Cholesterol-lowering meds have potential to downgrade COVID-19's threat to that of the common cold

Could a simple drug that has been on the market for decades be used to treat COVID-19? A research team led by Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HU)'s Professor Yaakov Nahmias says that early research looks promising; their findings appear in this week's Cell Press Sneak Peak.
 

Over the last three months, Nahmias and Dr. Benjamin tenOever at New York's Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have focused on the ways in which the SARS-CoV-2 changes patients' lungs in order to reproduce itself. Their major finding? This virus prevents the routine burning of carbohydrates. As a result, large amounts of fat accumulate inside lung cells, a condition the virus needs in order to reproduce. This new understanding of SARS CoV-2 may help explain why patients with high blood sugar and cholesterol levels are often at a particularly high risk to develop COVID-19.

Viruses are parasites that lack the ability to replicate on their own, so they take control of our cells to help accomplish that task. "By understanding how the SARS-CoV-2 controls our metabolism, we can wrestle back control from the virus and deprive it from the very resources it needs to survive," Nahmias explained.

With this information in hand, Nahmias and tenOever began to screen FDA-approved medications that interfere with the virus' ability to reproduce. In lab studies, the cholesterol-lowering drug Fenofibrate (Tricor) showed extremely promising results. By allowing lung cells to burn more fat, fenofibrate breaks the virus' grip on these cells, and prevents SARS CoV-2's ability to reproduce. In fact, within only five days of treatment, the virus almost completely disappeared.

"With second-wave infections spiking in countries across the globe, these findings couldn't come at a better time," said Nahmias, and global cooperation may provide the cure. "The collaboration between the Nahmias and tenOever labs demonstrates the power of adopting a multi-disciplinary approach to study SARS-CoV-2 and that our findings could truly make a significant different in reducing the global burden of COVID-19," tenOever added.

While there are many international efforts currently underway to develop a coronavirus vaccine, studies suggest that vaccines may only protect patients for a few months. Therefore, blocking the virus' ability to function, rather than neutralizing its ability to strike in the first place, may be the key to turning the tables on COVID-19. "If our findings are borne out by clinical studies, this course of treatment could potentially downgrade COVID-19's severity into nothing worse than a common cold," Nahmias concluded. 

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement

Human blood created from human stem cells in lab

Scientists have discovered two genetic programs that are responsible for taking blank-slate stem cells to turn them into both red and white cells that make up human blood.

Igor Slukvin, the lead researcher from University of Wisconsin-Madison explained that this was the first demonstration of the production of different kinds of cells from human pluripotent stem cells, using transcription factors.

Slukvin said that by over-expressing just two transcription factors, they could reproduce the sequence of events they see in the "embryo" where blood was made, in the laboratory dish.

The method developed by Slukvin's group was shown to produce blood cells in abundance. For every million stem cells, the researchers were able to produce 30 million blood cells.

According to Slukvin, an unfulfilled aspiration is to produce hematopoietic stem cells, multipotent stem cells found in bone marrow that are used to treat some cancers, including leukemia and multiple myeloma, in the lab.

The study is published in the journal Nature Communications.
 THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES.








PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO VIEW MY BLOG-

HTTP:GSEASYRECIPES.BLOGSPOT.COM/

FOR INFO ABOUT KNEE REPLACEMENT, YOU CAN VIEW MY BLOG-

HTTP://KNEE REPLACEMENT-STICK CLUB.BLOGSPOT.COM/

FOR CROCHET DESIGNS

HTTP://MY CROCHET CREATIONS.BLOGSPOT.COM

Gene Tied to Obesity in Humans

 Researchers have identified a gene associated with overweight and obesity in both psychiatric patients and people in the general population.

It was known that the CRTC1 gene is involved in obesity and energy balance (calories taken in by eating and drinking versus calories burned through physical activity) in animals, but its role in human weight was unknown.

In this study, researchers examined whether different versions of the CRTC1 gene were associated with weight in psychiatric patients and people in the general population.

"Our results suggest that CRTC1 plays an important role in the high prevalence of overweight and obesity observed in psychiatric patients. Besides, CRTC1 could play a role in the genetics of obesity in the general population, thereby increasing our understanding of the multiple mechanisms influencing obesity," wrote a researcher.

The researchers also found a strong association between CRTC1 variants and fat levels in women younger than 45. This finding shows the need for further research on the link between fat levels and reproduction, the researchers said in a journal news release.

ps- this is only for information, but always consult you physician before having any particular food/ medication.

ps- those interested in recipes are free to view my blog-

http://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/

for info about knee replacement, you can view my blog-

http://Knee replacement-stick club.blogspot.com/

for crochet designs

http://My Crochet Creations.blogspot.com/

I've not given details about designs, but those interested are free to mail me for the same.

Blame men for menopause in women

A study led by a biologist has seemed to found out what causes menopause in women, and they have narrowed it down to men.


An evolutionary geneticist, backed by computer models developed by colleagues, has determined that menopause is actually an unintended outcome of natural selection - the result of its effects having become relaxed in older women.

Over time, human males have shown a preference for younger women in selecting mates, stacking the Darwinian deck against continued fertility in older women, the researchers have found.

"In a sense it is like ageing, but it is different because it is an all-or-nothing process that has been accelerated because of preferential mating," a professor  of Biology whose research specialities include the evolution of human diversity, said.

While conventional thinking has held that menopause prevents older women from continuing to reproduce, in fact, the researchers' new theory says it is the lack of reproduction that has given rise to menopause.


ps- this is only for information, always consult you physician before having any particular food/ medication/exercise/other remedies.

ps- those interested in recipes are free to view my blog-

http://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/

for info about knee replacement, you can view my blog-

http://Knee replacement-stick club.blogspot.com/

for crochet designs

http://My Crochet Creations.blogspot.com/

I've not given details about designs, but those interested are free to mail me for the same.

HOW ANTI-BACTERIAL PRODUCTS' HARM

CONTAIN- triclosan

concern- animal studies have shown that the chemical can disrupt sex & thyroid hormones essential for normal development & reproduction. They may also cause resistance to anti-biotics.

Remedy- stick to plain soap & water to clean hands. They kill just as many germs & are more eco-friendly.

EATING CHEESE LOWERS MEN'S SPERM COUNT

 Young men who eat more than three slices of cheese a day 

may be risking their chances of becoming fathers, a new study 

has revealed.

Even small amounts of full-fat dairy food have been shown to 

dramatically impair their fertility.

Harvard academics have discovered that men who eat just 

three portions a day had poorer quality sperm compared to 

others.

A portion included an ounce of cheese (28gm), a teaspoon of 

cream, a scoop of ice cream or glass of full-fat milk.

The researchers believe that female hormones that occur 

naturally in milk may be interfering with men’s ability to 

reproduce.

Until recently, experts have been far more concerned with how 

women’s diets are affecting their chances of having children.

But there is increasing evidence that men’s lifestyles – and 

crucially what they eat – may be just as important.

Scientist  compared the diets of 189 men aged 19 to 25.

None were overweight - they were all very fit and did at least 

one and a half hour’s exercise a week.

They had each filled in a questionnaire answering how often 

they ate dairy products, fruit, meat and other types of food 

during a typical week.

The researchers also looked at their sperm, including how fast 

it travelled and its shape.

They found that the sperm of men who ate more than three 

portions of full-fat dairy food a day was 25 percent poorer 

quality than those who had less.

Researches, explained that the female hormone oestrogen in 

milk that had come from the cow may be affecting men’s 

fertility.

It may also be impaired by pesticides which find their way in to 

dairy products, she added.