performance areas (such as finance or reliability), multiple goals and objectives are required.

The objectives of the strategy must be defined by indicators to be applied at all levels, including technical, financial, human resource services, and management, among others. Vision and mission statements may be used, if they exist, or formulated, if they do not, as an anchor point for the O&M strategy. Their primary objective is to communicate the companys strategic goals and is often linked to operational performance. Such vision and mission statements only have value if they are used by management as guiding principles for the business.

Step 3: Explore various activities to be undertaken to achieve these objectives

Considerations to be addressed while preparing the list of activities for the O&M strategy should go beyond assessment of asset repairs and refurbishment to examining root causes and long-term and sustainable solutions. The output from this step includes identification of the core activities and measures required in order to achieve the strategic objectives established in Step 2, based on the diagnosis completed in Step 1.

Step 4: Examination of O&M contractual models

Depending on the capabilities identified in Step 1, along with the activities selected in Step 3, explore O&M contractual models to identify which activities will be implemented internally and which will be outsourced. This can be broken down into three models to identify which model works best, namely:

Model one: Owner retains sole responsibility for O&M. Model two: Owner outsources some O&M responsibilities to consultants, contractors, or suppliers. Model three: Owner outsources all O&M responsibility to an independent operator.

Step 5: Training and human resources management

Explore organisation and staffing options (and organograms) according to owner capacity and requirements for external training and human resources. The success of the organisation depends on the quality of its employees (skills, knowledge, and experience) at all levels of the company and how well the human resources are selected, trained, and managed.

The differences between the performance of well-run and poorly performing utility fleets are evident at multiple levels. The greatest responsibility rests at the senior and management levels. Shortcomings should be identified during the diagnosis in Step 1 and through a more detailed operational audit.

Step 6: Financing for the implementation of the O&M strategy

Estimate financial resources required for implementing the selected model, including any external contracting. For the purposes of validating the O&M strategy, the costs are often estimated in USD. However, local or other international currencies may also be used, matching the currency that was adopted for estimating the benefits in Step 2. The costs of hydropower facility O&M vary considerably due to a range of factors including:

Nature of the facilities: complex facilities with multiple units, extensive civil works, and extensive associated infrastructure cost more to operate than simple compact facilities.

Age: older hydropower facilities with manual controls, analogue systems, and outdated equipment cost more to operate than modern, fully automated, remotely operated digitalised plants.

Condition: facilities in poor condition requiring continuous attention and suffering frequent failures cost more to operate than facilities in good condition. Facilities in poor condition are likely to require significant capital investment programmes.

Location: facilities in remote locations, especially where accommodation, utilities, and other facilities need to be provided for O&M staff, cost more than hydropower facilities in urban locations.

Country: since staff costs form a significant portion of OPEX, the labour costs and available skill levels in the country have a significant impact on O&M costs, especially if lack of skills means that expatriates are required. Some other input costs (vehicles, fuel, etc.) also vary by country.

Regulatory regime: the cost of permits, licences, registrations, rents, and other administrative outgoings varies from facility to facility and by country.

Owners approach to staffing: many traditional public utilities carry larger staff resources than commercial organisations with leaner operations.

The cost schedules from this Step will be used in the cost-benefit analysis to validate the strategy and check whether the proposed strategy is sustainable and bankable.

Step 7: Cost-benefit analysis of proposed strategy

Carry out cost-benefit analysis to assess the economic viability of the proposed strategy. If the strategy does not pass the test for economic viability, it may be necessary to go back to Step 2 to adjust objectives, activities, and resources. Once financial viability of the proposed strategy is achieved, internal and external validation can be sought. This Step also includes a check that adequate funding will be available.

Step 8: Monitoring and key performance indicators

Implement the strategy and prepare annual and rolling five-year operating plans and longer-term capital programmes. Overall performance of the strategy will be monitored through KPIs specified in appropriate agreements and contractual arrangements. The terms and conditions in the O&M contract will need to reflect the obligations of the owner under its concession agreement and PPA in the case of an IPP, or the requirements of the electricity regulator in the case of a public utility.

Model 3 case study: Nalubaale-Kiira Hydropower Complex, Uganda

The Ugandan government, working with the Uganda Electricity Generation Company (UEGCL), awarded a 20-year operational, management and maintenance concession to Eskom Uganda Limited (EUL), a subsidiary of Eskom, to cover both the Nalubaale Power Station and the adjacent Kiira Power Station.

The concession agreement commenced in 2003, with the electricity generated being sold to UETCL; the agreement expires on April 1, 2023. In this Model 3 concession arrangement, all O&M responsibilities are assumed by EUL, the private operator, for a fixed duration. UEGCL supervises the asset health and assumes all risks that are deemed to be catastrophic in nature. The owner reports to Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) to enforce performance standards, especially during the periodic renewal of generation licence performance targets.

EUL, the O&M operator, assumes all operational risks and mobilises all the required capital funding to keep the assets in good condition under an investment incentive structure, based on a 12% return on investment on all verified investments (any capital replacement made by EUL is recovered through asset depreciation plus a 12% ROI) during the contract period. Utility Prudent Practices are generally the yardstick by which the assets are to be maintained. So far, no specific details of these practices have been defined in the existing contract between EUL and UEGCL due to the broad definition of prudent practices.

Under the current 20-year O&M contract with Eskom Uganda, UEGCL hasexperienced challenges and successes, which include:

Transfer of knowledge Eskom Uganda has facilitated knowledge and skills transfer to a number of trainees from academic institutions as part of the usual industrial practice of internship programmes.

Modernisation the operator has modernised some of the critical plantsystems, albeit at a slower pace than what was anticipated at contractsigning. These improvements reduced the number of forced outages at the Nalubaale Power Plant.

Due to the generic definition of prudent practices, the success of the O&M contractual arrangement with Eskom Uganda cannot be fully appraised in the absence of appropriate qualitative or quantitative assessment. Discussions are ongoing to amend the contract to improve the contractual performance measures with a focus on asset management.

Due to rapidly advancing technologies and long procurement lead times, there is an ongoing requirement to stock spare components to avoid loss ofgeneration due to forced outages.

Alkali Silicate Reaction (concrete expansion) at the Nalubaale HPP has been (and continues to be) a technical issue since 1964 when the first crack appeared, resulting in a significant reduction in the expected life of the civil structure. Therefore, a programme has been undertaken to carry out a comprehensive rehabilitation of the power station, beginning with the feasibility study already underway.

Skills retention continues to be a challenge due to ongoingindustrialisation where skilled staff are in high demand by competitors.Therefore, there is a need to continuously provide on-board training and competitive salaries to retain skilled workers.

In general, the emergence of private sector-led investment in other forms ofrenewable energy, mainly from solar PV and other small hydropower projects on seasonal rivers, has resulted in an increase in peaking requirements and start/stop cycles for the large hydropower projects on the Nile River.

This additional demand for peaking will ultimately lead to a reduction in the design life of the hydro units, particularly for Kiira HPP which was designed for baseload conditions. The impact on Nalubaale units is not seen to be as significant because the units are Kaplans and can easily follow demand; i.e., each unit has an operating range from as low as 6MW up to 18MW, providing a healthy margin of spinning reserve.

In view of these challenges, a modernisation plan for the Nalubaale-Kiira Hydropower Complex is in preparation, focusing mainly on the optimisation of the two power plants to improve their plant factor, and to find a permanent solution to concrete expansion problems at Nalubaale Power Plant. ESI

This is article is based on an adaption of the Operation and MaintenanceStrategies for Hydropower handbook, compiled by the World Bank with thesupport of the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs and in collaboration with the International Hydropower Association. License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.

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Eight O&M steps to extend the longevity of hydropower plants - ESI Africa

It is startling the extent to which science has given us agency over our lives. Science has shown that we are not merely subject to the forces of nature or some divine power. It is the choices we make that largely determine the course of our lives.

Specific ingredients have been shown to provide a bulwark against these deadly complications.

Chillis are one such ingredient, according to a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

The study investigated the protective benefits of chillis and found that consuming the spice ingredient on a daily basis slashes the chance of being killed by stroke by 61 percent and heart attack by 40 percent.

To arrive at this conclusion, Italian researchers followed more than 22,000 adults for an average of eight years.

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They found people who ate chillies four times weekly were 23 percent less likely to die young than those who avoided them.

Consuming the spicy pepper also cut risk of all forms of heart death by 34 percent.

Lead researcher Marialaura Bonaccio, from Institute for Research, Hospitalisation and Health Care Neuromed in Pozzilli, said: An interesting fact is that protection from mortality risk was independent of the type of diet people followed.

"In other words, someone can follow the healthy Mediterranean diet, someone else can eat less healthily, but for all of them chilli pepper has a protective effect".

Fellow researcher Licia Iacoviello, a Professor of Hygiene and Public Health at the University of Insubria, said: Chilli pepper is a fundamental component of our food culture.

Over the centuries, beneficial properties of all kinds have been associated with its consumption, mostly on the basis of anecdotes or traditions, if not magic.

And now we know that the various plants of the capsicum [pepper] species, although consumed in different ways throughout the world, can exert a protective action towards our health".

To enhance the benefits, you should enjoy chilis as part of a healthy, balanced diet.

According to the NHS, a healthy, balanced diet should consist of a low-fat, high-fibre diet, which should include plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables (five portions a day) and whole grains.

"You should limit the amount of salt you eat to no more than six grams (0.2oz) a day as too much salt will increase your blood pressure," advises them health body.

High blood pressure is the pressure of blood pushing against your artery walls.

It is a precursor to heart disease so it is imperative to keep it incheck.

"You should avoid food containing saturated fats, because these will increase the levels of bad cholesterol in your blood," says the NHS.

"Bad" cholesterol, otherwise known as LDL cholesterol, is a fatty substance that builds up in your blood.

It can clog up your arteries, starving the heart of oxygenated blood - a process that can lead to having a heart attack.

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How to live longer: Eat this more than four times a week to lower risk of early death - Express

Many of the worlds multilateral organizations have the longevity of nation states. The International Telecommunication Union is older than Germany. The World Intellectual Property Organization directly descends from a body Victor Hugo helped to establish. The institutions governing global trade, by contrast, last about as long as Spinal Tap drummers.

After 25 years of existence, the World Trade Organization may be hurtling toward the irrelevance that doomed its predecessors. Robert Azevedo, whos been director-general since 2013, will step down before his term formally ends next year, four people familiar with the matter told Bryce Baschuk and Jenny Leonard of Bloomberg News.

That decision is hardly surprising. The kingdom over which he presides is crumbling. Global trade liberalization, the original purpose of the WTO and its predecessor, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, or GATT, hit a wall more than a decade ago when the Doha Round of talks collapsed, thanks in part to the perennial sticking points of agriculture and services.

The so-called free trade deals that have been signed since are better described as preferential agreements, serving as much to constrain as to open up global commerce by creating in- and out-groups. Those on the outside often do worse than if no pact had been signed at all. The biggest regional agreements that have been worked on over the past decade, the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, are more-or-less explicitly treated not as instruments to free up trade but as fronts in the long-term soft power fight between the U.S. and China.

That same rivalry last year put a finish to the Appellate Body, the WTOs most important remaining function after the fall of the Doha Round. The Geneva-based quasi-court, which adjudicates disputes between members, solved one of the most glaring problems with GATT, the inability of the trading system to bind its most powerful members. Still, it had always had its discontents both in emerging economies, which often saw it as a tool to force open their markets to powerful multinationals, and in the U.S., which equally didnt appreciate coming in on the losing side of cases.

With the rise of China as an export powerhouse and the arrival of long-standing WTO skeptic Robert Lighthizer as President Donald Trumps trade representative, the Appellate Bodys disintegration last year was all but inevitable.

Right now, global trade seems under threat in a way it hasnt been since the Cold War. In the short term, the coronavirus has brought swathes of international commerce to a halt: The WTO expects trade could decline this year by as much as 32%. World merchandise volumes, which almost always grow once you smooth out month-to-month volatilities, had been in decline for nearly a year even before the outbreak hit. The U.S.-China trade deal announced with great fanfare in January isnt worth the paper its written on, as weve argued.

Worse still, its main deliverable outcome ended up being a $200 billion-over-two-years increase in Chinese imports from the U.S. that would lean heavily on farm produce and petroleum. Thats now at the mercy of both Chinese demand and rickety virus-hit U.S. supply chains, not to mention plummeting prices and production of American oil which will push the headline dollar target even further out of reach. Trump has recently been signaling deep discontent with the agreement as he ramps up anti-Chinese rhetoric around the coronavirus. In the current moment, Januarys deal risks becoming less a balm for U.S.-Chinese relations than an irritant.

While all that seems quite grim, the course of liberalizing trade never did run smooth. GATT was born from the ashes of the International Trade Organization, which John Maynard Keynes had envisioned as a global body to eliminate trade surpluses and deficits. The WTO itself arose to fix GATTs drift into irrelevancy in the 1980s, when a young lawyer named Robert Lighthizer assisted in a previous round of might-is-right trade diplomacy between the U.S. and Japan. Few suspected, as the WTOs 1999 Seattle meeting attracted enormous anti-globalization protests, that Chinas coming membership would kick off one of the richest periods for trade the world had ever seen.

Thats reason to hope that despite the current predawn darkness, international commerce will someday find a way to rise above its current problems and open anew. The common view that trade liberalization has only helped the rich is justified yet that was a shortcoming not of the WTO, but of the governments that failed to use the benefits of open commerce to improve the welfare of working people. Perhaps it requires the fall of the existing regime for the world to build a new trading system fit for the 21st century.

David Fickling is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering commodities, as well as industrial and consumer companies. He has been a reporter for Bloomberg News, Dow Jones, the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times and the Guardian.

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Business Forum: The WTO is dead. Long live the WTO! - Minneapolis Star Tribune

Named top 5 secrets of Japanese longevity. As you know, the nation with the highest life expectancy. Japanese people often live to 100 years and remain not only physically healthy, but in clear mind and memory.

Japan is a country with the oldest population in the world. Men on average live to 87 years and women to 81. The number of citizens that crossed the threshold of 70 years, continues to grow. According to preliminary estimates, by 2025, those in Japan will be about 20 000 000. While those who have not reached the age of 50 years, local scientists call young people. As it turned out, based on the longevity of Japanese people is the high level of education. The Japanese are trying to increase their own awareness at any age and is not considered shameful to learn until old age. The more information people receive every day, the more chances that he will live many, many years.

The second secret of Japanese longevity lies in regular physical activity. This nation loves the sport. The Japanese perform like regular exercising, and strenuously practise yoga, qigong and other Eastern teachings. The third secret is proper nutrition. The Japanese do not have the habit to overeat, but food they consumed only if it is required by the body. This eliminates perpetual snacking and is sort of the prevention of obesity. Besides, the people of this country never emotionally eating and generally they have not taken food excess. Speaking of stress, the Japanese, unlike Europeans, do not consider this as harmful. Moreover, they are convinced that it helps find solutions in difficult situations and causes a person to act.

Closes the list of social activity. For the Japanese, as for other inhabitants of the planet, it is important to communicate, so they try to spend more time with family and friends. This type of interaction promotes the production of hormones of happiness, which are so necessary for the proper functioning of the body, says Planet-Today.

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Named top 5 secrets of Japanese longevity - The Times Hub

Including healing adaptogens in your health regime is important for your longevity. Most simply put, they help push your body into recovery mode so that its able to restore itself before the next rush of fight or flight response. Adaptogens are extracted from non-toxic plants Turmeric, ashwagandha, rhodiola, cordyceps, and ginseng which help regulate the bodys stress response.

Over years of evolution, our bodies have learned to protect us from stressors by fighting or going into flight. The body does this to clear your mind, boost your energy and improve your focus. Its a survival instinct to keep us intact when we try to escape the situation. Basically so you dont die. However, we no longer have to face beasts, dangerous sabre-toothed tigers or cavemen. Back then humans only experienced these threatening situations now and then. Nowadays were faced with continuous, chronic stress from work, traffic, family, and finances. This is seriously bad for the body and keeps us in fight or flight for longer than its meant to be.

Sitting with prolonged chronic stress can seriously damage your health, mood, and quality of life over time. It ages you. Especially during COVID-19, when times are very unsettling. Fortunately, nature has a solution where healing adaptogens bring us the right kind of nutrition. These plant compounds can help us get out of the fight or flight state so that our bodies and minds can recover and restore themselves.

Its true that stress is a killer because it ages you. The more anxious our minds are the less were able to focus and perform. Thats why we need to ingest healing adaptogens regularly to stay younger for longer.

The word adaptogen originates from 1950s. They were first used as medicinal herbs all the way back in 3000 B.C., in Ancient Chinese and Ayurveda practices. Russian toxicologist Nikolay Lazarev, defined healing adaptogens as plants that increase the state of non-specific resistance when applied to stress. This means they can help protect the body against a range of stressors.

Moreover, healing adaptogens are herbs and plants with special properties that are naturally occurring in nature and can help the body resist emotional or physical stressors. They help heal stress, fatigue and work by targeting the bodys three stages of stress:

Now you can imagine being in a prolonged state of stress will inevitably result in pure exhaustion or burn out. You might be familiar with some healing adaptogens including turmeric, goji berries, maca root and various types of mushrooms. There is a very long list so there are loads to try!

Note that adaptogens are extracted from non-toxic plants which help regulate the bodys stress response. They can come from herbs, mushrooms, and roots. Most of which have been used for centuries in Ayurvedic and Chinese medicine. Scientists believe that these plant compounds work by acting on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. This involves the interaction between the brain and adrenal glands. Otherwise called the Sympathoadrenal System. This is thepart of the nervous system that helps control the bodys stress response.

Health researchers articles state that healing adaptogens might help boost focus and endurance during tiring situations. This is particularly important for those times when you would normally feel very fatigued and weak which might decrease performance. Healing adaptogens may also help the body resist stress-induced impairments of the neuroendocrine and immune systems.

Some research suggests that healing adaptogens might even benefit those with age-related disorders and cardiovascular problems. This means that elderly people may be able to maintain their health status on a normal level, improve their quality of life and even increase longevity. Doctors also believe that adaptogens could help support standard therapies used to aid patients fighting a range of health issues.

There are many reasons why we should all be using these plant compounds to live better, longer lives. Not only do they help fight daily stressors, but they also promote a more calm and stress-free mental state. If you are less stressed you will have a much stronger immune system which is what we all need during this pandemic. Healing adaptogens also come in a variety of forms like fermented adaptogen powders to help the body address the effects of stress in a natural way.

Theyre said to improve cognitive function and mood, increase energy levels, assist with stress management, and help mental fatigue. We know they help with stress. However, they allow the body to maintain the resistance phase of general adaptation syndrome for longer. This means you will be able to avoid hitting the exhaustion phase. This means youre bulletproof when facing stress or both mental and physical stress. Whenever your heart rate goes up and the adrenaline pumps, a lot of cortisol is released. You might feel more alert and energized so youre able to protect yourself from whatever is threatening you.

But then the body needs to resist, you know straight after a presentation, intense workout or stressful exam. The body needs time to recover from the trauma of the event. More importantly, it has to restore your normal blood pressure and cortisol levels. You will be fine if the stress subsides because your body will return itself to its pre-stress state. However, if stress lingers long term and you remain on alert, your body will try to adapt to this condition.

This is not good. Your body startsrecognizing it as the new normal. Therefore you start learning to live with stress. This is acceptable, to a degree, but if your body continues at this level between alarm and resistance for a while, without time for proper recovery, stress will overtake the body and youll enter Stage 3 of GASexhaustion.

Yes, this is the part where you might feel like you just cant continue. This is the point where youve hit exhaustion and start to feel extremely anxious and tired, moody and maybe even sick. High-stress levels make you more likely to get sick which means you need rest otherwise youll see a serious decline in health and performance.

Luckily, healing adaptogens help keep you in the resistance phase of GAS longer. This means your body has time to recharge itself before any major damage is done. Scientists believe that adaptogens have a stimulatory effect, revving up the recovery process that supports healthy stress hormone levels.

It is very important to know what works best for your body. Everyone responds to healing adaptogens differently. Your friend might be using a particular compound, but It might not have the same effect on you. Thats why if you choose to experiment with adaptogensBe sure to so try them one at a time to determine the exact effect each has on you.

There are a range of benefits by taking a daily adaptogen supplement. Particularly if you want to regulate cortisol levels and improve athletic performance. You get capsules, tablets, tinctures and powders which can be mixed with water or sprinkled on food.

Most healing adaptogens are considered safe, but if youre unsure, it may be best to consult your doctor before adding them to your diet. Especially if youre taking chronic medication. Certain herbal supplements can cause mild allergic reactions or some digestive discomfort.

Experts explain that adaptogens are great at regulating the stress response. However, they may not be for everyone. Just like anything else out there. It needs to be if youve got an autoimmune disorder or youre taking an immunosuppressant. Moreover, adaptogens can cause the immune system to become more active. This is brilliant news for generally healthy people. However, it can cause complications for those whose immune systems already arent working properly.

Every adaptogen is unique in what it can do. They all have benefits but you need to know what each could help you with.

This herb is fantastic at managing due to its curcumin content. Studies state that curcumin aids in regulating inflammatory responses, which helps exercise recovery and muscle soreness. This is great for athletes who want to increase their performance. Better yet, turmeric may be an ideal supplement for just about anyone.

Note that curcumin alone is not very helpful, due to its poor bioavailability. To increase its absorption and effectiveness, always include black pepper, piperine.This increases bioavailability by 2000%. Why? Because pepper inhibits enzymes that break down curcumin in the body. Curcumin is also fat-soluble so combining it with lipids will help absorption even more.

This is a traditional herb that originates in India and could be one of the most powerful and diverse adaptogens. Healing adaptogens like this once can help enhance your health and performance. Studies have discovered that supplementing with ashwagandha can also improve your resistance to stress. This is powerful because your quality of life will be much higher. Moreover, people (about 30%) who were severely stressed also saw a significant reduction in cortisol levels when using ashwagandha.

Not only does this supplement get you out of flight or fight mode, but it also helps your aerobic endurance and strength performance. Amazingly, you might even notice an increase in the development of muscle mass. Researchers believe that healing adaptogens like this one could even help reaction time and performance on cognitive and psychomotor tasks.

If youve never heard of this one, dont stress, neither have many others.

This adaptogen grows as a flowering plant found in the arctic regions. Apparently, it can help improve stress, fatigue, athletic performance and energy levels. Researchers have learned that taking rhodiola for only four weeks can help reduce the symptoms of stressful life situations.

Another study showed it helped boost participants time to exhaustion by 24 seconds during endurance exercise. Wowee!

Used traditionally in Chinese medicine, this is a hybrid fungus that can be used for many reasons. Researchers say that its mainly used today as a performance-boosting supplement. Cordyceps are rich in adenosine, which is a component of ATP. This is the energy source the body uses for all its movements. Therefore, experts believe that cordyceps can help ATP production, which might promote endurance performance.

Other alternative medical studies show that supplementing with cordyceps may help boost metabolic thresholds. This is a marker of aerobic performance in older people. In addition, studies found that cordyceps militaries, which is a synthetic form of Cordyceps. It is also part of a mushroom blend and can aid performance with respect to time to exhaustion during exercise, and VO2 max.

The secret is pairing these with other healing adaptogens like ashwagandha, rhodiola, and astragalus. This will help to promote daily energy and exercise performance. If youre passionate about exercise, then youve got even more reason to take more healing adaptogens especially pre-workout. This will help support you from the beginning of the workout through to the recovery phase. You wont feel as exhausted and will be able to recover a little more quickly, not only during the workout but also for the next session.

Another powerful plant thats particularly famous in Chinese medicine. Healing adaptogens like this one are brilliant at fighting inflammatory responses and helping to boost immunity and cognitive function. This is mainly because of the compounds ginsenosides and gintonin.

Korean studies take ginseng or a placebo a week prior to exercise and four days afterwards. Seventy-two hours after the workout, the ginseng users had significantly lowered markers of muscle damage. Other studies have demonstrated a boost in cellular health when women took ginseng for 12 weeks.

Researchers also state that Ginseng can help keep you feeling calm. You will also be able to concentrate and focus better on tasks within only eight days of usage.

So if youre feeling particularly stressed or anxious right now during the pandemic, then you might want to give Ginseng and other healing adaptogens a try.

We need to learn to manage stress better. When this happens, it can cause a cascade of other problemsmentally, physically and emotionally. Heres what to do.

The Total Guide to Adaptogenic Supplements and Herbs. Omnit. https://www.onnit.com/academy/adaptogens/

Cordyceps Sinensis 101: Why Is This Supplement So Popular? Omnit. https://www.onnit.com/academy/cordyceps-sinensis/

Examining the effects of Withania somnifera supplementation on muscle strength and recovery: a randomized controlled trial. NCBI. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26609282

Efficacy of Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera [L.] Dunal) in improving cardiorespiratory endurance in healthy athletic adults. NCBI. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4687242/

What Are Adaptogens? Herbs and Plants That Help Reduce Stress and Anxiety. The Beet. https://thebeet.com/what-are-adaptogens-herbs-and-plants-that-can-help-reduce-stress-and-anxiety/

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Adaptogens And Why They're Good For Longevity - Longevity LIVE

(CNN) Severe weather in St. Louis didnt stop Nelly and Ludacris from exchanging hits Saturday in the latest edition ofVerzuzon Instagram Live.

The two rappers were set to go live at 7 p.m., but repeated issues with a Wi-Fi signal on Nellys part caused delays and even lack of audio at times.

St. Louis, where Nelly lives, was dealing with strong thunderstorms, winds and possible hail Saturday, according to theNational Weather Service.

Your Wi-Fi needs some milk Ludacris jokingly said. Folks on Twitter also chimed in with their jokes.

After a couple of attempts, though, Nelly was back for a night of nostalgia with Ludacris.

More than 400,000 viewers tuned in for the three-hour livestream. Each Grammy award-winning rapper played their string of hits including How Low and Na-NaNa-Na.

Ludacris played an unreleased version of Money Maker with Nelly singing the chorus instead of Pharrell.

Like most of the other battles that took place already, both rappers praised one another.

Your longevity is legendary, Nelly told Ludacris.

There are no other Nellys in the world, Ludacris told Nelly.

Saturdays battle was part of an ongoing series by producers Swizz Beatz and Timbaland as a way to entertain fans during quarantine. Previous battles have featured singersErykah Badu and Jill Scott, singer-producersTeddy Riley and Babyfaceas well as rappers T-Pain and Lil Jon.

The-CNN-Wire & 2020 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.

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The coronavirus crisis poses new challenges for us all, including for the health of our skin. Being in isolation, with the accompanying stress, sanitizing measures, lack of fresh air and opportunities to exercise can result in a series of dermatological problems, such as dry skin, adult acne exacerbations, and flare-ups of other inflammatory skin conditions. The following details how being in lockdown can affect your skin, and what changes you can make to prevent it.

Think of your hands as the frontline of your defense against Covid-19. Touching contaminated surfaces can transfer the virus to your hands; touching your face (especially your mouth, eyes, and nose) is then a gateway to infection.

Face-touching has been known to be a driver of viral transmission for decades. For this reason, proper hand hygiene is a crucial preventive measure to stop the spread of Covid-19. However, it can lead to severely dry skin on your hands.

The humble, conventional bar of soap is all that is needed for effective hand cleansing to prevent virus transmission. The coronavirus has a fatty membrane that dissolves when it meets soap molecules, causing it to breakdown and become inactive. There is no benefit in the use of antibacterial soaps and using these may do more harm by removing the good bacteria of our skins microbiome (the community of microorganisms that reside on our skin). If you are not near a basin, then hand sanitizers with more than 60% alcohol is recommended by the CDC.

Rightfully, we are all taking hand hygiene seriously, so much so in fact, that there has been a dramatic rise in a type of eczema called irritant contact dermatitis. Research shows an increased incidence of hand eczema in the general population due to the zealous handwashing associated with the pandemic. Frequent hand cleansing with detergents (like soaps) leads to a gradual depletion of the fats in the superficial skin layers, and so the skin becomes less able to retain water. This disrupted skin barrier means that our hands may become dry, itchy, red, and cracked. Any break in the skin can allow bacteria and other germs in and so increase the risk of infection. Its thus important to avoid or treat very dry skin.

How can we wash our hands frequently and still maintain a healthy skin barrier? To help curb these problems, moisturizers should be used directly after handwashing and throughout the day, especially if you are prone to eczema. Its best to apply a moisturizer when hands are still damp from hand washing to lock in moisture, however, wait for your hands to dry completely if you are using a hand sanitizer. The optimal moisturizer is a thick fragrance-free cream with hydrating ingredients such as petroleum or glycerin. Ointments that may be too greasy for daytime can be applied at night under gloves. Troublesome hand eczema may need a prescription for a topical corticosteroid, to reduce inflammation. To avoid further irritation to your hands, its wise to use protective rubber gloves when washing dishes or clothes.

Psychological stress, in varying degrees, has become part of our new normal.

As a result, people dealing with chronic skin conditions, such as eczema or rosacea, may experience flareups. Indeed, emotions are an important factor in many skin diseases. The answer lies in how the skin and brain communicate.

Our skin is a complex organ that plays a crucial role in barrier and immune functions. Psychological stress is perceived by the brain which activates a stress response in the systems of the body. Through a sequence of events, your body releases cortisol known as the primary stress hormone. Stress also induces the release of catecholamines, such as adrenaline, which is a crucial part of the fight or flight response. The skin is an unexpected, yet an important target for these stress responses and the result is inflammation. In turn, inflammation impacts the skins immune system functioning and blood flow.

Adding to the issue, the skin itself produces the same mediators that further drive immune and inflammation responses. A wide range of skin conditions, including psoriasis, atopic eczema, acne, contact eczema, and itching, can be triggered, or worsened, by these stress responses.

Stress has also been shown to affect the barrier properties of the skin, which normally prevents loss of water from the skin cell layers. In a study of students, exam stress caused a decrease in the skins permeability barrier. This disruption of skin barrier function can lead to flaky or dry skin.

If you are experiencing a flare-up of adult acne while in isolation, you are not alone, and stress may be to blame. This is because some stress hormones stimulate sebaceous oil glands to produce more sebum, which contributes to acne.

It is true that stress can also play a role in hair loss. Stress responses can disrupt the hair growth cycle, leading to a type of hair loss called telogen effluvium. This happens when an abnormal number of hair follicles go into a resting and subsequent shedding phase. Fortunately, this kind of hair loss is considered temporary.

Taking care of your skin in stressful circumstances means keeping your skin-care simple. its a good idea to avoid potential skin irritants, such as fragrance. Moisturizers with hydrating ingredients like ceramides are helpful for dryness. For flares of chronic conditions that are not improving you may require prescription treatment.

The latest guidance from the National Department of Health urges the wearing of cloth masks in public. Masks can reduce the spread of droplets, however, prolonged wearing of masks may come with a host of unwelcome problems.

Masks can cause skin irritation from pressure and rubbing. The pressure on oil ducts as well as the build-up of sweat and make-up allows for acne breakouts. The term maskne has been recently coined for the redness and pimples that people are experiencing due to PPE.

Talking and breathing creates a trap under the mask for humidity which may potentially cause bacterial overgrowth. This can result in infections such as folliculitis, a skin condition in which hair follicles become inflamed.

More serious skin problems from masks can be seen in healthcare workers who use N95 respirator masks as these can cause more pressure. A study in Singapore reported staff had acne (59.6%), facial itch (51.4%), rash (35.8%), and pigmentation (85) from N95 mask use.

Face masks are a daily, and vital, part of our wardrobe for the foreseeable future. So, here is some advice for now:

If you are a healthcare worker then consider using a barrier protecting ointment in pressure areas. Good options include Vaseline or Eucerin Aquaphor, or a barrier cream with zinc oxide to restore the compromised skin barrier. For any eczema rash, a short duration of a topical corticosteroid treatment may be needed.

Sunscreen is not just needed outdoors.

There are different types of UV rays that affect the skin. UVB rays can cause sunburn and eventually lead to skin cancer. UVA rays penetrate deeper into the skin and degrade collagen and elastin. It is, therefore, the main cause of photoaging, whilst also contributing to skin cancer. UVA rays can penetrate through windows, so sunscreen is needed if you are seated near windows or where there is sunlight indoors.

Lockdown has most people spending a longer time on their electronic devices. Group calls, webinars, and social media keep us connected, but we are getting significantly more blue light exposure in the process.

While the detrimental effects of exposure to the suns UV radiation are well known, we have only recently started to understand the effects of visible light on the skin. Visible light, of which blue light is a component, makes up almost half of the solar spectrum. Its emitted from computer monitors, laptop and smartphone screens, as well as TVs and fluorescent bulbs.

Research is still on-going, but studies are showing that blue light can generate damaging free radicals that break down collagen, leading to premature aging. Blue light can also induce pigmentation which is longer-lasting compared to that induced by UV light.

When it comes to blue light protection, instead of reaching for any sunscreen, look for mineral blockers with iron oxide and added antioxidants. You can also use antioxidants in the form of vitamin C serums. These neutralize the damaging effects of free radicals from UV and visible light, as well as from pollution.

Covid-19 continues to disrupt our every-day lives and we are all still figuring out the changes needed to adapt to these unprecedented times. Perhaps now more than ever, we should make our health a priority, and this should extend to our skin.

1. Singh M, Pawar M, Bothra A, Choudhary N, Overzealous hand hygiene during COVID 19 pandemic causing increased incidence of hand eczema among general population, Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology (2020), doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaad.2020.04.047.

2. Garg A, Chren MM, Sands LP. Psychological stress perturbs epidermal permeability barrier homeostasis: implications for the pathogenesis of stress-associated skin disorders. Arch Dermatol. 2001 Jan;137(1):53-9 doi:10.1001/archderm.137.1.53

3. Foo CC, Goon AT, Leow YH, Goh CL. Adverse skin reactions to personal protective equipment against severe acute respiratory syndromea descriptive study in Singapore. Contact Dermatitis. 2006 Nov;55(5):291-4. Doi:

4. Arck P, Slominski A, Theoharis C, Theoharides C. Neuroimmunology of Stress: Skin Takes Center Stage.J Invest Dermatol. 2006. August ; 126(8): 16971704.

5. Mahmoud BH, Ruvolo E, Hexsel CL, Liu Y. Impact of long-wavelength UVA and visible light on melanocompetent skin. J Invest Dermatol. 2010 Aug;130(8):2092-7. doi: 10.1038/jid.2010.95

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An array of symptoms prolonged over weeks - Many patients suffering from 'long tail' form of coronavirus  |  Photo Credit: iStock Images

New Delhi: More than four months ago, when the first few cases of coronavirus infection were reported in Wuhan, China, we lived in a world very different from the one we are living in now. However, it is not just our lives that have seen a significant change. Apart from the disruption of what we knew as normal, the coronavirus pandemic and the disease itselfhas seen several changes over this period of time. As new information about the virus and its mutationcomes in every day, new developments in the field of vaccines and treatments are also made. Also, as the virus has transported itself to most parts of the world, new symptoms of the disease, now known as COVID-19 have also come in sight.

Back in January, this year, the few known symptoms of coronavirus were fever, cough, and shortness of breath. Researchers and medical experts knew that the virus affects the respiratory system, causing a 'pneumonia-like' illness. However, four months later, various studies on COVID-19 patients have found that the virus can attack almost all vital organs of the body the heart, kidneys, liver, and lungs. The virus has also been found to attack the blood vessels in the body, causing damage. A study has found that COVID-19 can lead to placenta damage among pregnant women, increasing the risk of premature birth, stillbirth, and other complications. Various studies have shown that the coronavirus infection is leading to thickening of the blood, and blood clots which may also eventually lead to strokes in patients. In fact, surprisingly, incidents of strokes in young COVID-19 patients have also been reported. Other symptoms of the infection that have been reported in the near past include foot sores, diarrhoea, muscle aches, headaches, etc. A very important development in terms of complications caused due to COVID-19 is also the mysterious inflammatory illness that is affecting children infected with the novel coronavirus, an issue both WHO and the CDC, USA are now probing into.

Apart from the list of symptoms of COVID-19 getting longer, over the last few months, experts have also analysed how and when do the symptoms actually occur in different people. While children have reported mostly mild symptoms, the elderly and people with existing conditions, especially respiratory problems have shown severe symptoms. Various people remain asymptomatic for very long, only to develop very mild symptoms of the disease, eventually. The longevity of the symptoms also varies greatly among age groups, ethnicity and other parameters, but has not been studied extensively, as yet.

Paul Garner, a professor of Infectious Diseases at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, shared his experience of being infected with COVID-19 in a blog for the British Medical Journal.He narrated his ordeal where he dealt with symptoms of COVID-19 over 7 weeks, calling it a 'roller coaster of ill-health'. Warning health professionals, employers, partners, and people with the disease, he wrote that the illness can last for weeks, and the long tail is not a post-viral fatigue syndrome, but the disease itself. Symptoms of coronavirus can be bizarre, change constantly, take an unpredictable course, but they do not go away too quickly.

According to a recent research and as reported by the Guardian, about one in every 20 COVID-19 patients experiences long-term on-off symptoms. More research may still be required to define the exact time period for long-term - which could mean two months, three months, or even longer.

Professor Tim Spector from King's College, London, who is the head of the research group that has developed the COVID-19 tracker app, has estimated that a small, but significant number of people may be suffering from the long-tail form of the virus.

Based on the data collected by his team on the tracker app, Professor Spector has found that about 200,000 people have reported symptoms that have lasted over the course of the study, which was 6 weeks. This observation could be important because currently, everyone's focus is on patients who are showing severe symptoms, but not those who show mild but prolonged signs of COVID-19.

These people may be going back to work and not performing at the top of their game, Spector says. There is a whole other side to the virus which has not had attention because of the idea that if you are not dead you are fine., the Guardian reported.Ive studied 100 diseases. Covid is the strangest one I have seen in my medical career, Spector says.

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An array of symptoms prolonged over weeks - Many patients suffering from 'long tail' form of coronavirus - Times Now

- Molecular Methods Quantified Precision and Efficiency of Nuclease-Free Gene Editingfor PKU -

- Manufacturing Enhancements Led to Improved Productivity, Quality and Scalability of Commercial Process, Confirmed in 2,000L Bioreactor -

- Data Highlight Unique Characteristics of AAVHSC Genetic Medicines Platform -

BEDFORD, Mass., May 12, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Homology Medicines, Inc. (Nasdaq: FIXX), a genetic medicines company, announced today the presentation of data at the American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy (ASGCT) 23rd Annual Meeting. Among Homologys seven presentations are data from its in vivo nuclease-free gene editing program for phenylketonuria (PKU) and in vivo gene therapy program for metachromatic leukodystrophy (MLD), both of which are in IND-enabling studies. Presentations also focus on the Companys commercial manufacturing platform, as well as data on the differentiating characteristics of Homologys family of AAVHSC vectors, particularly when compared to other AAVs, which highlight the potential of the Companys dual gene therapy and editing platform.

Homology has made substantial progress in understanding the unique properties of our AAVHSC-based technology and this enables us to move our dual genetic medicines platform forward to develop potential treatments, or cures, for patients, stated Albert Seymour, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer of Homology Medicines. We are pleased to share data here that describe the molecular methods we have developed to characterize in vivo, nuclease-free gene editing efficiency and precision at the DNA level. Additional data from our in vivo MLD gene therapy program demonstrates the impact on key biomarkers in two species, as well as the durability of effect in the murine model of disease with data out to 52 weeks. Underpinning all our programs is our internal GMP process and manufacturing capabilities, where we have now confirmed our commercial HEK293 suspension platform at the 2,000-liter scale, bringing our total internal capacity to 3,500 liters. Additionally, we are presenting data showing improved AAVHSC packaging as compared to the non-Clade F vector AAV5.

Highlights from Homologys 2020 ASGCT Presentations

The presentation, Molecular Characterization of Precise In Vivo Targeted Gene Editing in Human Cells using AAVHSC15, a New AAV Derived from Hematopoietic Stem Cells (AAVHSC), describes quantitative molecular methods to measure efficiency and precision of nuclease-free, homologous recombination-based gene editing. The studies, which used a single I.V. administration of a gene editing construct to insert the human PAH gene, which is mutated in people with phenylketonuria (PKU), in a humanized liver murine model, show:

Two posters related to Homologys internal commercial manufacturing platform will be presented.In Molecular Design and Characterization of Packaging Plasmid Sequences for Improved Production of Novel Clade F AAVHSCs, the data demonstrate:

In Development and Scalability of Transfection-Based Production and Purification of Novel Clade F Adeno-Associated Viruses Isolated from Human Hematopoietic Stem Cells (AAVHSCs), Homology describes high-quality productivity and scalability of its mammalian, suspension-based manufacturing, including:

Related to Homologys HMI-202 investigational gene therapy for MLD, the presentation, Gene Therapy for Metachromatic Leukodystrophy (MLD) That Crosses the Blood-Nerve and Blood-Brain Barriers in Mice and Non-Human Primates, details that a single I.V. administration:

In collaboration with Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), Homology also presents, In Vivo Transduction of Murine Hematopoietic Stem Cells after Intravenous Injection of AAVHSC15 and AAVHSC17, which shows:

As Homology has advanced its AAVHSC technology, it is presenting mechanistic data on the platform, including the following two presentations.In Role of Terminal Galactose in Cellular Uptake, Intracellular Trafficking, and Tissue Tropism Using Adeno-Associated Viruses Isolated from Human Stem Cells (AAVHSCs), the data show:

In AAVHSCs Transduction Does Not Significantly Elicit p53-Mediated Apoptosis or Alter Cell Cycle in Human iPSCs and Primary Cells When Compared to Non-Clade F AAV Vectors, the studies demonstrate that AAVHSCs:

For more information about the presentations, visit Homologys website at http://www.homologymedicines.com/publications.

About Homology Medicines, Inc. Homology Medicines, Inc. is a genetic medicines company dedicated to transforming the lives of patients suffering from rare genetic diseases with significant unmet medical needs by curing the underlying cause of the disease. Homologys proprietary platform is designed to utilize its human hematopoietic stem cell-derived adeno-associated virus vectors (AAVHSCs) to precisely and efficiently deliver genetic medicinesin vivoeither through a gene therapy or nuclease-free gene editing modality across a broad range of genetic disorders. Homology has a management team with a successful track record of discovering, developing and commercializing therapeutics with a particular focus on rare diseases, and intellectual property covering its suite of 15 AAVHSCs. Homology believes that its compelling preclinical data, scientific expertise, product development strategy, manufacturing capabilities and intellectual property position it as a leader in the development of genetic medicines. For more information, please visitwww.homologymedicines.com.

Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements, including without limitation statements regarding our expectations surrounding the potential, safety, efficacy, and regulatory and clinical progress of our product candidates; our beliefs regarding our manufacturing capabilities; our position as a leader in the development of genetic medicines; and our participation in upcoming presentations and conferences. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the following: the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business and operations, including our preclinical studies and clinical trials, and on general economic conditions; we have and expect to continue to incur significant losses; our need for additional funding, which may not be available; failure to identify additional product candidates and develop or commercialize marketable products; the early stage of our development efforts; potential unforeseen events during clinical trials could cause delays or other adverse consequences; risks relating to the capabilities of our manufacturing facility; risks relating to the regulatory approval process; our product candidates may cause serious adverse side effects; inability to maintain our collaborations, or the failure of these collaborations; our reliance on third parties; failure to obtain U.S. or international marketing approval; ongoing regulatory obligations; effects of significant competition; unfavorable pricing regulations, third-party reimbursement practices or healthcare reform initiatives; product liability lawsuits; failure to attract, retain and motivate qualified personnel; the possibility of system failures or security breaches; risks relating to intellectual property and significant costs as a result of operating as a public company. These and other important factors discussed under the caption Risk Factors in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended March 31, 2020 and our other filings with the SEC could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements made in this press release. Any such forward-looking statements represent managements estimates as of the date of this press release. While we may elect to update such forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we disclaim any obligation to do so, even if subsequent events cause our views to change.

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Homology Medicines Announces Presentations on its In Vivo Gene Therapy and Gene Editing Programs and Commercial Manufacturing Platform at the American...

The moment we find COVID-19 treatments that are truly effective, well see the novel coronavirus with different eyes. Yes, the virus is highly transmissible and can lead to severe illness and death. But effective drugs that can block its ability to infect cells and meds that can reduce respiratory distress and inflammation will turn the new disease into an infection that well learn to live with.

Several experts warned this week that the novel coronavirus is here to stay, and we may never get rid of it even when the vaccines arrive. But an increasing number of reports detail various therapies that can be used to improve the odds of recovery. Some of them rely on drugs that were developed to treat other conditions. Others use stem cells. And then there are plasma transfusions from patients who survived COVID-19.

Researchers are also working on a new type of drug thats related to plasma therapy, antibody-based meds that can offer the same kind of protection as a plasma transfusion. Now, we have learned that one of the antibodies capable of blocking the SARS-CoV-2 virus from binding to cells has proven to be 100% effective in labs.

The novel coronavirus binds to human cells via a spike protein that can link up to ACE2 receptors. Then the virus enters the cell where it wreaks havoc. The cell deciphers the viruss genetic information to create more and more copies of the virus. The cell dies in the process, and the new replicas are released into the body where they are free to infect other cells and continue to replicate.

The immune system detects pathogens and can fight them very efficiently. Many people will get COVID-19 and never know it because theyll never even present any symptoms. That means the immune system cleared the virus before it could cause complications, and the resulting antibodies will be able to deal with the illness in the future, providing immunity against COVID-19 for an unknown period of time. Thats why plasma treatments work. Doctors use the antibodies from donors to treat other patients with weaker immune systems. But demand for plasma far exceeds supply, and thats why monoclonal antibody drugs would work better.

Sorrento is one of several companies working on this breakthrough type of drug. The pharmaceutical company has found what it describes as a potent anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody that can completely prevent the virus from linking to ACE2 cells in lab tests. The antibody is called STI-1499, and Sorrento says its been able to deliver 100% inhibition of the virus in healthy cells after four days of incubation.

Sorrento has screened billions of antibodies in its proprietary G-MAB fully human antibody library and identified hundreds of candidates that can bind to the S1 subunit of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. A dozen of them have been able to block the interaction between S1 and ACE2.

STI-1499 stood out for its ability to completely block SARS-CoV-2 infection of healthy cells in the experiments. The company says that the virus was neutralized even in low antibody doses. This antibody will likely be the first antibody to be used in the COVI-SHIELD antibody cocktail that will include a combination of antibodies meant to deal with potential mutations of the coronavirus. STI-1499 is also expected to be used as a standalone therapy in a COVI-GUARD drug, assuming it receives regulatory approval.

Sorrento will request priority evaluation and accelerated review. Clinical trials will have to prove the antibody works just as well in patients as it does in lab conditions.

Assuming STI-1499 is effective and safe, Sorrento says itll be able to produce up to 200,000 doses per month, and the company plans to make 1 million of them while its waiting for FDA approval. Manufacturing capacity could be increased through partnerships to meet demand. If all goes well, STI-1499 might be among the first brand new drugs developed specifically to treat COVID-19.

Doctors analyzing lung CT scan. Image Source: STEPHANIE LECOCQ/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Chris Smith started writing about gadgets as a hobby, and before he knew it he was sharing his views on tech stuff with readers around the world. Whenever he's not writing about gadgets he miserably fails to stay away from them, although he desperately tries. But that's not necessarily a bad thing.

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The first breakthrough coronavirus antibody drug might finally be here - BGR

Trials and triumphs of the COVID-19 combat Image Credit: Gulf News

Dubai: The first case of coronavirus in the UAE was announced on January 29, 2020. Thats around three-and-a-half months ago. Time flies, you would ordinarily be inclined to think. But these are extraordinary times.

Ever since the beastly virus spread its ugly tentacles, everything weve been thinking, saying or doing has revolved around COVID-19. But beyond the general fatigue that were all beginning to feel, there is no denying that life as we know it why, even death has changed forever.

Gasping patients gone without a goodbye; family members watching funerals of loved ones on Facebook; infected couples having to leave young children in the care of others; tables turning on doctors and nurses COVIDs trying tales are heart-wrenching.

But the unimaginable trauma notwithstanding, there are those who are counting their blessings too, whether its a new mum beating the virus with her just-born; a patient coming off the ventilator after 20 days; or the UAEs health care community clocking record testing rates and its researchers achieving a treatment breakthrough.

A look at the trials, tribulations and triumphs of UAE residents since the COVID-19 combat began:

The ultimate trial

Its bad enough to lose a loved one, but not being able to bid goodbye takes away even the sense of closure.

THE WAY IT IS

Global protocols on heath safety, hygiene and social distancing stipulate that coronavirus patients must get treated in isolation, and even depart alone.

Global protocols on heath safety, hygiene and social distancing stipulate that coronavirus patients must get treated in isolation, and even depart alone, so one has no choice but to let go.

When Bangladeshi expat Tofail Alam, 51, passed away in Abu Dhabi last week, his wife Nausheen told Gulf News her husband went to see a doctor at a hospital in March because he had a bad cold.

Tofail Alam

But he was admitted the same day and transferred to a public hospital for treatment. We lost the pillar of our family to the coronavirus pandemic. It is so devastating that I simply have no words.

A friend who tried to contact Alam in hospital said, The calls never went through. So all I could do was ask the nurses about his condition. Somewhere along the line, he learnt that the father of two was no more.

Funeral on Facebook

Even in non-coronavirus cases, flight suspensions in recent times have meant that some residents havent been able to attend funerals of loved ones in other countries.

Among them: A Keralite family in the UAE who watched the funeral of their cancer-stricken son Jeuel G. Jomay, a Grade 10 student at a Sharjah school, on Facebook on April 16. They could not accompany his body when it was flown to native Kerala under lockdown.

Jeuels funeral ceremony back home began at 4am in the UAE. His cousin told Gulf News her family and Jeuels family watched the five-hour ceremony on Facebook while the St Marys Church in Sharjah provided a link to the YouTube livestreaming on its website for members here to watch the service.

None of the flights was getting sanctioned soon. Jeuels father wanted to fly with him. But that was not possible, the cousin told Gulf News at the time.

Similarly, on April 17, Dubai-based Pakistani expat Ghulam Mustafa Awan watched the funeral of his father Malik Nazir Ahmad on video. Ahmad had died of a heart and lung condition.

I tried everything, but I couldnt go and see the face of my father one last time, said Awan.

- Ghulam Mustafa Awan

In both cases, COVID-19-related restrictions prevented their travel.

Double whammy

Telling a young COVID-19 mother of three that her husband, also a coronavirus patient, has passed on can by no means be easy.

But that is precisely what Dr Samara Khatib, Consultant InternalMedicine and team lead at the COVID-19 ward at Mediclinic Parkview Hospital in Dubai, was tasked to do recently.

We had to take the help of mental health professionals to break the tragic news to the patient, who is in her 30s, said the American doctor of Syrian origin. It shook us as healthcare workers.

- Dr Samara Khatib

Coronavirus has struck other couples too in the UAE, which has meant they have had to leave their children in the care of others.

Dubai-based Suman Manning, who tested positive along with her triathlete husband Shane Manning, said her sister took care of her triplets during the ordeal. Although she showed no symptoms, she had to isolate herself and tell her kids and sister to keep away from her, while her husband was recovering in hospital.

It was a particularly trying time as the kids had just started the first week of remote learning and needed some kind of support, she told Gulf News earlier.

Were not invincible

Working on the frontlines in the face of an invisible and yet-to-be-conquered virus, doctors and nurses are probably at the highest risk of contracting COVID-19. Ask Reem Yousef, who works as an emergency nurse manager at the Emirates Specialty Hospital in Dubai.

- Reem Yousef

The Lebanese mum, who is still breastfeeding her nine-month-old baby, told Gulf News: It is really hard. I am literally wearing my heart on my sleeve for my little one, Relle. Yes, there is fear of contracting COVID-19 as we work 12-15 hours a day for five days. We try our best to manage. When I go back home, I take utmost care to completely sterilise myself before I hold my baby in my arms again.

Dr Khatib said she tests herself for the virus at least once a month. I am also very particular about hygiene. Its almost as if I suffer from obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). There is no respite on the front line and when we see our own colleagues falling prey to the virus, we feel emotionally distraught. It makes us realise we are not invincible. But we have a responsibility to stay safe and healthy as we can pass on the virus to other patients or our families back home.

Despite the best efforts though, the tables do get turned sometimes. And when that happens, the resolve to combat coronavirus only gets stronger.

As a doctor duo at Zulekha Hospital Dubai, Dr Nishath Ahmed Liyakat and Dr Unni Nair, who have recovered from COVID-19 testify, there was no way the virus would have held them back from doing their duty once they had received the treatment and completed their quarantine.

Victor and the virus

Yes, the dismal health crisis surrounding us does have its share of good news. As the official tracker posts new cases every day, there are considerable recoveries too, with each corona warrior, irrespective of whether they are a mild or critical case, emerging as an emphatic victor against the virus.

Speak to patients who have turned the blind corner, and their words inspire you. While some will tell you coronavirus is not a death sentence, others will say they do not wish their hellish experience even on their worst enemies.

- Wilfredo

Either way, there is no bitterness and no taking away from the huge sense of relief and gratitude on the road to recovery.

I hardly had any symptoms and it never felt like a death sentence. But now that I have completed my quarantine, I thank God its over, said one young Indian woman who did not want to be named.

Wilfredo, a Filipino expat, who came out of the ventilator after 20 days at Al Zahra Hospital, Sharjah, said, I prayed hard to God and placed my trust in the medical team. Now, Im getting better every day and can only remember those weeks on the ventilator like it was yesterday.

In Abu Dhabi, Raneen Abu Zaher, a Palestinian homemaker, and her newborn son, Jad, who also beat coronavirus, inspire hope.

The duo were diagnosed with the infection when Jad was just a day old. But two weeks later, when they got the all-clear, the mother of three told Gulf News, I tried to hold on to my faith, and prayed for my entire family.

UAE will not let you down

If theres one thing any patient in the UAE will vouch for, its the fact that they could not have been in better hands. Whether it is Liu Yujia, a 73-year-old visitor from Wuhan, China, who was the first patient to have fully recovered in the UAE or Aubrey Escano, 27, a Filipina from Abu Dhabi who is currently under quarantine, there has been only praise and gratefulness for the UAE for the manner in which coronavirus cases are handled.

Escano in her message said, I would like to tell COVID-19 patients not to lose hope, not to worry and continue the fight because the UAE will not let them down.

The exemplary patient care apart, the UAE has also hit international headlines for carrying out a record number of laboratory tests for coronavirus. According to the Ministry of Health and Prevention, the UAE leads global coronavirus testing with 1.5 million tests conducted since the beginning of the outbreak. The UAE daily testing average equals a four-month average of COVID-19 testing in other countries.

- Aubrey Escano

Addressing a UAE Government remote meeting today, Minister of Health and Prevention Abdul Rahman Bin Mohammed Al Owais said, The UAEs response to the COVID-19 pandemic is unique and different from other countries. The UAE has shown exceptional management of the crisis, whilst leveraging other countries experiences. However, the level of response was different, given the demographic composition in the country, which is home to more than 200 nationalities, and its distinct resources, readiness and experiences in many sectors.

On May 1, doctors and researchers at the Abu Dhabi Stem Cell Centre also achieved a major breakthrough with a promising stem cell treatment for COVID-19 patients.

The Ministry of Economy even granted a patent for the development of the innovative method, which was administered to 73 COVID-19 patients, all of whom were cured of the virus using stem cells.

Researchers, who have completed the initial phase of clinical trials, are now working on demonstrating the efficacy of the treatment.

Now that is no mean achievement, by any measure.

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Coronavirus: The trials and triumphs of UAE residents - Gulf News

Physician burnout and suicide were epidemics before the current pandemic.

Nationwide, our doctors are jumping from rooftops, overdosing in call rooms and hanging themselves in hospital chapels. Its medicines dirty secret.

This unnerving account by Pamela Wible, MD during her 2015 TEDMED talk sent chills down my spine. Dr. Wible described the death of one physician by bullying, hazing and sleep deprivation a torture technique adding that each year, more than one million Americans lose their doctor due to suicide. Her cell phone has become an unofficial suicide hotline. The founder of Ideal Medical Care, Dr. Wible is also featured in the groundbreaking documentary, Do No Harm, which has been virtually screened every Sunday in May at 8pm EST. Suicide is an occupational hazard of our profession.

Physician burnout was an epidemic BEFORE the Covid-19 pandemic. According to a 2018 study, 400 physicians die by suicide each year double that of the general population. In addition, doctors have the highest suicide rate of any profession in the U.S including combat veterans. From an economic standpoint, studies estimate that physician burnout is costing the health care system approximately $4.6 billion per year. So, how do we stop this dreadful reality? Read on (HINT: its NOT through resilience and wellness trainings).

Many doctors view medicine as a calling, entering the field with immense altruism paired with a passion for science and healing the sick. The erosion of these intrinsic motivators leads to burnout which psychologist Christina Maslach defines as a syndrome of emotional and physical exhaustion, depersonalization and diminished personal accomplishment.

The stress of long hours, no sleep, poor eating, inadequate protection, the fear of contaminating loved ones, the fear of dying and seeing patients die no matter what you do, the disrespect by hospital administrators and the fear of being fired, all remain the reality for those who are in the thick of things, denounced Lynette Charity, MD, an anesthesiologist who speaks nationwide about physician burnout.

Studies also show that burnout is associated with negative clinical outcomes: decreased quality of patient care; increased number of medical errors; and higher rates of addiction, depression and suicide among physicians.

Dr. Lynette Charity, an anesthesiologist and physician advocate, speaks nationwide about burnout ... [+] among doctors.

Burnout has nothing to do with weakness, laziness or incompetence. The prevailing attitude, report Pamela Hartzband, MD and Jerome Groopman, MD in a recent NEJM article, was that burnout is a physician problem and those who cant adapt need to get with the program or leave. Turns out that structural and systemic issues are heavy culprits. Despite lip service to patient-centered care, many physicians believe the current healthcare system is propelled by money and metrics, according to Hartzband and Groopman. Doctors are well-meaning and willing to work long hours, and hospital executives know this and exploit it, as Danielle Ofri, MD aptly asserts in The Business of Health Care Depends on Exploiting Doctors and Nurses.

Medical workers in protective clothing move the body of a deceased patient to a refrigerated ... [+] overflow morgue outside the Wyckoff Heights Medical Center in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, the epicenter of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The medical field is at a crisis. This pandemic has exposed many cracks in the U.S. healthcare system. From inadequate testing and personal protective equipment (PPE) to overcrowded emergency departments, frontline health staff are putting their lives at risk to care for highly infectious patients debilitated by Covid-19. And yet medical professionals are responding to this crisis with unprecedented selflessness, resilience and compassion.

For many physicians, Covid-19 may be the proverbial straw that breaks the camels back as they isolate themselves physically from their family and friends while encountering a surge of sickness and death, said Nisha Mehta, MD, radiologist, physician advocate and keynote speaker.

Here are a few real-world examples. About a month into the pandemic, at the end of a difficult shift, an infectious disease physician with 20 years of experience, texted me the following: Just admitted a 28yo pregnant woman in 2nd trimester w COVID. About to get intubated. I hate these days. Two weeks later, this same physician texted: I just started sobbing. I mean, bawling. But in the bathroom so my 6yo wouldnt see.

A doctor checks on a Covid-19-infected patient connected to a ventilator.

Some hospitals have created the position, Chief Wellness Officer. Others have offered resilience and meditation workshops, social hours and tips for maximizing productivity. But, according to Hartzman and Groopman, none of these solutions address the underlying problem: a profound lack of alignment between caregivers values and the reconfigured health care system. Here are some strategies that may actually curtail the wave of physician burnout and suicide:

1. Reduce administrative burden This includes prior authorizations, disability paperwork and the electronic medical record (EMR) which has simply become a burdensome billing tool. Let the bean counters and the C-Suite collect the data and enter it into the EMRs, suggested Dr. Charity, adding: Provide scribes for the doctors.

2. Flexibility over schedules A 2017 study showed that physician input in scheduling was one of the few systems solutions that reduced burnout as it allowed for individual practice styles and patient interactions.

3. Mental health support Because burnout can lead to depression, anxiety, PTSD and secondary trauma, appropriate and timely mental health treatment is critical and can include counseling and medications. In NY state, text NYFRONTLINE to 741741 to access 24/7 emotional support services.

Access to timely mental health support is critical in reducing burnout.

4. Reduce gender bias The National Academy of Medicine reported that burnout may be 20-60% higher among female vs male physicians. Over 70% of women doctors experienced gender discrimination; they are consistently paid less than their male counterparts, less likely to be referred by their professional titles and less likely to be promoted. Female physicians also spend 8.5 additional hours per week on childcare and other domestic duties, while men reported spending an extra 40 minutes on domestic work.

6. Diversify Doctor Voices We need more women and women of color to be in decision-making positions. Minority voices are not being heard, and they are being disproportionately harmed.

7. Speak Out - If youre a physician whos going through a hard time, I promise you youre not alone. Please talk to somebody. And if you see a colleague suffering, please get her/him help. You may just be saving a life. Call National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

In addition to the above recommendations, a group of New York doctors (myself included) created a petition to advocate for physician protection and compensation which is being sent to legislators. It can be signed by non-healthcare workers.

Dr. Nisha Mehta, a physician advocate: "So many physicians contact me with fears, frustrations and ... [+] sadness as they experience unprecedented challenges emotionally, physically and financially."

*****

Medicine is a calling for many. But is it really worth dying for? I dont think so. Doctors are people, too. And thats not being trite. In order to stem the tide of physician burnout and suicide, we all have a role to play. If we want our doctors to be whole and full of joy, we must reaffirm their humanity and their value in society. Medical culture and health care systems must change but this will only happen when theyre forced to change. Physicians must first acknowledge and heal their own pain and suffering - for their sake and that of their patients and communities.

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Doctor, Heal Thyself: Physician Burnout In The Wake Of Covid-19 - Forbes

THE Chinese Medicine Task Force of Malaysia (Covid-19) and Beijing Tong Ren Tang Global Expert Group for Covid-19 Prevention and Treatment have come up with a guideline to fight the pandemic.

The Malaysia Covid-19 Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Practice Guideline which integrates Chinese medicine practitioners practical experience in using TCM in the prevention and treatment of suspected and confirmed cases can be downloaded from http://sg.mikecrm.com/xCqqC4w.

Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) Department of Chinese Medicine head Assoc Prof Dr Te Kian Keong who set up the task force on March 22 said the guideline which was released on May 2, was developed based on the TCM knowledge of the clinical manifestations and disease progression of Covid-19.

It aims to serve as a reference for the TCM researchers who are participating in the anti-epidemic research, Dr Te, who is also the Centre for Research in TCM chairperson said.

He added that the guideline is possibly the first TCM prevention and treatment plan for Covid-19 released outside of China.

The task force and expert group completed this guideline with assistance from Dr Li Jun who headed the Anti-Covid-19 Medical Consultant Expert Team from China to Malaysia, and Wuhan Leishenshan Hospital deputy dean Prof Shang Dong.

On April 19, the task force in collaboration with the Institute of Integrative Medicine of Dalian Medical University, organised the China-Malaysia International Conference on Covid-19: Prevention and Treatment of Integrative Medicine.

Despite the travel ban and social distancing, knowledge exchange continued for 50 TCM experts from China and Malaysia who were engaged in a fruitful three-hour video conference to share Covid-19 prevention experiences in different countries and regions.

During the virtual session, the academics also discussed the role of TCM in aiding the treatment of the disease.

Prof Shang gave a detailed explanation on the characteristics, clinical manifestations and pathogenesis of a Covid-19 infection while touching on the range of treatment for mild to severe cases, presented research findings, and discussed the integration of TCM and western medicine in treating patients.

Beijing University of Chinese Medicine Malaysia Alumni Association president Dr Teo Chiah Shean and Dr Te explained the current situation of the pandemic and western medicine treatment for Covid-19, as well as the role and progress made by the Chinese Medicine Task Force of Malaysia (Covid-19) in the fight against the virus.

Methods to further strengthen cooperation were also discussed during the meeting.

The meeting was chaired by the Institute of Integrative Medicine Deputy Dean Prof Zhang Guixin and Education Association between Malaysia and China President Jiang Zhongqi.

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TCM guideline on Covid-19 ready - The Star Online

Advance Market Analyticsreleased the research report ofGlobal Medical WellnessMarket, offers a detailed overview of the factors influencing the global business scope.Global Medical Wellness Market research report shows the latest market insights with upcoming trends and breakdown of the products and services.The report provides key statistics on the market status, size, share, growth factors of the Global Medical Wellness.This Report covers the emerging players data, including: competitive situation, sales, revenue and global market share of top manufacturers are WTS International (United States), The Body Holiday (Saint Lucia), Mindbody (United States), Massage Envy (United States), ClearCost Health (United States), Enrich Hair & Skin (India), Golds Gym International (United States), World Gym (United States), VLCC Wellness Center (India) and Kaya Skin Clinic (India)..

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The changing healthcare environment requires an integrative approach to health and medical care. Growing medical cost threaten the economic vitality of the healthcare option. Medical wellness here plays a vital role as it is ideal for people with a risk factor or chronic diseases for those whose lifestyle may have significant factor influencing development and course of diseases. Medical wellness is an approach to delivering healthcare which states the optimal well-being.

Market Drivers

Market Trend

Restraints

Opportunities

Challenges

The Global Medical Wellnessis segmented by following Product Types: Type (Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Beauty Care and Anti-Aging, Preventative & Personalized Medicine and Public Health, Healthy Eating, Nutrition & Weight Loss, Rejuvenation, Other), Distribution Channel (Franchise, Company Owned Outlets)

Region Included are: North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Oceania, South America, Middle East & Africa

Country Level Break-Up: United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, South Africa, Nigeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Germany, United Kingdom (UK), the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Austria, Turkey, Russia, France, Poland, Israel, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, China, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore, India, Australia and New Zealand etc.

Enquire for customization in Report @:https://www.advancemarketanalytics.com/enquiry-before-buy/63223-global-medical-wellness-market

Strategic Points Covered in Table of Content of Global Medical Wellness Market:

Chapter 1: Introduction, market driving force product Objective of Study and Research Scope the Global Medical Wellness market

Chapter 2: Exclusive Summary the basic information of the Global Medical Wellness Market.

Chapter 3: Displayingthe Market Dynamics- Drivers, Trends and Challenges of the Global Medical Wellness

Chapter 4: Presenting the Global Medical Wellness Market Factor Analysis Porters Five Forces, Supply/Value Chain, PESTEL analysis, Market Entropy, Patent/Trademark Analysis.

Chapter 5: Displaying the by Type, End User and Region 2013-2018

Chapter 6: Evaluating the leading manufacturers of the Global Medical Wellness market which consists of its Competitive Landscape, Peer Group Analysis, BCG Matrix & Company Profile

Chapter 7: To evaluate the market by segments, by countries and by manufacturers with revenue share and sales by key countries in these various regions.

Chapter 8 & 9: Displaying the Appendix, Methodology and Data Source

Finally, Global Medical Wellness Market is a valuable source of guidance for individuals and companies.

Data Sources & Methodology

The primary sources involves the industry experts from the Global Medical Wellness Market including the management organizations, processing organizations, analytics service providers of the industrys value chain. All primary sources were interviewed to gather and authenticate qualitative & quantitative information and determine the future prospects.

In the extensive primary research process undertaken for this study, the primary sources Postal Surveys, telephone, Online & Face-to-Face Survey were considered to obtain and verify both qualitative and quantitative aspects of this research study. When it comes to secondary sources Companys Annual reports, press Releases, Websites, Investor Presentation, Conference Call transcripts, Webinar, Journals, Regulators, National Customs and Industry Associations were given primary weight-age.

Get More Information: https://www.advancemarketanalytics.com/reports/63223-global-medical-wellness-market

Thanks for reading this article; you can also get individual chapter wise section or region wise report version like North America, Europe or Asia.

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Medical Wellness Market to Witness Huge Growth by 2025 | WTS International, The Body Holiday, Mindbody - News Distinct