'Fossil' HIV reveals virus history

'Fossil' HIV reveals virus history
Thursday, 2 October 2008 Bianca NogradyABC

The researchers found that the HIV viral sequences from two samples, which are almost 50 years old, differ significantly in their genetic makeup (Source: iStockphoto)
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A preserved specimen of lymph node nearly half a century old has revealed how rapidly the HIV virus has diversified, according to international research.
A team of researchers from around the world has been trawling through decades-old tissue samples from African hospital archives in the hope of finding samples containing the HIV virus.
They struck it lucky with a sample that was collected back in 1960, from a woman living in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo.
This is the second-oldest sample of the HIV virus ever found - the oldest is from 1959.
The researchers found that the HIV viral sequences these two samples differ significantly in their genetic makeup.
Their finding appears in the latest issue of Nature.
Using a technique called molecular clock analysis, they were able to plot the two viral sequences' evolutionary path back in time to determine when they diverged.
They concluded the strains evolved from a common ancestor that emerged in Africa near the beginning of the twentieth century around 80 years before the disease appeared in western populations.
Fossil virus
Co-researcher and molecular palaeontologist Dr Michael Bunce, head of the Ancient DNA Laboratory at Murdoch University, Perth, says these early viral sequences tell scientists a lot about how the virus evolves.
"The more information we can find out about the evolutionary history of pathogens, [the] more we can understand how they've changed over time to adapt to humans," says Bunce.
"We can get a really good picture of those parts of the virus that are rapidly mutating and those that stay more constant."
While a 50-year-old sample seems relatively young compared to the fossil materials Bunce is used to working with, for a virus like HIV, it's ancient.
"HIV mutates so quickly that 40 to 50 years old is really akin to looking at fossil bone that's millions of years old," he says.
Extracting the viral genetic material from the samples was no easy task. The samples had been preserved in formalin, which can cause considerable damage to DNA sequences.
"What we have got is actually quite good considering the preservation status," Bunce says, but it required a lot of technological 'tweaking' to isolate the tiny snippets of DNA from the sample.
The international research team is continuing to analyse hundreds of samples in the hope of finding further HIV-positive tissue that could add more pieces to the puzzle.
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Who's MONEY is it anyway? Federal Bail Out

Since I do keep track and watch CNBC obsessively and have a small stock portfolio.. vested in ETF's, made that move this summer after watching the Yahoo versus Microsoft debacle and then the Bear Stearns failure, figure it was safer to buy the Lipper ETF's that move inversely,, lol with the market. Ok so much for the economic jargon

My humble opinion is that we need to keep the facts and figures straight here and not react with a knee jerk reaction and instead remain calm, cool and collected and do some serious technical analysis.

I watched George W. Bush last night and he really didn't say much except acknowledge that the FEDs need to so something or the entire economy was going to collapse.. OOPS, btw, Paulson should be fired now.. he doesn't need the job, so replace him with someone who does give a damn! oops now that is being emotional.
Bill Clinton actually presented an excellent analysis of what should and could be done.
and before he was on with Larry King, I said what he said,, and BTW, Bill and Hillary as he suggested,, had to have seen this coming because they are financially vested people.. to use an economic term.

More to the point, this so called Bail Out of Wall street is not a bail out and it is certainly not bailing out Wall Street, which will go on with or without the "Federal bail out or is that buy out?"
Unfortunately, AIG and Fannie and Freddie regardless of HOW they got there need to be supported by Federal dollars for the stability of the US economy. AIG insures US Property and lives all over the world (whether or not they pay any claims is another matter) and the level of intertwined infrastructure between the USA and the world would be is at this point in time, not to be unwound, therefore, AIG must be included in the buy/bail out. The ramifications of this not happening are more than I could write in this Blog.

Fannie and Freddie hold both GOOD and BAD mortgages directly or via proxy, therefore, in order to make sure the good mortgages, and I mean the regular people who got mortgages based on their credit and income must be protected. There is no way to separate out the good and bad debts in retrospect now, it is too late. A year ago when Jim Cramer and Hillary Clinton suggested to the Government a current review of the sub prime mortgage and over extended credit and lending, a blatant money grab by those institutions, they were ignored totally, which is why Jim Cramer is played over and over again screaming THEY KNOW NOTHING,,, how right he was in that case.

Yes this 700 Billion dollar bail out is needed, but it should be carefully scrutinized by Congress, and all the quid pro quos suggested by Paulson should be totally ignored.
The companies that will get the money should have apply for a specific amount of money and any CEO previously involved should NOT be allowed to be involved in the application nor counsel and they should definitely NOT be given a severance package,,, it is my humble understanding they got that last year as a Christmas bonus. :)

And yes. Senators John McCain and Obama should return to Congress and study this and vote on the biggest economic crises for our country since the New Deal,, no make that the Great Depression. About the suggestion that a debate should be held during this, if John McCain decides he wants to dedicate his mind, (the implication about his multi tasking abilities aside..give me break) and his staff and his time to this, it is his decision.
Frankly, I think Obama should also do the same thing, sometimes things of this import take full effort and time.

A 700 Billion government purchase of private companies should be carefully looked at,, no giant carte blanche handed over to unknown entities, corporations or prior CEOs.

I think that about covers it..
Have a great day :)
Grasshopper izzy

Vitamin D-receptor polymorphism may increase melanoma risk, research suggests.

Daily Diagnosis
Vitamin D-receptor polymorphism may increase melanoma risk, research suggests.
HealthDay (9/22, Preidt) reported that a paper appearing in the Nov. 1 issue of Cancer suggests that there is a "possible link between melanoma and a gene involved in vitamin D metabolism," which "has been identified by Italian researchers." Previous studies have shown "that vitamin D has significant protective effects against the development of cancer, because it regulates cells growth, cell differentiation, and cell death." There is "also evidence that sun exposure, which triggers the body to produce vitamin D, can have anti-cancer effects." HealthDay explained that "Vitamin D works by binding to a receptor in cells," and researchers at the University of Padova chose to focus on that process.
They conducted "meta-analyses of existing studies" that examined a "higher risk of developing melanoma (as well as all other cancer types), depending upon gene polymorphisms," Medscape (9/22, Mulcahy) added. Initially, they looked at seven studies that "addressed the issue of" vitamin D-receptor (VDR) gene "polymorphisms and cancer risk," but "dropped one because the data overlapped with data from another study." In the end, the six "studies provided a total of 2,152 cases and 2,410 controls." The investigators discovered that "only Bsml was significantly associated with the risk of developing melanoma," while the "other polymorphisms of the VDR gene that were studied -- FokI, TaqI, EcoRV, and Cdx2 -- were not."
In fact, "individuals with the BsmI polymorphism had a 30 percent increase in the odds ratio for melanoma," MedPage Today (9/22, Bankhead) reported. The researchers also said that "their findings are consistent indirectly with the hypothesis that the BsmI polymorphism alters interaction between 1,25[OH]2D3 and the vitamin D receptor, thereby reducing 1,25[OH]2D3 levels or activity and increasing vulnerability to melanoma." They did concede, however, "that there is no current evidence of a functional effect of the polymorphism on vitamin D metabolism or the vitamin D receptor." Still, the "current evidence is in favor of the association between one [vitamin D receptor] gene polymorphism and the risk of melanoma development, although further work will be necessary to validate the risk identified in the current meta-analysis," the investigators concluded.

Will Results of Presidential Elections Chart a New Course for the Nation’s Health Care System

Will Results of Presidential Elections Chart a New Course for the Nation’s Health Care System
With the presidential election just months away, voters are homing in on what Senators John McCain and Barack Obama are saying about the issues that impact voters’ lives. Key among their concerns is health care. In fact, the Kaiser Foundation recently reported that, “when it comes to the relative importance of different issues in deciding their vote, health care was one of the top five issues chosen by voters in three of the last four presidential elections” and is likely to be an important factor in this election as well. During the primary season, likely voters ranked health care third in order of importance behind the economy and the war in Iraq.
In the midst of clear evidence that health care matters to the electorate, how do the candidates of the two major parties propose to repair what many consider to be a “broken” health care system. Both Senators McCain and Obama propose expanding the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), which is designed to provide low-cost health insurance for children and families. In addition to assuring the children are covered, what else are the candidates putting on the table?
The Obama PlanSenator Obama proposes a national health program that will allow individuals and small businesses to buy affordable health care similar to that available to federal employees. Subsidies would be available to help with the cost of premiums for those that need assistance. Moreover, there are plans to make available a National Health Insurance Exchange to reform the private insurance market. The premise is that any American could enroll in private plans that would be required to provide comprehensive benefits, to issue every applicant a policy, and to charge fair and stable premiums. In addition to SCHIP, Senator Obama proposes to expand Medicaid and require employers to make “meaningful” contributions to the health coverage of their employees. His plan also places great emphasis on reducing costs and moving toward a public health model. For details on Senator Obama’s proposed health plan, visit his website.
The McCain PlanSenator McCain’s plan has a basic premise to provide affordable health care without a mandate, thereby reducing regulations and government intervention and increasing individual responsibility. The Senator thinks that there should be an expansion of community health centers; tax incentives for low-income Americans to be able to afford health care coverage; expansion of health care online; reform of medical malpractice; and more availability of health savings accounts. Senator McCain advocates for employers to continue to provide health care coverage to employees or increase salaries so that they might purchase individual coverage. In addition, his proposal calls for federal subsidies for high-risk health insurance pools to help those who cannot obtain private coverage because of pre-existing medical conditions or lack of any previous health coverage. For details on Senator McCain’s proposed health plan, visit his website.
Health care is indeed a high priority issue for voters and candidates alike. The issue clearly becomes how to balance costs yet at the same time provide quality, affordable health care to all. If you are interested in comparing the candidates’ proposals, take a look at the following side-by-side summary by the Kaiser Family Foundation: www.health08.org
E-Policy will report in upcoming issues on changes being made to the U.S. health care system and, most importantly, on changes that impact the field of laboratory medicine.
As a Section 501(c)(3) organization, ASCP does not endorse any candidate in any race on the national, state or local front. Although this article focuses on the health care policies of the nominees by the two major parties, it is important to note that many third-party candidates also have positions on health care issues, and their websites can be consulted for further details.

Diabetes research news

Scientists Reprogram Adult Cells' Function
Advance Stirs Up Debate on Embryos

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By Rob SteinWashington Post Staff Writer Thursday, August 28, 2008; Page A01
Scientists have transformed one type of fully developed adult cell directly into another inside a living animal, a startling advance that could lead to cures for a variety of illnesses and sidestep the political and ethical quagmires
associated with embryonic stem cell research.
Through a series of painstaking experiments involving mice, the Harvard biologists pinpointed three crucial molecular switches that, when flipped, completely convert a common cell in the pancreas into the more precious insulin-producing ones that diabetics need to survive.
The experiments, detailed online yesterday in the journal Nature, raise the prospect that patients suffering from not only diabetes but also heart disease, strokes and many other ailments could eventually have some of their cells reprogrammed to cure their afflictions without the need for drugs, transplants or other therapies.
"It's kind of an extreme makeover of a cell," said Douglas A. Melton, co-director of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, who led the research. "The goal is to create cells that are missing or defective in people. It's very exciting."
The work was hailed as a welcome development even by critics of research involving embryonic stem cells, which can be coaxed to become any tissue in the body but are highly controversial because they are obtained by destroying embryos.
"I see no moral problem in this basic technique," said Richard Doerflinger of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, a leading opponent of embryonic stems cell research. "This is a 'win-win' situation for medicine and ethics."
Researchers in the field, who have become accustomed to rapid advances, said they, too, were surprised by the advance.
"I'm stunned," said Robert Lanza, chief scientific officer of Advanced Cell Technology in Worcester, Mass., a developer of stem cell therapies. "It introduces a whole new paradigm for treating disease."
Melton and other researchers cautioned that many years of research lay ahead to prove whether the development would translate into cures.
"It's an important proof of concept," said Lawrence Goldstein, a stem cell researcher at the University of California at San Diego. "But these things always look easier on the blackboard than when you have to do them in actual patients."
Although the experiment involved mice, Melton and other researchers were optimistic that the approach would work in people.