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In a first, a team of researchers has found that high doses of Vitamin C and niacin or Vitamin B3 can kill cancer stem cells. A study published in Cell Biology International showed the opposing effects of low and high dose of vitamin C and vitamin B3 on colon cancer stem cells. Led by Bipasha Bose and Sudheer Shenoy, the team found that while low doses (5-25 micromolar) of Vitamin C and B3 proliferate colon cancer stem cells, high doses (100 to 1,000 micromolar) killed cancer stem cells. Such high doses of vitamins can only be achieved through intravenous injections in colon cancer patients. The third leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide, colon cancer can be prevented by an intake of dietary fibre and lifestyle changes. While the next step of the researchers is to delineate the mechanisms involved in such opposing effects, they also hope to establish a therapeutic dose of Vitamin C and B3 for colon cancer stem cell therapy. “If the therapeutic dose gets validated under in vivo...

India stood a poor 100th among 119 countries in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) released on October 12, an indication of the vast prevalence of hunger and nutrition-related problems in the country. India’s score on the index calculated by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) was 31.4, worse than countries like North Korea and Iraq. It was one of the worst performers in Asia, better than only two other countries—Afghanistan and Pakistan. The poor rank makes sense, as more than one-fifth (21 per cent) of the children, younger than the age of five, suffer from wasting, which means they weigh too little for their height and over a third of the children in this age group are too short for their age. The GHI ranks countries based on four key indicators: undernourishment, child mortality, child wasting and child stunting. The 12th edition of the index ranked countries in the developing world, nearly half of which have “extremely alarming”, “alarming” or “serious” hung...

When you travel across different time zones, you get jet lagged. Working in rotational shifts leads to sleep loss and fatigue. These are linked to disruption to your body clock. Three US scientists—Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash and Michael W. Young—who have won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, have discovered molecular mechanisms that control our body clock. They did extensive research on how plants, humans and animals adapt their biological clock to synchronise with day and night cycle to control their daily life. The Nobel laureates used fruit flies to discover a gene that controls this body clock. They also found out how this gene controls the clock by producing a protein which "accumulates in the cell during the night and degrades during the day". As Circadian rhythm or the body clock helps regulate eating habits, blood pressure and body temperature, a mismatch between internal clock and external environment affects a person's well-being; just like dis...

A new study by researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi shows how improper waste management opens the route for the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria as well as resistant genes in the environment. Antibiotic resistance (ABR) has become a global public health threat, as antibiotics used to treat diseases, including common infections, are increasingly becoming ineffective. Misuse and overuse of antibiotics in humans and animals, especially for animal production, exacerbates this issue and contributes to the spread of ABR in humans through contact, food and environment. Recognising the role of treated and untreated discharges from sewage treatment plants (STPs) in proliferation of antibiotic resistance (ABR), the study, published in the journal Chemosphere, screened raw influent and treated effluent samples from 12 STPs in Delhi and found high levels of β-lactam-resistant bacteria and genes, particularly carbapenem and extended spectrum β-lactam (ESBL)-resistant b...

A few months ago, Tony, a colleague of mine in Gudalur—a small tribal town in Tamil Nadu’s Nilgiris district—complained of mouth ulcers. He whined about black circles, lack of sleep and loss of appetite. Maadhan, another colleague from the local Adivasi community, advised him to eat the tender fruits of manathakkali (Solanum nigrum), a wild herb. Tony ate the ripe fruits diligently for two to three days and the ulcers eventually disappeared. Normally, as a biomedically trained dentist, I would have prescribed an anaesthetic ointment and vitamin supplements. I did not realise the cure for the ulcers was right in the garden attached to my workplace. Tony’s ulcers happened at a time when I was enquiring, as a part of a research project, about the legitimacy of the Local Health Tradition (LHT) practices among Siddha vaidyars (healers) and Adivasi healers in Tamil Nadu. The study aimed to understand “LHT’s revitalisation”. In Tony’s case, the herbal treatment received was primary and a...

During the economic blockade on India-Nepal border between September 2015 and February 2016, just after the huge earthquake killed more than 9,000 people and injured more than 22,000 people, shortage of energy supply like gas and petroleum had garnered media attention. However, public health—a not-so-talked-about issue—was badly affected by the blockade. This is because of Nepal’s dependence on India for medicine and medical equipment. A new research on the impact of blockade claims that it had badly affected the medicine supply. It is understandable as Nepal receives nearly 60 per cent of its overall imports of all commodities, including most medicines and health commodities, from India. The paper, published in Globalization and Health journal on August 22, has found out that during the blockade, the volume of all retail medicines traded across the India-Nepal border reduced by 46.5 per cent compared to same months in 2014–2015. Researchers Abhishek Sharma and Warren A Kaplan—b...

A World Health Organization report—Antibacterial agents in clinical development–an analysis of the antibacterial clinical development pipeline, including tuberculosis—paints a scary picture of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). It says that those antibiotics, which are almost in the pipeline as far as research goes, will fail to combat the growing threat of AMR. Most drugs currently in the clinical pipeline stage are modifications of existing classes of antibiotics and are only short-term solutions. The report finds very few potential treatment options for those antibiotic-resistant infections identified by the international health agency as posing the greatest threat to public health. This includes drug-resistant tuberculosis, which kills around 250,000 people each year. Among all candidate medicines, only eight have been categorised by the health agency as innovative drugs that will add value to the current antibiotic treatment. “Antimicrobial resistance is a global health emergenc...

A neglected and old anti-parasitic drug used during the World War II is emerging as a new weapon in the fight against malaria as malaria parasite becomes resistant to currently available drugs. A group of Indian researchers have resurrected acriflavine or ACF which was used as an anti-parasite drug in the last century, and have found it to be effective against malaria parasite. Now they are working to make this molecule more effective using nanotechnology. Researchers at the Special Centre for Molecular Medicine at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) have got a patent for antimalarial properties of ACF. They have now joined hands with scientists at the National Institute of Immunology (NII) to develop a nano-formulation of the dug and to study its potential in animal models. The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) is funding this joint effort. ACF was previously used as a trypanocidal agent against a range of infections during World War II. But due to preferential use of chloroquine...

A group of Indian scientists have identified molecules which are effective in inhibiting the growth of tuberculosis-causing bacteria - Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The molecules target an important gene, IdeR, which is essential for the survival of the bacteria. This development could lead to new drugs against TB in future. “We have identified inhibitory molecules against IdeR, a key iron regulator that is crucial for survival of the TB pathogen,” said Prof. Anil K. Tyagi, a senior scientist at the University of Delhi and lead researcher of the study. The findings have been published in the journal Scientific Reports. In laboratory studies, the new molecules were not toxic in human liver cells and kidney cells and could efficiently reach the bacteria present within the cell, researchers said. For decades treatment of TB has remained unchanged. Patients have to take multiple drugs over 6 to 9 months, which makes the treatment effective but largely inefficient due to associated side ...

2.1 billion people lack safe drinking water at home 4.5 billion people do not have safely managed sanitation 2.3 billion people do not have basic sanitation services 844 million people do not have even a basic drinking water service Every three out of 10 people globally lack access to safe drinking water at home. Credit: Wikimedia Commons Every three out of 10 people globally lack access to safe drinking water at home. Credit: Wikimedia Commons Too many people still lack access to safe drinking water and safely managed sanitation, particularly in rural areas. This is the overriding conclusion of the latest Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) report by the WHO and UNICEF titled 'Progress on drinking water, sanitation and hygiene: 2017 update and Sustainable Development Goal baselines'. According to the report, which includes estimates for 96 countries on safely managed drinking water and 84 countries on safely managed sanitation, every three out of 10 people globally lack ...

Till May 2017, India has witnessed over 19,113 cases of dengue and chikungunya. The season for such vector-borne diseases peaks in monsoon months and continues till November. Even though outbreak of vector-borne diseases was on the rise in 2016-17, the Centre spent just 68 per cent of funds under the National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme (NVBDCP), shows State of India’s Environment 2017 In Figures. Around Rs 163.48 crore (16,348 lakh) allocated under the NVBDCP was not released and hence, remained unspent. Credit: State of India's Environment 2017 In Figures Credit: State of India's Environment 2017 In Figures A further analysis of the government data shows that although gap between amount allocated and released has reduced since 2013-14 (the UPA regime), the implementation mechanism seems to have definitely faltered in the financial year 2016-17. In just three years (2014 to 2016), there has been around 300-400 per cent increase in incidences of chikungunya a...

A recent global report says India brings up the rear on most critical fronts to fight the disease In 2015, India accounted for nearly 2.8 million (27%) of the 10.4 million new tuberculosis (TB) cases in the world, and 0.48 million (29%) of the 1.8 million TB deaths globally. Yet, India brings up the rear on most critical fronts to fight the disease. This has been clearly highlighted by the ‘Out of Step’ report. Released recently by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) and the Stop TB Partnership, the report surveyed 29 countries that account for 82% of the global TB burden. Lag in practice, policy Correct and timely diagnosis of TB is the first step in treating the disease and preventing its spread. Unfortunately, both the private and public sector in India heavily rely on smear microscopy as the initial diagnostic test. This is despite smear microscopy’s ability to diagnose only about 50% of the positive cases. The over-reliance on the century-old method becomes particularly worrying...

Augmentin combines an antibiotic and an inhibitor, thus being effective against TB Bacteria develop resistance against a drug only when they are exposed to it or when the drug is misused. But now, a team of researchers from India has found whether and how drug resistance can develop against a candidate drug called Augmentin even before the drug is approved for treating patients with drug-resistant TB. Augmentin is currently undergoing clinical trials in patients with drug-resistant TB; it is already being used for common bacterial infections. Besides deciphering the mechanism by which TB bacteria can develop resistance against Augmentin, the researchers have found ways of overcoming this potential resistance mechanism, thereby making Augmentin a potentially powerful drug to treat both multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) and extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB). The beta-lactam class of antibiotics such as penicillin, ampicillin and amoxicillin is one of the most widely used class ...

They may overtax kidneys and reduce muscles’ ability to recover, say studies Taking ibuprofen and related over-the-counter painkillers could have unintended and worrisome consequences for people who vigorously exercise. These popular medicines, known as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs, work by suppressing inflammation. But according to two new studies, in the process they potentially may also overtax the kidneys during prolonged exercise and reduce muscles’ ability to recover afterward. Anyone who spends time around people who exercise knows that painkiller use is common among them. Some athletes joke about taking “vitamin I,” or ibuprofen, to blunt the pain of strenuous training and competitions. Others rely on naproxen or other NSAIDs to make hard exercise more tolerable. NSAID use is especially widespread among athletes in strenuous endurance sports like marathon and ultramarathon running. But in recent years, there have been hints that NSAIDs might not hav...

The newly elected director-general of World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Ghebreyesus has emphasised on the health impacts of climate and environmental change, while outlining his agenda in his first address since election. Tedros was addressing a gathering of WHO staff in Geneva. While keeping universal health coverage at the centre of his agenda, he listed out three priorities: Health emergencies; women’s, children’s and adolescents’ health; health impacts of climate and environmental change. Tedros also spoke of ethical healthcare, calling it a human rights issue. On climate change, he said, “While health emergencies hit quickly, climate change is a slow-motion disaster. WHO must play a strategic and decisive role not only in adaptation but also in mitigation.” On the recent controversy over travel expenditure in the WHO, its director-general said, “I am reviewing the situation thoroughly and will ensure that our resources are used efficiently. We have to be good stewards...

Diagnosis is complicated due to challenges associated with sample collection While detection of tuberculosis (TB) in children remains a challenge, it has now emerged that Multi-Drug Resistant (MDR) TB is higher among children than expected. This has been described as a “worrying trend” by the Union Health Ministry. As many as 5,500 of over 76,000 children tested in nine cities have been diagnosed with TB. Nine per cent of these paediatric TB cases have been diagnosed to have MDR TB, according to the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND) that conducted the tests in collaboration with the Central TB Division under the Revised National TB Control Programme (RNTCP). Unique initiative FIND initially started a unique initiative for diagnosing paediatric TB in four cities of Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad and Kolkata from April 2014 with funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). It has now scaled up the project to include additional five citie...

A Mumbai-based study on to track dengue biomarkers can help curb deaths drastically Ever wondered why one dengue patient recovers at home with simple symptomatic line of treatment while another may battle for life in an intensive care unit (ICU) with severe complications? The extremely varied prognosis of the mosquito-borne disease has intrigued the medical fraternity for a long time. Tracking dengue biomarkers To find answers, the civic-run Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Laboratory at Arthur Road in Mumbai has tied up with the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay to track down some biomarkers in order to predict how dengue will progress in a particular patient. If all goes well, these biomarkers can drastically change the disease management and help in curbing dengue deaths. “The idea is to establish molecular signatures for complicated dengue cases and thus have sound knowledge of the disease progression in different individuals suffering from the disease,” says Dr. Jayan...

Regulator to expedite approvals for generics to damp prices The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s moves on generics are a storm warning for pharma. In a bid to combat high prices, new commissioner Scott Gottlieb will expedite reviews of generic-drug applications to promote competition. The changes will batter the likes of Valeant and Cardinal Health, and cast a cloud over branded drug makers. The FDA traditionally left questions of pricing to pharma firms, but a political uproar about gouging has prompted a rethink. Companies have jacked up the prices of branded and generic drugs needed by AIDS patients, premature infants and cancer victims, among others in some cases by 100-fold or more. Mallinckrodt’s drug for infantile spasm, which cost about $40 a vial around the turn of the millennium, is now over $30,000. Such behaviour has crept into the $85 billion-a-year U.S. generic market. The Government Accountability Office found about one-fifth of the generics it surveyed had a...

Researchers have discovered yet another gene that carries resistance to a crucial, last resort antibiotic called colistin. The mcr-3 gene is the third such gene, which was isolated from pigs who also carried 18 other resistance determinants. The finding has been published by researchers from China Agricultural University, Beijing in journal mBio. Colistin is used widely as a last resort antibiotic in humans against multi-drug resistant bacteria. It is the “highest-priority” critically important antimicrobial for human medicine as per the World Health Organization (WHO). Researchers found a sample of E. coli bacteria that was resistant to colistin, but did not carry any of the two known resistant genes (mcr-1and mcr-2). This prompted the discovery of the third gene. The isolated mcr-3 gene is plasmid mediated, meaning it can be transferred among different bacteria in animals as well as humans. The authors suggest that this novel mobile colistin resistance gene may be widespread, ...

Effective treatment is available for epilepsy, but doctors had found out that epilepsy drugs don’t work in some women. Now scientists have figured out why some women suffer from recurrent seizures despite medication. Scientists at the Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB) and Institute of Human Behavior and Allied Sciences (IHBAS), both in New Delhi, have found that a variation in a gene called Cytochrome P4501A1 (CYP1A1) is responsible for some women to suffer from frequent epileptic seizures despite taking one or a combination of known anti-epileptic drugs. The study results have been published in The Pharmacogenomics Journal. CYP1A1 gene, known to make an enzyme that regulates the levels of female hormone estrogen in the blood, is also important in controlling drug response in epilepsy. “Since this gene is involved in dispersal of estrogen, we thought that perhaps an altered expression of it is contributing to higher levels of estradiol, which, in turn, was incre...