Day: November 23, 2020

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Inexpensive Oxford COVID Vaccine Proven Effective

On By ModernMedia

A vaccine developed by the University of Oxford has shown to be effective, according to the BBC. The vaccine trial was conducted with over 20 000 volunteers in the UK and Brazil.

The vaccine conferred 70% protection, compared to the 90% and above level from the other two vaccines. However, a small dose followed by a large dose however, conferred 90% protection.   

At £3 (R60) a dose, the Oxford vaccine is less costly than the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines which cost £15 (R300) and £25 (R500) respectively. The Oxford vaccine is also easier from a logistical perspective as it can be stored at higher temperatures. In an encouraging sign for controlling the pandemic, it appears that there were fewer asymptomatic infections with the low-dose-then-high-dose vaccine administration. 

The UK government has four million doses already prepared, and if the vaccine is authorised, the government will roll out an immunisation program on a vast scale. Care home staff, health care workers and the elderly will receive the vaccinations first. Meanwhile, Oxford’s manufacturing partner AstraZeneca is preparing to produce three billion doses. However, logistical challenges remain.

Prof Peter Horby, from the University of Oxford, said, “This is very welcome news, we can clearly see the end of [the] tunnel now. There were no Covid hospitalisations or deaths in people who got the Oxford vaccine.”

Categories : Diet and NutritionTags : Leave a comment

Meat-free Diets Increase Risk of Fracture

On By ModernMedia

Research conducted on one of the largest dietary and health studies has revealed that people eating vegan, and to a lesser extent, vegetarian and pescetarian, diets are at higher risk for fractures.

This is in line with earlier studies that had indicated that vegan diets had weaker bones, but it had been unclear if this translated to an increased fracture risk.

Participants eating a vegan diet had a more than doubled increase of hip fracture risk; those on vegetarian and pescatarian diets also had an increase in hip fracture risk of 25%. Vegans, but not vegetarians and pescetarians, were also at increased risk of other fractures.

The research was done using data from the EPIC-Oxford trial, which followed over 65 000 participants from 1993 onwards, and controlled for a number of variables such as age, gender and level of physical activity.

The presence of protein helps to absorb calcium, and vegans are unlikely to be getting enough calcium without supplementing their diet. It is notable that after the 1990s, plant-based milk substitutes began to be fortified, which may have affected the results. 

A vegan diet also resulted in other health benefits as well as risks. Compared to an omnivorous diet, a vegan diet conferred a 10% reduction in cancer rates, 20% reduction in heart disease but also increased stroke risk by 20%.

The article is available to read at BMC Medicine.

Source: New Scientist

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Effectiveness of COVID Government Interventions Compared

On By ModernMedia

Currently, the most widely used tool to deal with the spread of COVID are non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs), which involve measures such as social distancing. In the face of the sudden emergency of the COVID pandemic, governments around the world implemented a wide range of NPIs, some based on scientific advice and some not. The effectiveness of these government interventions is compared in a new study.

In order to evaluate the effectiveness of these responses, researchers studied government interventions across 79 countries and territories. Each item was ranked, making a comprehensive dataset of 6068 interventions and compared to the reproduction number, Rt. They were analysed with four computational methods, including machine learning.

The study found that the most effective interventions were those that restricted movement such as travel restrictions and lockdowns, as well as social distancing. Cancellations of gathering also seemed to be effective. The least effective were appeals for international aid, tracking and tracing, disinfecting surfaces had the least impact.

Interventions also had differing effectiveness depending on what stage of the pandemic they were implemented in.

The most consistently effective intervention across all locations was contact tracing and quarantine.

Source: News-Medical.Net

Categories : Gastrointestinal Neurodegenerative DiseasesTags : Leave a comment

Gut Immune Cells Protect The Brain in MS Flare-ups

On By ModernMedia

Scientists from the University of California, San Francisco, have observed gut immune cells moving up out of the gastrointestinal tract to the brain during multiple sclerosis (MS) flareups, where they seem to exert some protective effects.

In MS, other immune cells attack the myelin sheath, resulting in flare-ups, where they experience memory problems, vision loss, pain and other problems. These flare-ups subside after some days, but it is not known why the disease switches back and forth between flare-up and remission.

The new research revealed that the flare-ups were brought under control with the unlikely assistance of gut immune cells, which produce Immunoglobulin-A (IgA) and act as the immune system’s first line of defence in the GI tract. Some of these cells actually leave the gut and migrate to the brain, where it appears they reduce inflammation.

“It was a very new idea,” said lead author, Sergio Baranzini, PhD, neurology professor at the UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences, . “Nobody thought to look for this type of immune cell.”

The gut immune cells were found only in cerebrospinal fluid of MS sufferers when they experienced a flare-up, and not in remission. Recent research indicated that an unhealthy GI microbiome was involved in MS, and the researchers determined that these immune cells only attacked potentially damaging bacteria, not the myelin sheath.

It is anticipated that this discovery may bring insights into new therapies to treat the disease. 

Source: Medical Xpress