The Gary Null Show - 02.12.21

Prof. Mickey Huff is the director of Project Censored and the president of the nonprofit Media Freedom Foundation.  He is a professor of sociology at Diablo Valley College in the San Francisco Bay area, where he is co-chair  and chair of its history and journalism departments respectively.  He is also on the Advisory Committee for the History of Conflict programs at John F. Kennedy University.  He lectures across the country on issues of censorship, propaganda and media literacy, with a special focus on suppressed historical narratives, and has appeared on numerous media outlets around the world.  In 2019 he was recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists and received its James Madison Freedom of Information award. He has been a co-editor, editor, and contributor to the award-winning Project Censored annual book series since 2008 and appears in the documentary Project Censored: The Movie.  The Project's most recent publication is "State of the Free Press 2021". You can also watch their new film "United States of Distraction: Fighting the Fake News Invasion" that is narrated by Abby Martin -- which is also the title of one of his most recent books along with "Lets Agree to Disagree".  Mickey is also the executive producer and host  of the broadcast Project Censored, heard every Tuesday at 5 pm Eastern time on the Progressive Radio Network.  The website is ProjectCensored.org

The Gary Null Show - 02.11.21

Gary takes on the real issues that the mainstream media is afraid to tackle. Tune in to find out the latest about health news, healing, politics, and the economy.
 
 
 
Samara Polytech scientists proved the anti-cancer properties of a number of plant extracts
Extracts from black chokeberry, raspberry and fireweed have a special anti-carcinogenic and antioxidant effect
Samara Polytech University (Russia), February 9, 2021
Samara Polytech chemists investigated the potential anticarcinogenic effects of extracts obtained from plant materials of lingonberry, raspberry, black chokeberry, grapes, Krasnodar green tea, ginseng, fireweed and coffee, and also evaluated their effect on the growth and viability of colon cancer cells. The research was carried out within the framework of the state assignment for fundamental research No. 0778-2020-0005, its results were published Dec. 29, 2020 in the journal Proceedings of Universities. Applied Chemistry and Biotechnology 
Prevention is the most cost-effective and long-term strategy for controlling this disease. It is now well known that almost 50% of all malignant tumors can be prevented with proper nutrition based on natural products with a preventive effect.
"Polyphenols are the largest variety of plant components. It is this class of chemical compounds that have shown powerful antioxidant properties. They actively fight against cellular damage caused by free radicals, slowing down the aging and preventing oxidation. In addition, they protect the body from inflammatory, cardiovascular, neurodegenerative diseases, and some forms of cancer", one of the authors of this study, associate professor of the Department of Technology and Organization of Public Catering of Samara Polytech Natalya Eremeeva explains. "We studied in detail the beneficial properties of lingonberry, raspberry, black chokeberry, grapes, Krasnodar green tea, ginseng, fireweed and coffee.
When conducting the MTT cytotoxicity test, the scientists found that the ginseng extract was the most cytotoxic, and the coffee extract was the least cytotoxic. It has been proven that all the studied extracts are able to reduce the expression of pro-inflammatory genes. The most pronounced inhibitory effect on the expression of these genes is possessed by the extracts of chokeberry and fireweed.
The research team supposes that this study may serve as a basis for conducting in vivo experiments to determine anticarcinogenic activity.
 
Diet rich in tomatoes cuts skin cancer in half in mice
Ohio State University, February 5, 2021
Daily tomato consumption appeared to cut the development of skin cancer tumors by half in a mouse study at The Ohio State University.
The new study of how nutritional interventions can alter the risk for skin cancers appeared online in the journal Scientific Reports.
It found that male mice fed a diet of 10 percent tomato powder daily for 35 weeks, then exposed to ultraviolet light, experienced, on average, a 50 percent decrease in skin cancer tumors compared to mice that ate no dehydrated tomato.
The theory behind the relationship between tomatoes and cancer is that dietary carotenoids, the pigmenting compounds that give tomatoes their color, may protect skin against UV light damage, said Jessica Cooperstone, co-author of the study and a research scientist in the Department of Food Science and Technology in the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences at Ohio State.
There were no significant differences in tumor number for the female mice in the study. Previous research has shown that male mice develop tumors earlier after UV exposure and that their tumors are more numerous, larger and more aggressive.
"This study showed us that we do need to consider sex when exploring different preventive strategies," said the study's senior author, Tatiana Oberyszyn, a professor of pathology and member of Ohio State's Comprehensive Cancer Center.
"What works in men may not always work equally well in women and vice versa."   
Previous human clinical trials suggest that eating tomato paste over time can dampen sunburns, perhaps thanks to carotenoids from the plants that are deposited in the skin of humans after eating, and may be able to protect against UV light damage, Cooperstone said.
"Lycopene, the primary carotenoid in tomatoes, has been shown to be the most effective antioxidant of these pigments," she said.
"However, when comparing lycopene administered from a whole food (tomato) or a synthesized supplement, tomatoes appear more effective in preventing redness after UV exposure, suggesting other compounds in tomatoes may also be at play."
In the new study, the Ohio State researchers found that only male mice fed dehydrated red tomatoes had reductions in tumor growth. Those fed diets with tangerine tomatoes, which have been shown to be higher in bioavailable lycopene in previous research, had fewer tumors than the control group, but the difference was not statistically significant.
Cooperstone is currently researching tomato compounds other than lycopene that may impart health benefits.
Non-melanoma skin cancers are the most common of all cancers, with more new cases—5.4 million in 2012—each year than breast, prostate, lung and colon cancers combined, according to the American Cancer Society.
Despite a low mortality rate, these cancers are costly, disfiguring, and their rates are increasing, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
"Alternative methods for systemic protection, possibly through nutritional interventions to modulate risk for skin-related diseases, could provide a significant benefit," Cooperstone said.
"Foods are not drugs, but they can possibly, over the lifetime of consumption, alter the development of certain diseases," she said.
 
Cannabis reduces blood pressure in older adults, according to Ben-Gurion University researchers
Ben Gurion University (Israel), February 8, 2021 
 
A new discovery by researchers from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) and its affiliated Soroka University Medical Center shows that medical cannabis may reduce blood pressure in older adults. 
The study, published in the European Journal of Internal Medicine, is the first of its kind to focus on the effect of cannabis on blood pressure, heart rate and metabolic parameters in adults 60 and above with hypertension. 
"Older adults are the fastest growing group of medical cannabis users, yet evidence on cardiovascular safety for this population is scarce," says Dr. Ran Abuhasira of the BGU Faculty of Health Sciences, one of Israel's leading medical faculties, and the BGU-Soroka Cannabis Clinical Research Institute. "This study is part of our ongoing effort to provide clinical research on the actual physiological effects of cannabis over time."
Patients were evaluated using 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, ECG, blood tests, and body measurements -- both before and three months after initiating cannabis therapy. 
In the study, researchers found a significant reduction in 24-hour systolic and diastolic blood pressure values, with the lowest point occurring three hours after ingesting cannabis either orally via oil extracts or by smoking. Patients showed reductions in blood pressure in both daytime and nighttime, with more significant changes at night. 
The BGU researchers theorize that the relief from pain, the indication for prescription cannabis in most patients, may also have contributed to a reduction in blood pressure. 
"Cannabis research is in its early stages and BGU is at the forefront of evaluating clinical use based on scientific studies," says Doug Seserman, chief executive officer of American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. "This new study is one of several that has been published recently by BGU on the medicinal benefits of cannabis."
 
Study links exposure to nighttime artificial lights with elevated thyroid cancer risk
University of Texas Health Science Center, February 8, 2021
People living in regions with high levels of outdoor artificial light at night may face a higher risk of developing thyroid cancer. The finding comes from a study published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.
Over the past century, nightscapes--especially in cities--have drastically changed due to the rapid growth of electric lighting. Also, epidemiological studies have reported an association between higher satellite-measured levels of nighttime light and elevated breast cancer risk. Because some breast cancers may share a common hormone-dependent basis with thyroid cancer, a team led by Qian Xiao, PhD, of The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston School of Public Health, looked for an association between light at night and later development of thyroid cancer among participants in the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study, which recruited American adults aged 50 to 71 years in 1995-1996. The investigators analyzed satellite imagery data to estimate levels of light at night at participants' residential addresses, and they examined state cancer registry databases to identify thyroid cancer diagnoses through 2011.
Among 464,371 participants who were followed for an average of 12.8 years, 856 cases of thyroid cancer were diagnosed (384 in men and 472 in women). When compared with the lowest quintile of light at night, the highest quintile was associated with a 55 percent higher risk of developing thyroid cancer. The association was primarily driven by the most common form of thyroid cancer, called papillary thyroid cancer, and it was stronger in women than in men. In women, the association was stronger for localized cancer with no sign of spread to other parts of the body, while in men the association was stronger for more advanced stages of cancer. The association appeared to be similar for different tumor sizes and across participants with different sociodemographic characteristics and body mass index. 
The researchers noted that additional epidemiologic studies are needed to confirm their findings. If confirmed, it will be important to understand the mechanisms underlying the relationship between light at night and thyroid cancer. The scientists noted that light at night suppresses melatonin, a modulator of estrogen activity that may have important anti-tumor effects. Also, light at night may lead to disruption of the body's internal clock (or circadian rhythms), which is a risk factor for various types of cancer.
"As an observational study, our study is not designed to establish causality. Therefore, we don't know if higher levels of outdoor light at night lead to an elevated risk for thyroid cancer; however, given the well-established evidence supporting a role of light exposure at night and circadian disruption, we hope our study will motivate researchers to further examine the relationship between light at night and cancer, and other diseases," said Dr. Xiao. "Recently, there have been efforts in some cities to reduce light pollution, and we believe future studies should evaluate if and to what degree such efforts impact human health."
 
 
Nobiletin in Citrus: targeting the circadian network to promote bioenergetics and healthy aging
University of Texas Health Science Center, February 5, 2021
 
According to news reporting originating from Houston, Texas, research stated, “The circadian clock is the biological mastermind governing orderly execution of bodily processes throughout the day. In recent years, an emerging topic of broad interest is clock-modulatory agents, including small molecules both of synthetic and natural origins, and their potential applications in disease models.”
Our news editors obtained a quote from the research from the University of Texas Health Science Center Houston, “Nobiletin is a naturally occurring flavonoid with the greatest abundance found in citrus peels. Extensive research has shown that Nobiletin is endowed with a wide range of biological activities, yet its mechanism of action remains unclear. We recently found through unbiased chemical screening that Nobiletin impinges on the clock machinery to activate temporal control of downstream processes within the cell and throughout the body. Using animal models of diseases and aging, we and others illustrate potent beneficial effects of Nobiletin on cellular energetics in both periphery and brain to promote healthy aging.”
According to the news editors, the research concluded: “Given its excellent safety profile, Nobiletin may represent a promising candidate molecule for development of nutraceutical and chronotherapeutic agents against chronic and age-related neurodegenerative diseases.”
This research has been peer-reviewed.
 
 
Brain changed by caffeine in utero, study finds
University of Rochester Medical Center, February 9, 2021
New research finds caffeine consumed during pregnancy can change important brain pathways that could lead to behavioral problems later in life. Researchers in the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) analyzed thousands of brain scans of nine and ten-year-olds, and revealed changes in the brain structure in children who were exposed to caffeine in utero.
"These are sort of small effects and it's not causing horrendous psychiatric conditions, but it is causing minimal but noticeable behavioral issues that should make us consider long term effects of caffeine intake during pregnancy," said John Foxe, Ph.D., director of the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience, and principal investigator of the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development or ABCD Study at the University of Rochester. "I suppose the outcome of this study will be a recommendation that any caffeine during pregnancy is probably not such a good idea."
Elevated behavioral issues, attention difficulties, and hyperactivity are all symptoms that researchers observed in these children. "What makes this unique is that we have a biological pathway that looks different when you consume caffeine through pregnancy," said Zachary Christensen, a M.D/Ph.D. candidate in the Medical Science Training Program and first author on the paper published in the journal Neuropharmacology. "Previous studies have shown that children perform differently on IQ tests, or they have different psychopathology, but that could also be related to demographics, so it's hard to parse that out until you have something like a biomarker. This gives us a place to start future research to try to learn exactly when the change is occurring in the brain."
Investigators analyzed brain scans of more than 9,000 nine and ten-year-old participants in the ABCD study. They found clear changes in how the white matter tracks—which form connections between brain regions—were organized in children whose mothers reported they consumed caffeine during pregnancy.
URMC is one of 21-sites across the country collecting data for the ABCD study, the largest long-term study of brain development and child health. The study is funded by the National Institutes of Health. Ed Freedman, Ph.D., is the principal investigator of the ABCD study in Rochester and a co-author of the study.
"It is important to point out this is a retrospective study," said Foxe. "We are relying on mothers to remember how much caffeine they took in while they were pregnant."
Previous studies have found caffeine can have a negative effect on pregnancy. It is also known that a fetus does not have the enzyme necessary to breakdown caffeine when it crosses the placenta. This new study reveals that caffeine could also leave a lasting impact on neurodevelopment.
The researchers point out that it is unclear if the impact of the caffeine on the fetal brain varies from one trimester to the next, or when during gestation these structural changes occur.
"Current clinical guidelines already suggest limiting caffeine intake during pregnancy—no more than two normal cups of coffee a day," Christensen said. "In the long term, we hope to develop better guidance for mothers, but in the meantime, they should ask their doctor as concerns arise."
 
Here's how stress, illness and even sunburn trigger herpes cold sore flareups
University of Virginia School of Medicine, February 11, 2021
Researchers at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have shed light on what causes herpes simplex virus to flare up, explaining how stress, illness and even sunburn can trigger unwanted outbreaks.
The discovery could lead to new ways to prevent cold sores and recurrent herpes-related eye disease from reoccurring, the researchers report.
"Herpes simplex recurrence has long been associated with stress, fever and sunburn," said researcher Anna R. Cliffe, of UVA's Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Cancer Biology. "This study sheds light on how all these triggers can lead to herpes simplex-associated disease."
About Herpes Simplex Recurrence 
Once you're infected with herpes simplex virus, or HSV—and more than half of Americans are—the virus never really goes away. Instead, it lurks inside neurons, waiting for the right moment to strike again, a process known as reactivation. 
Cold sores, also known as fever blisters, are one of the most common symptoms of HSV reactivation. Recurrent reactivation in the eye leads to herpes keratitis, which, if left untreated, can result in blindness. HSV infection has also been linked to the progression of Alzheimer's disease. 
Recurrences of HSV are typically associated with stress, illness or sunburn, but doctors have been uncertain exactly what causes the virus to reactivate.
Cliffe and her collaborators found that when neurons harboring the virus were exposed to stimuli that induce "neuronal hyperexcitation," the virus senses this particular change and seizes its opportunity to reactivate.
Working in a model developed by the Cliffe lab using mouse neurons infected with HSV, the researchers determined that the virus hijacks an important immune response within the body. In response to prolonged periods of inflammation or stress, the immune system releases a particular cytokine, Interleukin 1 beta. This cytokine is also present in epithelial cells in the skin and eye and is released when these cells are damaged by ultraviolet light. 
Interleukin 1 beta then increases the excitability in the affected neurons, setting the stage for HSV to flare up, the UVA researchers discovered.
"It is really remarkable that the virus has hijacked this pathway that is part of our body's immune response," Cliffe said. "It highlights how some viruses have evolved to take advantage of what should be part of our infection-fighting machinery."
The scientists say that more research will need to be done to fully understand the potential factors which play into herpes simplex disease. It may vary depending on the virus strain or the type of neuron infected, even. And it is still unknown if the virus alters how neurons respond to cytokines such as Interleukin 1 beta. But the new insights help doctors better understand what is happening in neurons and the immune system, and that could lead to ways to prevent unwanted outbreaks, the researchers hope.
"A better understanding of what causes HSV to reactivate in response to a stimulus is needed to develop novel therapeutics," Cliffe said. "Ultimately, what we hope to do is target the latent virus itself and make it unresponsive to stimuli such as Interleukin 1 beta."
The researchers have published their findings in the scientific journal eLife.
 
 
Prebiotics may help to cope with stress
Recent study shows prebiotic fibers can help to protect beneficial gut bacteria and restore healthy sleep patterns after a stressful event
University of Colorado, February 9, 2021
 
What are some ways you cope with stresses in your life? Do you do yoga? Meditate? Exercise? Perhaps you should add taking prebiotics to that list.
 
Probiotics are well known to benefit digestive health, but prebiotics are less well understood. Prebiotics are certain types of non-digestible fibers that probiotic bacteria feed on, such as the fibers found in many plant sources like asparagus, oatmeal, and legumes. Certain bacteria also feed on non-fibers such as the protein lactoferrin, which also acts like a prebiotic and is found in breast milk.
 
According to a new study published in the online journal, Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience by Professor Monika Fleshner, PhD, and her team from the University of Colorado, Boulder, regular intake of prebiotics may promote beneficial gut bacteria and recovery of normal sleep patterns after a stressful episode.
 
"Acute stress can disrupt the gut microbiome," explained Dr. Agnieszka Mika, a postdoctoral fellow and one of the authors of the study, "and we wanted to test if a diet rich in prebiotics would increase beneficial bacteria as well as protect gut microbes from stress-induced disruptions. We also wanted to look at the effects of prebiotics on the recovery of normal sleep patterns, since they tend to be disrupted after stressful events."
 
In this experiment, test rats received prebiotic diets for several weeks prior to a stressful test condition and compared with control rats that did not receive the prebiotic-enriched diet. Interestingly, rats that ate prebiotics prior to the stressful event did not experience stress-induced disruption in their gut microbiota, and also recovered healthier sleep patterns sooner than controls.
 
Given that these experiments were done in rats, are these results relevant for humans? "The stressor the rats received was the equivalent of a single intense acute stressful episode for humans, such as a car accident or the death of a loved one," said Dr. Robert S. Thompson, the lead author of the study. "A next set of studies will be looking exactly at that question - can prebiotics help humans to protect and restore their gut microflora and recover normal sleep patterns after a traumatic event?"
 
In the mean time, should we start including prebiotics in our diets to help cope with stress? "So far no adverse effects from prebiotics have been reported," said Dr. Mika, "and they are found widely in many plants, even present in breast milk, and are already commercially available." Healthy gut bacteria and restful sleep could be your benefits.
 
 

The Gary Null Show - 02.10.21

Duty to Warn
 
A Plea from a World Expert on Electromagnetic Radiation About the Serious Dangers of 5G
 
By Dr Olle Johansson (Introduction by Gary G. Kohls, MD) – February 10, 2021 (2613 words)
 
The following article was written by a scientist friend of mine from Sweden, Dr Olle Johansson. The article represents an urgent call for people to both start understanding 5G and also begin resisting – before it’s too late – the unethical roll-out of 5G installations that is currently going on without our consent. For me as a physician, the most meaningful part of Olle’s article is the revelation that 5G’s Electromagnetic Radiation (EMR) is known to increase the risk of 5G-exposed people and other living things – including animals, birds and insects - to become sickened with neurological, neuropsychiatric, neurodegenerative, infectious, cardiovascular, immunotoxic, DNA-damaging and carcinogenic disorders.
 
This impending – but totally preventable - health crisis is happening right under our noses thanks to 5G corporations like Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile and their billionaire investors, many of whom are also involved in the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) “4th Industrial Revolution/New World Order/Great Reset” agenda. The WEF’s nefarious plan requires the widespread implementation of 5G and the technocratic “Internet of Things” that will result in realities like slightly faster cellphone connectivity, slightly faster downloads of computer games and the robotization of everything, including driverless cars, driverless trucks and massive unemployment.

The Gary Null Show - 02.09.21

Gary takes on the real issues that the mainstream media is afraid to tackle. Tune in to find out the latest about health news, healing, politics, and the economy. The Loneliness Epidemic. The grand illusion of the 'great reset'

The Gary Null Show - 02.08.21

Gary Null Show Notes 02/08/21
CDC: Over 500 Deaths Now Following mRNA Experimental Injections – “Vaccine Hesitancy” Increasing
Invasive Insects and Diseases Are Killing Our Forests
How ExxonMobil Uses Divide and Rule to Get Its Way in South America
How the Pandemic Left the $25 Billion Hudson Yards Eerily Deserted
Bayer makes new $2 billion plan to head off future Roundup cancer claims
Billionaire capitalists are designing humanity’s future. Don’t let them
Citizen scientists are filling research gaps created by the pandemic
After COVID, Davos Moves to The “Great Reset”
COVID-19: Here’s why global travel is unlikely to resume ‘till 2024
 
 
The Acute and Chronic Cognitive Effects of a Sage Extract: A Randomized, Placebo Controlled Study in Healthy Humans
Northumbria University (UK), January 31, 2021
The sage (Salvia) plant contains a host of terpenes and phenolics which interact with mechanisms pertinent to brain function and improve aspects of cognitive performance. However, previous studies in humans have looked at these phytochemicals in isolation and following acute consumption only. A preclinical in vivo study in rodents, however, has demonstrated improved cognitive outcomes following 2-week consumption of CogniviaTM, a proprietary extract of both Salvia officinalis polyphenols and Salvia lavandulaefolia terpenoids, suggesting that a combination of phytochemicals from sage might be more efficacious over a longer period of time. The current study investigated the impact of this sage combination on cognitive functions in humans with acute and chronic outcomes. Participants (n = 94, 25 M, 69 F, 30–60 years old) took part in this randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel groups design where a comprehensive array of cognitions were assessed 120- and 240-min post-dose acutely and following 29-day supplementation with either 600 mg of the sage combination or placebo. A consistent, significant benefit of the sage combination was observed throughout working memory and accuracy task outcome measures (specifically on the Corsi Blocks, Numeric Working Memory, and Name to Face Recall tasks) both acutely (i.e., changes within day 1 and day 29) and chronically (i.e., changes between day 1 to day 29). These results fall slightly outside of those reported previously with single Salvia administration, and therefore, a follow-up study with the single and combined extracts is required to confirm how these effects differ within the same cohort.
In conclusion, we have observed a consistent significant benefit of a sage combination intervention  in healthy adult humans on working memory and accuracy of performance cognitive domains. This significant activity was observed both acutely (after just 2 h following consumption) and chronically (after 29 days of administration). The pattern and magnitude of significance points towards an increase in product efficacy over the administration period and, taken together, suggests that future trials should focus on disentangling the working and spatial memory effects of this intervention in humans with an extended timeframe of perhaps several months. Validating the CaMKII mechanism in humans would also be advantageous.
Blink! The link between aerobic fitness and cognition
University of Tsukuba (Japan), February 3, 2021
Although exercise is known to enhance cognitive function and improve mental health, the neurological mechanisms of this link are unknown. Now, researchers from Japan have found evidence of the missing link between aerobic fitness and cognitive function.
In a study published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, researchers from the University of Tsukuba revealed that spontaneous eye blink rate (sEBR), which reflects activity of the dopamine system, could be used to understand the connection between cognitive function and aerobic fitness.
The dopaminergic system is known to be involved in physical activity and exercise, and previous researchers have proposed that exercise-induced changes in cognitive function might be mediated by activity in the dopaminergic system. However, a marker of activity in this system was needed to test this hypothesis, something the researchers at the University of Tsukuba aimed to address.
“The dopaminergic system is associated with both executive function and motivated behavior, including physical activity,” says first author of the study Ryuta Kuwamizu. “We used sEBR as a non-invasive measure of dopaminergic system function to test whether it could be the missing link between aerobic fitness and cognitive function.”
To do this, the researchers asked healthy participants to undergo a measure of sEBR, a test of cognitive function, and an aerobic fitness test. They also measured brain activity during the cognitive task using functional near-infrared spectroscopy.
“As expected, we found significant correlations between aerobic fitness, cognitive function, and sEBR,” explains Professor Hideaki Soya, senior author. “When we examined these relationships further, we found that the connection between higher aerobic fitness and enhanced cognitive function was mediated in part by dopaminergic regulation.”
Furthermore, activity in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (l-DLPFC) during the cognitive task was the same or lower in participants with higher sEBR compared with lower sEBR, even though those with higher sEBR appeared to have greater executive function, and thus higher neural efficiency.
“Although previous studies have indicated that aerobic fitness and cognitive function are correlated, this is the first to provide a neuromodulatory basis for this connection in humans. Our data indicate that dopamine has an essential role in linking aerobic fitness and cognition,” says first author Kuwamizu.
Given that neural efficiency in the l-DLPFC is a known characteristic of the dopaminergic system that has been observed in individuals with higher fitness and executive function, it is possible that neural efficiency in this region partially mediates the association between aerobic fitness and executive function. Furthermore, physical inactivity may be related to dopaminergic dysfunction. This information provides new directions for research regarding how fitness affects the brain, which may lead to improved exercise regimens. For instance, exercise that specifically focuses on improving dopaminergic function may particularly boost motivation, mood, and mental function.
Vegan diet better for weight loss and cholesterol control than Mediterranean diet
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, February 5, 2021
A vegan diet is more effective for weight loss than a Mediterranean diet, according to a groundbreaking new study that compared the diets head to head. The randomized crossover trial, which was published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition, found that a low-fat vegan diet has better outcomes for weight, body composition, insulin sensitivity, and cholesterol levels, compared with a Mediterranean diet.
The study randomly assigned participants–who were overweight and had no history of diabetes–to a vegan diet or a Mediterranean diet in a 1:1 ratio. For 16 weeks, half of the participants started with a low-fat vegan diet that eliminated animal products and focused on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes. The other half started with the Mediterranean diet, which followed the PREDIMED protocol, which focuses on fruits, vegetables, legumes, fish, low-fat dairy, and extra virgin olive oil, while limiting or avoiding red meat and saturated fats. Neither group had a calorie limit, and participants did not change exercise or medication routines, unless directed by their personal doctors. As part of the crossover design, participants then went back to their baseline diets for a four-week washout period before switching to the opposite group for an additional 16 weeks.
The study found that within 16 weeks on each diet:
Participants lost an average of 6 kilograms (or about 13 pounds) on the vegan diet, compared with no mean change on the Mediterranean diet.
Participants lost 3.4 kg (about 7.5 pounds) more fat mass on the vegan diet.
Participants saw a greater reduction in visceral fat by 315 cm3 on the vegan diet.
The vegan diet decreased total and LDL cholesterol levels by 18.7 mg/dL and 15.3 mg/dL, respectively, while there were no significant cholesterol changes on the Mediterranean diet.
Blood pressure decreased on both diets, but more on the Mediterranean diet (6.0 mm Hg, compared to 3.2 mmHg on the vegan diet).
“Previous studies have suggested that both Mediterranean and vegan diets improve body weight and cardiometabolic risk factors, but until now, their relative efficacy had not been compared in a randomized trial,” says study author Hana Kahleova, MD, PhD, director of clinical research for the Physicians Committee. “We decided to test the diets head to head and found that a vegan diet is more effective for both improving health markers and boosting weight loss.”
The authors note that the vegan diet likely led to weight loss, because it was associated with a reduction in calorie intake, increase in fiber intake, decrease in fat consumption, and decrease in saturated fat consumption.
“While many people think of the Mediterranean diet as one of the best ways to lose weight, the diet actually crashed and burned when we put it to the test,” says study author Neal Barnard, MD, president of the Physicians Committee. “In a randomized, controlled trial, the Mediterranean diet caused no weight loss at all. The problem seems to be the inclusion of fatty fish, dairy products, and oils. In contrast, a low-fat vegan diet caused significant and consistent weight loss.”
“If your goal is to lose weight or get healthy in 2021, choosing a plant-based diet is a great way to achieve your resolution,” adds Dr. Kahleova.
Study finds childhood diet has lifelong impact
University of California at Riverside, February 3, 2021
Eating too much fat and sugar as a child can alter your microbiome for life, even if you later learn to eat healthier, a new study in mice suggests.
The study by UC Riverside researchers is one of the first to show a significant decrease in the total number and diversity of gut bacteria in mature mice fed an unhealthy diet as juveniles.
“We studied mice, but the effect we observed is equivalent to kids having a Western diet, high in fat and sugar and their gut microbiome still being affected up to six years after puberty,” explained UCR evolutionary physiologist Theodore Garland.
A paper describing the study has recently been published in the Journal of Experimental Biology.
The microbiome refers to all the bacteria as well as fungi, parasites, and viruses that live on and inside a human or animal. Most of these microorganisms are found in the intestines, and most of them are helpful, stimulating the immune system, breaking down food and helping synthesize key vitamins.
In a healthy body, there is a balance of pathogenic and beneficial organisms. However, if the balance is disturbed, either through the use of antibiotics, illness, or unhealthy diet, the body could become susceptible to disease.
In this study, Garland’s team looked for impacts on the microbiome after dividing their mice into four groups: half fed the standard, ‘healthy’ diet, half fed the less healthy ‘Western’ diet, half with access to a running wheel for exercise, and half without.
After three weeks spent on these diets, all mice were returned to a standard diet and no exercise, which is normally how mice are kept in a laboratory. At the 14-week mark, the team examined the diversity and abundance of bacteria in the animals.
They found that the quantity of bacteria such as Muribaculum intestinale was significantly reduced in the Western diet group. This type of bacteria is involved in carbohydrate metabolism.
Analysis also showed that the gut bacteria are sensitive to the amount of exercise the mice got. Muribaculum bacteria increased in mice fed a standard diet who had access to a running wheel and decreased in mice on a high-fat diet whether they had exercise or not.
Researchers believe this species of bacteria, and the family of bacteria that it belongs to, might influence the amount of energy available to its host. Research continues into other functions that this type of bacteria may have.
One other effect of note was the increase in a highly similar bacteria species that were enriched after five weeks of treadmill training in a study by other researchers, suggesting that exercise alone may increase its presence.
Overall, the UCR researchers found that early-life Western diet had more long-lasting effects on the microbiome than did early-life exercise.
Garland’s team would like to repeat this experiment and take samples at additional points in time, to better understand when the changes in mouse microbiomes first appear, and whether they extend into even later phases of life.
Regardless of when the effects first appear, however, the researchers say it’s significant that they were observed so long after changing the diet, and then changing it back.
The takeaway, Garland said, is essentially, “You are not only what you eat, but what you ate as a child!”
Turns Out Maple Syrup Is Anticarcinogenic
Kindai University (Japan), February 2, 2021
Darker coloured syrup is suggested as healthier than lightly coloured syrup.
Maple syrup is a classic natural sweetener that has been making a comeback recently as an alternative to refined sugar. The syrup is tapped from different species of maple trees, with the Canadian province of Quebec being a top producer. Along with a rich and complex flavor, maple syrup offers an abundance of amino acids, manganese and zinc, as well as phenolic compounds, including lignans and coumarin.
A new study called “Inhibitory effect of maple syrup on the cell growth and invasion of human colorectal cancer cells” was guided by Dr. Tetsushi Yamamoto, a molecular and cell biologist from the Faculty of Pharmacy at Kindai University in Osaka, Japan. The research evaluated the effect of three different types of maple syrup. The main objective was to identify if maple syrup could be used as a phytomedicine within cancer treatment.
Dr. Yamamoto and his research team classified the different types of maple syrup according to colour, as well as cell proliferation, and migration and invasion capability for colorectal cell cancer (CRC). Results showed that CRC cells administered maple syrup showed lower rates of carcinogenic cells when compared with cells administered only sucrose.
Additionally, the study suggests that maple syrup should not only be classified by its sugar content, but also according to its nutritional and physiochemical components. This study showed that maple syrup, particularly when coloured darker, might be suitable as a phytomedicine, which may offer a more gentle alternative to traditional chemotherapy.
This outstanding revelation is in contrast to other studies, which support the idea that sugar perpetuates cancer and other chronic diseases. However, this disparity might concern diverse types of sugar, including sucrose, fructose and glucose. Also, sugar behaves differently when consumed in diverse nutritional contexts.
In this context, researchers experimented with different sucrose concentrations, ranging from 0.1% to 10%. Results showed that only maple syrup with a 10% concentration of sucrose inhibited colorectal cancer cell growth. The study explained that this is because higher concentrations might have cytotoxic effects due to high osmotic pressure.
Brains are more plastic than we thought
McGill University, January 31, 2021
Practice might not always make perfect, but it’s essential for learning a sport or a musical instrument. It’s also the basis of brain training, an approach that holds potential as a non-invasive therapy to overcome disabilities caused by neurological disease or trauma.
Research at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital of McGill University (The Neuro) has shown just how adaptive the brain can be, knowledge that could one day be applied to recovery from conditions such as stroke.
Researchers Dave Liu and Christopher Pack have demonstrated that practice can change the way that the brain uses sensory information. In particular, they showed that, depending on the type of training done beforehand, a part of the brain called the area middle temporal (MT) can be either critical for visual perception, or not important at all.
Previous research has shown the area MT is involved in visual motion perception. Damage to area MT causes “motion blindness”, in which patients have clear vision for stationary objects but are unable to see motion. Such deficits are somewhat mysterious, because it is well known that area MT is just one of many brain regions involved in visual motion perception. This suggests that other pathways might be able to compensate in the absence of area MT.
Most studies have examined the function of area MT using a task in which subjects view small dots moving across a screen and indicate how they see the dots moving, because this has been proven to activate area MT. To determine how crucial MT really was for this task, Liu and Pack used a simple trick: They replaced the moving dots with moving lines, which are known to stimulate areas outside area MT more effectively. Surprisingly, subjects who practiced this task were able to perceive visual motion perfectly even when area MT was temporarily inactivated.
On the other hand, subjects who practiced with moving dots exhibited motion blindness when MT was temporarily deactivated. The motion blindness persisted even when the stimulus was switched back to the moving lines, indicating that the effects of practice were very difficult to undo. Indeed, the effects of practice with the moving dot stimuli were detectable for weeks afterwards. The key lesson for brain training is that small differences in the training regimen can lead to profoundly different changes in the brain.
This has potential for future clinical use. Stroke patients, for example, often lose their vision as a result of brain damage caused by lack of blood flow to brain cells. With the correct training stimulus, one day these patients could retrain their brains to use different regions for vision that were not damaged by the stroke.
“Years of basic research have given us a fairly detailed picture of the parts of the brain responsible for vision,” says Christopher Pack, the paper’s senior author. “Individual parts of the cortex are exquisitely sensitive to specific visual features – colors, lines, shapes, motion – so it’s exciting that we might be able to build this knowledge into protocols that aim to increase or decrease the involvement of different brain regions in conscious visual perception, according to the needs of the subject. This is something we’re starting to work on now.”
Higher Fiber Intake May Improve Lung Function
 
University of Nebraska, January 28, 2021
Eating a fiber-rich diet may help protect you against lung disease, a new study suggests.
“Lung disease is an important public health problem, so it’s important to identify modifiable risk factors for prevention,” study author Corrine Hanson, an associate professor of medical nutrition at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, said in a journal news release.
“However, beyond smoking very few preventative strategies have been identified. Increasing fiber intake may be a practical and effective way for people to have an impact on their risk of lung disease,” she added.
The findings were published recently in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society.
Researchers looked at federal government data from almost 2,000 American adults. They were between 40 and 79 years old.
The researchers found that 68 percent of those who had the highest fiber consumption (about 18 grams or more daily) had normal lung function compared to 50 percent for those with the lowest fiber intake. And, only 15 percent of those who ate a lot of fiber had airway restriction, but 30 percent of those with the lowest fiber intake did, the study showed.
People with the highest fiber consumption also did better on two important breathing tests. They had larger lung capacity and could exhale more air in one second, the study said.
Although the study found a link between fiber consumption and better lung health, it wasn’t designed to prove a cause-and-effect relationship.
But, if the findings are confirmed in future studies, public health campaigns may one day “target diet and fiber as safe and inexpensive ways of preventing lung disease,” Hanson said.
Previous research has suggested a diet high in fiber protects against heart disease and diabetes, and that fiber reduces inflammation in the body, the researchers said.

The Gary Null Show - 02.05.21

Gary takes on the real issues that the mainstream media is afraid to tackle. Tune in to find out the latest about health news, healing, politics, and the economy.
 

The Gary Null Show - 02.04.21

Grapes could protect against sun damage, say dermatologists
University of Alabama, February 3, 2021
Grapes may help protect against damage to the skin caused by the sun's ultraviolet radiation in healthy adults, according to a new study by researchers in the University of Alabama at Birmingham's Department of Dermatology.
In research published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, a 74.8 percent increase in natural protection of the skin was shown when 19 healthy human subjects orally ingested a powder of freeze-dried grapes for 14 days.
The study found that a group of natural compounds—polyphenols, found in grapes as well as other fruits and vegetables—can reduce acute UV radiation damage in healthy adults, which was previously demonstrated in mouse models. Additionally, it can decrease proteins in the body that promote inflammation. This is the first study showing that oral ingestion of table grapes has a photoprotective effect on the sunburn response in humans.
"Study results indicate that oral consumption of grapes has systemic beneficial effects in healthy adults," said Allen Oak, M.D., a dermatologist in the UAB School of Medicine and a lead author of the study. "These benefits include inhibition of inflammation and repair of DNA damage." 
In addition to consumption of the powder, the study also showed that the application of a topical extract made from a grape seed polyphenol, proanthocyanidin, can reduce sunburn cell formation.
Furthermore, preliminary results suggest that grapes may help to prevent skin cancers as well, although more studies need to be conducted in this area before drawing conclusions.
"Grape consumption may act as an 'edible sunscreen,'" Oak said. "This does not mean that grapes should be used in lieu of sunscreen, but they may offer additional protection which we are eager to continue learning more about. This research is exciting because our current findings provide building blocks for additional studies that may eventuate in an oral photoprotective product from a natural source."
 
Meta-analysis links higher magnesium levels with lower risk of premature mortality from all causes among kidney disease patients
Vrije University (Netherlands), January 26, 2021
A systematic review and meta-analysis published on December 26, 2020 in Clinical Nutrition found an association between higher plasma or serum magnesium levels and a lower risk of cardiovascular mortality and events and all-cause mortality during follow-up among men and women with chronic kidney disease.
Researchers at Vrije University in Amsterdam selected 33 studies that included 348,059 patients for the analysis. Subjects’ plasma or serum magnesium concentrations were obtained at the beginning of the studies and all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality and cardiovascular events, and/or other outcomes were documented during follow-up periods that varied from an average of 11.7 months to 278 months.
Each 0.1 millimole per liter increase in magnesium was associated with a 15% lower risk of experiencing a cardiovascular event or dying from cardiovascular disease, and a 10% lower risk of dying from any cause during follow-up. “This review and meta-analysis demonstrate that plasma magnesium concentration is inversely associated with all-cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality and events in patients with CKD including those on dialysis,” Nicoline J. J. Leenders and colleagues wrote. “The inverse association between magnesium and all-cause mortality not only exists for normal compared to low magnesium, but also for magnesium above the reference range compared to normal magnesium.”
The authors suggest the initiation of clinical trials to determine if plasma magnesium concentrations can be safely increased and to confirm the mineral’s effect on cardiovascular events and mortality and all-cause mortality. “In these trials, the intervention should ideally consist of an increase of dialysate magnesium in patients on dialysis, and dietary intervention or oral magnesium…in patients with CKD not on dialysis,” they recommended.
 
 
Bleeding gums may be a sign you need more vitamin C in your diet
University of Washington, February 1, 2021
Current advice from the America Dental Association tells you that if your gums bleed, make sure you are brushing and flossing twice a day because it could be a sign of gingivitis, an early stage of periodontal disease. And that might be true. So if you are concerned, see your dentist. However, a new University of Washington study suggests you should also check your intake of vitamin C. 
"When you see your gums bleed, the first thing you should think about is not, I should brush more. You should try to figure out why your gums are bleeding. And vitamin C deficiency is one possible reason," said the study's lead author Philippe Hujoel, a practicing dentist and professor of oral health sciences in the UW School of Dentistry.
Hujoel's study, published Feb. 1 in Nutrition Reviews, analyzed published studies of 15 clinical trials in six countries, involving 1,140 predominantly healthy participants, and data from 8,210 U.S. residents surveyed in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The results showed that bleeding of the gums on gentle probing, or gingival bleeding tendency, and also bleeding in the eye, or retinal hemorrhaging, were associated with low vitamin C levels in the bloodstream. And, the researchers found that increasing daily intake of vitamin C in those people with low vitamin C plasma levels helped to reverse these bleeding issues.
Of potential relevance, says Hujoel, who is also an adjunct professor of epidemiology in the UW School of Public Health, both a gum bleeding tendency and retinal bleeding could be a sign of general trouble in one's microvascular system, of a microvascular bleeding tendency in the brain, heart and kidneys.
The study does not imply that successful reversing of an increased gingival bleeding tendency with vitamin C will prevent strokes or other serious health outcomes, Hujoel stresses. However, the results do suggest that vitamin C recommendations designed primarily to protect against scurvy -- a deadly disease caused by extremely low vitamin C levels -- are too low, and that such a low vitamin C intake can lead to a bleeding tendency, which should not be treated with dental floss.
Consequently, Hujoel does recommend people attempt to keep an eye on their vitamin C intake through incorporation of non-processed foods such as kale, peppers or kiwis into your diet, and if you can't find palatable foods rich in vitamin C to consider a supplement of about 100 to 200 milligrams a day. 
If someone is on a specialized diet, such as a paleo diet, it's important that they take a look at their vitamin C intake, Hujoel said. "Vitamin C-rich fruits such as kiwis or oranges are rich in sugar and thus typically eliminated from a low-carb diet." 
This avoidance may lead to a vitamin C intake that is too low and is associated with an increased bleeding tendency. People who exclusively eat lean meats and avoid offal, the vitamin-rich organ meats, may be at a particularly high risk for a low vitamin C intake.
The association between gum bleeding and vitamin C levels was recognized more than 30 years ago. In fact, two studies co-authored by former dean of the UW School of Dentistry Paul Robertson (published in 1986 and 1991) identified gum bleeding as a biological marker for vitamin C levels. 
However, this connection somehow got lost in dental conversations around bleeding gums.
"There was a time in the past when gingival bleeding was more generally considered to be a potential marker for a lack of vitamin C. But over time, that's been drowned out or marginalized by this overattention to treating the symptom of bleeding with brushing or flossing, rather than treating the cause," Hujoel said. 
Hujoel's literature review also determined that "retinal hemorrhaging and cerebral strokes are associated with increased gingival bleeding tendency, and that (vitamin C) supplementation reverses the retinal bleeding associated with low (vitamin C) plasma levels."
So, missing the possible connection between gum bleeding and low levels of vitamin C has the potential to have serious health consequences.
The study authors write: "A default prescription of oral hygiene and other periodontal interventions to 'treat' microvascular pathologies, even if partially effective in reversing gingival bleeding as suggested in this meta-analysis, is risky because it does not address any potential morbidity and mortality associated with the systemic microvascular-related pathologies."
 
 
Neonatal antibiotic use associated with reduced growth in boys
Bar-Illan University (Israel), January 26, 2021
Exposure to antibiotics in the first days of life is thought to affect various physiological aspects of neonatal development. A new study, led by Bar-Ilan University's Azrieli Faculty of Medicine, reveals that antibiotic treatment within 14 days of birth is associated with reduced weight and height in boys - but not girls -- up to the age of six. 
By contrast, the study showed significantly higher body mass index (BMI) in both boys and girls following antibiotic use after the neonatal period, and within the first six years of life. 
The findings, published in the journal Nature Communications on January 26, 2021, may be the result of changes in the development of the gut microbiome.
The impact of neonatal antibiotic exposure was investigated in a cohort of 12,422 children born between 2008-2010 at the Turku University Hospital in Turku, Finland. The babies had no genetic abnormalities or significant chronic disorders affecting growth and did not need long-term antibiotic treatment. Antibiotics had been administered within the first 14 days of life to 1,151 (9.3%) of the neonates in the study.
The authors found that boys exposed to antibiotic treatment exhibited significantly lower weight as compared to non-exposed children throughout the first six years. They also exhibited significantly lower height and BMI between the ages of two and six. This observation was replicated in a German cohort.
Further, antibiotic exposure during the first days of life was found to be associated with disturbances in the gut microbiome up until the age of two. Infants exposed to neonatal antibiotics exhibited significantly lower gut microbiome richness as compared to non-exposed infants at the age of one month. Interestingly, at the age of six months, the infants treated with antibiotics reached the bacterial richness level of a control group of infants, and at the ages of 12 and 24 months, the antibiotic-treated subjects gained significantly higher levels of bacterial richness as compared to the control subjects.
In additional experiments led by PhD student Atara Uzan, the researchers demonstrated that germ-free male mice who were given the gut microbiome of antibiotic-exposed infants also displayed growth failure. These findings suggest a potential link between neonatal antibiotic exposure and impaired childhood growth, which may be a result of alterations caused by antibiotics in the composition of the gut microbiome. 
"Antibiotics are vitally important and life-saving medications in newborn infants. Our results suggest that their use may also have unwanted long-term consequences which need to be considered," said Prof. Omry Koren, of the Azrieli Faculty of Medicine of Bar-Ilan University, who led the study together with Prof. Samuli Rautava, of the University of Turku and University of Helsinki. 
Follow up research will aim to investigate other potential adverse outcomes related to neonatal antibiotic exposure.
 
 
Ten Days of Curcumin Supplementation Attenuates Subjective Soreness and Maintains Muscular Power Following Plyometric Exercise
Ohio University, February 1, 2021
 
Curcumin has become a popular product used to decrease inflammation and enhance recovery from exercise. Purpose: To determine the effects of curcumin supplementation on delayed onset muscle soreness and muscle power following plyometric exercise. Methods: Participants (n = 22; five females, 17 males) consumed either curcumin (500 mg) or placebo twice daily for 10 days (6 days pre, day of and 3 days post exercise). Participants completed 5 x 20 drop jumps on day 7. Blood sampling and recovery tests were assessed at pre-supplementation, 24-hours and immediately pre-exercise, and immediately post-, 24, 48 and 72-hours post-exercise. Blood markers included serum creatine kinase (CK) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), while soreness was measured during a squat and post vertical jump. Results: Both groups experienced muscle damage post-exercise with elevated CK (403 ± 390 ul; p 

The Gary Null Show - 02.03.21

Gary takes on the real issues that the mainstream media is afraid to tackle. Tune in to find out the latest about health news, healing, politics, and the economy. Chris Hedges talks to Professor Noam Chomsky, the pioneering linguist, prolific author of numerous seminal political works, about the state of the American Empire.
 

The Gary Null Show - 02.02.21

Gary takes on the real issues that the mainstream media is afraid to tackle. Tune in to find out the latest about health news, healing, politics, and the economy.
George Orwell and 1984: How Freedom Dies
Orwell's final warning - Picture of the future
The Efficacy of Olive Leaf Extract on Healing Herpes Simplex Virus: A Randomized Double-blind Study
Lorestan University of Medical Sciences (Iran), January 29, 2021
 
Herpes simplex virus (HSV), as a common infection in healthy individuals, is treated symptomatically, but drug resistance and the side effects of drugs have drawn the attention of researchers to complementary medicine. Olive Leaf Extract (OLE) has antiviral effects that may treat HSV. The current study aimed to compare the clinical effects of OLE and Acyclovir on HSV-1.
Methods
This randomized double-blind clinical trial was conducted on 66 patients who had already been diagnosed with HSV-1. The participants were randomized into two groups, receiving 2% OLE cream or 5% acyclovir cream five times a day for six days. The symptoms were evaluated before, and three and six days after the interventions. Data were analyzed using the SPSS software through the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, chi-squared, t-test, and repeated measures ANOVA.
Results
The results showed clinical symptoms decreased in both groups during the study and both medications were effective in the treatment of HSV-1. However, the OLE group experienced less bleeding (P=0.038), itching (P=0.002), and pain (P=0.001) on the third day as well as less irritation (P=0.012), itching (P=0.003) and color change (P=0.001) on the sixth day compared to the acyclovir group. The treatment course for participants in the OLE group was shorter than in the acyclovir group (P = 0.001).
Conclusion
The evidence from these trials suggests the OLE cream is superior in the healing of episodes of HSV-1 over the acyclovir cream. Future studies are recommended to investigate if OLE could be an adjunct to acyclovir treatment.
 
How vitamins, steroids and potential antivirals might affect SARS-CoV-2
Study indicates that some vitamins, steroids and antivirals could bind to the Spike protein, and may inhibit virus infectivity, whereas high cholesterol may enable the virus
University of Bristol (UK), January 29, 2021
 
Evidence is emerging that vitamin D - and possibly vitamins K and A - might help combat COVID-19. A new study from the University of Bristol published in the journal of the German Chemical Society Angewandte Chemie has shown how they - and other antiviral drugs - might work. The research indicates that these dietary supplements and compounds could bind to the viral spike protein and so might reduce SARS-CoV-2 infectivity. In contrast, cholesterol may increase infectivity, which could explain why having high cholesterol is considered a risk factor for serious disease.
Recently, Bristol researchers showed that linoleic acid binds to a specific site in the viral spike protein, and that by doing so, it locks the spike into a closed, less infective form. Now, a research team has used computational methods to search for other compounds that might have the same effect, as potential treatments. They hope to prevent human cells becoming infected by preventing the viral spike protein from opening enough to interact with a human protein (ACE2). New anti-viral drugs can take years to design, develop and test, so the researchers looked through a library of approved drugs and vitamins to identify those which might bind to this recently discovered 'druggable pocket' inside the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. 
The team first studied the effects of linoleic acid on the spike, using computational simulations to show that it stabilizes the closed form. Further simulations showed that dexamethasone - which is an effective treatment for COVID-19 - might also bind to this site and help reduce viral infectivity in addition to its effects on the human immune system. 
The team then conducted simulations to see which other compounds bind to the fatty acid site. This identified some drugs that have been found by experiments to be active against the virus, suggesting that this may be one mechanism by which they prevent viral replication such as, by locking the spike structure in the same way as linoleic acid.
The findings suggested several drug candidates among available pharmaceuticals and dietary components, including some that have been found to slow SARS-CoV-2 reproduction in the laboratory. These have the potential to bind to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and may help to prevent cell entry. 
The simulations also predicted that the fat-soluble vitamins D, K and A bind to the spike in the same way making the spike less able to infect cells. 
Dr Deborah Shoemark, Senior Research Associate (Biomolecular Modelling) in the School of Biochemistry, who modelled the spike, explained: "Our findings help explain how some vitamins may play a more direct role in combatting COVID than their conventional support of the human immune system. 
"Obesity is a major risk factor for severe COVID. Vitamin D is fat soluble and tends to accumulate in fatty tissue. This can lower the amount of vitamin D available to obese individuals. Countries in which some of these vitamin deficiencies are more common have also suffered badly during the course of the pandemic. Our research suggests that some essential vitamins and fatty acids including linoleic acid may contribute to impeding the spike/ACE2 interaction. Deficiency in any one of them may make it easier for the virus to infect."
Pre-existing high cholesterol levels have been associated with increased risk for severe COVID-19. Reports that the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein binds cholesterol led the team to investigate whether it could bind at the fatty acid binding site. Their simulations indicate that it could bind, but that it may have a destabilising effect on the spike's locked conformation, and favour the open, more infective conformation.
Dr Shoemark continued: "We know that the use of cholesterol lowering statins reduces the risk of developing severe COVID and shortens recovery time in less severe cases. Whether cholesterol de-stabilises the "benign", closed conformation or not, our results suggest that by directly interacting with the spike, the virus could sequester cholesterol to achieve the local concentrations required to facilitate cell entry and this may also account for the observed loss of circulating cholesterol post infection."
Professor Adrian Mulholland, of Bristol's School of Chemistry, added: "Our simulations show how some molecules binding at the linoleic acid site affect the spike's dynamics and lock it closed. They also show that drugs and vitamins active against the virus may work in the same way. Targeting this site may be a route to new anti-viral drugs. A next step would be to look at effects of dietary supplements and test viral replication in cells."
Alison Derbenwick Miller, Vice President, Oracle for Research, said: "It's incredibly exciting that researchers are gaining new insights into how SARS-CoV-2 interacts with human cells, which ultimately will lead to new ways to fight COVID-19. We are delighted that Oracle's high-performance cloud infrastructure is helping to advance this kind of world-changing research. Growing a globally-connected community of cloud-powered researchers is exactly what Oracle for Research is designed to do."
 
 
Researchers find melatonin is effective against polycystic kidney disease
Concordia University (Canada), January 26, 2021
A hormone commonly associated with sleep-wake regulation has been found to reduce cysts in fruit flies, according to Concordia researchers. It's a finding that may affect the way we treat some kidney diseases and reduce the need for kidney transplants.
In a new paper published in the journal Molecules, alum Cassandra Millet-Boureima(MSc 19) and Chiara Gamberi, affiliate assistant professor of biology, write that melatonin was found to reduce cysts in the renal tubules of fruit flies. These tubules are also found in more complex mammals, including humans, where they are called nephrons. This study, which builds on previous studies by Millet-Boureima and Gamberi, was co-authored by Roman Rozencwaig and Felix Polyak of BH Bioscience in Montreal.
The researchers hope that their findings can be applied to treating people suffering from autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease. ADPKD is a genetic chronic and progressive disease characterized by the growth of dozens of cysts in the nephrons. It is incurable and affects approximately 12.5 million worldwide.
Similarities big and small
Because nephrons in vertebrates are embedded in other tissue, the researchers experimented on Drosophila -- the common fruit fly.
"Drosophila conserves many of the renal pathway components found in vertebrates and have anatomically isolated renal tubes," Gamberi explains. "With microdissection, we can isolate the tubules and conduct biochemical and molecular analysis."
The researchers bred fruit flies bearing the Bicaudal C gene mutation. It is known to cause kidney cysts in all manner of living beings, from flies to frogs to mice to humans.
Over 18 days, Millet-Boureima administered melatonin to 50 Drosophila and ethanol to a control group. She then dissected the flies and scored their cysts, a process yielding a cystic index. She found that the melatonin-treated flies had much fewer and smaller cysts than the control. Because Millet-Boureima was skilled at dissecting the insects and evaluating the recovered renal tubules, she was able to avoid bias in the count.
She was also able to distinguish three separate sections of the Drosophila tubule, each with its own unique function, and assign the cysts to a particular section. After testing several compounds on the same family of cells, she observed different activities along the length of the tubule. The researchers realized that they could potentially develop targeted treatment depending on the location of the cysts in a patient's nephrons.
"Biologically speaking, this has a lot of potential that we will obviously develop," Gamberi says.
Helping without harming
Though Gamberi says melatonin has not been previously used to treat PKD, she does think it holds some promise. PKD is a chronic disease, so treatment cannot include any toxic components. This rules out chemotherapy and tumour-killing antineoplastics used in oncology, for instance. However, melatonin is entirely non-toxic and shares certain properties with antineoplastics and anti-inflammatory agents.
"We know from oncology that melatonin has two effects when it is administered with chemotherapy," Gamberi explains. "First, it acts as a drug adjuvant to the chemotherapy, making it work more effectively against cancer cells. Second, it appears to protect healthy cells from the toxicity of the chemotherapy. Basically, melatonin increases the specificity of the chemotherapy. We hope that it can have a similar positive effect when used with an anti-ADPKD drug like tolvaptan, which can damage the liver."
The researchers are keen to share their findings as quickly as possible.
"I hope there will be more research on the drugs we tested and that we get more results that will help the PKD community," Millet-Boureima says.
 
 
Gallic acid is a dual alpha/beta-secretase modulator that reverses cognitive impairment and remediates pathology in Alzheimer 
Saitama Medical Center (Japan), January 20, 2021
 
According to news reporting from Saitama, Japan, research stated, “Several plant-derived compounds have demonstrated efficacy in pre-clinical Alzheimer’s disease (AD) rodent models. Each of these compounds share a gallic acid (GA) moiety, and initial assays on this isolated molecule indicated that it might be responsible for the therapeutic benefits observed.”  Higher concentrations of GA are found in blueberry, blackberry, strawberry, plums, grapes, mango, cashew nut, hazelnut, walnut and tea.
 
The news correspondents obtained a quote from the research from Saitama Medical Center, “To test this hypothesis in a more physiologically relevant setting, we investigated the effect of GA in the mutant human amyloid beta-protein precursor/presenilin 1 (APP/PS1) transgenic AD mouse model. Beginning at 12 months, we orally administered GA (20 mg/kg) or vehicle once daily for 6 months to APP/PS1 mice that have accelerated Alzheimer-like pathology. At 18 months of age, GA therapy reversed impaired learning and memory as compared with vehicle, and did not alter behavior in nontransgenic littermates. GA-treated APP/PS1 mice had mitigated cerebral amyloidosis, including brain parenchymal and cerebral vascular beta-amyloid deposits, and decreased cerebral amyloid beta-proteins. Beneficial effects co-occurred with reduced amyloidogenic and elevated nonamyloidogenic APP processing. Furthermore, brain inflammation, gliosis, and oxidative stress were alleviated. We show that GA simultaneously elevates alpha- and reduces beta-secretase activity, inhibits neuroinflammation, and stabilizes brain oxidative stress in a pre-clinical mouse model of AD. We further demonstrate that GA increases abundance of a disintegrin and metalloproteinase domain-containing protein 10 (ADAM10, Adam10) proprotein convertase furin and activates ADAM10, directly inhibits beta-site APP cleaving enzyme 1 (BACE1, Bace1) activity but does not alter Adam10 or Bace1 transcription. Thus, our data reveal novel post-translational mechanisms for GA.”
According to the news reporters, the research concluded: “We suggest further examination of GA supplementation in humans will shed light on the exciting therapeutic potential of this molecule.”
This research has been peer-reviewed.
 
 
Black cumin’s anti-inflammatory potential may have airways/asthma benefits: RCT
 
University College London, January 27, 2021
 
Supplements containing oil from black cumin (Nigella sativa) may improve asthma control and lung function, says a new study.
 
The seed and oil of Nigella sativa have been used extensively in traditional medicine in many Middle Eastern and Asian countries for the treatment of a range of conditions, including some immune and inflammatory disorders.
 
The new study, published in Phytotherapy Research , found that one gram per day of the oil for four weeks led to significant improvements in scores of asthma control and a “remarkable reduction of peripheral blood eosinophil count,” wrote the authors
 
“Eosinophil cell plays a major role in asthma inflammation, and blood eosinophil count is considered to be a vital biomarker in asthma trials. To our knowledge, this is the first [randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial] that showed a significant reduction of blood eosinophilia by [Nigella sativa oil (NSO)] among asthmatic patients.”
 
Scientists from University College London (UK) and King Abdulaziz University (Saudi Arabia) recruited 80 asthmatics and randomly assigned them to one of two equal groups. The participants received either capsules containing 500 mg of NSO twice per day or placebo for four weeks.
 
Data from the 60 people who completed the study (10 dropouts in each group) indicated that the black cumin supplement was associated with significant improvements in mean score on the Asthma Control Test, compared to placebo.
 
Black cumin oil products are commercially available through brands such as Life Extension. Structure-function claims made on the products include: “Modulates key regulators of inflammation”
In addition, the black cumin group also experienced a significant decrease in blood eosinophils: −50 versus 15 cells/microliter.
 
A non-statistically significant improvement in lung function, measured as forced expiratory volume in 1 second, was also associated with the black cumin supplements.
 
“The NSO supplementation appeared to be effective in enhancing the control of asthma symptoms with a trend in pulmonary function improvement,” wrote the researchers. “These findings may provide an evidence for the potential benefits of NSO supplementation in the clinical management of asthma. “Future studies should follow patients for a longer period and use additional outcomes to validate the benefits of NSO in asthma.”
 
LSD may offer viable treatment for certain mental disorders
McGill University (Quebec), January 26, 2021
Researchers from McGill University have discovered, for the first time, one of the possible mechanisms that contributes to the ability of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) to increase social interaction. The findings, which could help unlock potential therapeutic applications in treating certain psychiatric diseases, including anxiety and alcohol use disorders, are published in the journal PNAS.
Psychedelic drugs, including LSD, were popular in the 1970s and have been gaining popularity over the past decade, with reports of young professionals claiming to regularly take small non-hallucinogenic micro-doses of LSD to boost their productivity and creativity and to increase their empathy. The mechanism of action of LSD on the brain, however, has remained a mystery.
Studies in mice provide clues
To conduct their study, the researchers administered a low dose of LSD to mice over a period of seven days, resulting in an observable increase in the sociability of the mice. "This increased sociability occurs because the LSD activates the serotonin 5-HT2A receptors and the AMPA receptors -- which is a glutamate receptor, the main brain excitatory neurotransmitters -- in the prefrontal cortex and also activates a cellular protein called mTORC 1," explains Danilo De Gregorio, PharmD, PhD, who is a postdoctoral fellow in the Neurobiological Psychiatry Unit at McGill and the study's first author. "These three factors, taken together, promote social interaction in mice, which is the equivalent of empathy and social behaviour in humans." 
The researchers note that the main outcome of their study is the ability to describe, at least in rodents, the underlying mechanism for the behavioural effect that results in LSD increasing feelings of empathy, including a greater connection to the world and sense of being part of a large community. "The fact that LSD binds the 5-HT2A receptor was previously known. The novelty of this research is to have identified that the prosocial effects of LSD activate the 5-HT2 receptors, which in-turn activate the excitatory synapses of the AMPA receptor as well as the protein complex mTORC1, which has been demonstrated to be dysregulated in diseases with social deficits such as autism spectrum disorder," as specified by Prof. Nahum Sonenberg, Professor at the Department of Biochemistry of McGill University, world renowned expert in the molecular biology of diseases and co-lead author of the study.
Using the cutting-edge technique of optogenetics, a technique where genes for light-sensitive proteins are introduced into specific types of brain cells in order to monitor and control their activity precisely using light signals, the researchers observed that when the excitatory transmission in the prefrontal cortex is de-activated, the prosocial effect of LSD was nullified, highlighting the importance of this brain region on the modulation of the behavioural effects of LSD.
Moving forward to apply the findings to humans
Having found that LSD increases social interaction in mice, the researchers are hoping to continue their work and to test the ability of LSD to treat mutant mice displaying the behavioural deficits similar to those seen in human pathologies including autism spectrum disorders and social anxiety disorders. The hope is to eventually explore whether micro-doses of LSD or some novel derivates might have a similar effect in humans and whether it could also be a viable and safe therapeutic option. 
"Social interaction is a fundamental characteristic of human behaviour," notes the co-lead author Dr. Gabriella Gobbi, Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at McGill and psychiatrist at the McGill University Health Centre. "These hallucinogenic compounds, which, at low doses, are able to increase sociability may help to better understand the pharmacology and neurobiology of social behavior and, ultimately, to develop and discover novel and safer drugs for mental disorders."
 
Polyphenol-rich virgin olive oil reduces insulin resistance and liver inflammation and improves mitochondrial dysfunction
 
University of Naples (Italy), January 28, 2021
 
Studies from University of Naples Federico II Describe New Findings in Insulin Resistance (Polyphenol-rich virgin olive oil reduces insulin resistance and liver inflammation and improves mitochondrial dysfunction in high-fat diet fed rats)
 
A new study on Endocrine System Diseases and Conditions - Insulin Resistance is now available. According to news reporting originating in Naples, Italy, research stated, "Virgin olive oil is an essential component of the Mediterranean diet. Its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties are mainly linked to phenolic contents."
 
The news reporters obtained a quote from the research from the University of Naples Federico II, "This study aims to evaluate the beneficial effects of a polyphenol-rich virgin olive oil (HPCOO) or olive oil without polyphenols (WPOO) in rats fed high-fat diet (HFD). Male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into four groups based on the different types of diet: (I) standard diet (STD); (II) HFD; (III) HFD containing WPOO, and (IV) HFD containing HPCOO. HPCOO and WPOO induced a significant improvement of HFD-induced impaired glucose homeostasis (by hyperglycemia, altered oral glucose tolerance, and HOMA-IR) and inflammatory status modulating pro-and anti-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-a, IL-1, and IL-10) and adipokines. Moreover, HPCOO and less extensively WPOO, limited HFD-induced liver oxidative and nitrosative stress and increased hepatic fatty acid oxidation. To study mitochondrial performance, oxidative capacity and energy efficiency were also evaluated in isolated liver mitochondria. HPCOO, but not WPOO, reduced H O release and aconitase activity by decreasing degree of coupling, which plays a major role in the control of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species emission."
 
According to the news reporters, the research concluded: "HPCOO limits HFD-induced insulin resistance, inflammation, and hepatic oxidative stress, preventing nonalcoholic fatty liver disease progression."
 
For more information on this research see: Polyphenol-rich virgin olive oil reduces insulin resistance and liver inflammation and improves mitochondrial dysfunction in high-fat diet fed rats. 
 

The Gary Null Show - 02.01.21

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