Archive for January, 2020

Compared to the low-fat craze in the '90s, the ketogenic diet seems to go against all diet logic. Because instead of cutting out fat, you eat large amounts of it for every meal.

And research shows that this diet can be effective and help fight diseases related to obesity. That said, the keto diet is not for everyone. Here's what you need to know.

The ketogenic diet was first introduced in the 1920s as a way to treat epilepsy, a seizure disorder. Medical professionals used the diet for two decades until modern epilepsy drugs were developed and it fell out of favor by the 1950s.

That was it for the keto diet for over half a century. Then, about 15 years ago, the diet reemerged. This time as a treatment for obesity and type 2 diabetes.

But even people who are not obese or have type 2 diabetes have adopted the ketogenic diet at some point, including celebrities like Halle Berry, Vaness Hudgens, and LeBron James.

The way it works is that you eat mostly fat and very few carbohydrates. A typical ketogenic diet consists of 75% fat, 20% protein, and 5% carbs. Compared to the average American diet which is 33% fat, 16% protein, and 51% carbs. On keto, common foods include:

When you follow the keto diet, your body stops relying on carbs as the main source of energy, which sends your body into ketosis. Ketosis is when your metabolism changes to burn fat for energy instead. This can lead to a loss of body fat, which can help prevent or improve medical conditions related to obesity like type 2 diabetes.

That's because, on keto, your body may also become more sensitive to insulin, a hormone that helps balance your blood sugar. A 2017 review of nine studies found that people with type 2 diabetes on a low-carb diet generally could control their blood glucose levels better than diabetes patients on either a normal or high-carb diet.

When following the keto diet, weight loss can vary from person to person, says Jeff Volek, a registered dietitian and professor at Ohio State University. "When people with excess weight start a ketogenic diet, they typically lose about 6 to 8 pounds the first week, then about 1 to 2 pounds per week thereafter," Volek says.

However, some people who go on keto reportedly suffer from some initial side effects including:

The initial weight loss is partly due to losing water weight because you tend to retain less water on a low-carb diet. And some studies suggest that you may not continue to lose weight on keto long-term. Some call this the "keto plateau" which is when you stop losing weight altogether.

Volek says that the keto diet is safe for many people to try and that it may mimic the way early humans ate. However, Volek says that in some cases, you should proceed with caution. "If you have diabetes and are using diabetes medications to control blood sugar, you should work closely with your physician in order to adjust medications appropriately."

The keto diet can be very restrictive and may be difficult for people to stick to, says Little. "The average 'healthy' person probably does not need to follow a keto diet but they could probably benefit from reducing their intake of refined/processed carbohydrates."

Keto isn't necessarily for everyone. Take kids, for example. Nutritionists recently told Insider that putting children or teens on the keto diet or basically any restrictive diet can lead to nutritional deficiencies and eating disorders.

Moreover, keto isn't great long-term if you have, or are at risk of, heart rhythm problems. A large 2019 study, published by the American College of Cardiology, that involved medical records of nearly 14,000 people reported that people who don't consume many grains, fruits, and starchy vegetables for years at a time, are at a higher risk of developing a heart condition called AFib.

Even if you're otherwise healthy, long-term keto could lead to vitamin B and C deficiencies, since many foods rich in these vitamins like beans, legumes, and fruit are also high in carbs. And if you're not getting the right nutrients, keto may actually lead you to gain weight, not lose it.

Bottom line: The keto diet is not for everyone and you should speak with a certified nutritionist before starting it, especially if you have a medical condition that the diet may affect.

Originally posted here:
Everything you need to know about the keto diet - INSIDER

The start of 2020 marks my ten-year anniversary at Xodus, and Im pleased to say that the future is the brightest and most promising that its been throughout my decade with the company. We have more projects than ever, an engaged positive workforce and a strong desire to help and support both clients and colleagues.

Over the last two years our Scottish team has grown from 140 to more than 200 people. In addition to investing in senior personnel in specialist positions, we have once again taken on a range of graduates as we look to the future.

The recruitment of experts is key when engaging with new and existing clients and of course new energy areas. This means that our capability is not only wider but is becoming much deeper too.

Our new development work increased in 2019 with further projects in the pipeline for 2020. We are now working with more operators than ever with the addition of several new players entering the North Sea market. Its fair to say that theres no such thing as an easy tieback these days but what we do best is guide clients to the most effective solution. Most of our recent work has consisted of highly complex or extremely marginal projects.

As we look longer-term, creating the right energy mix is growing momentum, especially off the back of Offshore Europe in September where it was a major talking point.

The key for the North Sea is keeping the major mature hubs running while new resources and technologies are developed. We have been involved in life extension studies and are looking at effective ways to introduce new power sources. Combining new into old is something we are doing well within the North Sea, purely down to the fact we understand all the components to answer the question fully.

Investment in innovation internally is changing our mindset. We have continued to develop digital solutions for clients as we aim to make their operations more efficient. Our integrity management system, XAMIN, is an example of the uptake of digitalisation by the basin and has now expanded to five UKCS operators, one Dutch sector operator and is branching out from its subsea origins to cover topsides pressure systems, structures, moorings and marine.

Our advisory team is also expecting an increase in activity in 2020 while longer-term, our focus on being a leading energy consultancy is influencing our plans for the next five years as we look at further investment in capability and geography.

Our company values are trust, responsibility and excellence and I think about these every day whether its through recruitment, working with a new client or talking with individuals within Xodus. Its something Ill continue to work to as I approach my second decade.

Andrew Wylie, Operations Director, Scotland and Norway at Xodus Group

View post:
Future looks bright as anniversary approaches - News for the Oil and Gas Sector - Energy Voice

Wall Street analysts expect that Sealed Air Corp (NYSE:SEE) will report earnings of $0.74 per share for the current quarter, according to Zacks. Three analysts have provided estimates for Sealed Airs earnings. The lowest EPS estimate is $0.72 and the highest is $0.76. Sealed Air reported earnings of $0.75 per share in the same quarter last year, which indicates a negative year-over-year growth rate of 1.3%. The business is scheduled to announce its next quarterly earnings report on Thursday, February 6th.

On average, analysts expect that Sealed Air will report full-year earnings of $2.78 per share for the current financial year, with EPS estimates ranging from $2.75 to $2.80. For the next financial year, analysts expect that the firm will post earnings of $3.00 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $2.82 to $3.20. Zacks Investment Researchs EPS calculations are an average based on a survey of sell-side analysts that follow Sealed Air.

Sealed Air (NYSE:SEE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. Sealed Air had a net margin of 7.55% and a negative return on equity of 135.60%. The businesss revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.61 EPS.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Sealed Air from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. ValuEngine raised shares of Sealed Air from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note on Friday. Robert W. Baird reissued a buy rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of Sealed Air in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Wells Fargo & Co reissued a hold rating on shares of Sealed Air in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, KeyCorp raised shares of Sealed Air from an underweight rating to a sector weight rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Sealed Air presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $44.33.

Sealed Air stock opened at $38.87 on Friday. The companys 50 day simple moving average is $38.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $41.14. The company has a market capitalization of $6.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.00. Sealed Air has a 1 year low of $34.45 and a 1 year high of $47.13.

In other Sealed Air news, CFO James M. Sullivan acquired 5,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $38.75 per share, for a total transaction of $193,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 17,028 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $659,835. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.53% of the companys stock.

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Doyle Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Sealed Air in the second quarter valued at approximately $40,000. CSat Investment Advisory L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Sealed Air by 34.1% in the second quarter. CSat Investment Advisory L.P. now owns 1,234 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sealed Air by 556.0% in the third quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 1,804 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 1,529 shares in the last quarter. Massey Quick Simon & CO. LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sealed Air in the third quarter valued at approximately $96,000. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Sealed Air by 51.4% in the second quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 2,894 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $124,000 after purchasing an additional 983 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.05% of the companys stock.

Sealed Air Company Profile

Sealed Air Corporation provides food safety and security, and product protection solutions worldwide. It operates in two segments, Food Care and Product Care. The Food Care segment offers integrated packaging materials and equipment solutions to provide food safety, shelf life extension, and total cost optimization for perishable food processors in the fresh red meat, smoked and processed meats, poultry, and dairy markets under the Cryovac, Cryovac Grip & Tear, Cryovac Darfresh, Cryovac Mirabella, Simple Steps, and Optidure brands.

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$0.74 EPS Expected for Sealed Air Corp (NYSE:SEE) This Quarter - Riverton Roll

Fleetwood Macs Stevie Nicks: Did she help to inspire Daisy Jones and the Six?GETTY IMAGES

FICTION

Frankissstein: A Love Story by Jeanette Winterson A trans woman doctor starts an affair with the scientist Victor Stein, who is planning to reanimate the head of a man frozen in a cryonics facility. The recently divorced Ron Lord is marketing talking sex dolls for lonely men. And in 1816 Mary Shelley is plotting a new novel . . . This fast-paced tale has fun with the Frankenstein story.Vintage, 8.99

Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid A rocknroll soap opera. The rise and drug-addled fall of a fictional pop group definite shades of Fleetwood Mac told in glorious Seventies detail.Arrow, 8.99

Reasons to be Cheerful by Nina Stibbe Nina Stibbe won the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse prize for comic literature

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Originally posted here:
The best paperbacks coming out in January - The Times

Abstract / Synopsis:

Google-Ascension deal ignites private data debate

It is a capital mistake to theorize before you have all the evidence. Sherlock Holmes, A Study in Scarlet

I was invited to participate in a recent panel about emerging trends in the future of healthcare. Artificial intelligence, telemedicine, gene therapy, and immuno-oncology are all fascinating scientific advances that people like to think about.

As we enter another election cycle, some politicians are calling for dramatic overhauls of the U.S. healthcare system. This includes price controls and European-style, mandatory single-payer governmental insurance (Medicare for All), which suggest the possibility of enormous change in how this huge industry works.

Previously by Dr. McDonnell: The problem with patient reviews

The panel discussion was moving along in a reasonable way and the audience of a few hundred seemed to be listening closely. Each panelist would address the question asked of him or her and the room was otherwise fairly quiet. If the moderator or a panelist inserted a little humor into the discussion, the audience would laugh politely, but that was about it.

Then a question was asked of one of my fellow panelists: There is tremendous interest in many sectors (insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies, researchers, etc.) in obtaining and analyzing the healthcare data of large numbers of patients. My question to you is: Who owns that data?

The panelist, an executive of a medical device manufacturer, responded quickly. Patients own their data. After a one-second pause, the audience, previously quiet, burst into loud applause.

People clearly care a great deal about this issue, was my immediate thought.

Related: Hospital closures hurt

The recent revelation about the existence of Project Nightingale and the ensuing uproar were both interesting and predictable. The Wall Street Journal reported that Google began the project in secret last year with St. Louis-based Ascension, a Catholic chain of 2,600 hospitals, doctors offices and other facilities and the second largest health system in the United States.

The data involved in the initiative encompasses lab results, doctor diagnoses and hospitalization records, among other categories, and amounts to a complete health history, including patient names and dates of birth. Neither patients nor doctors have been notified. At least 150 Google employees already have access to much of the data on tens of millions of patients.

As I understand it, based on news reports I have read, Ascensions position maintains that analyzing the data using artificial intelligence and machine learning will result in strategies to ultimately improve care of patients. The assertion is that the use of the data for this purpose is legal and ethical, and the companies did not need to secure permission from patients to start mining the data and did not need to inform its doctors that this huge data mining project was under way.

Not everyone else is so sure. According to Ellen Clayton, professor biomedical ethics at Vanderbilt University, the optics are bad.

The legal argument is tenuous, she said. Ethically, this is a bad strategy. They need to tell people what they are doing.

Related: How AI benefits patients and physicians

U.S. senatorsincluding Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican who is a physicianare expressing concern about the program, calling for a moratorium or investigation or proposing legislation.

Again, according to The Wall Street Journal, Google wouldnt disclose the financial terms of the deal with Ascension. Nor would it say who at Google is allowed to access the data.

Lets presume the motives of all involved in Project Nightingale are pure. That does not change the fact that Americans do not want their data shared in secret deals. Having this program come to light this way was a mistake by both corporations.

Read more editorials here

References:

1.Googles Project Nightingale Gather Personal Health Data on Millions of Americans. WSJ. Nov 11, 2019

Original post:
Perils of Project Nightingale - Ophthalmology Times

Besides telemedicine, other technologies like wearables, robotic surgery and cutting-edge genomic technology will continue to trend in 2020.

Fremont, CA: Telemedicine will be the root cause for the next level of development in the industry. It addresses the basic need of consumers who crave for convenience. The driving force behind ride services like Uber and online shopping from Amazon also come home for health care technology stocks in 2020.

Imagine a scenario where a patient suffers from a severe illness. Telemedicine allows the patient to interact with the doctor virtually from home without needing an appointment. Telemedicine is taking off in a big way with which medicine and care have become a service. They provide the technology to enable remote care. An example would be a remote doctor and patient visit over the phone or internet via videoconferencing. This technology can also lift other existing healthcare technology services like medicine delivery, videoconferencing therapy options and many more. No doubt that health care technology companies will benefit from the trend.

There is still room for other technologies like wearables, robotic surgery and cutting-edge genomic technology. Wearables include the health tracking watches that continuously monitor patients health parameters. Meanwhile, related health care technology devices like WiFi-enabled scales and food-tracking apps are feeding directly into certain wearables. It is evident when patients with diabetes see better glucose-monitoring devices and insulin pumps in the same vein.

Intuitive Surgical leads the robotic surgery space, but also it faces rivalries from other health care technology companies. Several companies are already getting into this space, and still, there is a huge opportunity for health care technology companies working in spine, orthopedics and cancer. A group of companies are experimenting with computer vision and tiny instruments to drive into the lungs and detect cancer cells.

Gone are the days when it would have cost $2.7 billion for scientists to set out to sequence the human genome. Today, consumers can have a gene of their DNA read at a reduced cost. This would open up a new powerful tool in cancer diagnosis and research. Frequent genomic analyses can easily detect mutations associated with cancer can be diagnosed at an early stage through gene mutation in specific cells.

Therefore, 2020 will be the year for different technologies like wearables, robotic surgery and cutting-edge genomic technology other than telemedicine.

See the rest here:
Will 2020 be the Year of Telemedicine? - Medical Tech Outlook

Colleen LeCours lay in a hospital bed at the General campus of The Ottawa Hospital on August 12, 2016, waiting for the only thing that could save her life a stem cell transplant from a stranger.

The donor could be anywhere in the world if a related blood donor cant be found, the call to find a match goes out to registries all over the globe and the donated stem cells are rushed across international borders.

What LeCours didnt know is that her donor, an 18-year-old Carleton University student named Timothy White, was just one floor below. Similarly, White didnt know that his recipient was in the same hospital.

There are currently more than 450,000 people on the Canadian Blood Services Stem Cell Registry formerly known as OneMatch and 36 million on affiliated international registries. Still, some people never find a match. There are more than 900 Canadians in need of a transplant who have not found a match anywhere in the world.

What were the odds that the match for LeCours, now 57, would be found in the same city?

Astronomical, she said.

The chances that White would even ever be asked to donate were also very low only about one in a thousand. After he agreed to donate, he was not told where the recipient might be. I was told the recipient could be anywhere. They could be in Africa, said White, now 22 and a recent graduate in computer science.

White had signed up for the registry through a cheek swab booth at ComiCon less than six months earlier. A smart place to recruit would-be stem cell donors, he notes. The optimal donor is a male between the age of 17 and 35 and thats the ComiCon demographic.

He decided to register as a potential donor because he grew up in the scouting movement. One of the main philosophies is to do a good turn every day, he said.

The donation was a non-surgical procedure in which Whites blood was removed though a needle, the stem cells were separated from his blood and the remaining blood components returned to his body through another needle. The procedure started at about 8 a.m. and was over by about 5 p.m.

I figured if I gave someone a day for a thousand more days (of life) then I felt it was a fair trade. I have many years of life. Why not spend one day? said White.

LeCourss medical journey started in 2009 with an emergency room visit for abdominal pain. She was eventually diagnosed with Stage 4 follicular lymphoma, a blood cancer that affects infection-fighting white blood cells. At the time, LeCours was working for Gov.-Gen. Michalle Jean and was able to stay on the job most of the time during her six months of treatment.

Four years later, the lymphoma returned. It was back again two years after that, in a more aggressive form. The only treatment was stem cell transplant.

There are two main kinds of stem cell transplants autologous and allogenic. In an autologous transplant, stem cells are collected from a patients own blood and reintroduced after being treated to remove cancer cells. In an allogenic stem cell transplant, the stem cells come from a donor.

At this point, LeCours was a candidate for an autologous transplant. Once again, she underwent aggressive chemotherapy. A year later, the cancer returned.

Doctors told LeCours there wasnt much else they could do and advised her to get her affairs in order. But the hospitals transplant team felt she could be a candidate for an allogenic transplant. Theres risk rejecting donated stem cells can be fatal to the patient.

LeCours learned that her brother was a match. But the medical work-up would last about three months and she couldnt wait that long.

I wasnt sure I wanted to do it but I didnt have much choice, she said. They said, We have someone waiting in the wings.

And I said, He probably has wings.

After the transplant, LeCours recovered as an outpatient in the home of her brother and sister-in-law. It took three months to rebuild her immune system. Her only rejection symptoms were a bit of skin irritation.

In January 2018, LeCours received an email asking if she would like to exchange contact information with her donor. She replied that she would.

A few months later, she got a message with Whites co-ordinates and was astonished to find that her donor was in Ottawa. It took her a few weeks to formulate an email.

I didnt want to scare him. I just wanted him to know how incredibly grateful I was. And I wanted to pay it forward, said LeCours.

After careful consideration, she sent White an email on Oct. 8, 2018.

Today, being Thanksgiving, I have so much to be thankful for, namely you giving your stem cells and saving my life and the success of the stem cells grafting to my bone marrow, LeCours wrote. I cant thank you enough for your wonderful selfless act.

Stem cell donor 18-year-old Carleton University student Timothy White at The Ottawa Hospital, General campus, donating stem cells for Colleen LeCours in August 2016. At the time he did not know that LeCours would be the recipient. Courtesy Timothy White.jpg

She added that she didnt know anything about him except for his name and email address, and asked if they could meet. They got together for the first time over lunch in a burger restaurant.

As soon as I saw him, I broke down, said LeCours.

It has been three and a half years since the transplant and LeCours remains in remission. She invited White to her familys Thanksgiving this year, and the two meet to catch up every few months. Its one of the quirks of stem cell donation that the recipient assumes the blood type of the donor. LeCours, once O-positive, now has blood type A-negative, like White.

Im a grandmother. The fact that my grandson has his moma is huge.

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Link:
What are the odds? Stem cell recipient learns her donor is also in Ottawa - Ottawa Citizen

HUNTINGTON Serucell Corporation, a cosmeceutical company based in Huntington, has developed the worlds only dual-cell technology to create and produce anti-aging skincare products, and they did it in Huntington.

Serucell KFS Cellular Protein Complex Serum is made start to finish at Serucells laboratory on the south side of Huntington.

This has been one of the best kept secrets in West Virginia, said Cortland Bohacek, executive chairman and a co-founder of Serucell Corporation.

The company soft launch was in September 2018 at The Greenbrier Spas. The Official online launch was April 2019 and is getting exposure with some well known sellers like Neiman Marcus, local dermatologist and plastic surgeons offices and several other retail locations from New York to California. It is also sold online at serucell.com.

One person that has tried the product is Jennifer Wheeler, who is also a Huntington City Council member.

As a consumer I have an appreciation of the quality of the product and the results Ive seen using it, she said. It has been transformative for my skin and seems like its success will be transformative for our city as well.

She said Serucell and the people behind it are impressive on every level.

In my role on council, Im especially grateful for the companys conscious effort to stay and grow in our city, Wheeler said.

A one-ounce bottle of the serum costs $225. The recommended usage is twice per day and it will last on average of about six weeks.

Serucells active ingredient is called KFS (Keratinocyte Fibroblast Serum), which is made up of more than 1,500 naturally derived super proteins, collagens, peptides and signaling factors that support optimal communication within the cellular makeup of your skin.

This is the first and only dual-cell technology that optimizes hydration and harnesses the power of both keratinocytes and fibroblasts, two essential contributors to maintaining healthy skin by supporting natural rejuvenation of aging skin from the inside out, said Jennifer Hessel, president and CEO of the company.

When applied to the skin, KFS helps boost the skins natural ability to support new collagen and elastin, strengthen the connection and layer of support between the upper and lower layers of your skin. The result, over time is firmer, plumper and smoother skin, according to Hessel.

Why it works so naturally with your skin is because it is natural, Hessel said. These proteins play an important role in strengthening the bond between the layers of your skin, and thats where the re-boot happens.

KFS is the creation of Dr. Walter Neto, Serucells chief science officer and co-founder of the company. Neto is both a physician and a research scientist, specializing in the field of regenerative medicine with an emphasis on skin healing and repair.

Neto said Serucells technology unlocks the key to how our cells communicate and harnesses the signaling power actions to produce the thousands of bioactive proteins necessary to support the skins natural rejuvenation.

Originally from Brazil, Neto studied at Saint Matthews University and completed his clinical training in England. His clinical research on stem-cell cancer therapies, bone and tissue engineering and wound and burn healing led to his discovery in cell-to-cell communication, and ultimately the creation of Serucells KFS Cellular Protein Complex Serum.

Neto received multiple patents for the production method of Serucell KFS Serum. He lives in Huntington with his wife and four golden retrievers and works alongside his longtime friend, Dr. Brett Jarrell.

I have known Brett since I was 18 years old, Neto said.

Jarrell practices emergency medicine in Ashland, Kentucky, and oversees all aspects of quality control for Serucell. He received his bachelors degree in biology from Wittenberg University, his masters degree in biology from Marshall University and his medical degree from the Marshall University School of Medicine. Jarrell completed his residency at West Virginia University and is board certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine.

Jarrell has served as a clinical instructor of emergency medicine at the Marshall School of Medicine, president of the West Virginia chapter of the American College of Emergency Medicine and he has published a number of peer-reviewed journal articles on stroke research.

Jarrell also lives in Huntington.

Another co-founder of the company is Dr. Tom McClellan.

McClellan is Serucells chief medical officer and director of research and is a well-respected plastic and reconstructive surgeon with a private practice, McClellan Plastic Surgery, in Morgantown.

McClellan completed his plastic and reconstructive surgery training at the world-renowned Lahey Clinic Foundation, a Harvard Medical School and Tufts Medical School affiliate in Boston, Massachusetts. While in Boston, he worked at Lahey Medical Center, Brigham and Womens Hospital, as well as at the Boston Childrens Hospital. McClellan is board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery.

In addition to his practice and role at Serucell, McClellan utilizes his surgical skills through pro bono work with InterplastWV, a non-profit group that provides comprehensive reconstructive surgery to the developing world. He has participated in surgical missions to Haiti, Peru and the Bahamas.

McClellan lives in Morgantown with his family.

All three doctors here have strong connections to West Virginia, and we didnt want to leave, Neto said. We all want to give back to West Virginia, so that is the main reason we have our business here in Huntington.

We are building a company we believe can make a difference in the community, Hessel added. Our goal is to grow Serucell and build our brand right here in Huntington. There is a pool of untapped talent here in Huntington. When we expand our business here, we can provide another reason for young people to be able to stay and grow their careers, whether it is in science, operations or manufacturing. The team is a pretty excited to make an impact in the community where it all started.

Hessel decline to give sales numbers, but said the business has been growing each year since the product was introduced. She also declined to give the number of employees at the facility, but did say it has sales representatives across the country.

Link:
Firm adds a new wrinkle to anti-aging products - Williamson Daily News

3 January 2020

Victoria Beckham aims to "create a brand of the future" with Victoria Beckham Beauty.

Victoria Beckham

The former Spice Girl launched her eponymous beauty brand last year, later expanding her label to include skincare, and the 45-year-old fashion designer says her intention was to create products that are sustainable and not made from toxic formulas, whilst being "inclusive" for all skin tones.

The mother-of-four told the February issue of Harper's Bazaar UK: "I've been obsessed with make-up and skincare and wellness for longer than I can remember.

"But I couldn't find what I wanted - clean beauty.

"What is that, even? It's a real grey area.

"I wanted to create a brand of the future - focusing on what's in the formulas but then also sustainability.

"The other thing that was key was making sure it was very inclusive - whether it's make-up or skincare, this is for every skin type and tone, and for both women and men."

In November, Victoria - who has Brooklyn, 20, Romeo, 17, Cruz, 14 and Harper, eight, with retired soccer star husband David Beckham - released her Cell Rejuvenating Priming Moisturiser in collaboration with Professor Augustinus Bader, the German stem-cell scientist behind The Cream, which was named as one of 2019's most popular skincare products.

Bader's product features a patented Trigger Factor Complex that works to jumpstart your skin's repair and renewal functions to heal skin faster and in turn, improve the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, and as a fan of the cream herself, Victoria was thrilled to work with the scientist.

She said: "It's been a dream to develop, with Augustinus, a priming moisturiser that works to improve the health of my skin and gives me that fresh, natural glow that I love."

The priming moisturiser is a hybrid product that combines primer with moisturiser, and is inspired by Victoria's own skincare routine.

Victoria's product implements Bader's Trigger Factor Complex technology, as well as the lipids, vitamins, and amino acids found in his original cream, but with the added benefit of also smoothing skin so it's prepped for make-up application.

Bader explained: "It's the first priming moisturiser of its kind to care for your skin cells while also preparing your skin for makeup application."

The cream has a lightweight texture that can be work alone to give skin a radiant finish or under make-up, which according to Victoria, "will enhance your products."

Continued here:
Victoria Beckham wants her beauty line to be 'brand of the future' - FemaleFirst.co.uk

Medical science is learning more and more about pregnancy and fetal development. And what they are finding is mind-blowing. We now know that there is a radical mutuality in the relationship between the mother and her child in the womb. Both work together to build the placenta. And just as cells from the mothers body become part of the baby, cells from the baby become permanent parts of the mother.

From an interview in the Catholic magazine Crux with Prof. Kristin Marguerite Collier of the University of Michigan Medical School:

The placenta is the organ through which the mother and prenatal child interface. The placenta is an organ that is attached to the inside of the uterus and connects to the prenatal child through the childs umbilical cord.

What is not as well known about this organ is that the placenta is the only organ in human biology that is made by two persons, together, in cooperation. The placenta is built from tissue that is part from mom, and part from the growing baby. Because of this, the placenta is referred to as a feto-maternal organ. It is the only organ made by two people, in cooperation with providence. It is the first time mom and her baby come together, albeit at the cellular level, to do something in cooperation. . . .

In the creation of the placenta, cells from the trophoblast, which are from the embryo, reach down towards the mothers uterine wall while at the same time, the spiral arteries from the mothers uterus are reaching up towards the embryo. This process leads to the creation of the placenta.

The placenta is the only purposely transient organ in humans and unlike the rest of our organs, acts as many organs in one. The placenta functions to eliminate waste, like the kidneys would do, facilitates transfer of oxygen and carbon dioxide, like the lungs would do, and provides nutrients, like a GI tract would do. It even has endocrine and immune function. What used to be discarded as just the afterbirth is now regarded as a magnificently complex shared organ that supports the formation of the prenatal child.

Even more amazing to me is the phenomenon of fetomaternal microchimerism, named after the chimera of Greek mythology, a creature comprised of three different species:

In science, microchimerism is the presence of a small population of genetically distinct and separately derived cells within an individual. During pregnancy, small numbers of cells traffic across the placenta. Some of the prenatal childs cells cross into the mother, and some cells from the mother cross into the prenatal child. The cells from the prenatal child are pluripotent and integrate into tissues in her mothers body and start functioning like the cells around them. This integration is known as feto-maternal microchimerism.

The presence of these cells is amazing for several reasons. One is that these cells have been found in various maternal organs and tissues such as the brain, the breast, the thyroid and the skin. These are all organs which in some way are important for the health of both the baby and her mother in relationship. The post-partum phase is when there is need, for example, for lactation. The fetomaternal microchimeric cells have been shown to be important in signaling lactation. These cells have been found in the skin, for example, in Cesarean section incisions where they are helping to produce collagen. Baby is helping mom heal after delivery by the presence of her cells! It would be one thing for these cells to come into the mother and be inert, but is a whole other thing entirely that these cells are active and aid mom for example in helping to produce milk for her baby and helping her heal. These cells may even affect how soon the mother can get pregnant again and therefore can affect spacing of future siblings.

To think that a physical presence of the baby in her mother is helping protect her from cancer at the level of the cell, speaks to a radical mutuality at the cellular level that we are just beginning to understand. . . .

The big takeaway is that the science of microchimerism supports the fact that some human beings carry remnants of other humans in their bodies. Thus, we arent the singular-autonomous individuals we think of ourselves as being.

I came across another article that said that if the mother suffers organ damage during pregnancy, the baby can send its stem cells to repair the damage! (The article included a link to this medical journal.)

The Crux interviewer, Charles C. Camosy, wanted to bring out the implications for Marys relationship with Jesus. Yes, said Prof. Collierwho is a Christian, but not a CatholicMary would always have a part of Jesus with her, indeed, as a part of her. But this intimate mutual union is also true, she said, for all mothers.All mothers carry their children with them, on a cellular level, for their whole lives. And just as she has contributed to the formation of the bodies of her children, they have contributed to the formation of hers.

Prof. Collier then makes a startlingly comforting application. Mothers whose children have died, she said, often feel that their children are still with them. We now know that they are.

Illustration via Good Free Photos, Public Domain

Originally posted here:
The Mutuality Between Mothers and Their Developing Babies - Patheos

A LITTLE girl who won the backing of thousands of strangers online died of leukaemia on New Year's Day.

Esme Handley was just three years old when she passed away.

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The adorable tot was diagnosed with blood cancer at just 22 months, after developing a bruise while she was on a family holiday in Greece.

Her parents Rebecca and Will broke the heartbreaking news on their daughter's Facebook Page, named Esme Lionheart after her love of lions.

They said: If you look to the sky tonight you will see a star shining brighter than any other.

Our darling girl went onwards with her journey at midday today.

"She was peaceful and in our arms and knew how ridiculously adored she was.

Esme Grace Angela Handley 13.08.2016 - 01.01.2020.

Rebecca, 38, and Will, 43, faced a battle to try and save their only daughter following her diagnosis.

They discovered she had the high risk acute myeloid leukaemia during a family trip to Greece before which Esme fell.

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When a bruise that developed shortly afterwards failed to disappear, the couple Googled Esme's symptoms and became concerned.

She was taken to hospital in Greece where the diagnosis was confirmed.

Esme was given a stem cell transplant in September 2018 alongside three rounds of chemotherapy but after six months the leukaemia returned in the tots bone marrow.

If you look to the sky tonight you will see a star shining brighter than any other. Our darling girl went onwards with her journey at midday today.

The family were not eligible for a second transplant on the NHS and were faced with raising 500,000 privately for the urgent treatment.

In November, her parents admitted that Esme could no longer expect to be cured and said their baby had simply had enough.

They said: Since diagnosis we have often spoken about a metaphorical 'sealed envelope' that contains Esme's fate.

"Yesterday we got to open that envelope and it was not what we had hoped.

The leukaemia is out of control and there is nothing more which can be done.

We have spoken with every single, leading paediatric consultant globally, tried all available drugs (some of which arent even licensed in kids), explored a ridiculous amount of supplements and complementary medicines, had healing circles far and wide sending prayers.....

But its not been enough. We dont get to keep our baby.

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And to be perfectly honest, even if there was something else they could come up with, right now, Im not sure we would be able to pursue it.

"Its very clear to see that Esme has simply had enough....and who could blame her?

Esme thrives when shes outdoors but all she has known for 18 months is hospitals. The treatment she has had wouldnt be tolerated by most adults.

She has been continually pumped full of drugs; had hundreds of blood transfusions; successfully come through one stem cell transplant; had surgery for three Hickman lines into her heart; had numerous tubes shoved up her nose and drops in her eyes, suffered countless horrendous infections including a type of pneumonia three times; lost her hair; lost her fingernails; vomited daily, had her skin break down, crack, be burnt from chemo; nearly died from sepsis; almost died from anaphylaxis; been blue-lighted to PICU after having a seizure which temporarily left her in a vegetative state thanks to a fungal brain infection....and it goes on.

Whilst we would do absolutely anything for her, ANYTHING, Im also not sure how much more we can tolerate either.

A month later, they described the heartbreaking cocktail of pain management Esme had to bear to soften her ever-increasing suffering".

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At the time, her parents posted: It's now three weeks to the day that we learnt that Esme's story will not have the happy ending we've all prayed for, three long weeks in which we've had to contemplate the unthinkable and bear witness to Esme's ever-increasing suffering.

In the first couple of weeks one of the biggest difficulties was accepting that the team's goal was no longer to cure but just to manage pain.

This sounds obvious but you suddenly find yourself inexplicably sad that the nurses are no longer asking you for Esme's heart rate or temperature every few hours.

At one point I even found myself crying when I bumped into another child being wheeled to theatre and realised Esme will never have another general anaesthetic.

Instead, getting ahead of Esme's pain has become a full-time occupation for us and the team, and Ezzie is now on an ever-escalating daily mix of paracetamol, topical morphine, oxycodone, ketamine and, most recently, methadone.

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The psychology team here warn against reading adult meanings into our children's innocent words but it's difficult not to tear up when Esme tells us repeatedly I don't think my bottom's ever gonna get better, it's the hurtiest bottom in the whole world ....or My arm/leg/back/headache is killing me.

They also described how Esme had been bedridden for three months and would never walk again.

But the tot had her own Christmas tree and was even taken out of the Royal Marsden Hospital over the festive period to see Christmas lights in Morden before a screening of Frozen 2 at Everyman Esher.

SIGNS OF LEUKAEMIA EVERY PARENT NEEDS TO KNOW

LEUKAEMIA is a type of blood cancer, some forms of which are more common in children.

There are no specific signs or symptoms which would allow for a doctor to make a diagnosis without lab tests.

In all types of leukaemia symptoms are more commonly caused by a lack of normal blood cells than by the presence of abnormal white cells.

As the bone marrow becomes full of leukaemia cells, it is unable to produce the large numbers of normal blood cells which the body needs.

Thiscan lead to:

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Now Will and Rebecca, of West Norwood, south London, hope to donate money in Esmes name.

They have already raised 425,000 on GoFundMe.

Rebecca said in November: When we began fundraising we were punchy with our target to ensure we had enough for a self-funded transplant and said that whatever remained would go to the CCLG, the UK's leading kids cancer charity.

Given how desperately poor the funding is into paediatric AML research, we feel even more strongly about this now.

So a large chunk of the cash we have remaining (after spending some on novel drugs and supportive care) will be donated to AML research to try and spare future families the pain and anguish we have experienced.

To donate in memory of Esme, visit her GoFundMe page here.

Continue reading here:
Girl, 3, dies in her parents arms on New Years Day after leukaemia battle - The Sun

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Newswise ROCHESTER, Minn. The most commonly used forms of insulin cost 10 times more in the U.S. than in any other developed country,according to a commentaryinMayo Clinic Proceedings. This prohibitive cost is causing some U.S. patients with Type 1 diabetes to ration the amount of insulin they use, with life-threatening implications.

The commentary byS. Vincent Rajkumar, M.D., a Mayo Clinic physician, describes the cost of insulin as an urgent public health issue. "There are 30 million patients with diabetes in the United States, and about 25%, or 7.4 million Americans, need insulin. For the 1.3 million patients with Type 1 diabetes, insulin is as vital as air and water. Some patients are rationing insulin or switching to cheaper forms without proper supervision. We cannot wait to act."

The commentary appears in the January issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings, which focuses on diabetes and the discovery of insulin in 1921. The use of insulin to treat diabetes has transformed the lives of millions of people, but the sharp cost increase in recent years has threatened patient care.

Insulin is a naturally occurring hormone that helps regulate blood sugar levels.Insulin therapyis vital for people withType 1 diabetesand for many patients withType 2 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is a chronic condition where the pancreas produces little or no insulin. With Type 2 diabetes, the body resists the effects of insulin or doesn't produce enough to maintain normal glucose levels. Long-term complications can be debilitating and life-threatening.

"There have been many recent reports of deaths in patients with Type 1 diabetes because of the lack of affordable insulin," Dr. Rajkumar says. "The high prevalence of diabetes, the chronic lifelong nature of the disease, and the fact that patients with Type 1 diabetes will die without access to insulin make this an urgent problem that must be solved expeditiously."

"The No. 1 reason for the high cost of insulin is the presence of a vulnerable population that needs insulin to survive," he says. "This population is willing to pay almost anything to have access to a lifesaving drug, and manufacturers know it."

Dr. Rajkumar, the Edward W. and Betty Knight Scripps Professor of Medicine at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, proposes several solutions that would help make insulin and other prescription drugs more affordable. They include:

"We cannot afford to lose a single additional life because of the high cost of insulin," says Dr. Rajkumar. "The price of insulin is a stark and troubling example of what's happening with other prescription drugs, and it highlights a systemic problem with how drugs are priced, compared with just about every other commodity."

###

About Mayo Clinic ProceedingsMayo Clinic Proceedingsis a monthly peer-reviewed journal that publishes original articles and reviews dealing with clinical and laboratory medicine, clinical research, basic science research, and clinical epidemiology. Mayo Clinic Proceedings is sponsored by the Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research as part of its commitment to physician education. It publishes submissions from authors worldwide. The journal has been published for more than 90 years and has a circulation of 127,000.

About Mayo ClinicMayo Clinicis a nonprofit organization committed to innovation in clinical practice, education and research, and providing compassion, expertise and answers to everyone who needs healing.Visit the Mayo Clinic News Networkfor additional Mayo Clinic news andAn Inside Look at Mayo Clinicfor more information about Mayo.

Media contact:

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High cost of insulin has life-or-death implications for diabetic patients - Newswise

ByLinell Smith

In 2018, nearly half of Americans said they were "somewhat likely" or "very likely" to make a New Year's resolution, according to an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll.

While making a resolution is easy, fulfilling those commitments may depend on the way you frame them, says Johns Hopkins clinical psychologist Neda Gould, director of the mindfulness program at Johns Hopkins and associate director of the anxiety disorders clinic at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center.

Neda Gould

Director, Johns Hopkins mindfulness program

"The problem with New Year's resolutions is that they often involve major behavior changes that we expect to make overnight," Gould says. "This method rarely works. Then, when we don't succeed, we feel terrible about ourselves."

Rather than thinking of a New Year's resolution as a complete transformation that commences on Jan. 1, Gould suggests envisioning it as a journey composed of small but meaningful changes that progress through the year.

"We are much better at attaining goals if we break them up into concrete, manageable steps," she says. "You might say, 'In January, I will begin to exercise one day weekly for 15 minutes.' In February, you may increase that goal a bit in frequency and duration and so on. Overall, I think there has to be some flexibility and room for error in order to have effective and lasting change."

To help you achieve your goals, Johns Hopkins Medicine experts who help patients and staff members find sustainable ways to improve their health offer the following approaches to some common resolutions.

Kimberly Gudzune, associate professor at the school of medicine and an obesity medicine physician at the Johns Hopkins Healthful Eating, Activity & Weight Program, says that she often hears patients set unreasonable goals such as "I will get back down to what I weighed in high school."

Instead, she suggests committing to achievable goals such as: "I will lose 5% of my current body weight over the next six months by making sustainable changes in my eating and activity habits." Or, "I want to improve my blood pressure/blood sugar/cholesterol, so I will make sustainable changes in eating and activity habits and work to lose 10% of my current body weight over the next six to 12 months."

Scientific studies suggest that the blue light emitted by screens on cellphones, computers, tablets, and television may disrupt the production of the hormone melatonin, which is essential for inducing restful sleep, says Charlene Gamaldo, medical director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Sleep.

Instead of pledging to improve your sleep by reducing the amount of time you stare at computer screens every day, she suggests you pledge to "use technology to help create realistic and accountable goals for reducing screen time." For instance, make a commitment to set your phone to remind you to shorten your screen time by 30 minutes dailybefore bedtime is ideal.

Johns Hopkins pulmonary physician Panagis Galiatsatos runs the Tobacco Treatment Clinic, established in July 2018 in the Asthma and Allergy Building at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center. The physician says it is the only such clinic in the state, and one of only a handful nationwide that provide a personalized approach to smoking cessation.

He says smokers should resolve to quit only if they have identified a specific game plan for how to do it. To succeed, a resolution should include a commitment to visit a physician who may prescribe a smoking cessation medication such as Chantix, advise stocking up on nicotine gum and lozenges, and periodically check on patients' progress.

"I tell patients there's nothing wrong with coming up with a big goal, but come up with a plan for achieving it," he says. "What will you do if you get derailed? How will you plan for the situations when you're most likely to crave a cigarette? If people are conditioned to smoke after a certain activity, such as drinking coffee, that may be when they want to be prepared to have an item such as a nicotine lozenge or gum close by."

Want to eliminate sugar from your diet? Rita Kalyani, associate professor of medicine and editor-in-chief of the Johns Hopkins Patient Guide to Diabetes, suggests reframing goals that are rigid and unsustainable.

"Instead of pledging 'I'm going to stop drinking soda with every meal,' say 'I'm going to decrease the amount of sugar-sweetened beverages that I consume daily.'"

Lee Daugherty Biddison, chief wellness officer for Johns Hopkins Medicine, says it's important to make incremental changes when you resolve to keep work from taking over your life.

"Instead of saying 'I'm going to fix my work-life balance by making big changes all at once,' pledge to add one or two activities that bring joy to your lifesuch as building in a date night or time aloneand commit to putting them on your calendar."

This article originally appeared in Dome.

Read this article:
How to make New Year's resolutions that stick - The Hub at Johns Hopkins

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Those who sleep in cold environments, meanwhile, tend to fare better. A study of people with a sleep disorder found that they slept longer in temperatures of 61 degrees Fahrenheit versus 75 degrees. The cold-sleepers were also more alert the next morning. The basic physiology is that your body undergoes several changes at night to ease you into sleep: Your core and brain temperatures decrease, and both blood sugar and heart rate drop. Keeping a bedroom hot essentially fights against this process. Insomnia has even been linked to a basic malfunctioning of the bodys heat-regulation cyclesmeaning some cases could be a disorder of body temperature.

In light of this physiology, sleep experts unanimously suggest keeping your bedroom cooler than the standard daytime temperature of your home. There is no universally accepted temperature that is the correct one, but various medical entities have suggested ideal temperature ranges. The most common recommendation, cited by places like the Cleveland Clinic and the National Sleep Foundation, is 60 to 67 degrees Fahrenheit. Within that range, experts vary. A neurologist in Virginia told Health.com that the magic number is 65. Others have advised an upper limit of 64.

Read: How to sleep

The U.S. Department of Energy recommends keeping your home at 68 degrees during the day and lower while youre asleep. That guideline is based on money, not health: It was originally suggested by President Richard Nixon as a way of conserving oil during an embargo. In 1977, President Jimmy Carter went further, suggesting 65 degrees in daytime and 55 at night. He ordered that the White House thermostat be lowered accordingly, and subsequently extended the rule to all public buildings. The change was estimated to have saved around 300,000 gallons of oil daily.

Even though no one was fined under the thermostat rule, Ronald Reagan promptly undid it in 1981, citing unnecessary regulatory burden. No such executive thermoregulatory fiats have since been attempted. If you want to work and sleep in a sauna-like sweat box, that is your God-given right as a red-blooded American. But it should be done with the knowledge that thermostat decisions affect far more than ones own personal sleep. The burning of fossil fuels contributes to the air pollution that kills millions of people every year, and the health effects of climate change are far-reaching.

As for individual health guidelines, human variation makes giving any specific number almost impossibleand borderline irresponsible. Different temperatures will suit different people differently. At the same time, a range like 60 to 67 degrees can feel nebulously broad. Its less satisfying than a single number, and it doesnt solve the bed-partner argument. So I will say this: 60 degrees is the correct temperature for winter sleep. Anything warmer is incorrect.

More:
Your Bedroom Is Too Hot - The Atlantic

For a complete list of our obituaries, seehere.

SYDNEY BRENNER SCIENTIFIC SYMPOSIUM

Nobel laureate Sydney Brenner died in April at the age of 92.

Brenner was best known for his discovery of sequences that stop protein translation, mRNA, and his investigation of the nematode C. elegans, which he realized would be an ideal model organism to study cell differentiation and organ development. That work won him the 2002 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine.

[H]is great strength was in experiments, and in particular the choice and execution of ones that were both important and ingenious, Francis Crick, the codiscoverer of DNA who shared an office with Brenner at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology (LMB) in the UK, wrote in atribute to Brenner in The Scientist in 2002.

US DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY, OAK RIDGE NATIONAL LABORATORY

American geneticist Liane Russell, famous for her work on the deleterious effects of prenatal radiation exposure and the chromosomal basis for sex determination in mammals, died in July at age 95.

She and her husband William Russell established the Oak Ridge National Laboratorys (ORNL) Mouse House, an extensive colony of mutant mice bred to model the effects of exposure to radiation.

Russells work led to a healthcare policy to ask women if they are pregnant before X-raying them and also to avoid X-rays shortly after menstruation in women of childbearing age.

Inventor of the polymerase chain reaction technique and winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1993, Kary Mullis, died in August at age 74.

Mullis was known as a weird figure in science and a flamboyant philanderer who evangelized the use of LSD, denied the evidence for both global warming and HIV as a cause of AIDS, consulted for O.J. Simpsons legal defense, and formed a company that sold jewelry embedded with celebrities DNA, according to a 1998 profile in The Washington Post.

Mullis wrote in The Scientist in 2003 that his first attempt at PCR in 1983 was a long-shot experiment. . . . so [at midnight] I poured myself a cold Becks into a prechilled 500 ml beaker from the isotope freezer for luck, and went home. I ran a gel the next afternoon [and] stained it with ethidium. It took several months to arrive at conditions [that] would produce a convincing result.

Even still, Science and Natureboth rejected the resulting manuscript, which was ultimately published in Methods in Enzymology in 1987 and helped earn Mullis his Nobel.

Chemical engineer George Rosenkranz, the director of the pharmaceutical company that first synthesized a synthetic form of the hormone progesterone, died in June at the age of 102.

He and colleagues developed norethindrone, a synthetic version of progesterone, which was then used in the combined oral contraceptive pill and approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in 1959. The work, along with efforts in biotech, earned him many awards from scientific organizations and from the Mexican government.

Despite that, he was a very humble man, Roberto Rosenkranz, one of his sons, told the Los Angeles Times. He never was out to take credit.

Ophthalmologist and inventor Patricia Bath, whose research on lasers advanced cataract surgery, died in May at the age of 76.

During her medical internship in New York, she conducted an epidemiological study on blindness and found the rate of the condition among the black population was twice that of the white population. The finding led her to start the field of community ophthalmology, caring for underserved populations. She promoted the field by traveling to perform surgeries, training clinicians, and donating equipment.

Bath then moved to the University of California, Los Angeles, medical center in 1974 and in the 1980s began studying lasers for their potential to treat eye disorders. In 1988, she patented a device called Laserphaco Probe, which removes cataracts.

I had a few obstacles but I had to shake it off, Bath told ABC News in 2018. Hater-ation, segregation, racism, thats the noise you have to ignore that and keep your eyes focused on the prize, its just like Dr. Martin Luther King said, so thats what I did.

Nobel laureate Paul Greengard, who discovered that the brain communicates with chemical signals, died in April. He was 93.

Paul was an iconic scientist whose extraordinary seven-decade career transformed our understanding of neuroscience, Richard Lifton, president of Rockefeller University, where Greengard had been a faculty member, said in a statement. His discoveries laid out a new paradigm requiring the understanding of the biochemistry of nerve cells rather than simply their electrical activities. This work has had great impact.

Greengards work revealed how the brain uses dopamine and other chemicals to send signals from one nerve cell to another, discoveries that won him a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2000. Greengard used the prize money to establish an award for women doing outstanding biomedical research and named the prize after his birth mother. Drawing attention to the achievements of women working in science, he and Baylor College of Medicine professor Huda Zoghbi wrote in The Scientist in 2014, sets a powerful example for those women still dreaming of their own success.

Public health whistleblower, physician, and researcher, Shuping Wang, died in September at the age of 59.

Wangs career started in China in the 1980s, where she was a doctor and hepatitis researcher. In 1992, she was testing blood serum samples from a plasma collection station where she worked and realized that unsanitary blood collection methods had led to a hepatitis C epidemic among people who donated and received plasma at the clinic. She reported the findings to officials and was fired, the Salt Lake Tribune reported.

She took a job at the Zhoukou Health Bureau and, analyzing the blood samples there, she found 13 percent of donors had HIV and the cross-contamination there was also leading to the spread of the virus. Officials challenged her results and asked her to change the data for a report that would be sent to the provincial Department of Health. Again, she refused.

Her findings lead to the shutdown of her clinic and the establishment of HIV testing for donors. Still, roughly 1 million farmers were infected with HIV from selling their blood plasma at Chinese collection sites during the epidemic, according to The Washington Post.

In September, a few days before Wangs death, a play about her life, The King of Hells Palace, opened at Hampstead Theatre in London.

COURTESY OF RUTGERS UNIVERSITY

The developer of a widely used DNA analysis technique called shotgun sequencing, Joachim Messing, died in September. He was 73.

Jos approach to the development of his DNA sequencing tools was to spread them freely and widelythat is, he did not patent them, Robert Goodman, the executive dean of agriculture and natural resources at Rutgers University, where Messing was a faculty member, told The New York Times. He was an incredibly generous man.

His development of the DNA analysis technique and his use of it made Messing the most-cited scientist of the 1980s, according to the Institute for Scientific Information. He went on to study crop modifications, such as boosting amino acids in corn to make it more nutritious and increasing crops drought resistance.

TUFTS UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE

Tufts University researcher Stuart Levy died in September at the age of 80.

Levy studied antibiotic resistance and in the 1970s showed that bacteria resistant to the drugs could move from the intestine of farm animals to farm workers, a discovery that had implications for bacterial spread in facilities such as hospitals. After Levy published his findings, other researchers started to study antibiotic resistance in hospitals.

It is hard to overstate his importance in limiting the spread of antibiotic resistance, particularly in hospital settings, Ralph Isberg, a professor of molecular biology & microbiology at Tufts, and his colleague John Leong wrote in a statement sent to The Scientist.

Neuroscientist Rahul Desikan, who developed an MRI-based map of the human cortex and identified genetic risk factors for neurogenerative diseases, died in July from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. He was 41.

The MRI-based map, which quickly became one of the most widely-used tools in the neuroscience community, has been cited more than 4500 times, Christopher Hess, a colleague of Desikan at University of California, San Francisco, wrote in a memorial. Color figures of the atlas in its various forms still fill the pages of our leading scientific journals.

Desikan and his colleagues had just started, in 2016, what was then the largest study on the genetics of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) when he began to experience his first symptoms the disease. He was diagnosed with ALS a few months later.

I went into medicine to take care of patients with brain diseases. Now, I have one of the diseases that I study, Desikan said in a press release earlier this year. Even with the disease, he said, he continued to find neurology fascinating and beautiful.

Ashley Yeager is an associate editor atThe Scientist. Email her at ayeager@the-scientist.com. Follow her on Twitter @AshleyJYeager.

See the article here:
Those We Lost in 2019 - The Scientist

(Real Clear Investigations)Abortion rights advocates hoping to make it easier to end later-term pregnancies have outsourced a potentially dangerous drug trial to an impoverished African country.

The clinical trial in Burkina Faso is testing the efficacy of second-trimester abortions using a two-drug combination that includes RU-486, which is currently used in a growing number of first-trimester abortions. Excessive bleeding is a common side effect of the drug, leading some to question the ethics of conducting the trial in a country with limited medical facilities and blood supplies.

In an interview in Ouagadougou, Burkina Fasos capital, the studys director, Dr. Blandine Thieba, confirmed that blood supplies are an ongoing concern.

Right now there are big problems of need in blood bags, she told RealClearInvestigations, but fortunately, thanks to God we did not have a case that required a transfusion.

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The outsourcing of the study, which began 2 years ago, appears to reflect the reluctance of American women to participate in such trials. In a recent illustration, researchers writing in a 2013 bulletin from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists acknowledged that they had failed to recruit enough women for a North Carolina study of mid-term, drug-induced abortions. Reason: Potential participants strongly preferred surgical abortion, which is normally performed with anesthesia, while drug-induced abortions typically are not, even though they can be physically and emotionally distressing. The researchers recommended outsourcing such trials to Europe or Asia.

Tweet This: "The outsourcing of the study, which began 2 years ago, appears to reflect the reluctance of American women to participate in such trials"

The Burkina Faso trial is sponsored by Gynuity Health Projects, a New York-based group aligned with Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion provider in the United States.

Gynuitys literature boasts that it is a a small team willing to take risks on the frontiers of reproductive and maternal health. One of those efforts seeks to increase availability and market sustainability of mifepristone another name for RU-486 with a United States-approved protocol that might not even require a visit to a doctor or clinic.

In separate, federally approved research being conducted in 10 American states from Hawaii to New York, Gynuity is testing whether it is safe for doctors to prescribe abortion drugs through telephone or Internet consultations. The Food and Drug Administration now requires abortion drugs to be administered under the supervision of a doctor who can perform surgery or has access to a physician who can in case of emergency.

Tweet This: The FDA requires abortion drugs to be administered under the supervision of a doctor who can perform surgery/with access to one who can ..

It is not clear whether abortion rights advocates envision second-trimester abortions using such telemedicine. But the research in Burkina Faso and the U.S. is happening as the advocates redouble efforts against what they see as threats to abortion access posed by a conservative-leaning Supreme Court and restrictive new state abortion laws.

More lenient abortion procedures might gain wider acceptance if they are certified as safe and offer greater privacy, and assuming liberal states set a trend by adopting them. While several states have imposed new abortion restrictions, others such as New York, Illinois, Vermont, and Rhode Island have adopted new abortion protections.

The Supreme Court is looming large over these state debates, Elizabeth Nash, a policy analyst at the Guttmacher Institute, an abortion rights advocacy group, told the Pew Charitable Trusts Stateline website recently. The last time that people thought Roe was in this kind of jeopardy was the early 1990s. Thats the only other time we saw Democratic-led states adopt protections for abortion. She was referring to the landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade, which protects a pregnant woman's right to have an abortion without excessive government restriction.

Current FDA guidelines approve mifepristone abortions only through the first 70 days of pregnancy, or roughly the first trimester of a nine-month pregnancy. But state laws vary, and American doctors are known to perform later abortions off-label. Drug-induced second-trimester abortions are performed in European countries, although usually with restrictions.

These drugs should not be confused with the contraceptive morning-after pill. The Mayo Clinics website explains that morning-after pills the over-the-counter drug levonorgestrel or the prescription drug ulipristal acetate do not end a pregnancy that has implanted. They work primarily by delaying or preventing ovulation.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, more than 850,000 abortions are performed in the United States each year with about 90 percent occurring the first trimester. Surgical abortions comprise 61% of the total. Drug-induced abortions, which normally occur during the first 10 weeks of pregnancy, accounted for 39% of the total in 2017 up from just 5% in 2001 and 29% in 2014.

Gynuity did not respond to RealClearInvestigations inquiries about the Burkina Faso trial, although Dr. Thieba was interviewed in the country in late November by a freelance journalist hired by RCI. Abortion rights advocates such as Planned Parenthood, NARAL, and the Guttmacher Institute all declined to talk with RealClearInvestigations about abortion research and related ethical considerations. Officials at the State Department and federal health agencies also declined.

Tweet This: "Planned Parenthood, NARAL and the Guttmacher Institute all declined to talk [] about abortion research and related ethical considerations"

Public documents shed some light on the study, however. A description based on information provided by Gynuity was posted in August 2017 on the federally maintained research database ClinicalTrials.gov. It said an estimated 100 women with an ongoing pregnancy of 13-22 weeks gestation that is, in their second trimester were to be recruited to participate in the study.

The trial, to begin in May 2017 and end Dec. 31, 2019, would be conducted in four cities in Burkina Faso: Ouagadougou, Bobo-Dioulasso, Boromo, and Ouahigouya. Patients in the study had to be willing to undergo surgical completion if necessary surgical abortion in the event of complications, and to provide consent.

It is not clear how the women were recruited for the study, and details of Gynuitys role in supporting this research could not be ascertained, including how much funding it provided, and whether doctors affiliated with Gynuity traveled to Burkina Faso to supervise or work on the study.

The U.S. government website states that the goal of the Burkina Faso trial is to examine the effectiveness and feasibility of a mifepristone-misoprostol medical abortion regimen in the second trimester.

Mifestrone blocks progesterone, a hormone vital to fetal development, delivered from the mother through the placenta and umbilical cord, and kills the fetus. Another drug, misoprostol, administered later, causes the uterus, where the fetus was conceived, to shrink, expelling the detached embryo through the vagina.

At 19 weeks or mid-second trimester -- a typical fetus is about 6 inches long and weighs about 8 ounces. Medical News Today reports that the fetus may be developing hair on its head. The kidneys of the fetus will now be making urine. A female fetus now has six million eggs in her ovaries.

Abortions in these circumstances are more likely to lead to potentially life-threatening complications for the mother, including cervical laceration, infection, and uterine rupture.

A 2009 study on women in Finland published in Obstetrics & Gynecology found that one out of every five given abortion drugs in the first trimester experienced some kind of complication. The most common adverse effect was potentially life-threatening hemorrhaging, which represented 16% of the total complications.

Doctors with experience in the region doubt that such research is ever advisable in places such as Burkina Faso. The landlocked, recurrently unstable former French West African colony has one physician for roughly every 16,000 people, and one hospital bed for every 2,500 people, in a nation of over 19 million, according to the CIA World Factbook. There are currently about 100 gynecologists in the Society of Gynecologists and Obstetricians of Burkina Faso, RCIs reporting established. The CIA also reports that the country has one of the highest infant-mortality rates (72 deaths per 1,000 live births) and lowest life expectancy rates (56 years) in the world.

The numbers may help explain why the Guttmacher Institute found that about two-thirds of the 23,000 women treated for abortion-related complications there in 2008 suffered serious complications but did not receive the care they needed.

A major problem is chronic shortages of transfusion blood. Dr. Christina M. Francis, an OB-GYN whos done extensive work in Kenya, Burma, Afghanistan, and other developing countries, said: In general, throughout Africa, regardless of whether you're in this big city or a small village, blood products tend to be difficult to come by. There are national shortages very frequently.

Dr. Francis, who is affiliated with the Charlotte Lozier Institute, a scientific research organization that does work from a pro-life/anti-abortion perspective, continued: And so, even if you've got a woman in, say, the biggest hospital in the capital of Burkina Faso, that doesn't mean that she's going to have access to blood products just because she's in that hospital.

The study director in Burkina Faso, Dr. Thieba, confirmed that the availability of blood is most often a real problem. But, she said, as soon as the woman realizes that she is bleeding a lot, she comes and we end the abortion with the aspiration [vacuum suction]; we do not continue, because if we let the medicine act it will take time; the bleeding will be prolonged.

Dr. Thieba said there is a tracking protocol for the women in the study that ensures regular follow-ups until the abortion is completed, but the lack of hospital beds and medical facilities means that women cannot be monitored after the mifepristone and misoprostol are administered. When we prescribe, we explain the signs of danger to women and, as soon as these signs appear, they come, she said. "Most often, they have provider contact."

The Guttmacher Institute estimates that between 2% and 4% of pregnancies in Burkina Faso end in abortion. Dr. Thieba said drug-induced abortions may be useful because a lack of anesthesia and anesthesiologists are impediments to safe surgical abortions.

An abortion-related drug trial in a developing country raises other concerns because of the Wests past influence over population-control efforts that have adversely affected women.

In 1972, the International Planned Parenthood Federation sponsored an experiment to terminate the pregnancies of hundreds of Bangladeshi women who had been raped by Pakistani soldiers. A number of the pregnancies were ended using an unproven device known as a super coil, developed by a psychologist with no formal medical training. The device was later described in a court case as "basically plastic razors that were formed into a ball and would spring open inside a womans uterus. It resulted in a high rate of complications.

While there are few specifics on what happened to the women in Bangladesh, the super coil was used on one occasion in America later that year; 13 out of 15 women had to be hospitalized with serious complications, and one of them had to have a hysterectomy.

No charges were brought at the time against the Philadelphia doctor who used the device, Dr. Kermit Gosnell. He would become infamous decades later when he was convicted of first-degree murder and a host of other crimes in 2013 related to his operation of an abortion clinic in Philadelphia.

In India in 1975, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared overpopulation a national emergency and created a large-scale, mandatory sterilization program. The Ford Foundation backed the effort, providing the infrastructure that made the sterilization programs possible.

The drug being tested in Burkina Faso is connected to abortion research's international past. Mifepristone was developed in France, and in 1994 a nonprofit American group called the Population Council was given the rights to sell RU-486 by French drug maker Roussel Uclaf SA, which was put off by the controversy surrounding the drug in the United States, the Washington Post reported in 2000, the year the drug was approved for use in the United States.

The Population Council was founded by John D. Rockefeller III in the 1950s with a mission rooted in population control and eugenics. In Donald T. Critchlows book Intended Consequences: Birth Control, Abortion, and the Federal Government in Modern America, the organizations mission and motives are made clear:

An initial draft charter of the council submitted by Rockefeller called for the promotion of research so that "within every social and economic grouping, parents who are above the average in intelligence, quality of personality and affection, will tend to have larger than average families."

This paragraph would be dropped when Thomas Parran, a Catholic and former surgeon general, told Rockefeller, "Frankly, the implications of this, while I know are intended to have a eugenic implication, could readily be misunderstood as a Nazi master race philosophy."

Gynuity also illustrates ties between population control advocates and abortion rights advocates. Before she became president of Gynuity in 2003, Dr. Beverly Winikoff had spent 25 years working at the Population Council.

The clinical trial in Burkina Faso also resonates with the history of abortion drugs in the United States. Aside from the involvement of the Population Council in producing RU-486, the Buffet Foundation provided millions of dollars to perform clinical trials on mifepristone for U.S. approval.

Approving the drug in 2000 was a major priority for the soon-departing Clinton administration, which took extraordinary steps to fast-track the process. Mifepristone approval was expedited through an FDA regulation known as Subpart H, which was meant only for Accelerated Approval of New Drugs for Serious or Life-Threatening Illnesses where existing treatments are either insufficient or nonexistent.

The FDA approval process for mifepristone was unusual in other ways. FDA Commissioner Jane E. Henney said the agency broke with precedent by not publishing the names of the experts who reviewed RU-486 for the agency, the Washington Post reported. In another first, it did not publish the name or location of the company that will manufacture the drug.

Eventually, it was reported that the drug was manufactured by a pharmaceutical company formed in the Cayman Islands in 1995 named Danco, which continues make the drug. After the formation of Danco, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation of Hewlett-Packard fame lent it $10 million to help with marketing and FDA approval.

To this day, little is known about Danco Laboratories, beyond the names of a few of its top officers and that it is based in New York City. Abortion advocates insist that such secrecy is necessary for the safety of those who work at the company.

The Trump administration hasnt publicly expressed concern, though it has touted its "Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance" policy, aimed at ending U.S. government funding of international abortion efforts.

Despite RCIs multiple requests for comment from the State Department, National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Global Affairs, no government official would speak on the record about chemical abortion research and the issues involved in international clinical trials. The only response was a statement from an HHS spokesperson: The U.S. government has oversight of international clinical trials if they are federally funded, or if the trial is privately funded and is being conducted to support an application to FDA for a new drug or device.

Tweet This: No (US) government official would speak on the record about chemical abortion research and issues involved in international clinical trials

If Gynuitys studies regarding chemical abortion and telemedicine are successful, they might make it widely possible for women seeking abortions to perform them themselves, leaving legal restrictions on abortion exceedingly difficult to enforce. Pro-life groups raise alarms about the safety of such a situation.

The end game, the ultimate goal for the pro-abortion side, is to have a powerful abortion drug available over the counter, said Dr. Donna Harrison, an OB-GYN and executive director of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

Tweet This: The end game, the ultimate goal for the pro-abortion side, is to have a powerful abortion drug available over the counter

If they can generate some studies that say, 'Oh, this is safe' -- whatever 'safe' means in the second trimester -- then they can argue, 'Oh, it doesn't matter if women don't know how far along they are.' It's quote 'safe,'

Editor's Note: This report was first published by Real Clear Investigations. Heartbeat International, which manages Pregnancy Help News, also manages the Abortion Pill Rescue Network.

Read more here:
An American later-term abortion trial on women in impoverished Africa - Pregnancy Help News

It felt like the plot to a Christmas film: I was turning out of my therapists office in Fitzrovia one late November morning - sunny and crisp, perfect romcom conditions - when a little cat, as scrawny as a chicken leg, rushed out from under a car.

She was ravishingly pretty; cloudy grey and apricot, with huge green eyes and clearly lost. Not once in 14 years of working in this busy central London area had I seen a cat; not even a 3am feral when waiting for the night bus. My south London neighbourhood has self-important street toms, but this little kitten was not at all like them. She looked young and underfed. Mrrrp, she trilled, winding her body around me as though air-kissing a friend...

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After a devastating year of failed IVF, finding a cat on the street has changed my life for good - Telegraph.co.uk

McLean (United States) (AFP)

When a person's immune system is impaired by a genetic disease, a bone-marrow transplant can be a powerful therapeutic tool, but with a major downside: during the first few months the recipient's defenses against viruses are severely weakened. The slightest infection can lead to a hospital trip.

A still-experimental type of treatment known as T-cell therapy aims to assist during this vulnerable period -- the months during which the body is rebuilding its natural defenses. After two decades of clinical trials, the technology has been refined, and is being used to treat more and more patients, many of them children.

A boy named Johan is one of them.

Today he is a mischievous, smiling toddler with a thick shock of light-brown hair, who never tires, playfully tormenting the family's puppy, Henry.

There is no sign of the three-year-long medical and emotional roller-coaster ride he and his family, who live in an affluent Washington suburb, have been on.

The first traumatic surprise came with the results of a pregnancy test: Johan was not planned.

"That was a huge shock. I cried," said his mother, 39-year-old Maren Chamorro.

- Risky procedure -

She had known since childhood that she carried a gene that can be fatal in a child's first 10 years, chronic granulomatous disease (CGD).

Her brother died of it at the age of seven. The inexorable laws of genetics meant that Maren had a one in four chance of transmitting it to her child.

For their first children, she and her husband Ricardo had chosen in-vitro fertilization, allowing the embryos to be genetically tested before implantation.

Their twins Thomas and Joanna were born -- both disease-free -- seven and a half years ago.

But in Johan's case, a post-birth genetic test quickly confirmed the worst: he had CGD.

After conferring with experts at Children's National Hospital in Washington, the couple took one of the most important decisions of their lives: Johan would receive a bone-marrow transplant, a risky procedure but one that would give him a chance of a cure.

"Obviously, the fact that Maren had lost a sibling at a young age from the disease played a big role," Ricardo confided.

Bone marrow, the spongy tissue inside bones, serves as the body's "factory" for the production of blood cells -- both red and white.

- His brother's immune system -

Johan's white blood cells were incapable of fighting off bacteria and fungal infections. A simple bacterial infection, of negligible concern in a healthy child, could spread out of control in his young body.

Luckily, Johan's brother Thomas, six years old at the time, was a perfect match. In April 2018, doctors first "cleansed" Johan's marrow using chemotherapy. They then took a small amount of marrow from Thomas's hip bones using a long, thin needle.

From that sample they extracted "supercells," as Thomas calls them -- stem cells, which they reinjected into Johan's veins. Those cells would eventually settle in his bone marrow -- and begin producing normal white blood cells.

The second step was preventive cell therapy, under an experimental program led by immunologist Michael Keller at Children's National Hospital.

The part of the immune system that protects against bacteria can be rebuilt in only a matter of weeks; but for viruses, the natural process takes at least three months.

- Hurdles remain -

From Thomas's blood, doctors extracted specialized white blood cells -- T-cells -- that had already encountered six viruses.

Keller grew them for 10 days in an incubator, creating an army of hundreds of millions of those specialized T-cells. The result: a fluffy white substance contained in a small glass vial.

Those T-cells were then injected into Johan's veins, immediately conferring protection against the six viruses.

"He has his brother's immune system," said Keller, an assistant professor at Children's National.

Johan's mother confirmed as much: today, when Thomas and Johan catch a cold, they have the same symptoms, and for nearly the same amount of time.

"I think it's pretty cool to have immunity from your big brother," Maren Chamorro said.

This therapeutic approach -- boosting the body's immune system using cells from a donor or one's own genetically modified cells -- is known as immunotherapy.

Its main use so far has been against cancer, but Keller hopes it will soon become available against viruses for patients, like Johan, who suffer from depressed immune systems.

The chief obstacles to that happening are the complexity of the process and the costs, which can run to many thousands of dollars. These factors currently restrict the procedure to some 30 medical centers in the United States.

For Johan, a year and a half after his bone marrow transplant, everything points to a complete success.

"It's neat to see him processing things, and especially play outside in the mud," his mother said.

"You know, what a gift!"

Her only concern now is the same as any mother would have -- that when her son does fall ill, others in the family might catch the same bug.

2020 AFP

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The 'supercells' that cured an infant's grave genetic illness - FRANCE 24

"One reason that cats are happier than people is that they have no newspapers. Gwendolyn Brooks

I had a question from a follower last week about a small biotech firm based near one of my residences in New York City. This $4 developmental firm is focused on diseases of the central nervous system. I had not looked at this name in quite some time, and there is very little research posted on this company, so we will revisit it in the paragraphs below.

Brainstorm Cell Therapeutics (BCLI) is a small biotech concern out of New York. The company is developing adult stem cell therapeutic products. It focuses on utilizing the patients own bone marrow stem cells to generate neuron-like cells that may provide an effective treatment initially for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Parkinsons disease, multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injury. It develops these therapies with its proprietary NurOwn platform. The shares currently trade at the $4 level and have an approximate market cap of $90 million.

Source: June Company Presentation

Pipeline:

Source: June Company Presentation

As can be seen above, the company has several mostly early stage assets it is developing in its pipeline.

By far the most advance therapy in the company's pipeline is its product aimed at ALS which is also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. This rare condition affects some 450,000 individual worldwide, including some 30,000 in the United States.

Source: June Company Presentation

The company posted a second safety analysis around this Phase 3 trial in late October. Much more important top-line results from this key study should be out sometime in the fourth quarter of next year. 200 people have been enrolled in this critical study. Here are the company's conclusions about its Phase II trial.

Source: June Company Presentation

Top-line data from a Phase 2 NurOwn trial to treat Progressive Multiple Sclerosis should be out mid-year in 2020 as the only other trial milestone on the horizon.

It is hard to find many small biotech firms that get less coverage than Brainstorm. I can find only one analyst firm that has 'chimed in' on BCLI in 2019. That was Maxim Group five weeks ago which maintained its Buy rating and $9 price target.

Notably, no insiders have sold shares in this firm since late in 2015. Earlier this month, the CEO, CFO and CMO purchased just over $65,000 in shares in aggregate. Although this is hardly a big insider buy, this was the first insider activity in the stock since January of this year.

The company ended the third quarter with just over $2 million in cash and marketable securities on the balance. It also has remaining non-dilutive CIRM and IIA grants that amount to approximately $5.9 million. Given Brainstorm burned through just over $5 million, some sort of capital raise is very likely on the horizon.

According to a recent interview posted on Seeking Alpha with the company's CEO, there are several other potential competitors in the ALS also conducting late stage trials. Brainstorm's leaders believe NurOwn's effort stands out in 'by being autologous and because it can produce high levels of neurotrophic factors. Moreover, unlike most stem cell competitors, it's delivered directly into the spinal fluid through bimonthly lumbar punctures, unlike others that need an invasive surgical procedure "that carries considerable morbidity".'

The company's platform is intriguing. However, there simply doesn't seem to be enough information to make an informed decision around this name especially in light of a coming capital raise. I offer up this analysis in response to an inquiry and because there is little posted here on Seeking Alpha on this name.

"There is, incidentally, no way of talking about cats that enables one to come off as a sane person. Dan Greenberg

Bret Jensen is the Founder of and authors articles for the Biotech Forum, Busted IPO Forum, and Insiders Forum

I present and update my best small-cap biotech stock ideas only to subscribers of my exclusive marketplace, The Biotech Forum. Try a free 2-week trial today by clicking on our logo below!

Disclosure: I/we have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

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Reading Up On Brainstorm Cell Therapeutics - Seeking Alpha

Soft tissue injuries in muscles, tendons and ligaments, andosteoarthritis, can make moving around painful and limit your physical activity. ButDr. James Presley,a Mayo Clinic physical medicine specialist, says two specialized treatments are growing more common and can help you heal faster.

Platelet-rich plasmais a specialized treatment that Dr. Presley says can bring relief for many patients dealing with soft tissue injuries.

Platelet-rich plasma is a way of trying to harness the bodys immune system or the bodys own ability to heal tissues, Dr. Presley says. [We] concentrate it and then spot-shoot it into the area of injury.

Dr. Presley says the process involves taking blood from your arm, processing it to concentrate the platelets, then injecting it directly into the affected area.

These treatments seem to be helpful in helping the healing process move along when it comes to tendon and ligament injuries, and potentially to help decrease pain and improve function in a joint that has some arthritis, Dr. Presley says.

The second treatment is calledbone marrow aspirate concentrateand involves extracting cells, including stem cells, from bone marrow in the pelvis; processing them into a solution; and injecting them into a painful joint.

The studies that have been done with this have shown patients have decreased pain and thereby improved function of a joint with mild to moderate osteoarthritis, Dr. Presley says.

But he says the best thing you can do is protect your muscles, tendons, and ligaments from injury by finding a happy medium between staying active and avoiding overuse.

Original post:
Advances In Treatment Of Soft Tissue Injuries (Video) - South Florida Reporter

HUNTINGTON Serucell Corporation, a cosmeceutical company based in Huntington, has developed the worlds only dual-cell technology to create and produce anti-aging skincare products, and they did it in Huntington.

Serucell KFS Cellular Protein Complex Serum is made start to finish at Serucells laboratory on the south side of Huntington.

This has been one of the best kept secrets in West Virginia, said Cortland Bohacek, executive chairman and a co-founder of Serucell Corporation.

The company soft launch was in September 2018 at The Greenbrier Spas. The Official online launch was April 2019 and is getting exposure with some well known sellers like Neiman Marcus, local dermatologist and plastic surgeons offices and several other retail locations from New York to California. It is also sold online at serucell.com.

One person that has tried the product is Jennifer Wheeler, who is also a Huntington City Council member.

As a consumer I have an appreciation of the quality of the product and the results Ive seen using it, she said. It has been transformative for my skin and seems like its success will be transformative for our city as well.

She said Serucell and the people behind it are impressive on every level.

In my role on council, Im especially grateful for the companys conscious effort to stay and grow in our city, Wheeler said.

A one-ounce bottle of the serum costs $225. The recommended usage is twice per day and it will last on average of about six weeks.

Serucells active ingredient is called KFS (Keratinocyte Fibroblast Serum), which is made up of more than 1,500 naturally derived super proteins, collagens, peptides and signaling factors that support optimal communication within the cellular makeup of your skin.

This is the first and only dual-cell technology that optimizes hydration and harnesses the power of both keratinocytes and fibroblasts, two essential contributors to maintaining healthy skin by supporting natural rejuvenation of aging skin from the inside out, said Jennifer Hessel, president and CEO of the company.

When applied to the skin, KFS helps boost the skins natural ability to support new collagen and elastin, strengthen the connection and layer of support between the upper and lower layers of your skin. The result, over time is firmer, plumper and smoother skin, according to Hessel.

Why it works so naturally with your skin is because it is natural, Hessel said. These proteins play an important role in strengthening the bond between the layers of your skin, and thats where the re-boot happens.

KFS is the creation of Dr. Walter Neto, Serucells chief science officer and co-founder of the company. Neto is both a physician and a research scientist, specializing in the field of regenerative medicine with an emphasis on skin healing and repair.

Neto said Serucells technology unlocks the key to how our cells communicate and harnesses the signaling power actions to produce the thousands of bioactive proteins necessary to support the skins natural rejuvenation.

Originally from Brazil, Neto studied at Saint Matthews University and completed his clinical training in England. His clinical research on stem-cell cancer therapies, bone and tissue engineering and wound and burn healing led to his discovery in cell-to-cell communication, and ultimately the creation of Serucells KFS Cellular Protein Complex Serum.

Neto received multiple patents for the production method of Serucell KFS Serum. He lives in Huntington with his wife and four golden retrievers and works alongside his longtime friend, Dr. Brett Jarrell.

I have known Brett since I was 18 years old, Neto said.

Jarrell practices emergency medicine in Ashland, Kentucky, and oversees all aspects of quality control for Serucell. He received his bachelors degree in biology from Wittenberg University, his masters degree in biology from Marshall University and his medical degree from the Marshall University School of Medicine. Jarrell completed his residency at West Virginia University and is board certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine.

Jarrell has served as a clinical instructor of emergency medicine at the Marshall School of Medicine, president of the West Virginia chapter of the American College of Emergency Medicine and he has published a number of peer-reviewed journal articles on stroke research.

Jarrell also lives in Huntington.

Another co-founder of the company is Dr. Tom McClellan.

McClellan is Serucells chief medical officer and director of research and is a well-respected plastic and reconstructive surgeon with a private practice, McClellan Plastic Surgery, in Morgantown.

McClellan completed his plastic and reconstructive surgery training at the world-renowned Lahey Clinic Foundation, a Harvard Medical School and Tufts Medical School affiliate in Boston, Massachusetts. While in Boston, he worked at Lahey Medical Center, Brigham and Womens Hospital, as well as at the Boston Childrens Hospital. McClellan is board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery.

In addition to his practice and role at Serucell, McClellan utilizes his surgical skills through pro bono work with InterplastWV, a non-profit group that provides comprehensive reconstructive surgery to the developing world. He has participated in surgical missions to Haiti, Peru and the Bahamas.

McClellan lives in Morgantown with his family.

All three doctors here have strong connections to West Virginia, and we didnt want to leave, Neto said. We all want to give back to West Virginia, so that is the main reason we have our business here in Huntington.

We are building a company we believe can make a difference in the community, Hessel added. Our goal is to grow Serucell and build our brand right here in Huntington. There is a pool of untapped talent here in Huntington. When we expand our business here, we can provide another reason for young people to be able to stay and grow their careers, whether it is in science, operations or manufacturing. The team is a pretty excited to make an impact in the community where it all started.

Hessel decline to give sales numbers, but said the business has been growing each year since the product was introduced. She also declined to give the number of employees at the facility, but did say it has sales representatives across the country.

For more information, visit serucell.com.

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Firm adds a new wrinkle to anti-aging products - The Logan Banner

HERE are four beaming children none of whom would be alive today if a stranger had not given blood.

Each of their lives was saved by a transfusion, yet many of us never find the time to sign up to become a donor.

NHS Blood and Transplant is encouraging readers to make giving blood one of their New Year resolutions.

It is particularly calling on men to donate because their blood can be more suitable for treating patients. The families of these four survivors tell Lynsey Hope their stories.

'We worry every day he might suffer a serious bleed'

GEORGE CLAXTON lives with mum Faye, 36, a salon owner, dad Luke, 34, an electrical engineer, and sister Ella, six, in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire. Faye says:

"When George was 14 months old he was diagnosed with a rare platelet disorder.

"The condition doesnt have a name but it means his blood cant clot properly.

"Tiny blood cells called platelets in his blood are the wrong shape and size and he has to take medication daily.

"We found out he had it after he suffered a virus and came out with a rash.

"Its called petechiae but can look similar to meningitis.

"We took George to A&E at Hinchingbrooke Hospital near Huntington. Blood tests came back negative and we were sent home.

"But two weeks later, we were back again.

"We were referred to specialists at Addenbrookes Hospital in Cambridge, who discovered George was bleeding under the skin.

"Its been hard to accept its a lifelong condition and not something that can be cured.

"There have been two occasions when George has needed a transfusion.

"The first was in June 2016.

"Doctors had to perform a transfusion before he had a tooth extracted to make sure he didnt bleed too much during the procedure.

"In May last year, he fell over in the school playground and hurt his elbow, causing a bleed in his joint.

"George has been brave from the start.

"He loves football but we worry every day he may have an accident that causes a serious bleed.

"He can also have spontaneous bleeds.

"His little sister was also diagnosed with the condition.

"She hasnt needed a transfusion yet but she may do and that is devastating for us as parents.

"Were so grateful to people who donate blood.

"It can enable people to live."

'Just an hour of your time could be the gift of a lifetime'

JESSICA FAY lives in Burnley with her mum Laura Bell, 32, dad Adam Fay, 39, who is a carer, and her brothers Kyle, 14, Denver, 13, Jayden, eight and Taylor, six. Laura, a full-time mum, says:

"Jessica was diagnosed with meningitis and septicaemia when she was 15 weeks old.

"I took her to the GP when she started feeling unwell.

"She wasnt feeding and had a high temperature.

"The doctor was concerned and said I must take her straight to hospital.

"Within hours of arriving at A&E, Jessica stopped breathing and was put on life-support.

"The disease had taken over her body and, one by one, her organs were shutting down.

"There was only one option. A blood transfusion might dilute the infection in her blood and give her a chance.

"There was a risk her body would reject the blood and we knew if that happened wed lose her.

"Incredibly though, that blood transfusion saved her life.

"She remained in intensive care for a week and, after three weeks, she came home.

"Jessica was being given so many treatments in those terrible few weeks that I didnt think too much about where the blood had come from.

"But when she recovered, I realised that without it she would not have made it. Unfortunately, Jessica suffered some brain damage because of what happened.

"She has social communication disorder and finds it hard to make friends.

"She is an incredible child and Im so grateful to whoever it was that took the time to donate blood for her.

"If someone hadnt donated that blood, Jessica would be dead.

"She has done all she can to give something back.

"Shes raised thousands of pounds for charity by organising events in the community.

"I would urge anyone who can to give blood it is just an hour of your time but it could be the gift of a lifetime to a child like Jessica.'

'Our baby can be in a lot of pain due to the disease'

EZRAH PINK was born with sickle cell disease. He lives with his mum Serena, 30, who looks after an office building, and her partner Courtney, 32, an estate agent, in Beckenham, Kent. Serena says:

"We knew before Ezrah was born that he might have sickle cell disease.

"When I was pregnant, doctors found out I carried a gene.

"About a week after he was born, they confirmed Ezrah had the disease.

"People with sickle cell produce unusual C-shaped red blood cells, meaning they sometimes get stuck or block blood vessels. At first, he didnt show any symptoms.

"He started having problems when he was around 11 months.

"Since then its been a whirlwind. We have been in and out of hospital.

"Id never known anyone with sickle cell so its been a tough learning curve and the condition will affect him for life.

"Ezrah has already had four blood transfusions.

"When one of his odd-shaped blood cells gets stuck, it causes what is called a sickle cell crisis and this can cause a great deal of pain.

"Ezrah is also prone to serious infections.

"He takes penicillin every day as well as folic acid to boost his immunity.

"Id never given blood before having Ezrah.

"It wasnt until the first time doctors told me that they were going to have to transfuse him that I realised how important it was.

"Im pregnant now so I cant do it myself just yet, but as soon as I can sign up, I will.

"You never know whats round the corner.

"Its not until it happens to someone close to you that you realise how important it is."

'While recovering he's had more than 50 transfusions'

JACOB JESSEL lives with mum Emma Riley, 47, an NHS project manager, dad Nick Jessel, 44, a sales manager, and brother Sam, eight, near Grimsby, Lincs. Emma says:

"Jacob was diagnosed with a rare blood disorder when he was seven.

"We went on a camping trip and he was bitten by a mosquito. A huge bruise came out, which covered most of his forearm.

"Our GP took blood and told us his blood count was dangerously low and that we had to take him straight to hospital.

"It was a huge shock and it was obvious to us that doctors feared he had leukaemia.

"Jacob was given an emergency bone marrow biopsy at Sheffield Childrens Hospital and we were told he probably had cancer.

"Waiting for the results of the biopsy was horrible.

"We were relieved when the tests came back negative, but more tests revealed he had an incurable bone marrow disorder.

"Doctors said hed need a transplant, which he had in 2017.

"There was only one match on the register at the time so we went ahead with it. But sadly that didnt work.

"About a month later, he had a transplant using his dads stem cells, which has been effective.

"While recovering, he had more than 50 blood transfusions.

"He now attends a follow-up clinic every four to six months to make sure his blood keeps working properly.

"Before Jacob was ill, I was one of these people who never got round to giving blood.

"I thought it was a good thing to do but I kept putting it off.

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"But every time a unit of blood was delivered to the ward for Jacob, I felt incredibly relieved that someone, somewhere, had taken the time to give blood.

"Now I give blood regularly. Its a good feeling to know you are helping someone else.

"I know how grateful the recipient will 7 be. Its the best gift anyone can give."

See more here:
None of these four beaming children would be alive today if a stranger had not given blood - The Sun

Playing pool, watching comedy, and performing karaoke. These are some of the activities many Europeans do while drinking alcohol.

Athletic exertion is not one of them.

However, in recent years, more and more races have popped up across Europe that involve both running and drinking - at the same time.

Marathons in traditional wine heartlands like Bordeaux and Beaujolais have been running for decades but in recent years, many more races have popped up across the continent such as the Genusslauf in Germany, the Forges of the Anlier Forest in Belgium and now the new kid on the block - the Marathon of Flavours in Switzerland.

Most races of this sort require a medical certificate, so I popped down to my local doctor, had my blood pressure taken, jumped up and down a bit, and was duly awarded one.

At 9 a.m. I'm queuing for my bib in the picturesque Swiss town of Sion. It's the inaugural edition of the Marathon des Saveurs.

It's pouring hard, overcast and I'm severely underdressed in my running top and shorts. Looking around, many people are sensibly robed, as if they're here for a hike. And perhaps they are. This is the point where I begin to think it's not really a race.

Once out of the centre of Sion we climb a few hundred metres into the hills and run on narrow paths alongside tiny irrigation canals called 'bisses', some of which date back to the 13th century.

These man-made streams have been vital to the survival of farmland and viticulture in the area since the dark ages. The rain has not stopped and so I put my foot down and overtake a few people to warm up.

By 10:30 I'm drenched and the sight of a small marquee in the distance heralds the first 'tasting stop' - and it's a mixed blessing. Shelter from the rain is very welcome, as are the friendly faces telling us what is on offer. And though it's a little early for wine, I figure I should throw myself into the fray to get the full experience.

I'm given a white wine called Fendant, which is actually Chasselas - Switzerland's most widely grown indigenous grape. They have special names for grapes in the Valais - more of which later. It has a slight fizz on the tongue, which is a surprise. It's not a tasting glass either, it's a full wine glass. Same with the red that follows, which is called Dole. It dawns on me we're going to drink around three bottles' worth. There's food, too, of course. The organisers won't let you drink on an empty stomach. A platter of meat and cheese is the fare here. I have a chat with a couple of other competitors and everyone is in good spirits. I wonder if everyone will be drunk in an hour or so?

Rze and Cornalin are very old varietals (which is a terribly sophisticated word for grape types). Records of these two wines date back to the middle ages and the irrigation canals. We're served these, along with some delicious pumpkin soup, in the garden of some kind of traditional farm house.

The party is in full swing with some hilarious accordion music and the first glimpse of sunshine. I'm nearly 10k in, and I'm starting to really enjoy myself.

It's between stops two and three that I really begin to notice that I'm overtaking a lot of people. I heard a few competitors say they were feeling a little light-headed while we were enjoying the Cornalin, and it made me wonder when my body would start feeling the effects.

It's common knowledge that Alcohol is a diuretic (something that will dehydrate you).

"Staying well hydrated is absolutely key in races such as the 23k," Dr Chris Gaffney, Lecturer in Sports Science at Lancaster University tells me. "When we exercise our core body temperature increases and you sweat to dissipate this heat. If you consume alcohol during exercise then the body is getting rid of fluid necessary to try and maintain our body temperature. Thus, we are stopping the body from regulating temperature normally."

Dehydration is something I was aware of as someone who runs regularly, and I was carrying a three litre water bladder in my backpack for the run. What I didn't know was other, quite startling, considerations that Dr Chris made me aware of. Cardiovascular and metabolic considerations for example.

"Drinking alcohol effects the electrical activity of our heart. This can lead to an increase in heart rate, an increase in blood pressure, and an increased frequency of abnormal heart rhythms. These can be dangerous during exercise where the heart is already under increased demand."

He goes on: "Over 90% of alcohol is broken down in the liver. The processing of alcohol may impair the livers ability to detoxify other metabolites during exercise, and the accumulation of some metabolites can be bad for our health."

It's not hitting me yet and I'm still happily running through vineyards.

The promise of hot cheese leads me to run quite quickly to this, the third tasting station. A glass of Muscat is a sweet kick upon arrival as is the stereo system which is pumping out AC/DC's Highway to Hell, a fitting tribute to those struggling with the alcohol. Then comes the Humagne Rouge, which pairs stupendously with the bubbling raclette. I'm sure I'm not drunk. But then again, I am singing.

It's at this point I start to sniff victory. I am told there's only one group of runners that have already passed this way, eaten, drank and left. I decided it was game on so I declined the second plate of raclette and headed off.

After about two kilometres I could see runners in the distance. That gave me something to aim for. Soon, I'm gaining on them and feel really good.

Could it be that my fairly regular drinking habits have given me an advantage?

Gaffney seems to think so. He highlights the two elements that support the theory - genetics and what he terms the 'training' effect.

"You may be biologically advantaged through being male and having genetics that predispose to efficient breakdown of alcohol. You will further be advantaged through possessing greater quantities of enzymes in the liver to break down this alcohol that youve gained from frequent drinking.

I had been running solo for about 20 minutes by the time I reached the penultimate tasting station. Nobody was there aside from the guys running the food and drink stall. Did I just miss the frontrunners? Yes, they tell me. By about 5 minutes.

I can't just swig two glasses of wine, wolf down the game terrine and scuttle off. I have to do this properly.

I am given a glass of Johannisberg. Which takes us back to Stop One. The names for grapes that aren't actually the names for grapes.

Much like Fendant is the special Valais name for the ubiquitous Chasselas, similarly Johannisberg is really Sylvaner. These fantasy names are romantic and truly make one feel like you've entered into an entirely new world of wine. And you kind of have.

The Valais is the same size as Bordeaux's St Emilion region. That's about 5,000 hectares. Wine-wise, that's not particularly huge.

A day before the race I went to visit one of Switzerland's flagship wine estates, Domaine du Mont d'Or. Laurent Guidoux, who runs the operation, gave me a tour of the vineyards and we discussed the singular problem that is how to export Swiss wine.

"99% of Swiss wine never leaves the country," he says. "And the cost of production is too high to have prices that are interesting to supermarkets."

A wine without a profile isn't going to intrigue buyers, especially at a high price. And Guidoux has overheads that push the price point beyond an easy sell. But the quality does make the wine from the Valais competitive.

Their Petite Arvine is remarkable. There's an unmistakable saline finish that sets it apart from any other white I've ever tasted. A total shoe-in for a blind tasting. Nevertheless, he's facing a serious problem. The sort of problem that closes vineyards. Guidoux has the means to ride it out, but not every producer does.

Back to the race, and it's getting hot. I start running with a guy called Gerald and his mate. Gerald thinks we might win but I tell him I was told we're not the leaders. I then speed off, which proves foolish as while I'm running and filming a local man waving to me, I miss a signpost and take myself about half a kilometre the wrong way. It's only when I come to a crossroads with no signpost that I realise my mistake.

By the time I reroute myself, Gerald is a spot in the distance and I've got some running to do.

Eventually, after about two kilometres, I catch up. I still have a little water left in my bladder pack but I'm swigging quite heavily now. Gerald says he feels "very good" and it makes me laugh. Soon we come to "Raspille Gorge", the fifth and final tasting stop. It's dessert. Strudel with grape seeds served with Plum sorbet.

The dessert wine that goes with it, an overmaturated Hermitage, is exceptionally decent. The grapes that make this are not harvested until December, giving them more time to sweeten.

It's at this time an official gives me the news that there are two runners ahead and they left a few minutes ago. I'm not going to win this. At that moment, another couple get to Stop 5, and carry on through without stopping to drink. No, you don't, I think to myself. I down the wine, finish off the strudel and thank the volunteers. Gerald and chum are not quite ready so I wave and hit the final stage.

As I run up a hill and overtake the non-drinking couple, I ask myself if I'm drunk. I really don't think so. I don't feel unsteady and haven't the whole time.

"Alcohol affects the density of fluid within the inner ear, which sets off a cascade of signals to the brain which can result in feeling unsteady on our feet and even falling," Dr Gaffney notes in his advice to me. "This is compounded by the effect on the oculomotor (eye movement) system. This happens because alcohol affects the central nervous system and changes our eye movement patterns so they are less effective. This could pose dangers when running, particularly on uneven ground. In brief, if we consume (enough) alcohol we become unsteady on our feet and this is usually bad for exercise."

Legendary Clash frontman Joe Strummer reportedly ran a marathon in 3 hours 20 mins. According to various sources it was the Paris marathon of 1982. His advice on preparation? Drink 10 pints of beer the night before the race."

No cheering crowds, in fact no-one at all is there to witness me finish. Initially I worry I've got the wrong place, but once into a courtyard I see two officials having a glass of wine and a chat, so I head towards them. I sign to say I have completed the race and they tell me that I have come third.

A man comes over from the bar area to say that, since there's no actual podium, would I like a congratulatory drink. I gladly accept. Well, I'm not made of stone.

Read more from the original source:
Boozy marathons: can running and drinking alcohol really be healthy? - Euronews

Its easy to forget about Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes with so many great quarterbacks like Lamar Jackson and Russell Wilson this year.

Mahomes just threw over 4,000 passing yards and 26 touchdowns to only 5 interceptions during a season where he dealt with multiple injuries, including two games missed with a dislocated knee cap.

Plus, his Chiefs are the No. 2 seeded team in the AFC Playoffs. They get a home playoff game after a bye thanks to their dominate quarterback.

Still, it is hard to forget how great Mahomes is. It is even harder finding a proper comparison.

So who are some players similar to the Chiefs 24-year-old signal caller?

Last year, Mahomes joined Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Matt Stafford, Dan Marino, Tom Brady and Drew Brees as the only passers to surpass 5,000 yards. Brees is the only one in that group to do it multiple times (five). Marino was the first youngest player to do it (23).

Patrick Mahomes wasnt too far off doing it in his second season. Stafford was close too, hitting the mark in 2011 at 23 during his third season. The Lions QB came close to joining the club again the next season. However, Mahomes threw five less interceptions than Marino or Stafford in their 5k passing seasons. Marino also never broke 100 yards rushing in a season like Mahomes has twice. Stafford has done that three times in 10 seasons.

Otherwise, most of the other guys did it deeper in their career. Tony Romo, Kirk Cousins and Eli Manning have also come close to this club but have not made it. Mahomes is also elite in that group because he threw 50 touchdowns along with all those yards. Manning is the only other guy to do that.

What really separates Mahomes from the rest of the 5,000 passing yards club, like Manning and Brady, is his ability to run. Well many of those guys can scramble, or create in the pocket, they do not have the same size and speed to pose a threat as a runner.

In two seasons as a starter, Mahomes has 490 rushing yards along with four touchdowns. Those rushing numbers are easily passed by Cam Newton in basically any of his seasons. However, Newton has only passed 4,000 passing yards or 30 touchdowns one time each. Mahomes also completed 66 percent of his passes in each of his two seasons as a starter.

The same could be said for Steve McNair, Steve Young, Donovan McNabb, Daunte Culpepper, Michael Vick, Randall Cunningham or any other quarterback you think of for running. Sure, those guys own Mahomes in rushing yards and touchdowns, but Pat beat them majorly in passing last season. Maybe it is a different league but Mahomes is a different bread.

Mahomes isnt really a true running quarterback. He is more of a mobile QB with a big arm. He relies on the threat of his arm to open opportunities to run and not his running ability to open up passing.

That makes him closer to Warren Moon. Moon, like Mahomes, could run but he was better with his arm. Moon passed 4,000 passing yards four times in his career despite his career having an asterisk on it since he had so much time in the CFL.

However, Moon never came close to the 50 touchdowns like PatrickMahomes. Moon also only completed more than 64 percent of his passes once. Patrick completed 66 percent of his throws twice in his three seasons.

Patrick Mahomes also separates himself from the pack with his early success. The Chiefs QB is 23-7 as a starter. Moon finished his career with about a .500 winning percentage in over 200 games. It is an apple to oranges comparison, but it took Moon three seasons before he had a winning season.

Yet Mahomes won MVP in only his second season. He had the Chiefs looking unstoppable last season. His starts are down this year, as he threw 1,000 less yards and half the touchdowns, but his team is still in the playoffs. Mahomes also threw way less interceptions in his second year as the starter. All this coming after he sat out three games nursing an injury.

You would have to go back to Marino to find a player with the kind of success Mahomes is having this early. You could make a case for a young Ben Roethlisberger in terms of winning, but it took Big Ben four seasons to throw more than 30 touchdown passes.

Russell Wilson had success early in his career too. However, Mahomes is bigger and takes a lot less sacks than Wilson. Wilson has also played predominately in a run offense so his passing numbers do not really compare well to Mahomes either.

Of course, there is Lamar Jackson who has his team at the top of the AFC, and is most likely headed to an MVP in only his second season. However, Jackson is in his own unique group, as he set the record for rushing yards for a QB. Jackson is completing over 66 percent of his passes with over 30 touchdowns and single-digit interceptions.

Jackson is also like Mahomes in that they both slid down their draft boards. They both had to get the torch passed to them by an incumbent as well. Alex Smith started Mahomes first season in the league while Jackson watched Joe Flacco for half the year.

Speaking of draft slides, Aaron Rodgers is another one who knows about waiting in the green room as well as inheriting a team. He slid to the 20s in his draft and he had to inherit the team from Brett Favre. Nonetheless, the Chiefs traded up and gave up picks to draft Mahomes at No. 10 overall which put him on an instant winner.

When it comes to the eye test, you could probably compare him to either of those guys. Rodgers is infamous for his deep ball with the flick of a wrist. He can also takeover a game. Rodgers has only thrown double-digit interceptions twice in his 14 seasons. Rodgers also bests Mahomes in rushing yards. Yet, Rodgers has not had 5,000 passing yards or 50 touchdowns like Mahomes last year. He has come close. Rodgers was also older than Mahomes when he took over.

Favre on the other hand was a master at improvising. Throwing on the run and creating. Still, Mahomes has never thrown more than 12 interceptions. Over nearly a twenty year career, Favre did that once. Not to mention, PatrickMahomes is also unique for really practicing no-look, jumping throws, side arms and other highlights.

Matt Ryan is also a modern gunslinging QB who comes to mind. Ryan has thrown over 4,000 yards and completed over 60 percent of his passes the last nine seasons. Yet, Ryan has never thrown over 40 touchdowns. His numbers also took a sizable jump in his fourth season when the Falcons drafted Julio Jones. Pat Mahomes No. 1 receiver Tyreek Hill is great but he is no Julio Jones and Mahomes could still put up those big numbers.

Besides 5,000 passing yards and 50 passing touchdowns in one season, Mahomes also shares something with Peyton Manning. That is a pops who is a professional athlete. Some have even compared him to Steph Curry for having a pro athlete dad, transcending the game putting up godly numbers.

Mahomes father was a professional baseball player with 11 seasons. Its not the same as the Mannings, but it means he had guidance and genetics. In fact, it probably makes Mahomes a better athlete than either of the Mannings. Mahomes is also in the 80th percentile for three-cone drills at the NFL Combine and the 90th percentile for 20-yard shuttle which again proves his athleticism.

There is actually an entire feature about the legend of Mahomes playing basketball, football and baseball at a high-level his entire life.

In High School, Mahomes was a baseball phenom. He got drafted and offered to play in the MLB but he loved football more. That puts him somewhat in a group with Kyler Murray and Russell Wislon as guys who got drafted by the MLB. Murray and Mahomes both came up under current Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury as well.

Murray is actually faster and a better runner. Mahomes athletic profile is actually closer to Teddy Bridgewater or Drew Lock. Yet neither of those guys have the same arm as Mahomes. Not to mention, Murray only threw two less interceptions this year than Mahomes last season, but Murray hasnt thrown half the touchdowns.

Moreover, Mahomes is already on his way to being as visible as the Mannings or Tom Brady. He was just on the cover of Madden and has been in commercials. It wasnt until recently we really saw Brady get the visibility Mahomes is receiving.

No there is no quarterback like Kansas City Chiefs star Patrick Mahomes. That is the short answer.

The long answer is that there is no player with the flash, arm-strength, accuracy, dual-threat ability, team success and story that Mahomes brings in only his second year as a starter in the NFL.

It does not matter what class you put him, there is no QB in history like Patrick Mahomes. His athletic pedigree, arm-strength, highlights, team success, mobility and story make him one of a kind. We cant forget the froggish-voice or athlete girlfriend either as part of his story.

The point is, Mahomes is in a category by himself. At 24, and only his second year starting, Mahomes still gets to play his best football too. Guys like Murray or Jackson might be the future of the league, but even they are no Mahomes yet.

Look at stats, look at tape or look at impact and you will not find a quarterback like Patrick Mahomes.

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Is there any quarterback in NFL history similar to Patrick Mahomes? - ClutchPoints