Reprogrammed skin cells shrink brain tumors in mice.

Scientists have created personalized tumor-homing cells from adult skin cells that can shrink brain tumors to 2% to 5% of their original size. Although the strategy has yet to be fully tested in people, the new method could one day give doctors a quick way to develop a custom treatment for aggressive cancers like glioblastoma, which kills most human patients in 12–15 months. It only took 4 days to create the tumor-homing cells for the mice. Glioblastomas are nasty because they spread roots and tendrils of cancerous cells through the brain, making them impossible to remove surgically. They, and other cancers, also exude a chemical signal that attracts stem cells—specialized cells that can produce multiple cell types in the body. Scientists think stem cells might detect tumors as a wound that needs healing and migrate to help fix the damage. But that gives scientists a secret weapon—if they can harness stem cells’ natural ability to “home” toward tumor cells, the stem cells could be manipulated to deliver cancer-killing drugs precisely where they are needed.continue

VETERINARY MEDICINE : Why large dogs live fast—and die young.

VETERINARY MEDICINE : Why large dogs live fast—and die young. For most mammals, size is a significant factor as Large ones, such as elephants and whales, live far longer than small ones like rodents. This rule is reversed in the dog kingdom as the tiny Chihuahuas, for example, can live up to 15 years which is 8 years longer than their much larger cousins, Great Danes. Now, a team of undergraduates may be closer to figuring out why this is so and the most likely reason is the more harmful oxygen free radicals in fast-growing, fuel-burning puppies. When an organism grows, its cells break down food to make the molecular fuel they need. But generating this energy can also generate an unwelcome visitor: renegade molecules called oxygen free radicals. VETERINARY MEDICINE : Why large dogs live fast—and die young. These molecules are missing electrons, and as they try to poach them from other cells in the body, they can quickly damage cell membranes and eventually contribute to cancer and other diseases. Molecules known as antioxidants neutralize these free radicals. But ultimately, the more energy a body produces, the more free radicals it makes, and consequently, the more antioxidants it needs. Some scientists think that escaped free radicals contribute to aging, although this is hotly debated. VETERINARY MEDICINE : Why large dogs live fast—and die young. To find out whether that might be true in canines, undergraduates Josh Winward and Alex Ionescu from Colgate University in Hamilton, New York, asked veterinarians for the ear clips, dewclaws, and cut-off tails of puppies and the ear clips from old dogs that had recently died. Altogether, they collected about 80 samples from large and small breeds. Working with Colgate animal physiologist Ana Jimenez, the students isolated cells from those tissues, grew the cells in a lab dish for a few weeks, and then analyzed them. continue

Pet medication is sending kids to the emergency unit.

The flea medications and heartworm pills that millions of pet lovers give to their beloved pets pose poisoning risks to any children in the home, new research warns.The report was published online in the journal Pediatrics. The study authors said just one poison center in Ohio received more than 1,400 calls for poisoning from pet medications over the course of 15 years, with 87 percent of those calls involving children under the age of 5. Poisoning occurs in several ways, the researchers explained. Toddlers can pick up pills spit out by a pet or eat food containing medications left uneaten in a food bowl. Also, kids who pet an animal being treated with a lotion or cream can get it on their hands and then put their hands into their mouths. The drugs associated with poisoning included veterinary products that have no human equivalent (17 percent), antimicrobials to kill germs (15 percent), antiparasitics to kill parasites (15 percent) and analgesics to relieve pain (11 percent). Although most poisonings were among toddlers, teenagers were also exposed to medications intended for pets, many teens mistakenly took pet medication instead of human medication. Pet medications can be very dangerous,as some pets are on chemotherapy and other drugs that can be toxic to a child.

Easy techniques for handling dogs.

Dogs are cute and cuddly but when you need to handle them for a bath,a visit to the vet or just trying to clip nails or even groom them ,then the nasty nature springs out making a mess of your efforts. Here are some tips to help handle your pets better such as When its time for a bath; to begin with coax her to the tub with treats and praise instead of chasing her down the hallway and intercepting her attempt to hide under a bed. Do your best to avoid things that can create negative associations with bathing, like getting shampoo in your dog's eyes, pouring water over her face or tugging on matted fur in the tub. Instead, use warm water, speak to her in a calming voice, brush her fur gently before and after the bath and reward her cooperation with high-value treats. Just be sure that no more than 10 percent of your dog's daily calorie intake comes from treats. Reducing the negative elements of bath-time can help turn what was once a stressful experience into a sweet bonding activity for you and your pup. continue

USAID partners private sector on agriculture.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID), in collaboration with Chi Farms and Niji Foods, has launched two new agribusiness partnerships Mission Director of USAID Nigeria, Michael T. Harvey, said: “With Nigeria’s increasing population, these programmes are vital to achieving food security and imports,” adding: “Public-private partnerships are a proven way of expanding investment in agriculture, improving both efficiency and productivity.” Through these partnerships, USAID aims to address development and business challenges to agricultural inputs and mechanisation by providing quality technical advisory services and expanded market opportunities for smallholder farmers.” These partnerships will also capitalize on the untapped potential of small-holder farmers and small processors to help grow agribusinesses, create secure jobs, and boost economic growth in Nigeria. According to operators of Chi Farms: “Recognising the need to increase Nigeria’s domestic fish production to meet growing demand and end reliance on imported fish, Chi Farms – under this partnership – will train 1,000 small-holder fish farmers in Lagos and Ogun States on new farming techniques, access to credit, and marketing skills to help raise incomes. Another partner in the agriculture project, Niji Foods, said that despite the volume of cassava processed in Nigeria and the commercial potential of cassava peel for livestock feed, there is virtually no commercially-available livestock feed made from cassava peel. Read Niji Foods, with the International Livestock Research Institute, and USAID support, is establishing three cassava peel processing centres to address this market gap, see Read more in the agriculture daily

Surgical and preoperative planning.

Materialise OrthoView planning software has been developed in conjunction with the orthopedic community and designed specifically for the needs of orthopedic surgeons. The software provides comprehensive digital templating and pre-operative planning solutions for joint reconstruction and orthopedic trauma, pediatric and spine surgeons. Use Materialise OrthoView for: 1) Hip, knee, shoulder or small joint arthroplasty. 2) Trauma and fracture management. 3) Pediatrics, including limb deformity.4) Spinal deformity. Try the software here

5 reasons to plan knee surgery digitally.

Planning is key to execution of any project in life as failure to plan is a sure way to fail. Surgical interventions are delicate and therefore optimal planning is key to success ,now with the advent of 3D printing ,planning is so much easier. The surgeon can actually prepare for the surgery by visualizing the sites and planning entry points,incision lengths and generally study the best way to carry out the procedure before the real surgery. Digitally planning a knee joint replacement procedure, or a revision, can make the surgical procedure quicker and easier to perform, and an increasing number of surgeons are using digital planning tools. Moreover, there are additional benefits for the hospital and the patient as well as the surgeon from planning knee and other orthopaedic procedures digitally. 1) Plan cases faster With software designed specifically for knee procedures, pre-operative planning becomes easier and faster because it provides everything you need in one package. Accessing the patient’s images on the PACS, selecting and sizing the prosthesis and even comparing options, takes a matter of minutes. The digital x-ray and prosthesis template library are a click away and the plan is easily saved back to the PACS for future reference during or after surgery, or to refer back to at a later date. 2) Plan cases more precisely In order to analyze the patient’s anatomy and select the most appropriate prosthesis size, the surgeon can correct the effects of x-ray magnification onscreen in various ways: with the use of a scaling marker or by selecting the known oversize of the x-ray image; but he can also zoom in to see defects and anatomical landmarks in more detail. 3) Save unnecessary costs As digital surgical planning makes it easier for the surgeon to analyze the patient’s anatomy and anticipate what they might find in surgery, it is possible to reduce the need for a huge implant inventory. By reducing the need for a large range of prosthesis options to be available in surgery, sterilization costs are reduced and there is also less potential inventory waste. 4) Improve team communication It is easy to share the pre-operative plans with the entire surgical team prior to surgery when it is on the PACS. The PACS system also allows surgeons to refer back to particular cases when the plan may be appropriate to replicate or to compare differences. Digital planning is also used extensively as a training tool for this same reason. 5) Improve patient communication Having a pre-operative plan that can be called up from the PACS and viewed on a screen during a consultation can help to clarify elements of the surgery for the patient. The doctor can discuss the surgical process with the patient, and set his/her expectations for the surgical outcome. In a worst-case scenario where complications arise post-operatively, the digital record of the surgical plan, along with notes from the surgery itself, can provide a useful reference.source