StemCell Therapy

PHILADELPHIA An individual is suing The United States of America c/o U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, alleging that the department denied his claim for damages stemming from what he claims was negligent care for an eye condition.

Theodore Miller filed a complaint on June 1 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania alleging that the government agency failed to provide proper medical attention to the plaintiff.

According to the complaint, the plaintiff alleges that he became completely blind in his right eye because of untimely treatment at the Philadelphia VA Medical Center during 2015. The plaintiff holds the defendant responsible because it allegedly failed to properly diagnose and treat the plaintiff's retinal condition, which led to complete blindness in one eye; in April, the department also denied the plaintiff's claims for damages stemming from the alleged negligence.

The plaintiff requests a trial by jury and seeks judgment against the defendant in the amount of $10,000,000, and all other damages. He is represented by Joseph Chaiken of Joseph Chaiken & Associates P.C. in Philadelphia.

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania case number 2:17-cv-02467-MAK

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Man says Philadelphia VA failed to prevent blindness in one eye - The Pennsylvania Record

June should be national cancer month.

Each year around this time, oncology groups and Wall Street brokerages hold a rash of conferences where researchers reveal the latest, greatest potential cancer cures.

This year has been no exception. Above all, we learned about remarkable advances in two exciting cancer therapies and three great companies that will benefit.

Heres more detail. (Ive kept the technical language to a minimum.)

Tumors are smart. They know how to trick the immune system into missing them. But scientists are wising up to their tricks. In one evasive strategy, tumors release an enzyme that renders them invisible. If you block the enzyme, your immune system can find tumors and destroy them with the help from cancer drugs. This is the key to an early-stage cancer weapon you should invest in, known as IDO inhibitors.

IDO stands for Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase, an enzyme released by tumors to blind the bodys immune system. IDO is a strange drug target, because IDO inhibition by itself has no noticeable anti-cancer effect, says Tanguy Seiwert, a cancer-therapy researcher and medical doctor who teaches at the University of Chicago. Suppressing IDO, however, makes tumors vulnerable.

The best pure play in IDO inhibitors is a company whose shares I own, and have suggested since December 2011 in my stock newsletter, Brush Up on Stocks. Were up 750% in this company since 2011 ($14 to $120). But I think this stock is still a hold because there are bigger gains ahead.

Incyte Corp. INCY, +3.58% just released excellent data on its IDO inhibitor, called epacadostat, at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) conference. In combination with cancer therapies from Merck & Co. MRK, +1.13% and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. BMY, +1.40% it showed excellent results against several kinds of cancer.

It looks really good. I think this was a coming-out party for IDO inhibitors, says Seiwert. Besides effectiveness, one of the main positives is that epacadostat is safe. This means it can be readily used to assist many other cancer drugs. You can add it to a ton of things because the cost is low, in terms of toxicity.

Incyte is an ideal biotech company for investors because it is self-funding. It has a very profitable drug called Jakafi, for a rare blood disorder, which supports research on new drugs like the IDO inhibitor. So investors dodge dilutive financings.

So why hasnt Incytes stock shot up? Investors have three main worries. But they look like false fears.

One bit of fake news circulating is that Incyte showed success, in part, only because it omitted patients from some results, which drove up the percentage of success stories. But this is a dubious critique for two reasons. Even if you included the three patients left out, it would only lower the success rate by a few percentage points, notes J.P. Morgan analyst Cory Kasimov. Second, Incyte offered several separate data sets showing success in many types of cancer, but the omission only affected one subgroup, says Seiwert. I think this was way overblown.

The next fear: Competitor NewLink Genetics Corp. NLNK, +3.27% recently announced Roche AG RHHBY, +0.21% handed back development rights to its IDO, following lousy results in a Roche study. Some investors take this as a sign that IDO is malarkey. But William Blair analyst Katherine Xu thinks this is bullish for Incyte, since it signals a competitor may be gone. NewLinks IDO may have fared poorly because it works differently than Incytes IDO, or because Roche used an extremely sick patient population. Neither scenario reflects poorly on Incyte.

The third knock on Incyte is the one to watch. While Seiwert is impressed with Incytes IDO results, he points out the Phase II results are early-stage, and longer-term studies are needed to learn more about patient survival. Those studies are in the works. Incyte has nine Phase III studies planned with Merck and Bristol-Myers Squibb, says Xu. The outcomes here are key, since about $50 worth of the current $120 Incyte stock price is linked to IDO.

In another key advance in cancer therapy in the past two years, doctors have learned how to extract a patients blood and genetically tweak white blood cells so they override evasive tactics used by tumors.

Then the cells are reproduced in a lab to expand the supply, and put back in the patients body so they can move in for the kill. Hopefully, the cells then continue to proliferate and thrive and stay on hand to fight any more cancer that comes along.

Known as chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy (CAR-T), this approach has produced remarkable results against blood cancers in patients who otherwise had almost no hope of survival. CAR-T works by unblocking cancer cell receptors normally sought out by the immune system.

This is one of the most exciting therapies in immunotherapy, said Jae Park, a Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center cancer researcher and medical doctor, at the Jefferies 2017 Global Healthcare Conference in early June.

Probably the best pure play here is Kite Pharma Inc. KITE, +1.64% At the Jefferies conference, Kite CEO Arie Belldegrun showed images of a patients body riddled with tumors, which disappeared about a month after treatment began. The patient showed no sign of the disease a year later.

Kite has a product coming on the market by the end of this year, and probably many more on the way, says Brad Loncar, the cancer research expert behind the Loncar Cancer Immunotherapy CNCR, +2.93% exchange traded fund. This is pretty good progress for a therapy that was considered science fiction two years ago.

I suggested Kite in my stock letter at around $71 on May 17, and I think its still a hold even though it has already risen to $87, because this promises to be a blockbuster therapy. At the time, insiders were big buyers as the stock sold off on news of the death of a patient in one of its studies.

That unfortunate death highlights one of the key risks here. CAR-T patients have died because the therapy can cause brain swelling. Doctors are getting better at staving off adverse side effects, says Park. But they still dont fully understand what causes them, which should raise a yellow flag for investors.

Kite also faces competition from other companies developing CAR-T, including power players like Novartis AG NVS, +0.75% Pfizer Inc. PFE, +0.76% Johnson & Johnson JNJ, -0.21% and GlaxoSmithKline PLC GSK, -0.09% as well as Juno Therapeutics Inc. JUNO, +3.91% Cellectis SA CLLS, +0.00% Adaptimmune Therapeutics PLC ADAP, -0.44% and two privately held companies called Poseida Therapeutics and Nanjing Legend Biotech.

Any of these efforts may pan out nicely, but my pick as a third CAR-T play is bluebird bio BLUE, +3.59% which is partnering with Celgene Corp. CELG, +2.29% Bluebird just announced really impressive results for its CAR-T candidate called bb2121. In early studies, just released at ASCO, this therapy produced an overall response rate of 90% to 100% among hospice-type patients whose cancer was so bad that seven different attempts to cure them, on average, had failed.

To generate efficacy data on this level with an overall very tolerable safety profile is highly impressive, says Kasimov, at J.P. Morgan. With more key updates to come in 2017, we would continue to add to positions in bluebird bio.

At the time of publication, Michael Brush held INCY. Brush has suggested INCY and KITE in his stock newsletter Brush Up on Stocks. Brush is a Manhattan-based financial writer who has covered business for the New York Times and The Economist group, and he attended Columbia Business School in the Knight-Bagehot program.

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Opinion: Three must-own cancer stocks for your biotechnology portfolio - MarketWatch

Sifelani Tsiko recently in Lilongwe, Malawi

An industrial development strategy could be built on the back of Africas agricultural sector underpinned by the adoption of new and emerging technologies such as biotechnology to support improved yields, value addition and services that feed into the whole agro-processing value chain, a top Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) official says.

Getachew Belay, a senior biotechnology policy advisor told Zimpapers Syndication recently on the sidelines of a communication training workshop for journalists on biotechnology and biosafety, that the adoption of genetically modified cotton developed using a bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) which naturally produces a chemical harmful only to a small fraction of insects such as the bollworm, could increase yields and enhance competitiveness.

He says cotton farmers in Africa suffer huge losses due to pest problems.

The most destructive of pests is the African bollworm (Helicoverpa armigera), which can cause severe losses of up to 100 percent like we saw on some cotton fields in Salima here in Malawi, the Comesa biotech policy advisor says.

In unprotected fields pest damage can be very severe and when you look at Bt cotton crop on trial you can see hope that its possible for African farmers to increase their yields and competitiveness of their crop on the market.

Using Bt cotton developed using bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis, which naturally produces a chemical harmful only to a small fraction of insects such as the bollworm, experts say reduction in pest infestations can increase yields and improve the livelihoods of cotton growers.

The Bt toxin is inserted into cotton, causing cotton, called Bt cotton, to produce this natural insecticide in its tissues.

Biotechnology experts argue that cotton farmers in Zimbabwe, Malawi and most other African countries, can effectively reduce input costs and control damage from bollworms and other insects that frequently damage cotton by adopting Bt cotton.

For several decades, has lagged behind in terms of the industrial dynamism required to boost farmer earnings, employment, economic growth and competitiveness on the global market.

But in recent years, there is a growing realisation of the importance of industrialisation.

In 2016, the UNs Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) published a major report on industrialization in Africa where it asserts that structural transformation in Africas economies remains the highest priority and industrialization is the top strategy for achieving it in practice.

And, Belay says, biotechnology is one of the major tools for achieving industrialisation.

Im convinced that biotechnology has many opportunities to drive Africas industrialisation, he says.

We have Bt cotton, Bt maize and soya and biotechnology can enhance the competitiveness of our crops and agricultural products especially when it comes to value addition and beneficiation as it was stipulated in our African industrialisation agenda.

Already we are seeing the benefits of adopting biotech crops in South Africa. Livestock feed sectors in Zambia and even Zimbabwe cannot compete with SAs GM stock feed which is produced cheaply. We need to adopt this new technology to cut costs.

Europe relies heavily on GM soya for its livestock feed industry and this has enhanced its competitiveness.

Africa has a low uptake of biotech food crops due to lack of awareness and stiff resistance, scientists say.

International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA) AfriCenter director Margaret Karembu told journalists at the workshop that adoption of agricultural biotechnology has lagged behind compared to the rapid rates seen in the medical and health sectors.

Where are we as Africans? This is the question, we need to think seriously about the good work (on agricultural biotechnology) going on in our labs, she said. What is our place in the global biotechnology space? We need reclaim it and improve the livelihoods of our farmers across the continent.

Karembu said lack of awareness and a constrained regulatory environment had also slowed down the uptake of agricultural biotechnology.

Lack of awareness of the benefits and the regulatory framework has affected the tide towards the adoption of biotechnology. The victim mentality has been largely to blame for this.

We think of ourselves as victims of the technology. The fact is that our public institutions and universities have been doing research on biotech crops for years and this has not moved to the commercialization stage, she says. She says Africa needs to diffuse myths and misconceptions around GMO crops.

The media has a big role to play in clearing some of the misconceptions about biotechnology and GMOs, the ISAAA director says.

When media demonises the science, it becomes difficult to correct the mistakes. There is a lot of unfamiliarity with the technology and having fixed mind sets will not help our struggling farmers.

The farmers you saw in Salima are poor and they are struggling. Why should we block them from accessing the Bt cotton varieties that can significantly boost their yields and income? Farming should not be for leisure, its a business and it should be there to improve the quality of livelihoods of the farmers.

Biotechnology is one of the tools we can use to first of all improve crop yields and secondly to support Africas industrialisation goals for value addition and beneficiation.

Karembu urged the media to encourage dialogue and to correct misinformation.

The information we generate should be guided by credible scientific evidence and not unverified Google information, she says. If you have a headache people just Google and Google has become the answer. The world is polluted by a lot of unsubstantiated facts. We need to change the narrative and challenge the myth that Africa enjoys being poor the romanticisation of poverty.

Stringent and expensive regulatory process in Africa has slowed down uptake of biotechnology crops.

Biotech experts say the regulatory process is burdensome and makes everything unpredictable while in some African countries there is fear of change and challenging of the status quo when it comes to biotechnology.

According to ISAAA, the production of biotech crops increased 110-fold from 1996 with countries now growing the crops on 2,1 billion hectares worldwide.

The global value of the biotech seed market alone was US$15,8 billion in 2016. A total of 26 countries, 19 developing and 7 industrial grew biotech crops.

By 2016, at least four countries in Africa had in the past placed a GM crop on the market. These included Egypt, South Africa, Burkina Faso and Sudan.

But due to some temporary setback in Burkina Faso and Egypt, only South Africa and Sudan planted biotech crops on 2,8 million hectares

South Africa is one of the top 10 countries planting more than one million hectares in 2016 and continued to lead the adoption of biotech crops on the African continent.

Kenya, Malawi and Nigeria have transitioned from research to granting environmental release approvals while six others Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Swaziland and Uganda made significant progress towards completion of multi-location trials in readiness for considering commercial approval, ISAAA reported.

But the road to the adoption of Bt cotton technologies in Africa still faces stiff resistance.

Supporters of GM crops have to grapple with vocal anti-GMO activists, limited capacity to deal with the processing of GM research applications, bureaucratic delays in approving field trials, mistrust and resistance from key decision makers in Government and limited public awareness of the issues surrounding research and development of GM crops.

In addition, they have to contend with issues related to disease resistance, bottlenecks encountered when co-ordinating with other line ministries, trade-related restrictions, biosafety regulation and the overwhelming influence of multinational companies, Governments and their sidekicks NGOs. And, despite the threats, biotechnology experts say benefits from the biotech agro-linked industrial development outweigh the threats.

SADC drew up its Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap which seeks to speed up industrialisation by strengthening the comparative and competitive advantages of the economies of the region.

The strategy which covers the period 2015 2063 is anchored on three pillars industrialisation, competitiveness and regional industrialisation.

The whole industrialisation agenda aims to help SADC member states to achieve high levels of economic growth, competitiveness, incomes and employment.

To access the funds, SADC countries have set up committees made up of government and private sector players to identify priority areas for funding.

At regional level, three areas have been prioritised, namely agro processing, mining and downstream processing.

For all this, biotechnology could be a useful tool to drive the regions industrialisation agenda, Belay says.

Its not a silver bullet, but its one of the many tools we can use to drive the continents industrialisation strategy. Agriculture is fundamental to Comesa member states in terms of improving food and nutrition security, increasing rural income, employment and contributions to GDP and expert earnings.

We need to explore ways of enhancing the use of biotechnology to drive industrialisation and improved livelihoods for farmers in Africa.

Analysts say Africa badly needs increased investment in infrastructure of all kinds reliable clean energy and water systems, medical clinics, technical colleges, railways, roads, bridges, fiber optic networks, and factories of many kinds.

Industrialisation can benefit the expansion of intra-African trade by supporting a more diversified export economy, wrote an economic analyst.

In particular, the development of rural and food processing industries could help to lift significant numbers from poverty. But, to facilitate trade in goods and services, it is essential to reduce distribution costs by improving and expanding road, rail and other communication infrastructure. -Zimpapers Syndication

See the article here:
Biotechnology could spur Africa's industrialisation - Southern Times Africa

On eve of biotech's big convention, Biotechnology Innovation ... San Francisco Business Times Ahead of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization's annual convention in San Diego, we talk to Jim Greenwood, the president and CEO of the industry trade ... The BIO International Convention Kicks Off Four Days of ...Business Wire (press release) all 3 news articles »

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On eve of biotech's big convention, Biotechnology Innovation ... - San Francisco Business Times

Dustin Rhoads of Trumann is participating in Biotechnology Research Internship at Arkansas Biosciences Institute. (Photo provided)

Five Arkansas State University students are pursuing their interest in science this summer through the Biotechnology Research Internship Program at the Arkansas Biosciences Institute (ABI) facility on campus. One of those students, Dustin Rhoads, is from Trumann.

The program provides basic support for A-State undergraduate science majors who want research experience in life sciences or applications of life sciences during the summer of their sophomore or junior years.

Each student is matched with a faculty mentor who is conducting research related to biotechnology or biology from one of several departments and colleges, based largely on the student's interests. Selection also is based on academic credentials.

The students, along with their future plans and comments from their applications are:

Dustin Rhoads plans to go to dental school after completing his degree at A-State. His faculty mentor also is Dr. Malathi Srivatsan.

"I chose to apply for this internship mostly because of my interest in the field," Rhoads said. "Neurology has always been and interest of mine. Furthermore, the research we are doing at Dr. Srivatsan's Lab could be used to help so many people. Neuroregeneration could impact the lives of millions, and to be a part of something that could do that is very special to me. What sparked my interest in science was the way it's completely unique from all other academic fields, it has no sense of complacency, and is forever evolving. Im the kind of person who would rather study how things work as opposed to memorizing hard set facts, so the sciences are definitely for me regarding that aspect. I chose Arkansas State University because growing up I was always around it, almost developing it as a second home before even leaving high school, also accompanied with the report of its programs, made it a complete match for me."

The other students are Madalyn Rose Weiner of Little Rock, Oliver Dozier of Paragould, Kayleigh Nelson of Marion, and Aylin Villalpa-Arroyo of Hidalgo, Mexico.

Each internship is valued at $2,500. The students work 20 hours per week for 10 weeks. An additional $500 is provided to the supporting laboratory for research supplies.

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Trumann student starting ABI biotechnology research internship - Democrat Tribune

A new study confirms the link between active smoking and the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis (RA). It also suggests, for the first time, that smokers who had early life exposure to tobacco through passive smoking have a significantly increased risk for developing the disease.

RA is the most common chronic inflammatory joint disease, causing progressive joint destruction, disability and reduced life expectancy. In recent years, many potential environmental factors have been associated with an increased risk of developing RA, but so far smoking is the only one that has been extensively studied.

The findings were recently presented at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR) 2017 press conference.

For the study, a large population of female volunteers born between 1925 and 1950 were tracked beginning in 1990. Out of 70,598 women, a total of 1,239 patients self-reported developing RA, of which 350 cases were eligible for analysis of the link to active and passive smoking. The mean age at inclusion in the study was 49.0 years; the mean duration of follow-up was 21.2 years.

Between 1990 and 2014, 11 self-administered questionnaires were sent to the participants to collect medical, demographic, environmental and hormonal data and dietary habits. The diagnosis of RA was collected on two successive questionnaires.

Cases were considered certain if, having reported RA, they had taken an RA specific medication (methotrexate, leflunomide or a biologic) since 2004 (the period from which drug reimbursement data was available). Participants were excluded if they had an inflammatory bowel disease and/or no information on their smoking status.

Passive smoking was assessed by the following question: When you were children, did you stay in a smoky room? Patients were considered exposed if the answer was yes, a few hours, or yes, several hours a day.

The findings show that passive smoking exposure during childhood increased the association between RA risk and adult active smoking.

Our study highlights the importance of avoiding any tobacco environment in children, especially in those with a family history of RA, said lead author Professor Raphale Seror from University Hospitals of South Paris, France.

In addition, the preliminary results of a meta-analysis reveal that smoking is also related to an increased progression of structural damage to the spine in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS), a form of arthritis that affects the spine.

Smoking constitutes a major risk factor not only for disease susceptibility but also disease severity in patients with AS, said lead author Professor Servet Akar from Izmir Katip Celebi University Faculty of Medicine in Turkey.

Rheumatologists should work hard to encourage their AS patients to quit smoking as this could have a major impact on future quality of life.

Source: European League Against Rheumatism

APA Reference Pedersen, T. (2017). Passive Smoking in Childhood Can Hike Risk of Arthritis in Adult Smokers. Psych Central. Retrieved on June 19, 2017, from https://psychcentral.com/news/2017/06/19/passive-smoking-in-childhood-significantly-ups-risk-of-arthritis-in-adult-smokers/122071.html

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Passive Smoking in Childhood Can Hike Risk of Arthritis in Adult Smokers - PsychCentral.com

Sigillo Cellars owner and head winemaker, Mike Seal, right, presented a check representing 10 percent of Sigillos sales of Sauvignon Blanc in May, to Arthritis Foundation Development Manager Toni Arrowsmith, left, and Arthritis Foundation Senior Executive Director Kelsey Woods. Courtesy Photo

In connection with Arthritis Awareness Month, Sigillo Cellars in Snoqualmie has donated 10 percent of all its sales of the winerys first-release Sauvignon Blanc in May to the Arthritis Foundation. Sigillo Cellars owner Mike Seal recently presented a check for the donation to Senior Executive Director Kelsey Woods and Development Manager Toni Arrowsmith of the Washington Arthritis Foundation.

Mike expressed a big Thank You to all of our Club Members and guests who are enjoying Sigillo Cellars first Sauvignon Blanc release while supporting an organization that provides resources for the 1.2 million adults and 6,000 children in Washington State managing life with Arthritis.

picture: (left) Toni Arrowsmith, Development Manager, Arthritis Foundation, (middle) Kelsey Woods, Senior Executive Director, Arthritis Foundation, (right) Mike Seal, Owner and Head Winemaker, Sigillo Cellars

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Sigillo Cellars donates part of Sauvignon Blanc sales to Arthritis Foundation - Snoqualmie Valley Record

Testing stem cell therapies unilaterally?A side-by-side comparison of strength of key muscles may enable scientists to evaluate stem cell therapies for the disease. The approach aims to control for the variability of the disease internally, without historical cohorts and/or the use of a placebo (see Donofrio and Bedlack, 2011; Glass et al., 2016).The biceps and triceps appear to be most reliable muscles to monitor progression in people with ALS according to this analysis (Rushton et al., 2017). [Neural progenitor cells. Courtesy of Nature Cell Biology. Reproduced with permission.]

Motor neurons degenerate in ALS. Why these cells are destroyed remains unclear. Therefore, how to slow or stop this destruction of motor neurons in ALS remains an open question.

In the meantime, a growing number of scientists are turning to stem cells in hopes to promote motor neuron survival in people with ALS and/or reduce their toxicity (see December 2015 conference news). But how to evaluate these strategies in the clinic remains hotly debated.

Now, a research team at Cedar Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California reports that an emerging outcome measure, which involves monitoring muscle strength, may facilitate the evaluation of stem cell therapies for the disease (Rushton et al., 2017). The study, led by Clive Svendsen, found that functional decline of key muscles on the left and right side of people with ALS progressed at a similar rate. The results suggest that at least some stem cell therapies could be evaluated unilaterally by comparing the strength of muscles on the treated and untreated side for each of these muscle groups.

This side-by-side comparison, according to a subsequent power analysis, may enable clinicians to evaluate stem cell therapies for ALS in a smaller sample size without the need for sham surgeries and/or placebo injections.

This unilateral approach is emerging as an alternative to evaluate a growing number of potential neuroprotective strategies for neurodegenerative diseases including ALS (see NCT02943850, NCT02478450; Glass et al., 2016).

The study is published on June 9 in Neurology.

The retrospective analysis, performed in collaboration with Cedar Sinais Robert Baloh, studied the rates of decline of 6 upper and lower muscle groups in nearly 750 people with ALS determined by fixed dynamometry. These longitudinal datasets, previously collected by physical therapist Pat Andres and colleagues, now at Massachusetts General Hospital, capture the decline in strength of key muscles in people with ALS during at least a 16-month period measured by either the TUFTS Quantitative Neuromuscular Exam (TQNE) or more recently, the Accurate Test of Limb Isometric Strength (ATLIS) system (Andres et al., 1986; Shields et al., 1998; Andres et al., 2012.

Analyzing therapies by hand. Meanwhile, Biogen scientists in Cambridge, Massachusetts are turning to hand-held dynamometry to evaluate potential therapies for ALS. The emerging strength-based measure highly correlates with the progressive loss of motor function (ALS-FRS-R) and breathing capacity (FVC) according to a retrospective analysis of 924 people with ALS presented at the 2017 meeting of the American Academy of Neurology (see May 2017 news). And, according to a subsequent side-by-side comparison, these musclesdecline at similar rates. [Image: Douma et al., 2014 under CC BY 2.0 license.]

The study builds on previous work, led by Barrow Institutes Jeremy Shefner in Phoenix, Arizona and Biogens Toby Ferguson in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which found that monitoring the strength of key muscles using hand-held dynamometry is a reliable and reproducible approach to measure progression of ALS in a clinical setting and thereby, may facilitate the evaluation of potential therapies (see May 2017 conference news; Shefner et al., 2014).

Now, Svendsens team is gearing up to evaluate their potential stem cell therapy for ALS. The strategy uses genetically engineered neural progenitor cells (NPCs) to deliver GDNF into the CNS in hopes to protect motor neurons in people with the disease (see April 2017 news; Gowing et al., 2014). The approach is at the phase 1 stage. Stay tuned.

Featured Paper

RushtonDJ, Andres PL, Allred P, Baloh RH,SvendsenCN. Patients with ALS show highly correlated progression rates in left and right limb muscles. Neurology. 2017 Jun 9. [PubMed].

References

ShefnerJM, Liu D, Leitner ML, Schoenfeld D, Johns DR, Ferguson T, Cudkowicz M.Quantitativestrengthtesting in ALS clinical trials. Neurology. 2016 Aug 9;87(6):617-24. [PubMed].

Andres PL, Skerry LM, Munsat TL, Thornell BJ, Szymonifka J, Schoenfeld DA, Cudkowicz ME. Validation of a new strength measurement device for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis clinical trials. Muscle Nerve. 2012 Jan;45(1):81-5. [PubMed].

Andres PL, Hedlund W, Finison L, Conlon T, Felmus M, Munsat TL.Quantitative motor assessment in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Neurology. 1986 Jul;36(7):937-41.[PubMed].

Glass JD, Hertzberg VS, Boulis NM, Riley J, Federici T, Polak M, Bordeau J, Fournier C, Johe K, Hazel T, Cudkowicz M, Atassi N, Borges LF, Rutkove SB, Duell J, Patil PG, Goutman SA, Feldman EL. Transplantation of spinal cord-derived neural stem cells forALS: Analysis of phase 1 and 2 trials. Neurology. 2016 Jul 26;87(4):392-400.[PubMed].

Gowing G, Shelley B, Staggenborg K, Hurley A, Avalos P, Victoroff J, Latter J, Garcia L, Svendsen CN. Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor-secreting human neural progenitors show long-term survival, maturation into astrocytes, and no tumor formation following transplantation into the spinal cord of immunocompromised rats. Neuroreport.2014 Apr 16;25(6):367-72. [PubMed].

Further Reading

Atassi N, Beghi E, Blanquer M, Boulis NM, Cantello R, Caponnetto C, Chi A, Dunnett SB, Feldman EL, Vescovi A1, Mazzini L; attendees of the International Workshop on Progress in Stem Cells Research for ALS/MND. Intraspinal stem cell transplantation for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Ready for efficacy clinical trials? Cytotherapy.2016 Dec;18(12):1471-1475. [PubMed].

Donofrio PD, Bedlack R. Historical controls in ALS trials: a high seas rescue? Neurology. 2011 Sep 6;77(10):936-7. [PubMed].

clinical trial clinical trial design disease-als gdnf neuralstem neuroprotection stem cell topic-clinical topic-randd

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ALS Research Forum | To Evaluate Stem Cell Therapies, Think ... - ALS Research Forum

Peter Boyd Author living with arthritis

LIVING WITH ARTHRITIS for the rest of my life is one thing. Accepting that Ill never work again is quite another.

If I manage my rheumatoid arthritis correctly I potentially have 40 years of contributing in the workplace ahead of me. If Im passive and leave the arthritis in control I could have 40 years of benefits and disability payments.

Even doing the right thing and fighting arthritis with all my energy, what little I have these days, is no guarantee Ill be able to work again but Ive got to try. The only thing that is certain in the crazy, changed, unplanned for, painful, tiring, exhausting, soul destroying, exciting, medicated, drowsy, financially insecure arthritis world is that Ill fight it.

Im seven years into my journey. Im the man who spoke on behalf of Arthritis Ireland recently and said: I stand before you 33 years old, grateful for the day I got arthritis.

Being diagnosed

Thats skipping past a few chapters in my story, let me fill in the gaps.

In 2011, I was working as a full-time barman. On a quiet evening after a rugby match I began chatting to two regulars over the taps.Then I fell asleep.

Mid-conversation, mid-pub, mid-shift, I fell asleep. This was the final straw in work. I couldnt get bottles from the bottom shelf, carry a crate of beer, change kegs, stand for my entire shift or take deliveries.I was no longer a barman. I sat down with the bosses and took two weeks holiday. I never went back to work.

I lost my job and my financial security but had a mortgage to pay. I had appointments with every specialist in the hospital because RA is an auto-immune condition and the inflammation affected my whole body and every system in it.

Saying no to going out with my friends led them to stop asking. With no job, no money, lots of pain and overwhelming fatigue I lost my self-confidence and self-worth. Once they went, I stopped wanting to go out at all, saw no point in minding myself.

The inevitable depression

Depression was almost inevitable some might say. I fell into a deep, ongoing, depression that I continue to battle with every day. Ive had awful days when it all seemed too much. If Im honest, I still do.

My turnaround has been a huge success though and Ive done a lot of hard work to make it so. The impetus came from my family and Arthritis Ireland however.

My family have always provided the perfect blend of support and tough love, depending on the circumstance. When I needed a kick I got it but when I needed to be coaxed and cajoled I got that too.

Meeting people in the same boat as me opened doors I never knew existed when I did my Leisure Management Degree, worked as a barman and acted like the selfish person I was.

Arthritis Ireland introduced me to children, teenagers and adults of all ages living with their form of arthritis. I did the self-management course, trained to be on the helpline and, in helping others, I boosted myself. Im now on the Board of Directors of Arthritis Ireland.

Im a better person now

Ive learnt skills I wouldnt have done without arthritis. Two years ago, my confidence had been restored enough to go back into the classroom. Ive finished studying in Dun Laoghaire Further Education Institute and have a Higher Certificate in my pocket.

It was vital I retrained. Arthritis Ireland, my family and my friends helped rebuild my confidence to a point where I could upskill and find a new career path.

So while its awful, Im in more pain than ever and I hate having to inject myself every week, I am grateful for arthritis.

Im a better person than I was before my diagnosis and Ive learnt so many things. Im now an intern with Cricket Ireland at one of the most exciting, and potentially historic, times for the game in this country.

I dont wish my life had taken any other path and thats the honest truth.

Peter Boyd, the second of four siblings, lives in Balbriggan, North County Dublin. Though not as active as he used to be, he is still passionate about watching live sport as much as possible. Healso has huge interest in history and writing, and is a published author, having self-published his first novel in 2016.The RA NarRAtive patient survey was conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of Pfizer via an online survey that was distributed by local patient advocacy groups (PAGs) between March 20 April 6, 2017 among 211 adults, ages 18+, who have been diagnosed with rheumatoidarthritis(RA) in Ireland.ArthritisIreland is Irelands only organisation working to provide information and support for people witharthritis.For more information onArthritisIreland visitwww.arthritis.ie.

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Arthritis: 'I am grateful for arthritis. I'm a better person than before my diagnosis' - thejournal.ie

Consumer Update

Per the CDC, 23 percent of Americans suffer from arthritis, a leading cause of disability among adults in the U.S. Some of those afflicted seem to think that their only solutions for relieving pain are medication and surgery.

Dr. Arthritis is a company founded by a group of doctors looking to change that outlook. These are doctors with intimate knowledge of patients and the rheumatological and orthopedic conditions they suffer from.

With their line of products aimed at arthritis and other joint conditions, they offer a solution to relieve discomfort and pain.

Products include gloves and sleeves for hands, elbows, knees, cuffs, ankles, and feet. Infused with copper and through the use of compression, they help to reduce swelling and pain, while offering much-needed support.

Having worked with patients for many years and seeing the impact that arthritis has on a persons life helped Doctor Arthritis achieve the goal to help as many arthritic individuals as possible. Alongside their joint compression products, each of their customers receives a The Dr. Arthritis Handbook containing specific information on the condition, treatments, and exercises for the joint or muscle affected by arthritis.

The compression gloves infused with copper are developed with consideration and care towards each and every patient. Each glove or sleeve comes with a doctor written handbook outlining all the basic information patients should know about the joint affected.

This outlines the various conditions as well as exercises for strengthening joints and advice on lifestyle measures to improve symptoms

By offering products to help relieve symptoms while also educating, those who suffer from arthritis and other joint conditions are put back in the drivers seat. Doctor Arthritis has a passion for helping patients achieve a good, pain-free life.

For more information or to read their weekly blog visit doctorarthritis.org today.

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Doctor Arthritis Clothing Products for Arthritic Individuals | NewsWatch Review - NewsWatch

Photo Credit: Nati Shohat / Flash 90

Patients with severe and end-stage heart failure have few treatment options available to them apart from transplants and miraculous stem cell therapy. But a new Tel Aviv University study has found that stem cell therapy may in fact harm patients with heart disease.

The research, led by Prof. Jonathan Leor of TAUs Sackler Faculty of Medicine and Sheba Medical Center and conducted by TAUs Dr. Nili Naftali-Shani, explores the current practice of using cells from the host patient to repair tissue and contends that this can prove deleterious or toxic for patients. The study was recently published in the journal Circulation.

We found that, contrary to popular belief, tissue stem cells derived from sick hearts do not contribute to heart healing after injury, said Prof. Leor. Furthermore, we found that these cells are affected by the inflammatory environment and develop inflammatory properties. The affected stem cells may even exacerbate damage to the already diseased heart muscle.

Tissue or adult stem cells blank cells that can act as a repair kit for the body by replacing damaged tissue encourage the regeneration of blood vessel cells and new heart muscle tissue. Faced with a worse survival rate than many cancers, a number of patients with heart failure have turned to stem cell therapy as a last resort.

But our findings suggest that stem cells, like any drug, can have adverse effects, said Prof. Leor. We concluded that stem cells used in cardiac therapy should be drawn from healthy donors or be better genetically engineered for the patient.

Hope for improved cardiac stem cell therapy

In addition, the researchers also discovered the molecular pathway involved in the negative interaction between stem cells and the immune system as they isolated stem cells in mouse models of heart disease. After exploring the molecular pathway in mice, the researchers focused on cardiac stem cells in patients with heart disease.

The results could help improve the use of autologous stem cells those drawn from the patients themselves in cardiac therapy, Prof. Leor said.

We showed that the deletion of the gene responsible for this pathway can restore the original therapeutic function of the cells, said Prof. Leor. Our findings determine the potential negative effects of inflammation on stem cell function as theyre currently used. The use of autologous stem cells from patients with heart disease should be modified. Only stem cells from healthy donors or genetically engineered cells should be used in treating cardiac conditions.

The researchers are currently testing a gene editing technique (CRISPER) to inhibit the gene responsible for the negative inflammatory properties of the cardiac stem cells of heart disease patients. We hope our engineered stem cells will be resistant to the negative effects of the immune system, said Prof. Leor.

Meanwhile, for those unable to profit from stem cell therapy, researchers at Ben Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) have developed a revolutionary new drug that may reverse the damage and repair the diseased heart.

The newly developed drug is a polymer which reduces the inflammation in cardiovascular tissue and stops plaque build-up in arteries. Then it goes one step further and removes existing plaque in the heart, leaving healthy tissue behind.

Professor Ayelet David, a researcher at BGU revealed the drug might also help people suffering from diabetes, hypertension and other conditions associated with old age.

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Israeli Scientists: Stem Cell Therapy Not Good for All Heart ... - The Jewish Press - JewishPress.com

Julia Brennan grew up in a family of nearsighted people so nearsighted that they joked they were blind as bats. She, however, had perfect eyesight.

"Julia can see around corners," her mother would say.

Today, Brennan is a textile conservationist in Washington, D.C, and her work involves everything from fixing tiny holes in antique christening dresses to delicately stitching tears in the Brooks Brothers coat President Lincoln had with him the night he was shot.

While her sharp eyesight is essential to her work, it was not something she thought about consciously when choosing her field. "I simply used it in one of the best professions possible," she says.

Now, a small study published this week out of the University of California, Berkeley backs up what Brennan has experienced throughout her career: Dressmakers may have superior stereoscopic vision. That's the ability to accurately perceive depth and distance between objects to see in 3-D.

Adrien Chopin, a postdoctoral researcher in visual neuroscience, made the discovery as he was testing the stereoscopic vision of about three dozen people, 13 of them dressmakers. We all use stereoscopic vision when we throw a ball to someone, grab a pencil or park a car, but Chopin noticed that some individuals have much better stereoscopic vision than others.

The testing was part of ongoing research aimed at finding ways to improve stereoscopic vision through computer games, some using virtual reality.

Chopin found that among the people in his study, dressmakers who spend a lot of time sewing by hand outperformed the study participants from other professions. The results intrigued him, given that prior studies of surgeons and dentists, who also do fine manual work, did not turn up similar results.

In fact, Chopin says, dressmakers are the only group of professionals he and his colleagues have found so far who seem to have enhanced stereoscopic vision.

Is it the endless hours of delicate, manual work that hones dressmakers' stereoscopic skills, or does the field naturally attract individuals with superior eyesight?

Chopin says further study is needed to be certain. But the findings have led him to believe there might be something unusual in the way dressmakers interact with the world.

"It's very fine manual tasks at close range, with direct feedback," he says. "If you misplace the needle just a little, you get pain. That's direct feedback on your vision."

He hopes his research might eventually help people who are stereo-impaired.

Dr. Rebecca Taylor, a Nashville ophthalmologist and the clinical spokeswoman for the American Academy of Ophthalmology, says about 10 percent of the population lacks depth perception, and one cause is poor vision in one eye. She cautions that this is not always correctable and says some problems such as amblyopia, or lazy eye, should be corrected in childhood.

Still, she thinks further study is worthwhile, given how much we use stereo vision in our daily lives. "The more information that we have about depth perception, the better we can be set up to help people who struggle with it," Taylor says.

Of course, good stereoscopic vision will only take you so far. More than 30 years into her career in textile restoration, Brennan says she now needs strong reading glasses and a good source of light to do her best work.

"I often defer to my 20- or 30-year-old colleagues to double-check a stitch or detail now," she says.

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Research Finds Dressmakers Have Good Eyes, And Not Just For Style - KRCC

An aging population and the growing prevalence of vision-threatening diseases like diabetes are fueling a rise in the number of Americans who are either blind or visually impaired. (Lars Christnsen/Dreamstime/TNS)

Ask Americans to name the ailment they fear most, and blindness ranks at the top, along with Alzheimers and cancer, according to a recent survey by the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins University.

And yet each year, 50,000 Americans go blind, nearly half from eye diseases that are treatable or preventable.

Whats worse, the number of Americans who are either blind or visually impaired is expected to double by 2050, most of it driven by an aging population and the growing number of people with chronic conditions that can cause vision loss, such as diabetes, says James Jorkasky, executive director of the National Alliance for Eye and Vision Research.

The challenge for vision experts is to make Americans aware of the things they can do to protect their eyesight, including getting a regular eye exam. Only half of the estimated 61 million Americans at high risk of losing their eyesight had an eye exam in the past 12 months partly due to a lack of insurance coverage for preventive eye care and glasses, noted a National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine report last fall, but also because many eye diseases dont show symptoms in the early stages, so people dont realize they have a problem.

Doctors, too, may need to step up their game. A new study in the journal JAMA Ophthalmology found that in one of four cases, trained eye professionals missed the early, more treatable signs of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) an irreversible loss of vision that affects 14 million Americans.

But there is some good news for those already diagnosed with eye disease, including new treatments and cutting edge research that could bring hope to millions in the near future. There are also simple changes everyone can do to greatly reduce their risk of eye disease.

Heres what you need to know:

Glaucoma is caused by a buildup of damaging pressure within the eye and requires a daily dose of medicated eye drops to hold the disease at bay. Unfortunately, getting patients to follow that regimen daily for years is difficult, says Dr. Andrew Iwach, board chairman for the Glaucoma Research Foundation. Instead, clinical trials have started testing a thin polymer ring to be worn in the eye that would slowly release medication throughout the day.

Using stem cells to regenerate healthy cells in disease-damaged eyes is the holy grail for researchers. This is especially true for incurable conditions that damage the retina, the layer of light-sensitive cells at the back of the eye.

Earlier this year, a Japanese man became the first person to receive retinal stem cells created from donated skin cells to stop his macular degeneration from getting worse.

The Argus II, a bionic retina approved by the Food and Drug Administration, is now being used by more than 100 people with retinitis pigmentosa and other related conditions. It also recently was implanted in the first person with macular degeneration.

This bionic eye uses a tiny camera attached to glasses that sends visual data to a microchip implanted in the eye, which then sends light signals to the brain.

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How to protect yourself against vision loss, a growing problem - Waterbury Republican American

A compound found in broccoli improves diabetic outcomes to an extent that rivals the go-to drug treatment, according to a new study. Photo by Flickr user LID/Jonas Ingold.

Pills, pills, pills. It seems every ailment from headaches to high blood pressure needs them. But, what if you could swap the medication for vegetables?

An international group of researchers envision such a future for type-2 diabetics based on new results published Wednesday in the journal Science Translational Medicine. Their findings show how a compound found in broccoli improves diabetic outcomes to an extent that rivals the go-to drug treatment, with fewer severe side effects.

To many patients, it might be more attractive to take a broccoli shot or drink than having to take another pill, said Anders Rosengren, at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden and the studys senior author.

Diabetes afflicts more than 400 million people worldwide, four times as many people as in 1980. Part of the problem is the disease can progress unnoticed for years, even decades, until severe complications like compromised kidney function arise.

Its why we need to be so active with this disease so we have the proper treatment at early stages, Rosengren said.

Their project wants to find an alternative for metformin, a gold-standard drug that tackles a hallmark of diabetes: runaway production of glucose in the liver. Insulin normally keeps glucose on a tight leash, but becomes dysregulated in diabetes. Although metformin works well, it has a few problems.

One problem is that it cannot be taken by people with poor kidney function, Rosengren said, yet poor kidney function is one of the most common complications of type-2 diabetes. And metformin can cause side effects including stomach pain, bloating and diarrhea in some patients.

Diabetes is not attributable to one gene, but rather a collection. So Rosengren and his colleagues wanted a drug that could modify a network of diabetes-related genes. A preliminary test, associating a set of 50 liver genes involved in type-2 diabetes and 3,800 drugs, landed on a compound called sulforaphane. Sulforaphane is found in cruciferous vegetables, like broccoli, and has improved insulin responses in diabetic rats in previous studies.

To determine if sulforaphane modifies blood sugar levels, the researchers completed a series of investigations before conducting a human trial.

Early tests showed that sulforaphane could prevent glucose overproduction in liver cells grown in petri dishes. Next, the team tried their luck in rodent models of diabetes. There, they found sulforaphane both prevented the development of glucose intolerance, a hallmark of diabetes, and lowered blood glucose levels as much as metformin did.

Emboldened by these positive results, the researchers recruited 97 type-2 diabetics from Sweden to take daily doses of sulforaphane in the form of a highly concentrated, liquid broccoli sprout extract or a placebo for 12 weeks.

Only the patients who took broccoli extract showed a clear reduction in blood sugar levels.The broccoli extract was most effective for overweight patients with unmanaged type-2 diabetes. Plus, no patients on the broccoli regimen reported severe or lasting side effects during the three-month study.

Alongside the other lifestyle things like physical activity and not eating a whole lot of refined sugars, this could be a promising therapy, said Chris DAdamo, an epidemiologist and healthy lifestyle expert at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, who was not involved in the study. It needs to be replicated, [but] I was positively surprised by the degree of efficacy that it showed and the lack of noticeable side effects.

But before you rush to the grocery store, know that the amount of sulforaphane taken by the patients was approximately 100 times that found naturally in broccoli or the equivalent of consuming 11 pounds of broccoli per day.

Rosengren is encouraged by the results, but advises that people should wait for drug regulators to approve broccoli sprout extract for type-2 diabetes before they rush to try the treatment.

It has the potential to become an important complement to existing treatment options for type-2 diabetes, Rosengren said.

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Tired of taking pills for diabetes? How about a shot of broccoli? - PBS NewsHour

Ten-year-old Sherborn resident Jillian Tierney was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in August 2016; when faced with the decision of which charitable organization she would highlight for her fifth-grade Citizenship Project, Tierney chose Joslin Diabetes Center, where she receives her care from Dr. Anat Hanono.

Ten-year-old Sherborn resident Jillian Tierney was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in August 2016; when faced with the decision of which charitable organization she would highlight for her fifth-grade Citizenship Project, Tierney chose Joslin Diabetes Center, where she receives her care from Dr. Anat Hanono.

Dr. Peter Amenta, president and CEO of Joslin Diabetes Center, joined Jillian and her family at Pine Hill Elementary School for the fifth-grade expo on June 7, where she debuted her project. Tierney showed Amenta her diabetes kit and demonstrated how she uses her glucose monitor, answered questions on the importance of counting carbs, and offered up information and statistics on diabetes for the parents and friends in attendance.

Joslins pediatrics department encourages and allows for young patients to continue pursuing their goals and participating in normal activities as part of learning to incorporate diabetes into their everyday life, and Tierney does not let her recent diagnosis slow her down. She plays soccer, recently finished a spring production of Mulan at a local theater company and will attend coastal ecology camp and a diabetes camp this summer.

For more information, visit http://www.joslin.org.

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Sherborn's Jillian Tierney shows how she deals with diabetes - Wicked Local Tewksbury

By Reuters By Reuters June 17 at 11:00 AM

Properly treating a common sleep-related breathing disorder may have benefits for the heart and for blood sugar, a new study suggests.

If people with obstructive sleep apnea dont use machines at night to help keep the airway open, measures of their heart health and blood sugar worsen, researchers found.

One of the long-standing debates in our field is whether sleep apnea causes heart issues and problems with blood sugar or if theyre just associated, said the studys senior author, Jonathan Jun of Johns Hopkins University.

In obstructive sleep apnea, the airway intermittently collapses or becomes blocked during sleep. The blocked airway causes pauses in breathing. Some people address this by using CPAP continuous positive airway pressure machines at night to keep the airway open.

In the past, researchers have tried to directly link sleep apnea with heart health and blood sugar by comparing patients instructed to use CPAP devices with patients instructed to sleep without these machines. But one of the major issues with those studies is that people may not actually use the CPAP machine, Jun said by phone.

For the new study, the researchers recruited 31 people with moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea who were known to regularly use CPAP machines.

The participants slept two nights in a lab, using their CPAP device on only one of the nights. The researchers obtained blood samples while participants slept.

We are looking at real-time changes, Jun said. Were getting blood every 20 minutes.

As reported in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, on the night without CPAP, patients obstructive sleep apnea returned. On those nights, the participants had low levels of oxygen in their blood, poor sleep and an increased heart rate.

Additionally, their blood samples showed increases in fatty acids, sugar and the stress hormone cortisol.

The researchers also saw increases in blood pressure and arterial stiffness, which has been linked with a risk for heart problems.

These were obese patients and patients with relatively severe sleep apnea. They also had other medical problems, Jun pointed out. People who fit that description may be experiencing the same changes if they sleep without using a CPAP machine, he said.

Glucose and fatty acids rose in the overall group without the CPAP machines, but participants with diabetes may be more vulnerable to the glucose elevation, Jun warned.

He said the study cant say what would happen to people with milder sleep apnea.

Because obesity has been tied to an increased risk of sleep apnea, it has been difficult to know whether its sleep apnea or obesity that is causing those problems, Jun noted.

The new study, he said, advances that idea that other conditions and not obesity itself are drivers of those levels.

Read more

Exercise can improve the symptoms of sleep apnea

Snoring may be benign, or it may be a sign of a serious problem

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Untreated sleep apnea may worsen markers of heart health and ... - Washington Post

KTNV Las Vegas

'Animal House' actor Stephen Furst dies from diabetes complications KTNV Las Vegas Stephen Furst, the actor who played the hapless, beanie-wearing frat boy Flounder in the 1978 movie "Animal House," has died at age 63, his son, Nathan Furst, told CNN on Saturday. "It was from complications from diabetes," Nathan Furst said. "Over the ... Stephen Furst has died at the age 63 after a long battle with diabetesNEWS.com.au Stephen Furst dead at 63 after Animal House actor passes away due to complications with diabetesMirror.co.uk Stephen Furst, Flounder in 'Animal House,' dies at 63Minneapolis Star Tribune all 43 news articles »

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'Animal House' actor Stephen Furst dies from diabetes complications - KTNV Las Vegas

Being blind hasnt stopped Alfred Ho from becoming a singer and a live performer. Regular commuters who pass through the LRT Concourse at KLCC in Kuala Lumpur know him as the blind busker who serenades themwith songs by Elvis Presley, Cliff Richard and Pat Boone.

My main forte is the oldies, says Ho, though he also has Chinese, Thai, Japanese and Spanish tunes in his repertoire.

Ho, now 68, lost his eyesight when he was three years old after he contracted measles. He went to St Nicholas School For The Blind in Penang and received vocational training to be a phone operator. But difficulty in finding a job led him to a life in music instead.

Someone recommended I participate in a singing competition called Bakat TV, says the self-taught guitarist, who reached the semi-finals of the 1971 show.

He began pursuing a singing career after he moved to KL in 1985, performing at weddings, in pubs and shopping centres, and even corporate events. But as the gigs slowed down, he also had to stop appearing in bars and pubs when the cigarette smoke started to affect his health.

Ho believes not having someone to manage him is whats holding him back from working more often. It doesnt matter if youre blind; if you have the the right music agent, youll go places, he says. Not that its dampened his spirit. Ho and Rufina, his wife, do all that they can to get him out there.

So his message to other people with disabilities, who are struggling to pursue their dream or facing challenges in trying to make a living, is to always persevere.Ive gone through a lot of pitfalls, but we should work hard at whatever we want and never give up.Yasmin Ahmad Kamil

Albert Ho can be heard most Thursdays, 5-7pm, at the AK Busk Stop in KLCC LRT. You can also reach him and Rufina at 012-346 1232 or e-mail alfredho.music@gmail.com.

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Blindness hasn't stopped this busker from singing his heart out - Star2.com

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS--(Marketwired - June 15, 2017) - Nerium Biotechnology, Inc. ("Nerium" or the "Company") today announces that it is mailing a letter to shareholders in advance of the Company's annual meeting on June 29, 2017. The shareholder letter which is reproduced below, provides important information for shareholder consideration regarding the election of directors at the annual meeting. This is an important meeting for shareholders as the decisions made with respect to the election of the Company's board of directors will determine Nerium's future.

Nerium is pleased to confirm the support of its largest shareholders for the re-election of the current board of directors (the "Board"). The shareholder letter, as well as a letter received by Nerium from Crandell Addington, a large shareholder of Nerium and CEO, Chairman and Director of Phoenix Biotechnology, will be mailed to shareholders today. A copy of the shareholder letter and other materials is available on the Company's issuer profile on SEDAR and on the Company's website http://www.nbiinvestors.com.

Your Board needs your support, please vote using only the GREEN proxy FOR Dennis R. Knocke, Gustavo A. Ulloa, Jr., Richard J.G. Boxer, Michael Burke, Kerry Mitchell and Peter A. Leininger, M.D.

Shareholders are encouraged to vote via the internet at http://www.voteproxyonline.com and enter the 12 digit control number located on your GREEN proxy, to ensure your vote is received in advance of the proxy deadline of June 27, 2017 10:00 a.m. (Toronto time). Shareholders may also vote by sending their signed GREEN proxy to TSX Trust Company via fax: 416-595-9593 or email: tmxeproxysupport@tmx.com or by mail in the envelope provided.

The Company also announces that it has commenced selling its over-the-counter product, NeriumAD Advanced, in Mexico. This represents the effective development of a new distribution channel for the Company's products and a source of future revenue that does not depend upon the cooperation of the Company's distributor, Nerium International LLC (the "Distributor").

It has come to the Company's attention that the amount of the Distributor's sales in 2015 and 2016 were incorrect in the Company's June 2, 2017 management information circular (the "Circular"). The Company received multiple versions of the Distributor's 2015 financial statements, each containing different numbers. The Company mistakenly included as the amount of the Distributor's 2015 sales an amount provided in an earlier version of the Distributor's 2015 financial statements and included the amount from a later version of the Distributor's 2015 financial statements as the 2016 sales amount. In fact, the Distributor's 2015 sales were US$496,838,912. The Company has never received a final version of the Distributor's financial statements for 2016, but based on a draft version of the Distributor's 2016 financial statement, the Distributor's 2016 sales were US$336,331,483. Corrected versions of the tables included on pages 19 and 20 of the Circular are provided below. The Company does not believe the updated information changes in any material respect the issues raised by it in the Circular.

Year

In response to the group of dissident shareholders retaining a proxy solicitation agent in connection with the Company's upcoming annual meeting, the Company has retained Shorecrest Group to act as proxy solicitation agent on behalf of the Company for a fee of approximately US$75,000 and reimbursement of its reasonable out-of-pocket expenses. All costs of solicitation by management will be borne by the Company.

YOUR VOTE IS IMPORTANT. To support your current Board, please vote using only your GREEN proxy. Please disregard any other proxy received. If you have already voted using the dissident proxy and wish to vote FOR the current directors, please vote using the GREEN proxy sent to you. This will automatically revoke any previous proxies submitted. If you have any questions or require assistance in voting, please contact the proxy solicitation agent Shorecrest Group toll free at 1-888-637-5789 or direct 647-931-7454.

About Nerium Biotechnology, Inc.

Nerium Biotechnology, Inc. is a biotechnology company involved in the research, product development, manufacture and marketing of Nerium oleander-based products. The Company's shares are not listed on any stock exchange or quotation system.

Forward Looking Statements: Statements made in this press release that relate to future plans, expectations, events or performances, including with respect to the future distribution and sales of the Company's products and possible revenue, are forward looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not based on historic facts, but rather on current expectations regarding future events. They are based on information available to management and/or assumptions management believes are reasonable. Many factors could cause future events and outcomes to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Although the forward-looking statements are based on what management believes are reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure shareholders that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this press release are made as of the date hereof and, except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise such forward-looking statements. More information about the Company is available in its disclosure documents, all of which are available on the Company's issuer profile on SEDAR at http://www.sedar.com

To view the shareholder letter and the letter received by Nerium from Crandell Addington please click the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/NeriumLetter.pdf

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Nerium Biotechnology Issues Shareholder Letter and Commences Selling NeriumAD Advanced in Mexico - Marketwired (press release)

Arthritis affects more than ten million people and it takes over lives.

The crippling condition can cause severe mobility problems, make sleeping impossible and turn basic tasks into a mission.

But instead of relying on anti-inflammatories and painkillers, which have been linked to stomach and heart issues, the Sunday People can reveal there are alternatives.

And they could even stop you developing it in the first place.

Chemicals found in the exotic fruits can protect against osteoarthritis the most common form of arthritis .

Called phytochemicals, they help prevent damage to cartilage cells, which keeps bones healthy.

Pomegranate seeds are also full of punicic acid, which has powerful antioxidant properties and could reduce joint inflammation.

Eating more fruit, veg, beans, whole grains, olive oil and fatty fish may help tackle the disease and increase mobility.

The first study into the link between a Mediterranean diet and osteoarthritis recently found that eating more of these ingredients over a 16-week period helped reduce inflammation and maintain bone health.

Run by charity Arthritis Action, the research saw the inflammatory blood biomarker of participants drop by almost half, while a cartilage degeneration dropped 8 per cent. The experts also recommended cutting down on red meat.

It is important to keep muscles and joints moving, even if you do not have arthritis.

Moderate exercise has even been found to help prevent osteoarthritis in the knees and hips physical activity helps lubricate the joints and maintain cartilage elasticity.

While running had previously been thought to be bad for joints, a study recently found that regular jogs are good news for the knees and hips and can cut your osteoarthritis risk.

But researchers for the study, published in the Journal of Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy, say overdoing it could do more harm than good.

Stationary cycling, known as spinning, is good for the knees.

Researchers at Northern Illinois University found it is the best exercise to get people with mild-to-moderate symptoms back on their feet.

If you are looking for more of a relaxed exercise regime, try tai chi.

The Chinese practice has been linked to reduced pain, fatigue and stiffness, plus improved mobility in people with osteoarthritis.

The slow breathing and gentle movements boost muscle strength and balance.

After six weeks, participants in a University of Miami study were able to walk faster and further.

Pulsed electromagnetic field therapy is providing an alternative to anti-inflammatories and painkiller medication.

The clever tech is in a wearable device and involves an electrically charged magnet delivering energy to the painful area.

Patients with osteoarthritis who used the gadget for 12hours a day over one month saw their pain greatly reduced, according to a study in Rheumatology journal. And some even came off painkillers completely.

Link:
Six ways to help you battle arthritis AND ward off painful condition - Mirror.co.uk