Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Mammograms Can Measure How Breast Cancer Drug Is Working ...

April 22, 2013

mammogram 18011 Mammograms Can Measure How Breast Cancer Drug Is Working: Study

MONDAY, April 22 (HealthDay News) ? Mammograms can be used to see how well breast cancer patients are responding to treatment with the drug tamoxifen, a new study suggests.

Researchers at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden report that women who saw a 20 percent or more reduction in breast density during tamoxifen treatment had a 50 percent lower risk of dying from breast cancer over an average of 15 years, compared with women who had little or no change in breast tissue density during treatment.

The study uncovered a link between reductions in breast density while on tamoxifen and a lowered risk of death. However, it didn?t find a cause-and-effect relationship.

Using mammograms to determine if a patient is responding to tamoxifen can be done at an early stage of treatment, the researchers added.

The Swedish team looked at nearly 1,000 postmenopausal women who had been treated for breast cancer. About half of them had been treated with tamoxifen, according to the study, which was published online April 22 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Tamoxifen is a common hormone-therapy drug typically given over five years to prevent relapse in women who have completed their primary breast cancer treatment. However, there has been no way to assess which patients are most likely to respond to tamoxifen treatment.

These findings suggest a possible method for doing so, the researchers said.

?What?s needed is accurate measurement of mammographic density, which isn?t currently routine,? Per Hall, a professor in the department of medical epidemiology and biostatistics, said in a Karolinska Institute news release. ?Measuring changes in density can be a simple and cheap means of assessing the effect of the treatment. If a patient is not responding to tamoxifen, maybe they should be given a different drug.?

More information

The U.S. National Cancer Institute has more about breast cancer treatment.

HEALTHDAY Web XSmall Mammograms Can Measure How Breast Cancer Drug Is Working: Study

Source: http://news.health.com/2013/04/22/mammograms-can-measure-how-breast-cancer-drug-is-working-study/

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Monday, April 22, 2013

Page Not Found - Yahoo!

Please check the URL for proper spelling and capitalization. If you're having trouble locating a destination on Yahoo!, try visiting the Yahoo! homepage or look through a list of Yahoo!'s online services.

Please try Yahoo Help Central if you need more assistance.

Source: http://rss.news.yahoo.com/rss/weightloss

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Thursday, April 11, 2013

Office for Android, iOS? You may have to wait until 2014.

A new report indicates that Google Android and Apple iOS versions of Microsoft Office may not arrive until fall of next year.?

By Matthew Shaer / April 10, 2013

The Microsoft logo is seen at the company offices in Bucharest, on March 20, 2013. iOS and Android versions of Office may not arrive until 2014, according to a new report.

Reuters

Enlarge

Since last year, rumors have percolated that Microsoft would soon release a mobile version of Office for?Android and Apple iOS. And why not? The software is long, long, long overdue, and plenty of users (and we count ourselves among their numbers) are hungry for a workable, accessible Android/iOS word processor.?

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But now comes word that such an app may not appear until next year, at the earliest. According to Mary Jo Foley of ZDNet, who has seen a recent Microsoft roadmap ? an outline of forthcoming product releases, essentially ? the Redmond giant will release "iOS/Android support for Office" in fall of 2014. A year and a half away, in other words.?

It's worth noting that as recently as last October, a Microsoft representative in the Czech Republic was promising a 2013 launch for an Android/iOS Office suite. But Microsoft later walked back that promise. "The?information shared by our Czech subsidiary is not accurate," the company said in an official statement. "We do not have anything further to share at this time."?

Over at Computerworld, Preston Gralla chides Microsoft for delaying the launch of the software.?"The strategy is a mistake, and an example of Microsoft being hurt by its over-reliance on Windows," he writes. "Windows is no longer Microsoft's biggest money maker. The Office division outperforms it financially. There's no doubt that iOS and Android versions of Office will be substantial financial successes," he adds.

But Ms. Foley cautions Android and Apple users from getting too dejected. After all, release calendars can be extremely elastic, she writes.?"Even when Microsoft commits to ship targets in road maps, things can and often do change," she?writes. "Demand (or lack thereof) can result in planned products releasing earlier or later than the planners anticipate."?

Here's hoping the release of an Android/iOS Office suite hits sooner than a year and a half away.?

For?more tech news, follow us on?Twitter @venturenaut.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/4fiBdSgDK-U/Office-for-Android-iOS-You-may-have-to-wait-until-2014

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Researchers find avian virus may be harmful to cancer cells

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

A study at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine has identified a chicken-killing virus as a promising treatment for prostate cancer in humans.

Researchers have discovered that a genetically engineered Newcastle disease virus, which harms chickens but not humans, kills prostate cancer cells of all kinds, including hormone-resistant cancer cells. The work of Dr. Elankumaran Subbiah, an associate professor of virology in the Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology at Virginia Tech, along with Dr. Siba Samal, associate dean and chairman of the University of Maryland's Department of Veterinary Medicine, and Shobana Raghunath, a graduate student in Subbiah's laboratory, appears in the April 2013 issue of the Journal of Virology.

"This potential treatment is available for immediate pre-clinical and clinical trials, but these are typically not done at the university level," Subbiah said. "We are looking for commercial entities that are interested in licensing the technology for human clinical trials and treatment. Newcastle disease virus has yet to be tested as a treatment for prostate cancer in patients."

About one in six men will develop prostate cancer. Patients typically receive hormone treatments or chemotherapy, both of which have adverse side effects. Subbiah hopes that the development of new treatment methodologies will not only better fight prostate cancer, but also lessen the side effects commonly associated with hormone treatments and chemotherapy.

Newcastle disease virus affects domestic and wild bird species, especially chickens, and is one of the most economically important viruses to the poultry industry.

Although it can cause mild conjunctivitis and flu-like symptoms in humans who have been in close contact with infected birds, it does not pose a threat to human health.

Scientists first documented the cancer-fighting properties of Newcastle disease virus in the 1950s, but it is only with recent advances in reverse genetics technology that they have turned to the genetically engineered virus as a possible treatment.

"We modified the virus so that it replicates only in the presence of an active prostate-specific antigen and, therefore, is highly specific to prostate cancer. We also tested its efficacy in a tumor model in vitro," Subbiah said. "The recombinant virus efficiently and specifically killed prostate cancer cells, while sparing normal human cells in the laboratory, but it would take time for this to move from the discovery phase to a treatment for prostate cancer patients."

Earlier human clinical trials for other types of cancer with naturally occurring strains of Newcastle disease virus required several injections of the virus in large quantities for success. Subbiah believes that the recombinant virus would be able to eradicate prostate cancer in much lower doses. It would also seek out metastatic prostate cancer cells and remove them. Because it is cancer cell-type specific, "the recombinant virus will be extremely safe and can be injected intravenously or directly into the tumor," Subbiah added.

Subbiah received a $113,000 concept award from the U.S. Department of Defense to develop his prostate cancer treatment under a Congressionally directed medical research program. He is seeking additional foundation and corporate funds to take his research to the next level.

The researchers have also received a National Institutes of Health exploratory grant to develop the cell type-specific Newcastle disease virus for several other types of cancer cells, including breast, pancreas, brain, prostate, and multiple myeloma. "Although the virus can potentially treat many different types of cancer, we are focusing on these five," Subbiah said.

###

Virginia Tech: http://www.vtnews.vt.edu

Thanks to Virginia Tech for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

This press release has been viewed 38 time(s).

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/127649/Researchers_find_avian_virus_may_be_harmful_to_cancer_cells

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Florida couple spotted in Cuba with abducted children? - U.S. News

Desmond Boylan / Reuters

Joshua Hakken and his wife Sharyn stand inside a building with their two children at the Marina Hemingway complex in Havana on Tuesday.

By Matthew DeLuca, Staff Writer, NBC News

A couple accused of abducting their two young sons from their grandmother in Florida sailed with them to Cuba, which announced Tuesday that it will return the family to the United States.

Cuban authorities confirmed that?Joshua Hakken, 35, and Sharyn Hakken, 34, arrived in the island nation in their sailboat the Salty Paw on Sunday. They notified the U.S. the next day and decided on Tuesday morning to turn over the couple and the kids, a government statement said.

Security agents escorted the family from the marina later in the day, but it was not clear when the handover would take place.

The boys, 2 and 4, had been living with their grandmother in Tampa after their parents lost custody of them.?Police say Joshua Hakken entered the grandmother's house in the early morning of April 3, tied her up and took the children.?

After evading Amber alerts in Florida and Tennessee and Coast Guard boats searching the Gulf of Mexico, the Hakkens made their way to Cuba in the 25-foot blue-and-white sailboat, arriving in bad weather, authorities said.

Even though the U.S. does not have formal relations with Cuba, Havana officials communicated with the U.S. Interests Section and the State Department "to try to guarantee the integrity and well-being of those minors," the statement said.

The boys had been placed in foster care after Joshua Hakken was arrested in a Louisiana hotel room in 2012 on charges including drug possession, according to police in Slidell, La. Sharyn and Joshua Hakken told officers that they planned to ?take a journey to the Armageddon? at the time of the arrest, Slidell police said.

The children were there when the parents were arrested, police said, and several weapons were taken from the room

Terri Durdaller, a spokeswoman at the Florida Department of Children and Families, told the Associated Press it's not clear where the children will be placed when they return to American soil.

"Louisiana is the ultimate decision maker on where these children will reside. It's likely they will be placed back in Florida with the grandmother," she said.

?

Desmond Boylan / Reuters

"Salty," a boat believed to belong to Joshua and Sharyn Hakken, sits at the Marina Hemingway complex in Havana, Cuba, on Tuesday.

NBC News' Craig Giammona contributed to this report.

Related:

?

?

?

This story was originally published on

Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/09/17670436-florida-couple-spotted-in-cuba-with-abducted-children

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Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Our 5 favorite moments from WrestleMania 29

It?s hard to believe, but The Show of Shows has once again come and gone, as an epic and historic night has now turned quietly to dawn. For many in the WWE Universe, the past seven days have been somewhat of a blur, as the New York/New Jersey area was transformed into one giant theater to play host to The Grandest Stage of Them All.

Full WrestleMania 29 coverage?| Watch exclusive interviews

One day later, though, and the WWE Universe is still buzzing ? not only from the momentous events of last night, but also from the anticipation of everything that lies ahead, spinning out of The Show of Shows.

But before we officially turn the corner on that road departing WrestleMania, WWE.com presents its five favorite moments from WrestleMania 29.??

View Comments

Source: http://www.wwe.com/shows/wrestlemania/29/our-5-favorite-moments-from-wrestlemania-29

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Monday, April 8, 2013

Genes behind obesity mapped in large-scale study

Genes behind obesity mapped in large-scale study [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 7-Apr-2013
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Erik Ingelsson
erik.ingelsson@medsci.uu.se
46-707-569-422
Uppsala University

An international research team has identified seven new gene loci linked to obesity. Researchers were also able to show that the genetic mechanisms that cause extreme obesity are similar to those that cause milder forms of overweight and obesity.

A total of more than 260,000 people were included in the study of the links between genes and obesity, which will be published in the latest issue of Nature Genetics. The aim of the study was to identify new genes that increase the risk of obesity, but also to compare genetic factors that cause extreme obesity with those that are linked to rest of the BMI range.

"We know from experience that genetic factors are important for the emergence of both milder and more extreme forms of obesity, but how much overlap there is between genes that are involved in extreme obesity and normal or slightly elevated BMI has not been examined systematically previously," says Erik Ingelsson, Professor at the Department of Medical Sciences and Science for Life Laboratory, Uppsala University, who coordinated the study.

The researchers studied gene variants, or positions in the genetic code that differ between individuals. Many million such commonly occurring inherited differences are scattered throughout the genome. In the recently published study, researchers identified loci (regions of the genome) that are linked to obesity through examining the relationship between different body measurements and 2.8 million gene variants in 168,267 participants.

They then carried out a targeted follow-up of the 273 gene variants with the strongest link to various body measurements in another 109,703 people. Through this extensive gene mapping they were able to confirm the majority of the gene loci which were already linked to various body measurements, as well as identifying four new gene loci linked to height, and seven loci linked to overweight and obesity. They could also demonstrate a great overlap of genetic structure and distribution of gene variants between extreme forms of obesity and milder forms.

"This knowledge is important because it increases the biological understanding of the origins of extreme obesity as well as milder forms of obesity. Our results suggest that extremely obese individuals have a greater number of gene variants that increase the risk of obesity, rather than completely different genes being involved. In the long term, our findings may lead to new ways of preventing and treating obesity, which is one of the greatest global public health problems of our age," says Erik Ingelsson.

The study is also important because it indicates that conclusions from genetic studies of the most extreme cases of a certain characteristic, such as extreme obesity, may be generalized to the rest of the population. This is important knowledge for the design of future studies.

The present study was carried out within the framework of the research consortium GIANT (Genetic Investigation of ANthropometrical Traits) which has gathered over one hundred partial studies and more than 300 co-authors. The study was coordinated by Erik Ingelsson, who is one of the leaders of the consortium, together with researchers from several leading research institutes in the United Kingdom and the United States.

###


[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share Share ]

?


AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.


Genes behind obesity mapped in large-scale study [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 7-Apr-2013
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Erik Ingelsson
erik.ingelsson@medsci.uu.se
46-707-569-422
Uppsala University

An international research team has identified seven new gene loci linked to obesity. Researchers were also able to show that the genetic mechanisms that cause extreme obesity are similar to those that cause milder forms of overweight and obesity.

A total of more than 260,000 people were included in the study of the links between genes and obesity, which will be published in the latest issue of Nature Genetics. The aim of the study was to identify new genes that increase the risk of obesity, but also to compare genetic factors that cause extreme obesity with those that are linked to rest of the BMI range.

"We know from experience that genetic factors are important for the emergence of both milder and more extreme forms of obesity, but how much overlap there is between genes that are involved in extreme obesity and normal or slightly elevated BMI has not been examined systematically previously," says Erik Ingelsson, Professor at the Department of Medical Sciences and Science for Life Laboratory, Uppsala University, who coordinated the study.

The researchers studied gene variants, or positions in the genetic code that differ between individuals. Many million such commonly occurring inherited differences are scattered throughout the genome. In the recently published study, researchers identified loci (regions of the genome) that are linked to obesity through examining the relationship between different body measurements and 2.8 million gene variants in 168,267 participants.

They then carried out a targeted follow-up of the 273 gene variants with the strongest link to various body measurements in another 109,703 people. Through this extensive gene mapping they were able to confirm the majority of the gene loci which were already linked to various body measurements, as well as identifying four new gene loci linked to height, and seven loci linked to overweight and obesity. They could also demonstrate a great overlap of genetic structure and distribution of gene variants between extreme forms of obesity and milder forms.

"This knowledge is important because it increases the biological understanding of the origins of extreme obesity as well as milder forms of obesity. Our results suggest that extremely obese individuals have a greater number of gene variants that increase the risk of obesity, rather than completely different genes being involved. In the long term, our findings may lead to new ways of preventing and treating obesity, which is one of the greatest global public health problems of our age," says Erik Ingelsson.

The study is also important because it indicates that conclusions from genetic studies of the most extreme cases of a certain characteristic, such as extreme obesity, may be generalized to the rest of the population. This is important knowledge for the design of future studies.

The present study was carried out within the framework of the research consortium GIANT (Genetic Investigation of ANthropometrical Traits) which has gathered over one hundred partial studies and more than 300 co-authors. The study was coordinated by Erik Ingelsson, who is one of the leaders of the consortium, together with researchers from several leading research institutes in the United Kingdom and the United States.

###


[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share Share ]

?


AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.


Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/uu-gbo040213.php

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Try out These Warm-Weather Foot Health Ideas ? Vegfest2011.org

With far more opportunities to feel the grass beneath feet and take barefoot walks over the sand, the milder months with the year can also be an excellent time for it to lavish a few extra care with your feet.

Over the warmer several weeks, people usually are reminded to guard and prepare your entire body knowning that includes the feet, which can be the almost all neglected area of the body.

Here are a few guidelines provided by the Us Podiatric Medical Association (APMA) to help you take care of this feet in addition to keep them in good shape for sandal period.

Apply On your own

Don?t forget to utilize sunscreen to your feet, especially for the tops and fronts associated with ankles. Be sure you reapply if you are in the lake.

Keep You Clean

Clean, dry feet resist condition. Make confident you bathe and dry the feet thoroughly, especially between toes, in addition to apply a new topical anti-fungal medication on almost any cracked or itchy skin tone.

Choose Comfort

Don?t jeopardize the fitness of your feet as you just identified the sandals ?you should own. ? These sandals may be trendy however your feet may pay for this determination.

Fortunately, shoe brands such as Aravon deliver superior comfort coupled with style within extensive sizing?s and widths, so you no longer have in order to suffer to seem great.

Protect The feet

Wear shoes which might be specific on the activity or perhaps sport you are parti-cipating within. Wear trainers when working or shoes when doing the job outside or even mowing the actual lawn. We have a time as well as place regarding sandals. The jogging track or maybe tennis court seriously isn?t one of them.

Finishing Feet Touches

Only employ nail polish if you have healthy fingernails. Nail enhance locks out and about moisture and doesn?t allow the nail or nail to take in air, so individuals who suffer through already jaded toenails will certainly aggravate their particular condition by not making it possible for their toenails to come in contact with air. Whatever the condition of your fingernails, remove toenail polish regularly.

Moisturize

To totally moisturize the feet, wrap all of them in cellophane right away. The cellophane acts like a makeshift spa, locking inside moisturizer. By morning your feet will become soothingly delicate.

Kick Your toes Up

A good day on the feet will make your feet swell. Give them a rest and slow up the swelling by means of sitting back and elevating your toes and legs towards the end of a lengthy day.

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Source: http://www.vegfest2011.org/health-and-fitness/try-out-these-warm-weather-foot-health-ideas.html

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Saturday, April 6, 2013

Mars rover takes some downtime

The US space agency's Curiosity Mars rover is entering several weeks of low activity as the Red Planet moves behind the Sun as viewed from Earth.

The alignment interferes with normal communications.

Curiosity will remain stationary throughout the rest of April, collecting only weather and other environmental data.

Periodically, the robot will send a beep via its low-gain antenna to inform controllers on Earth that all is well.

"It's a very simple signal, like a 'yes' or a 'no', and that will tell us that the vehicle is OK, or at least doesn't believe it has any problems," Jim Erickson, the Curiosity deputy project manager at Nasa, told BBC News.

The rover landed on Mars in August last year and has been exploring the floor of the equatorial Gale Crater ever since.

Locked off

So-called solar conjunctions that put Mars and Earth on opposite sides of the Sun occur roughly every 26 months.

Radio transmissions become highly degraded during these periods.

Messages sent from Mars, such as pictures, can suffer data gaps. Of greater concern, however, is the possibility that commands from Earth sent up to spacecraft could become corrupted. Nasa will not even attempt such practice as this could confuse the computers on the spacecraft.

Instead, Curiosity has been sent a series of instructions in advance to hold it over. The robot will not be commanded again until 1 May.

Curiosity has been being put in a parking mode with its camera mast and robotic arm locked in safe positions.

Only the REMS meteorological station and the RAD experiment, which senses the radiation environment around the rover, will be left collecting data.

This information will be transmitted to Nasa's two satellites at Mars.

But because the orbiters are also affected by the same radio interference, they will not get a clean data relay until after solar conjunction.

Team relief

The Odyssey satellite may be able to get some information back to Earth, but the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter will simply store Curiosity data until the conjunction is over.

Nasa's other Mars rover, Opportunity, has already gone through four solar conjunctions since landing on the Red Planet in 2004.

It, too, will engage in some low-level science activity that does not involve driving.

Jim Erickson said the next three weeks offered some important downtime for engineering and science teams, especially on the Curiosity project.

"We're telling the troops, 'you've really done a great job, you've been pushing hard since landing, but now's the time to go home and remember what your families look like. And we'll see you again in May.'"

Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22033765#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa

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House DFLers pledge to protect funding for caregivers (Star Tribune)

Share With Friends: Share on FacebookTweet ThisPost to Google-BuzzSend on GmailPost to Linked-InSubscribe to This Feed | Rss To Twitter | Politics - Top Stories News, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/296765427?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Google Launches Drive App Data Folders, Lets Developers Safely Store Configuration Files And Other Data

8371218391_9b6af76a2d_zIf you’re a developer building web or mobile apps that use Google Drive for storing information, you’ve probably found that users really can’t be trusted not to delete or move that data. Once the user does that, the app experience won’t be so great and the data that the app needs to run isn’t there to use. Today, Google has introduced “app data folders” which are protected and can’t be seen by users within their Drive account. Other apps can’t see the files either, so there is now an added layer of security to fight off bad actors who build apps to swipe information or do other damage. The Google Drive team suggests that these app data folders are used for configuration files, app state data or files that shouldn’t be modified in any way. Even though users can’t see the data, they can see how much space it is taking up on their devices and clear the data at any time. Here’s what you’ll see as a user in your manage apps panel: Additionally, “custom properties” can be added to Drive files that will allow developers to create searchable fields that are either app-specific or are to be shared with other apps. More information about the Drive SDK can be found on StackOverflow, a site oddly not owned or operated by Google. [Photo credit: Flickr]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/KvbykiZ615w/

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Carnival Cruises pays paltry 0.6% in US taxes ? let it rescue its own ships (Americablog)

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Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/296804619?client_source=feed&format=rss

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What will Facebook Home do to the Android launchers market?

Sorry, Readability was unable to parse this page for content.

Source: http://www.facebook.com/techcrunch/posts/234009990072453

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Conrad Murray: Leave Me Out of MJ Lawsuit ... OR ELSE!

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/04/conrad-murray-leave-me-out-of-mj-lawsuit-or-else/

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Friday, April 5, 2013

Conn. governor set to sign gun control law

Senate Minority Leader John McKinney, R-Fairfield, who represents Newtown, Conn., right, and Senate President Donald Williams, D-Brooklyn, shake hands after the passage of a gun-control bill in the Senate chamber at the Capitol in Hartford, Conn., Wednesday, April 3, 2013. The bill passed the Senate and goes onto the Conn. Houses for approval. Hundreds of gun rights advocates are gathering at the statehouse in Hartford ahead of a vote in the General Assembly on proposed gun-control legislation. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Senate Minority Leader John McKinney, R-Fairfield, who represents Newtown, Conn., right, and Senate President Donald Williams, D-Brooklyn, shake hands after the passage of a gun-control bill in the Senate chamber at the Capitol in Hartford, Conn., Wednesday, April 3, 2013. The bill passed the Senate and goes onto the Conn. Houses for approval. Hundreds of gun rights advocates are gathering at the statehouse in Hartford ahead of a vote in the General Assembly on proposed gun-control legislation. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Paul Regish of East Hartford, Conn., holds signs as gun rights advocates enter the legislative office building at the Capitol in Hartford, Conn., Wednesday, April 3, 2013. Hundreds of gun rights advocates are gathering at the statehouse in Hartford ahead of a vote in the General Assembly on proposed gun-control legislation. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

A Capitol security officer enters a revolving door at the legislative office building, with a sign warning not to bring weapons on to the grounds at the Capitol in Hartford, Conn., Wednesday, April 3, 2013. Hundreds of gun rights advocates are gathering at the statehouse in Hartford ahead of a vote in the General Assembly on proposed gun-control legislation. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Gun rights advocates fill the hallways of the Capitol in Hartford, Conn., Wednesday, April 3, 2013. Hundreds of gun rights advocates are gathering at the statehouse in Hartford ahead of a vote in the General Assembly on proposed gun-control legislation. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Paul Regish of East Hartford, Conn., holds signs as he stands with other gun rights advocates outside the legislative office building at the Capitol in Hartford, Conn., Wednesday, April 3, 2013. Hundreds of gun rights advocates are gathering at the statehouse in Hartford ahead of a vote in the General Assembly on proposed gun-control legislation. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

(AP) ? Gov. Dannel P. Malloy was expected to sign a wide-ranging bill that includes sweeping new restrictions on weapons and large capacity ammunition magazines, a response to last year's deadly school shooting in Newtown.

Following a total of more than 13 hours of respectful and at times somber debate, the House of Representatives and the Senate voted in favor of the 139-page bill crafted by leaders from both major parties in the Democratic-controlled General Assembly.

The bill passed 26-10 in the Senate and 105-44 in the House. Both were bipartisan votes.

Malloy's office said he would sign the legislation at noon Thursday during a ceremony at the state Capitol.

"I pray today's bill ? the most far-reaching gun safety legislation in the country ? will prevent other families from ever experiencing the dreadful loss that the 26 Sandy Hook families have felt," said House Majority Leader Joe Aresimowicz, D-Berlin, referring to the families of the 20 first graders and six educators killed Dec. 14 inside Sandy Hook Elementary School.

The December massacre, which reignited a national debate on gun control, set the stage for changes in the state that may have been impossible elsewhere: The governor, who personally informed parents that their children had been killed that day, championed the cause, and legislative leaders, keenly aware of the attention on the state, struck a bipartisan agreement they want to serve as a national model.

The legislation adds more than 100 firearms to the state's assault weapons ban and creates what officials have called the nation's first dangerous weapon offender registry as well as eligibility rules for buying ammunition. Some parts of the bill would take effect immediately after Malloy's signature, including background checks for all firearms sales.

Connecticut will join states including California, New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts in having the country's strongest gun control laws, said Brian Malte, director of mobilization for the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence in Washington.

"This would put Connecticut right at the top or near the top of the states with the strongest gun laws," Malte said.

Colorado and New York also passed new gun control requirements in the wake of the Newtown shooting, in which a 20-year-old gunman used a military-style semi-automatic rifle.

Compared with Connecticut's legislation, which, for example, bans the sale or purchase of ammunition magazines holding more than 10 rounds, New York restricted magazines to seven bullets and gave owners of higher-capacity magazines a year to sell them elsewhere. Colorado banned ammunition magazines that hold more than 15 rounds.

"There are pieces that are stronger in other states, but, in totality, this will be the strongest gun legislation passed in the United States," Betty Gallo, a lobbyist for Connecticut Against Gun Violence, said of the Connecticut bill.

But some lawmakers said they felt the legislation did not do enough to address mental health issues.

Rep. Mitch Bolinsky, a freshman Republican lawmaker from Newtown, acknowledged the legislation "is not perfect" and he hoped would be "a beginning in addressing critical mental health needs."

Rep. Douglas McCrory, D-Hartford, said he felt the bill "doesn't speak to the issue of gun violence that has permeated our cities," adding how families in his district who've lost children to gun violence have not received the same level of attention from state politicians as the Newtown families.

Many legislators spoke of balancing the rights of gun owners with addressing the horror of the Sandy Hook shooting. They've received thousands of emails and phone calls urging them to vote for or against the bill, with veteran Sen. Joan Hartley, a Democrat, saying she's never seen a more polarizing issue at the state Capitol.

But Senate Minority Leader John McKinney, R-Fairfield, whose district includes Newtown, said he felt he was representing the interests of the Sandy Hook victims as he cast his vote.

"I stand here as their voice, as their elected representative," he said, reciting the names of the 26 victims at the school.

Lawmakers appeared to still be stunned by the enormity of the massacre.

"When a child is sent to school, their parents expect them to be safe. The Sandy Hook shooting rampage was a parent's, a school system's, a community's and the nation's worst nightmare," said Republican state Sen. Toni Boucher of Wilton.

Gun rights advocates who greatly outnumbered gun control supporters in demonstrations held earlier in the day at the Capitol railed against the proposals as misguided and unconstitutional, occasionally chanting "No! No! No!" and "Read the bill!"

"We want them to write laws that are sensible," said Ron Pariseau, of Pomfret, who was angry he'll be made a felon if he doesn't register his weapons that will no longer be sold in Connecticut. "What they're proposing will not stop anything."

By the time the Senate voted around 6:30 p.m., many of the gun rights advocates had gone home, leaving behind proponents of the bill who applauded when the tally in the Senate was read. The halls were mostly empty by the time the House voted at 2:26 a.m. on Thurdsay.

House Minority Leader Lawrence Cafero Jr., R-Norwalk, who helped craft the bill, said he realizes the gun owners are unhappy with the bill, but he stressed that no one will lose their legally owned guns or magazines under the legislation.

"We did our job. We did it together," he said. "We did the best we could and I think we did a good thing."

In the legislature, where Democrats control both houses, leaders waited to unveil gun legislation until they struck a bipartisan deal that they say shows how the parties can work together elsewhere. They touted the package as a comprehensive response to Newtown that also addresses mental health and school security measures, including the creation of a new council to establish school safety standards and the expansion of circumstances when someone's mental history disqualifies him or her from obtaining a gun permit or other gun credentials.

But momentum on federal legislation has stalled in Congress, and President Barack Obama has planned a trip to Connecticut on Monday to step up pressure to pass a bill.

A silent majority in favor of stronger gun control has emerged following the Newtown massacre, Gallo said.

Among the gun control advocates were Dan and Lauren Garrett, of Hamden, wearing green shirts in honor of the Sandy Hook victims. The Garretts traveled to Hartford with their 10-month-old son, Robert, to watch the bill's passage. They said they hope lawmakers will build on the proposal.

"It's just the beginning of this bill. In six months from now, it's going to get stronger and stronger," Dan Garrett said. "I think they're watching us all over the country."

___

Associated Press writers Stephen Kalin and Michael Melia in Hartford and John Christoffersen in New Haven contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-04-04-Gun%20Control-Conn/id-c477ce9653134c46b68fc14fcd3cf335

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Exhaled breath carries a molecular 'breathprint' unique to each individual

Apr. 3, 2013 ? Stable, specific 'breathprints' unique to an individual exist and may have applications as diagnostic tools in personalized medicine. Bodily fluids contain lots of information about the health status of a person. Medical doctors routinely have blood and urine analysed in order to obtain hints for infectious and metabolic diseases, to diagnose cancer and organ failure, and to check the dose of medication, based on compounds present in these body fluids.

Researchers at ETH Zurich and at the University Hospital Zurich now propose to extend such analyses to breath, and in particular to take advantage of modern high-resolution analytical methods that can provide real-time information on the chemical composition of exhaled breath.

Unbiased Chemical Analysis of Breath

The scientists developed an instrument-based version of a principle that has been known for a long time in traditional Chinese medicine: TCM doctors draw conclusions about the health state of a patient based on the smell of the exhaled breath. It is also known that trained dogs and rats can distinguish the smell of the breath of people suffering from certain variants of cancer. In these cases the entire smell of the patient's exhaled breath is gauged, which can give rise to bias. The scientists, led by Renato Zenobi, professor at the Laboratory for Organic Chemistry, aim at eliminating this bias and identifying the chemical compounds in breath. Like this, doctors should be able to use specific compounds, which are present in breath at minute concentrations, for medical diagnosis.

Using mass spectrometry, these goals can be reached, as shown in a recent study where the ETH researchers analysed the exhaled breath of eleven volunteers. They found that the chemical "fingerprint" of exhaled breath, largely based on volatile and semi-volatile metabolites, shows an individual core pattern. Each volunteer was found to have his/her own characteristic "breathprint."

Stable Pattern

Using regular measurements extending over 11 days, the researchers could furthermore show that this metabolic "breathprint" stays constant. "We did find some small variations during the day, but overall the individual pattern stays sufficiently constant to be useful for medical purposes," says Pablo Martinez-Lozano Sinues, senior scientist in Zenobi's research group. If the measurements would show too large variations, they would not be useful for medical diagnosis.

To carry out these measurements, Zenobi and his colleagues modified commercial mass spectrometers, for example by adding a breath sampling inlet line that delivers exhaled breath from a mouth piece directly into the ion source of the instrument. Mass spectra showing peaks of roughly 100 compounds in breath can be easily and rapidly obtained in this fashion. The researchers were able to identify acetone, a product of the sugar metabolism. Most of the other signals present in the "breathprints" have not been assigned yet, which is something the scientists have on their to-do-list.

Chemical fingerprints of diseases

The next step the ETH chemists plan to take is not only to elucidate the personal breathprints of individuals, but to recognize characteristic patterns of diseases with the same technology. For this endeavour, they are collaborating with medical doctors at the Division of Pulmonology of the University Hospital Zurich. "If we find a consistent pattern in patients with a given lung disease, we can develop a diagnostic tool," explains Sinues. They believe that their chances are highest to find characteristic biomarkers in the exhaled breath of patients with lung diseases, which is why they focus on these disorders. In the future, they hope to extend their methodology to other groups of diseases.

Although the potential usefulness of analysing breath for medical diagnosis has been known, it is rarely done in academic medicine. "This might be due to the fact that existing methods for breath analysis are either rather slow, or are limited to a small number of compounds that they can detect," says Sinues.

Compared to analysis of blood or urine, a significant advantage of the approach the ETH researchers have taken is that the breath fingerprint is available within seconds after delivering the breath sample. Analysing urine or blood in a specialized laboratory usually takes a lot longer. Another advantage is that exhaling into the ion source of a mass spectrometer is completely non-invasive, i.e., there is no need to poke the patient with a needle (when a blood sample is taken). "Our goal is to develop breath analysis to the point where it becomes competitive with the established analysis of blood and urine," says Malcolm Kohler, professor at the University Hospital Zurich, and one of the co-authors of the study. Regular survey of breath could, for example, be used to obtain an early warning for healthy persons with a known risk for a certain disease. It is also imaginable to monitor the progress or the side effects of an on-going medical therapy.

For this method to be accepted in the clinic, the instrumentation has to be improved. The highly sensitive and accurate mass spectrometers that are currently used for these analyses are large and expensive. Zenobi: "Small, portable mass spectrometers already exist; if their performance can be improved, they will eventually find their way into clinics and doctor's offices."

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by ETH Zurich, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal Reference:

  1. Martinez-Lozano Sinues P, Kohler M, Zenobi R. Human Breath Analysis May Support the Existence of Individual Metabolic Phenotypes. PLoS ONE, 2013; 8(4): e59909 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0059909

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_health/~3/5MoT-aJz4wQ/130403200254.htm

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North Korea still far from backing up nuke threats

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) ? North Korea's vow to restart its mothballed nuclear facilities raises fears about assembly lines churning out fuel for a fearsome arsenal of nuclear missiles. But it may actually be a sign that Pyongyang needs a lot more bomb fuel to back up its nuclear threats.

Despite the bluster, it could be years before North Korea completes the laborious process of creating more weaponized fuel. Its announcement, experts say, is also likely an effort to boost fears meant to keep its leadership safe while trying to extract concessions from the U.S. and its allies.

North Korea has declared itself a nuclear power and threatened to expand its atomic arsenal after its third nuclear test in February sparked the recent rise in hostility on the Korean Peninsula. But that arsenal is estimated to be only a handful of crude devices.

To assemble a cache of weapons that would make it a true nuclear power, and to back up its threats, North Korean scientists need more bomb fuel ? both for the weapons they hope to build and for the repeated tests required to perfect those weapons.

"Despite its recent threats, North Korea does not yet have much of a nuclear arsenal because it lacks fissile materials and has limited nuclear testing experience," Siegfried Hecker, a nuclear scientist who has been regularly granted unusual access to the North's nuclear facilities, said this week in answers posted to the website of Stanford University's Center for International Security and Cooperation.

North Korea nuclear capabilities are something of a mystery.

What is known is that it possesses the ability to produce both fuels that can be used to make nuclear bombs ? plutonium and uranium.

This causes serious long-term worries following North Korea's announcement Tuesday that it is "readjusting and restarting" all facilities at its main Nyongbyon nuclear complex, including a plutonium reactor shut down six years ago as part of now-failed nuclear negotiations, and a uranium enrichment plant.

It may also be a sign of frustration from Pyongyang that weeks of posturing and threats haven't driven U.S. and South Korean negotiators back to nuclear disarmament-for-aid talks.

"What they really want is a safety blanket and a blackmail tool," Ralph Cossa, president of the Pacific Forum CSIS think tank in Hawaii, said in an email.

The announcement "is primarily political, designed to signal strength and intimidate. It should not necessarily be seen as a revelation about North Korea's capabilities and true intent," Greg Thielmann, a senior fellow at the Arms Control Association in Washington, said in an email.

A reactor at the main Nyongbyon nuclear complex could eventually make, in one year, enough plutonium to power one bomb. It was shuttered as part of international disarmament talks in 2007, its cooling tower blown up in a dramatic show of commitment to a now-scrapped nuclear deal. North Korea shocked many when in 2010 it unveiled an industrial-scale uranium enrichment facility, which gives it an alternative route to create bombs.

Estimates on restarting the vital facilities at the plutonium reactor vary from three months to a year, depending on the expert.

North Korea has already begun construction at the reactor and it could be back in operation sooner than expected, according to a U.S. research institute that analyzed recent commercial satellite imagery of Nyongbyon. Rebuilding the cooling tower would take six months, but a March 27 photo shows building work may have started for an alternative cooling system that could take just weeks, the U.S.-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies said Wednesday.

But even if the reactor is now up and running, Cossa estimates it would be two to three years before scientists could obtain more plutonium for bombs.

There are other challenges to restarting the reactor.

North Korean scientists need to clean, check for any leaks, test components and replace ones that no longer work, according to No Hee-cheon, a nuclear expert at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology in Daejeon, South Korea.

"Nuclear material can be very corrosive. Cleaning the chemical equipment for reprocessing plutonium can be an overwhelming task," No said.

North Korea isn't thought to have nuclear-armed missiles that can hit the United States and is extremely unlikely to launch a direct attack on Seoul or its U.S. ally, knowing that military retaliation would threaten the leadership's survival.

Experts estimate it has enough plutonium for between four to eight crude plutonium-based weapons. But North Korea has yet to show that it has mastered the technology needed to shrink down warheads so they can be placed on missiles, although Pyongyang has bragged ? as recently as Thursday ? that it has "smaller, lighter" nuclear weapons ready to strike the U.S.

To back up that boast, however, Pyongyang needs more tests, which would deplete its limited supply of nuclear fuel. This motivation may partially explain the vow to restart Nyongbyon.

Two other larger plutonium reactors had construction halted because of a past nuclear disarmament deal; Hecker said the North Koreans claim both are unsalvageable. North Korea is also thought to be making progress on building a small experimental light-water reactor.

The North also suggested this week that it was boosting uranium enrichment efforts.

North Korea's uranium program worries Washington because the centrifuges that enrich the fuel into bomb-grade material are much easier to conceal than bulky plutonium reactors, which produce large amounts of heat that can easily be seen by satellites. A crude uranium bomb is also easier to produce than one made with plutonium, and North Korea has large natural uranium deposits.

Hecker was shown 2,000 uranium centrifuges at Nyongbyon in 2010, but it's not clear whether the centrifuges have been reconfigured to make highly enriched uranium. It's also unknown what fuel North Korea used in its Feb. 12 test, its third since 2006; a confirmed uranium-based nuclear test would show that North Korea has centrifuges producing highly enriched uranium.

North Korea built its secret uranium program at its main nuclear facility without the knowledge of the U.S. intelligence community, Bruce Klingner, a former U.S. intelligence officer and now an analyst at The Heritage Foundation think tank in Washington, said in an email. "As such, we do not know how many covert uranium enrichment sites North Korea has nor how many uranium weapons they can produce per year."

Still, scientists can't make a uranium bomb overnight.

Even if the North's 2,000 centrifuges were configured properly and spinning 24 hours a day, every day for a year, they could only make one or two uranium bombs, said Kune Y. Suh, a nuclear expert at Seoul National University.

The North's plan to restart the plutonium reactor looked to some like an admission that Pyongyang hasn't made much progress in its uranium enrichment program.

"Why else would it go to the trouble of a time-consuming and expensive restart to plutonium production at a known and vulnerable facility?" Thielmann asked.

___

Associated Press writers Hyung-jin Kim and Sam Kim contributed to this report.

___

Follow Foster Klug on Twitter at twitter.com/APKlug

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/north-korea-still-far-backing-nuke-threats-101223597.html

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