News FeedExercise plus gene therapy shows promise for treating Lou Gehrig’s disease
August 24, 2006 by admin · Leave a Comment
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A new study in mice gives hope that a combination of gene therapy and exercise may extend the lives of people who have Lou Gehrig’s disease.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a chronic and progressive illness that leads to paralysis and ultimately death. There are no known cures, and the only FDA-approved method for treating the disease is a drug that may extend life between three and six months, said Brian Kaspar, the study’s lead author and an assistant professor of pediatrics at Ohio State University.
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Tuberculosis Skin experiment (PPD Skin experiment)
August 1, 2006 by admin · Leave a Comment
What is the tuberculosis skin test?
The tuberculosis skin test (also known as the tuberculin or PPD test) is a test used to determine if someone has developed an immune response to the bacterium that causes tuberculosis (TB). This response can occur if someone currently has TB or if they were exposed to it in the past. The tuberculin skin test is based on the fact that infection with M. tuberculosis produces a delayed-type hypersensitivity skin reaction to certain components of the bacterium. The components of the organism are contained in extracts of culture filtrates and are the core elements of the classic tuberculin PPD (also known as purified protein derivative). This PPD material is used for skin testing for tuberculosis. Reaction in the skin to tuberculin PPD begins when specialized immune cells, called T cells, which have been sensitized by prior infection, are recruited by the immune system to the skin site where they release chemical messengers called lymphokines. These lymphokines induce induration (a hard, raised area with clearly defined margins at and around the injection site) through local vasodilation edema, fibrin deposition, and recruitment of other inflammatory cells to the area.
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