WHAT TYPE OF VACCINE IS R21?

Scientists behind the Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus shot have produced the vaccine. "This was by far a much more difficult vaccine to make work." Adrian Hill, the Jenner Institute's director, said in northern Tanzania on a visit to field trials of the R21/Matrix-M malaria vaccine.

While the coronavirus responsible for Covid-19 has 12 genes, Plasmodium-the parasite that causes malaria - has more than 5,000 genes. It's an organism that infects the liver and bloodstream, infecting red blood cells.  Hill explains that R21/Matrix-M combines the R21 vaccine with a vaccine booster or adjuvant Matrix-M, which stimulates the human immune system to attack the parasite.  When an infectious mosquito feeds on a human being, it injects parasites in a form called sporozoites into the bloodstream, where they travel directly to the liver. The sporozoites divide rapidly, producing around 20,000 merozoites that rupture the liver cells and invade red blood cells.  R21 targets a circumsporozoite protein (CSP) present on the parasite's surface during the sporozoite stage. CSP rarely mutates among the four strains of malaria parasites that infect humans. The human body does not readily react with a complete immune response to foreign proteins. The R21 focus on CSP boosted by the proprietary Novavax adjuvant- produces a more robust, better-targeted antibody response.  Clinical trials are now moving to the third phase in four countries across Africa - Mali, Tanzania, Kenya, and Burkina Faso.

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Why is pharmaceutical pollution a problem?

A recent study by a team of researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) has found a range of pharmaceutical pollutants in the Cauvery river water. The pharmaceutical contaminants included anti-inflammatories, anti-hypertensives, enzyme inhibitors, antidepressants and antibiotics. Besides pharmaceutically-active compounds, personal care products, plastics, flame retardants, heavy metals and pesticides were found mixed with the water. This is of great concern because the Cauvery is an important river in South India, extensively used for agriculture and drinking purposes in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. While highlighting the long-term impact of such pollutants on humans and ecosystems, the study called for upgrading wastewater treatment systems to address the issue. What is pharmaceutical pollution? What can we do about it? Read on... occurrence in rivers, lakes, streams, wells and drinking water. The pollution is particularly serious in India, as it is one of the largest pharmaceutical manufacturers in the world.

Pharmaceutical pollution happens when medicinal residues from drug manufacturing plants, hospitals and homes enter waterbodies. There is a growing concern over its occurrence in rivers, lakes, streams, wells and drinking water. The pollution is particularly serious in India, as it is one of the largest pharmaceutical manufacturers in the world.

Sources

  • One of the main sources of pharmaceutical pollution are the manufacturing plants, which discharge untreated waste into the environment.
  • Humans are also to blame. Our bodies don't use 100% of the drugs we ingest. Traces of pharmaceuticals exit our bodies through excretion and sweat, which enter the water supply when we shower and flush the toilet Scientists say ineffective disposal methods, such as flushing unused medicine down the toilet, should be avoided.
  • Pharmaceutical products are also used in the animal husbandry, hence livestock industries too contribute to pharmaceutical pollution.

Impact

  • As the chemicals make their way into terrestrial and aquatic environments, they can affect the health and behaviour of wildlife, insects, fish, birds, and more.
  • An entire lifetime of exposure to pharmaceutical pollution, even in tiny concentrations, could cause health issues in humans. A study by the United Nations found that the presence of antibiotics in water contributes to the evolution of drug-resistant bacteria.
  • Scientists have observed reproductive and developmental issues in fish exposed to pharmaceutical pollution.

Solution

  • Drug companies should ensure that they treat their wastewater before dumping it into rivers.
  • Governments should upgrade wastewater treatment facilities so they can filter out pharmaceuticals.
  • People should be educated on how to dispose of unused medicines.
  • Wastewater contaminant levels should be regularly monitored for corrective action.

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How did Galen influence the world of medicine?

Galen was born in 129 AD in Pergamon, now in Turkey. Galen began to study medicine at the age of 16, after his father had a dream in which he was told to make his son a physician.

Galen was the first physician to draw from the fields of philosophy and medicine to treat his patients. Combining his own discoveries and those of physicians before him, he developed a medical doctrine that dominated Europe and the Middle East for 15 centuries!

Galen believed that the best way to learn about medicine was through anatomy. Since human dissection was banned, he performed dissections on monkeys and pigs. His theories were not always correct. He proved that arteries and veins carried blood but believed that blood was made in the liver. He advocated the routine use of bloodletting to treat patients. In some cases this led to the death of the patient! Despite his flawed anatomical research, he was very influential and continued as the personal physician to three Roman emperors. He compiled and consolidated his research and was a prolific writer, which is why we know so much about him.

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Who was Pedanius Dioscorides and why was he remarkable?

Pedanius Dioscorides was a Greek physician who was born in 40 AD in Cilicia, Asia Minor. He studied medicine in Tarsus, Turkey and developed an interest in botany and pharmacology whilst at school. He served as a surgeon in the Roman emperor Nero’s army which enabled him to travel extensively. He collected samples of plants and minerals and studied their features, distribution and medicinal properties.

He consolidated his knowledge into a monumental five-book volume called De Materia Medica which deals with descriptions of nearly 600 plants and their uses and lists around 1,000 medicinal drugs. One-fifth of these remedies are still considered to be effective.

His seminal work was translated into 7 languages and remained the prime authority in the field of pharmacology in Europe and the Middle East for 16 centuries!

The plant genus Dioscorea and a butterfly called Ampittia dioscorides, which is found in India and China, are named after him.

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Why is Hippocrates known as the ‘Father of Western Medicine’?

Hippocrates was born in 460 BC on the Greek island of Cos. He was the first physician in the Western world who believed that diseases were caused by natural phenomena and not because of superstitions and angry deities. He was instrumental in separating religious elements from the field of medicine and argued that diseases were a product of environment, diet, lifestyle and genetics and not a result of the anger of gods and evil spirits.

He believed in clinical observation, prognosis based on past case studies and the categorization of diseases according to available data. He was the first physician to describe the symptoms of pneumonia and epilepsy in children. His treatment was based on patient immobilization, rest, a good diet, fresh air and cleanliness.

Hippocrates introduced ethics into the field of medicine and also was the first physician to advocate the importance of patient confidentiality. His ideas and beliefs were condensed into an oath called the ‘Hippocratic Oath’. That is a promise that all doctors have to make before they start their practice. It enshrines the code of ethics they have to follow throughout their medical careers.

For his enormous contribution to the world of medicine and his concern for the welfare of patients, Hippocrates is considered the ‘Father of Western Medicine’.

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Who were the people who first introduced diagnosis in medicine?

The Babylonians, along with the ancient Egyptians, were the first people to introduce the concept of diagnosis in medicine. An extensive medical compilation called the ‘Diagnostic Handbook’ existed in Babylon in the middle of the 11th century BC. This treatise described the symptoms of 3,000 different illnesses with their likely outcome or prognosis.

There was however a mix of rational elements as well as magical elements in the Babylonian diagnostic method. They observed the symptoms of the disease in great detail and its progression, but relied on spiritual treatment along with physical treatments.

The Babylonians believed that illness was the result of evil spirits attacking the body and that the health of a person depended on the battle between good and evil. Treatment therefore consisted of giving the patient medicines, often made from mustard, turpentine, pine and herbs; as well as chanting incantations and spells to get rid of the bad spirits.

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When were pills invented?

A visit to the doctor is never complete without a prescription for pills or tablets. Bitter or sweet, they are an integral part of treatment all over the world today. Have you ever wondered how and when pills were invented?

Before pills, medicines were administered in liquid form. The first pills are believed to date back to 1,500 BC. The earliest reference to pills was found in a set of ancient Egyptian papyruses. According to them, medicinal ingredients were mixed with bread, oil or honey and shaped into tiny balls. In ancient Greece such medicines were called ‘katapotia’, which means something to be swallowed. The Roman scholar, Pliny first called such medicines ‘pilula’ meaning ‘ball’ in Latin.

In medieval times pills were coated with slimy substances to make them easier to swallow. Some pills were even coated in gold and silver! Such pills were called gilded pills. In the 17th century, pills became popular in England and pill makers were granted special patent rights from the king. This meant that their top secret pill formulas were protected by law.

In the 1800s pills began to be sugar-coated and gelatine capsules were invented. In 1843, a British artist and watchmaker named William Brockedon invented a machine to compress and shape pills into the modern form that we see them in today. This machine was able to compress powder into the shape of a tablet without the use of an adhesive. Brockedon’s invention was a precursor to the modern-day pharmaceutical industry.

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Did ketchup work as a medicine?

You read it right. It was way back in 1834 that a doctor named John Cooke Bennet added tomatoes to ketchup and claimed that his concoction had medicinal properties that his diseases such as diarrhea, indigestion and rheumatism. Following this, tomato sauce and related products were sold as a form of medication.

We've all eaten ketchup, and know that's clearly all nonsense, but until 1850, people were flocking to ketchup to cure their ills.

The reason this scam eventually ended was because imitators started making their own bootleg ketchup medicine, making even crazier claims, saying it'd cure scurvy and mended bones, and people eventually started calling bullshit.

Tomatoes do carry antioxidants and vitamin C, but don't expect to chug a bottle of ketchup and feel like a million bucks after. 

 

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How do inhalers help?



Inhalers deliver medicine you need straight to your lungs. It goes without saying then, that they're used for conditions which affect your lungs, of which by far the most common are asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).



Because the medicine goes straight to where it's needed, you only need tiny amounts compared to the dose you'd need to take of the same medicine in tablet form. That means fewer side effects and more effective treatment - as long as you take them properly.



Preventer inhalers don't work as fast as relievers, but they're just as important. If your symptoms aren't controlled by using occasional puffs of your reliever medicine, you'll be advised to take a preventer inhaler to stop symptoms happening in the first place. Different ones work in different ways, but their roles include reducing inflammation in the airways and opening the airways up.



They need to be taken every day for full effect, and can both prevent wheeze and improve your ability to get around and exercise. They can also reduce your risk of a severe attack needing hospital admission. In asthma, the most common preventer inhalers contain small doses of steroid. You may also get a long-acting version of a reliever medicine to take to relieve your symptoms over 12 or even 24 hours.



 



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What is the main cause in the development of drug-resistant pathogens?



The main cause of antibiotic resistance is antibiotic use. When we use antibiotics, some bacteria die but resistant bacteria can survive and even multiply. The overuse of antibiotics makes resistant bacteria more common. 



The more we use antibiotics, the more chances bacteria have to become resistant to them. This means that antibiotics won’t work when we need them in the future. If we decrease antibiotic use, the antibiotics may again become effective at killing bacteria.



Most microbes reproduce by dividing every few hours, allowing them to evolve rapidly and adapt quickly to new environmental conditions. During replication, mutations arise and some of these mutations may help an individual microbe survive exposure to an antimicrobial.



The use of antimicrobials, even when used appropriately, creates a selective pressure for resistant organisms. However, there are additional societal pressures that act to accelerate the increase of antimicrobial resistance.



Selection of resistant microorganisms is exacerbated by inappropriate use of antimicrobials. Sometimes healthcare providers will prescribe antimicrobials inappropriately, wishing to placate an insistent patient who has a viral infection or an as-yet undiagnosed condition.



 



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What are capsule covers made of traditionally?



Gelatin capsules, informally called gel caps or gelcaps, are composed of gelatin manufactured from the collagen of animal skin or bone.



Vegetable capsules, introduced in 1989, are made up of cellulose, an important structural component in plants. To be more specific, the main ingredient of vegetarian capsule is hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose (HPMC). In the current market, gelatin capsule is more broadly used than vegetarian capsule because its cost of production is lower



The process of encapsulation of hard gelatin capsules can be done on manual, semi-automatic, and automatic capsule filling machines. hard gelatin capsules are manufactured by the dipping method which is dipping, rotation, drying, stripping, trimming, and joining. Softgels are filled at the same time as they are produced and sealed on the rotary die of a fully automatic machine. Capsule fill weight is a critical attribute in encapsulation and various real-time fill weight monitoring techniques such as near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) and vibrational spectroscopy are used, as well as in-line weight checks, to ensure product quality.



A new class of capsule has been developed whereby drugs can be embedded in the capsule shell matrix. This allows different drugs to be delivered using the same capsule. The drug might be in a solubilized form, suspended form or chemically bound form in the capsule shell matrix. The drug can be in the cap of the capsule, body of the capsule or in both body and cap of the capsule. One can embed more than one drug in the capsule shell matrix. The drug can be in the dissolved and suspended form in the capsule shell matrix. Thus, one can create various types of variations in these "drug-embedded capsules". The rate of release of drug can vary based on the way drug is embedded in the capsule shell matrix and drug properties.



 



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What do pain relievers do?



Pain is painful, but it isn't all bad. It's your body's early warning system that something is wrong, so you can take steps to correct the problem. For example, if you couldn't feel pain, and you had your hand on a hot stove, you wouldn't know your hand was burning. Because of pain, your brain gets the message to get your hand off the stove right away!



When you take a pain reliever like ibuprofen, it keeps injured or damaged cells from making and releasing prostaglandin. When the cells don't release this chemical, it means that the brain won't get the pain message as quickly or clearly. So your pain goes away or becomes less severe for as long as the cells aren't releasing the chemical. Acetaminophen works in the brain so you don't feel the pain.



If you ever have an operation or another health problem that causes a lot of pain, doctors may prescribe pain relievers that are stronger than acetaminophen and ibuprofen. These types of pain relievers work by getting in between the nerve cells so they can't transmit the pain message to one another. The message isn't able to make it to the brain, and this keeps the person from feeling pain.



 



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Is sun gazing good for your eyes?



We all agree that sunlight is essential and beneficial when exposed to in moderation. However, we’re told not to look at the sun directly and rightly so. The sun’s light is too bright and can damage the eyes. However, a physician called Bates believed otherwise. He claimed that many of patients’ vision improved tremendously thanks to his sun-gazing recommendations. Incidentally, the gentleman also believed that spectacles were unnecessary and even harmful to the eyes!



Bates cautioned that, just like one should not run a marathon without training. one should not look directly at the sun without training. Bates suggested exposing the white part or sclera to direct sunlight for a few seconds and he taught exposing the direct sun on closed eyelids.

In his book, Perfect Sight Without Glasses, Bates described a treatment using a magnifying glass to focus sunlight on the closed lid of an eye. He advised patients to expose the closed eyes to direct sunlight for at least 3 minutes a day and on dark days Bates advised using an infrared light source for “sunning” indoors. Sunning was advised to help refractive problems like nearsightedness and farsightedness but also for glaucoma, cataracts and macular degeneration.



 



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What happens in a rebirthing session?



For those who philosophically ponder how it would work out if you could be born all over again, there’s a therapy just for that. While most times, rebirthing therapy focuses on quick and shallow breathing over a couple of hours, it could go beyond that, too. For instance, some therapists will put you in an enclosed space to mimic the womb and ask you to find your way out of it.



With your instructor’s supervision, you’ll practice “circular breathing” — quick, shallow breaths without any breaks between an inhale and an exhale. You’ll do this for one to two hours, taking breaks if you need to.



During this time, participants are told to expect a release of emotions or a triggering of difficult memories from childhood.



The goal of this type of breathing is to inhale energy as well as oxygen. Practitioners of rebirthing claim that by breathing in energy, you’re healing your body.



Your session may consist of only breathwork, or it may include other techniques.



Some practitioners simulate birth by putting you in an enclosed environment meant to resemble a womb and coaching you to escape from it. This may involve blankets, pillows, or other materials.



Another popular method of rebirthing involves submerging yourself in a bathtub or hot tub and using a breathing device such as a snorkel to stay underwater.



 



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How do you use the Gua Sha scraping tool?



Gua sha or “coining” involves the use of a blunt tool to scrape the skin to relieve different ailments, ranging from headache to fever, by releasing all the negative energies. The tool could be a coin, jade crystal (blunt) or buffalo horn. As you’ll expect, this not only caused extensive skin scraping but also an immense amount of pain. Suddenly, the headache doesn’t seem so bad – a pain balm and a pillow sounds so much better!



In gua sha, a technician scrapes your skin with short or long strokes to stimulate microcirculation of the soft tissue, which increases blood flow. They make these strokes with a smooth-edged instrument known as a gua massage tool. The technician applies massage oil to your skin, and then uses the tool to repeatedly scrape your skin in a downward motion.



Gua sha is intended to address stagnant energy, called chi, in the body that practitioners believe may be responsible for inflammation. Inflammation is the underlying cause of several conditions associated with chronic pain. Rubbing the skin’s surface is thought to help break up this energy, reduce inflammation, and promote healing.



 



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