All posts by medical

Neuroscience

Breakthrough achieved in treatment for Ischemic stroke – The Nation

LAHORE - A major breakthrough has been achieved in the medical history of Pakistan with the introduction of catheter-based stroke treatment at the Punjab Institute of Neurosciences (PINS) of Lahore General Hospital (LGH), headed by Dr Umair Rasheed Chaudhry. A special team of Neuro International Radiologists participated in the process while Dr Abubakar Siddique, Major Dr Sohail Akhtar and Dr Saima Ahmed assisted them. Apart from Pakistan, Dr Osama Yaseen Mansoor from Egypt, Dr Ahmad Sobri and Prof Dr Azam Bin Abdul Raheem from Malaysia while Dr Anchalae from Thailand were also among participants in the workshop. The world renowned Dr Haseeb Manzoor and Dr Hamid Mahmood were also part of the team on the occasion. The 13th workshop was conducted at the Neuro Radiology Centre, followed by a press conference, conducted by Dr Umair Rasheed Chaudhry. It was reported that treatment of paralysis and brain diseases had progressed greatly in Pakistan. The first 6 to 24 hours are of the utmost importance during that time period, blood clotting is removed from the brain, thus providing timely medical help. The patient is protected from many complications while so far 70 such patients have been treated on time at this centre, said Umair Rasheed Chaudhry. Dr Umair told the press conference that the two-day international workshop at the Punjab Institute of Neuroscience was extremely useful in addition to benefiting from each others experiences and providing a lot of material to guide the new doctors. Work was started on a modern machine installed at a cost of 34 crore rupees and he said that we could run the centre for 24 hours if the money of one crore is provided. He said that it was alarming that the second major cause of death in Pakistan was a stroke and lack of proper awareness.

Read the original post:
Breakthrough achieved in treatment for Ischemic stroke - The Nation

Neuroscience

Neuroscience Market Emerging Technology, Opportunities, Future Growth to 2026 with Top Key Players- GE Healthcare, NeuroNexus, Siemens Healthineers -…

Neuroscience Market Report Provides Future Development Possibilities By Key Players, Key Drivers, Competitive Analysis, Scope, And Key Challenges Analysis. The Reports Conjointly Elaborate The Expansion Rate Of The Industry Supported The Highest CAGR And Global Analysis. This Neuroscience Market Report Providing An In-Depth And Top To Bottom Analysis By Neuroscience Market Size, Growth Forecast By Applications, Sales, Size, Types And Competitors For The Creating Segment And The Developing Section Among The Neuroscience Market. The Market Growth Worldwide With Top Players Future Business Scope and Investment Analysis Report

Get Sample Report @ https://www.reportsintellect.com/sample-request/899104

The report means to give front line advertise knowledge and help leaders make sound venture assessment. Furthermore, the report likewise recognizes and investigations the developing patterns alongside real drivers, difficulties and openings in the worldwide Neuroscience market. Besides, the report likewise features advertise passage methodologies for different organizations over the globe.

Top Companies are Cover in this report: GE Healthcare, NeuroNexus, Siemens Healthineers, Mightex Bioscience, Thomas RECORDING GmbH, Noldus Information Technology, Plexon, Blackrock Microsystems

The Neuroscience Market Report Offers an assessment of key market dynamics, the competitive landscape, segments, and regions in order to help readers to become better familiar with the Neuroscience Market, it allows players to gain deep insights into the business development and market growth of leading companies operating in the Neuroscience Market.

Segmentation by type: breakdown data from 2015 to 2020 in Section 2.3; and forecast to 2025 in section 10.7.Whole Brain ImagingNeuro-MicroscopyElectrophysiology TechnologiesNeuro-Cellular ManipulationStereotaxic SurgeriesAnimal BehaviorOtherWhole Brain Imaging, Neuro-Microscopy, and Electrophysiology Technologies are the top three types of neuroscience, with a combined market share of 62%

Segmentation by application: breakdown data from 2015 to 2020, in Section 2.4; and forecast to 2025 in section 10.8.HospitalsDiagnostic LaboratoriesResearch InstitutesOther

Get Instant Discount on Report @ https://www.reportsintellect.com/discount-request/899104

Table of Contents:

Global Neuroscience Market Size, Status and Forecast 20261 Market Overview2 Manufacturers Profiles3 Global Neuroscience Sales, Revenue, Market Share andCompetitionby Manufacturer4 Global Neuroscience Market Analysis by Regions5 North America Neuroscience by Countries6 Europe Neuroscience by Countries7 Asia-Pacific Neuroscience by Countries8 South America Neuroscience by Countries9 Middle East and Africa Neuroscience by Countries10 Global Neuroscience Market Segment by Type11 Global Neuroscience Market Segment by Application12 Neuroscience Market Forecast13 Sales Channel, Distributors, Traders and Dealers14 Research Findings and Conclusion15 Appendix

Reasons to Buy

About Us:

Reports Intellect is your one-stop solution for everything related to market research and market intelligence. We understand the importance of market intelligence and its need in todays competitive world.

Our executive team works hard to fetch the most authentic research reports backed with impeccable data figures which guarantee outstanding results every time for you.

So whatever it is the latest report from the researchers or a custom requirement, our team is here to help you in the best possible way.

Contact Us:

sales@reportsintellect.com

Phone No: + 1-706-996-2486

US Address: 225 Peachtree Street NE,

Suite 400, Atlanta, GA 30303

Go here to read the rest:
Neuroscience Market Emerging Technology, Opportunities, Future Growth to 2026 with Top Key Players- GE Healthcare, NeuroNexus, Siemens Healthineers -...

Neuroscience

University Honors King, Shows Commitment to Community During ‘Dream Week’ – University of Texas at Dallas

Neuroscience senior Nishika Jaiswal drops a measuring scoop of ingredients for prepackaged red lentil jambalaya meals that will be delivered to area children. The meal-packing project was the Universitys service event designed to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

About 175 UTDallas students and other volunteers packaged 25,000 bags of red lentil jambalaya meals for area children as part of a University of Texas at Dallas service project to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The nonprofit organization Feeding Children Everywhere, which provided the supplies, will distribute the meals through the North Texas Food Bank.

The Universitys MLK Day of Service was created in 2018 by the Multicultural Center in the Office of Diversity and Community Engagement and the Office of Student Volunteerism as a way to let students follow through on Kings challenge to help their communities. It was just one of several activities to celebrate Kings life and legacy during the Universitys Dream Week, whose theme this year was Catalyst 4 Change.

National recording artist Shy Amos BA09, MS11, MBA17 performs a spoken word tribute to past and present black heroes during the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Breakfast.

The MLK Dream Week continues to serve as a step in the right direction to accomplish Dr. Kings dream, said Bruce August Jr., the Multicultural Centers assistant director for programs and marketing. It is only right to reinvigorate our commitment to diversity and inclusion via the celebration of Dr. King.

A highlight of Dream Week was the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Breakfast at the Davidson-Gundy Alumni Center.

Guest speaker former Rep. Helen Giddings, who retired after more than 25 years in the Texas House of Representatives and who was chair of the Texas Legislative Black Caucus, challenged students to carry the torch of Kings moral courage in helping the country attain equality and social justice. In her role as a legislator, Giddings helped secure state funding for the Universitys Academic Bridge Program, which has helped 800 high-potential students from Dallas-area urban high schools succeed at UT Dallas.

The 20th annual breakfast featured a performance of Amazing Grace by Matthew Winser-Johns, assistant director for LGBT+ programs in the Galerstein Gender Center. The event was co-sponsored by the Multicultural Center, Student Union & Activities Advisory Board and the Office of Diversity and Community Engagement.

When you come together and organize, and you walk together in unity, it puts his words to action. It keeps his legacy alive.

Gerry Bogonko, software engineering senior and vice president of the Black Student Alliance at UT Dallas

Dream Week also included Diversity Dialogues, a facilitated cultural discussion, and a new event the first campus Unity Walk in honor of the legacy and values of King. Though inclement weather forced the event to be held inside the Student Union, students heard speakers and joined in songs from the civil rights era.

Software engineering senior Gerry Bogonko, vice president of the Black Student Alliance and a multicultural peer advocate, spoke at the event and outlined the history of voting rights activism. He said he believed it was important for students to continue to gather and commemorate the memory of King.

When you come together and organize, and you walk together in unity, it puts his words to action. It keeps his legacy alive, Bogonko said. By coming together, you can stop an oppressive power structure. Its only by coming together that it will happen.

The annual MLK Day of Service drew student volunteers from a wide range of campus groups, including the UTDallas Cultural Scholars, the Black Faculty and Staff Alliance, the Diversity Scholars Program, Jindal OutREACH, Living Learning Communities, the Multicultural Center, the Office of Student Volunteerism, the Office of Sustainability, Tau Sigma National Honor Society, the Terry Foundation Scholars program and the Undergraduate Success Scholars program.

Economics junior and Eugene McDermott Scholar Bethany Kasprzyk participated in the Day of Service event, helping to package meals in the Galaxy Rooms of the Student Union. She became interested in helping the needy after volunteering with the Universitys Comet Cupboard, which addresses food insecurity for college students, and taking a class on poverty.

Not only are children the group most likely to be in poverty, but their early childhood education is the biggest determinant of their adult outcomes, Kasprzyk said. Im really glad Feeding Children Everywhere is tackling this issue. Its the perfect service event for UTD to give back to the Dallas community in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Visit link:
University Honors King, Shows Commitment to Community During 'Dream Week' - University of Texas at Dallas

Neuroscience

Building Authentic Courage: The Essential Foundation For Successful Diversity And Inclusion – Forbes

Jacqueline Brassey, McKinsey & Company

Dr. Jacqui Brassey, Director of Learning and Development at McKinsey & Company and a practitioner academic, shares with me the essence of her new, coauthored book, Advancing Authentic Confidence through Emotional Flexibility and highlights key lessons for management and leadership training.

Successful Diversity And Inclusion (D&I): An Elusive Fairy-Tale?

Dana is excited. She has just joined a fast-growing start-up. It is a huge opportunity for her. Her project manager, Kurt, is equally thrilled to have her on board; this huge project is his first as lead and Dana brings exactly the right skillset to help steer it in the right direction.

But a few weeks in, Kurt is uneasy. Uncomfortable with Danas suggestions and her very different approach to managing suppliers, Kurt senses his control slipping away. Her skills are just what the team needs her previous organizations raved about her but her style and her methods are different from his. He starts to worry constantly about how to regain control. He starts questioning not only his decision to hire Dana but his own abilities. He feels stuck and totally unequipped to manage such uncertainty.

For all the noise on the importance of diversity and the benefits of inclusion, there are many leaders who, like Kurt, find managing the realities of D&I easier said than done. They have tried many different tools, initiatives, workshops and events: on unconscious bias, diversity, womens leadership, LGBTQ+ allies. The list is long, results mixed. Real evidence of progress through D&I is intermittent, irregular or non-existent.

The Inclusion Paradox

One key reason for this lack of progress, not often recognized, is the Inclusion Paradox. This is basic neuroscience: as human beings we love to connect and engage with others. We love to be part of communities, families and friends. And where we feel safe we flourish.

Conversely, when we meet people who are different from us, whether in how they look, work, talk or behave, we can consciously or unconsciously feel threatened. Consciously or unconsciously, as we make sense of the world around us, we form impressions about others and tend either to connect or to move away from them, whether physically in the office, in teamwork or over a coffee. We simply feel more at ease creating environments where we mix with people similar to us.

Whilst we know this to be true, in our increasingly complex world we desperately need people to engage with one another, work together and collaborate. We need a broad spread of talent within organizations, with skill and background diversity, more women, ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ members, and others who are different from us.

So how do we combine our basic, psychological need for safe social engagement with our potential fear of difference and unconscious bias?

The Importance Of Authentic Courage

Working environments are changing fast and flexible working is becoming the norm. Leaders must evolve quickly to lead successful multidisciplinary teams. And top of the list of skills they need is courage: authentic courage to be inclusive.

Three Dimensions Of Modern Leadership

Simply put, familiarity makes us feel safe, whilst unfamiliarity even in the smallest detail can change that feeling to unsafe. In these circumstances our stress system activates, our executive brain functioning is compromised, our emotional neural pathways take over and we make poorer judgments and decisions.

Crucial Components Of Management And Leadership Training

The role of leader has changed from one of superior knowledge and understanding and having all the answers to one of integrator, synthesizer and connector. We must all strive to develop this new skillset in ourselves and in others in an integrative and inclusive way through ongoing management and leadership training.

Key skills include suspending judgment, accepting fear and discomfort, mindfulness, curiosity, distant observation, staying grounded, keeping the end goal in mind, awareness, having a consciousness radar, and staying with the discomfort of not knowing the answers. Such skills combined bring authentic confidence, emotional flexibility and the courage to be inclusive.

All these competences can be taught and integrated into learning and development programs but they are still not getting enough traction.

Once we understand the paradox of inclusion and start to nurture these leadership skills at the helm of effective multidisciplinary teams, we will pave the way for real impact on diversity and create the environment where inclusion harnesses the rewards of a diverse talent base.

Dr. Jacqui Brassey coauthored Advancing Authentic Confidence through Emotional Flexibility with Prof dr. Nick van Dam and Prof dr. Arjen van Witteloostuijn. As well as part of McKinseys Learning Leadership Team, Dr. Brassey is Adjunct Professor at IE University, Research Fellow at VU Amsterdam and Supervisory Board member at Save the Children in the Netherlands. She has coauthored more than 15 publications.

If youd like more information about professional development programs to support your future modern leaders, please visit My Confidence Matters.

See the rest here:
Building Authentic Courage: The Essential Foundation For Successful Diversity And Inclusion - Forbes

Genetics

Terrace Global Announces Genetics Supply Agreement With Apollo Green for Acquisition of Genetics and Importation Into the European Union – Business…

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Terrace Global Inc. (Terrace Global or the Company) (TSXV:TRCE) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a genetics supply agreement (the Genetics Supply Agreement) with Apollo Green Inc. (Apollo Green) whereby the parties have entered into an exclusive relationship with respect to the acquisition and importation of high-THC genetics for the Companys medical cannabis operations in Portugal.

Terrace Global has commenced the process to acquire the requisite starting materials for the first phase of its greenhouse facilities in Portugal, which will be comprised of approximately 65,000 square feet of greenhouse facilities, a 5,000 square feet of E.U. GMP processing and drying facility and a 3,300 square feet administrative building.

Pursuant to the Genetics Supply Agreement, Terrace Global will be acquiring the following genetics: Chem Stallion (15-25% THC, 0.5-0.1% CBD), Twisted Grape (15-25% THC, 0.5-0.1% CBD) and Apollo Skunk (15-25% THC, 0.5-0.1% CBD). These genetics will add to Terrace Globals existing inventory of high CBD genetics which were acquired from Colorado and used in its outdoor cultivation in Uruguay.

We are pleased to be working with Apollo Green to develop our genetics inventory with a view to focusing on high-THC strains that we expect to be well received by the European Union medical cannabis market participants. Apollo Green has an extensive library of genetics that include a diverse set of market leading strains and cross-breeds, commented Francisco Ortiz von Bismarck, Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Being able to source these genetics is an important milestone in the development of European operations. Without quality genetics, there is no pathway to success in the burgeoning E.U. medical cannabis industry.

Apollo Green has been accumulating an extensive library of high-THC genetics and has benefited from its relationship with Ed Rosenthal. Mr. Rosenthal is a Global Advisor to Apollo Green and is a leading cannabis horticulture authority, author, educator, social activist and legalization pioneer.

Terrace Global is building a world-class cultivation facility in one of the most attractive countries from a regulatory and climate perspective. We will be working closely with the Company to see how these genetics perform by leveraging our extensive cultivation expertise, commented Tyler LeBlanc, Chief Executive Officer of Apollo Green. This is a meaningful partnership for us as we seek to grow our genetics and plantlet business globally. Terrace Global is the ideal partner given its extensive experience and international footprint in Uruguay, Portugal and Spain.

The Genetics Supply Agreement is subject to various conditions precedent, including the issuance of the applicable export and import permits from the regulatory authorities in Canada and Portugal.

About Terrace Global

Terrace Global is a multi-country operator (MCO) led by experienced cannabis entrepreneurs focused on the development and acquisition of international cannabis assets. Terrace Globals focus is on federally legal jurisdictions with existing domestic demand, low cost inputs and approved for exportation. Terrace Globals existing asset platform consists of: (1) a 33.75% indirect equity interest in one of the currently two recreational cannabis operations in Uruguay; (2) 100% of Oransur, S.A., a Uruguayan company producing high CBD hemp in Uruguay; (3) 100% of Terra Nova Produo e Comercializao de Produtos Natuis e Farmacuticos, Lda, a Portuguese company with a pre-license issued by INFARMED for the cultivation, importation, and exportation of medical cannabis in Portugal; and (4) 100% of Pharmabinoide S.L., a Spanish company producing and commercializing hemp in Spain. MariMed Inc. (OTCQX:MRMD), a multi-state cannabis operator in the U.S., dedicated to improving the health and wellness of people through the use of cannabinoids and cannabis products, owns approximately 6% of Terrace Global.

About Apollo Green

Apollo Green was among the first wave of Canadian businesses to submit an application to Health Canada for a cannabis cultivation and sales license. In July 2019, Apollo Green was granted three licenses for standard cultivation, standard processing and federal medical sales. Apollo Green currently supplies premium genetic solutions and superior plantlets to Cannabis producers globally, specializing in reducing risk, space, costs, and time to its B2B customers, in a state of the art fully operational facility about 20 minutes east of downtown Ottawa.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release contains certain forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements about the Companys future plans and intentions. Wherever possible, words such as may, will, should, could, expect, plan, intend, anticipate, believe, estimate, predict or potential or the negative or other variations of these words, or similar words or phrases, have been used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements reflect managements current beliefs and are based on information currently available to management as at the date hereof.

Forward-looking statements involve significant risk, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors could cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from the results discussed or implied in the forward-looking statements. These factors should be considered carefully and readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management believes to be reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure readers that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.

Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Read the original here:
Terrace Global Announces Genetics Supply Agreement With Apollo Green for Acquisition of Genetics and Importation Into the European Union - Business...

Genetics

How to Argue with a Racist smashes race myths that plague society – New Scientist News

By Layal Liverpool

Guy Smallman/Getty

I am black and mixed-race, but it remains unclear to me whether these are social identities or biological classifications. Luckily, I can turn to Adam Rutherfords latest book, How to Argue with aRacist, to reveal the current scientific understanding of race, ancestry and genetics. It also tells us how to argue effectively against the idea that certain populations of people are biologically inferior.

From the beginning, Rutherford is clear that although he uses the term race frequently, he does so only because the word is widely used: it isnt scientifically valid, yet it exists so must be addressed. Race is a social construct. This does not mean it is invalid or unimportant, writes Rutherford.

How to Argue with a Racists strongest suit is to encourage a general conversation about race, informed by the latest science on the reality and origins of racism. Researching ethnicity has often been career death, but Rutherford says scientists shouldnt shy away from the field. Nor should writers, to judge by his mission.

For many, race is a cry for identity and belonging. In 2018, when groups of neo-Nazis in the US chugged milk to supposedly demonstrate their superior, genetically encoded ability toprocess lactose, they were trying to assert their white identity, writes Rutherford.

He rather undermines such anassertion by revealing that thegene mutations that enable lactose processing arent unique to people of European descent. They also exist today in Kazakhs, Ethiopians, Tutsi, Khoisan and in many places where dairy farming took off as part of agriculture.

Chugging milk is a theatrical gesture, but as Rutherford points out, we increasingly turn to ancestry and genetic testing toreaffirm our human tendency to seek meaning and identity.

I can relate to this. My surname, Liverpool, comes from an ancestor on my fathers side, forcibly shipped from West Africa to the Caribbean via Liverpool, UK, during the transatlantic slave trade. But as Rutherford points out, the number of children produced by sex between enslaved peoples, and between the enslaved and their owners, makes it virtually impossible for a genetic test to establish an African country of origin for the descendants of slaves.

Instead of arguing against thelogic of marrying identity toancestry, Rutherford elegantly uses a bit of mathematics to showhow our whole way of thinking about ancestry is wrong.

He assumes generational time is 25 years and that the number ofancestors for each person in every generation has doubled. Sowe each have two parents, fourgrandparents, eight great-grandparents, and so on. In 500years, or 20 generations, that is 1,048,576 ancestors. Go back 1000 years, and each of us has more than a trillion ancestors: 10 times more people than ever existed.

The notion of a family tree isnt the most scientifically accurate metaphor, he writes, because trees only ever branch, but family trees contain loops, with the same person appearing at multiple positions in the tree, for example, as a result of first cousins having children. Understanding that we are all more closely related to one another than we think is a pretty strong argument against racism.

Is any of this enough to convince hard-liners? Maybe not.As Rutherford writes: Thecommercial genetic testsremain scientifically unconvincing. Regardless, the utility of consumer genetic testing is now a major and significant part of white supremacy discourse.

But in many ways How to Argue with a Racist isnt really about arguing with hard-liners. Its target is the surprisingly prevalent set of racist beliefs, from men of certain groups having larger or smaller penises than average to people from different racial groups being more or less intelligent than average. The way we generally speak about races does not align with what we know about those innate differences between people and populations, says Rutherford.

For example, the largest study of penis size, including more than 15,000 men, found no evidence that the organs length or girth correlates with any particular population, racial category or ethnicity, while intelligence is a complex trait influenced by a score of genes and their interaction with our environment.

Rutherford hunts widely to account for the persistence of suchracist ideas. But in the end, hefaces down the biggest issue atthe core of many of these raciststereotypes: is race truly abiological classification?We are constantly told that it is asocial construct, but scientists muddy the waters by appearing tocontradict this as they perhaps carelessly mention both race and ethnicity in their research papers.

Rutherford is clear that the majority of geneticists think genetic differences between ethnic groups are meaningless interms of behaviour or innateabilities. But he also acknowledges the contradiction because scientific papers are still published in which genes for complex traits like intelligence seem stratified along racial lines.

Race science is pseudoscience, but genetics and evolutionary research are inextricably tied up with race, and are often used by racists to justify themselves. Rutherford accepts that the field ofhuman genetics has a dark history, founded by racists in a time of racism, but also argues that genetics has demonstrated the scientific falsity of race.

He writes that scientists reluctance to express views concerning the politics that mightemerge from human genetics is a position perhaps worth reconsidering. After all, he argues, those who misuse science for ideological ends show no such restraint, and embrace modern tech to spread their messages.

More on these topics:

See the original post here:
How to Argue with a Racist smashes race myths that plague society - New Scientist News

Genetics

How to Argue with a Racist by Adam Rutherford review were all related – The Guardian

Every Nazi had Jewish ancestors. Discovering this fact alone is worth the price of Adam Rutherfords engaging and enlightening new book. A geneticist by training, Rutherford is an accomplished writer who knows how to weave a fascinating tale from scientific data as he explains that our shared ancestry is far more recent than the small group of a pan-Africa species that left the continent 70,000 years ago.

It is a popular myth that there are more people alive today than have ever died. The current global population is about 7.8 billion and increasing at the rate of 220,000 each day. It has been estimated that there have been some 108 billion members of our species, Homo sapiens. The dead may outnumber the living by almost 100 billion, but as Rutherford points out, there are more people alive as you read this than on any other day in history.

Race does existprecisely because it isasocial construct, andracism isrealbecause peopleenact it

Assuming that generations are separated by 25 years, then in every generation back through time, the number of ancestors you have doubles: two parents, four grandparents, eight great-grandparents and so on. Going back just 1,000 years generates more than a trillion ancestors 1,099,511,627,776. This staggering number is nearly 10 times greater than all of the people who have ever lived. The solution to this apparent paradox is simple: family trees coalesce and collapse in on themselves as we go back in time, with many individuals occupying multiple positions.

The last common ancestor of all people with longstanding European ancestries lived only 600 years ago, in 1400. This long lost ancestor appears on every familys tree. If you hoped for a royal connection then you wont be disappointed: as Rutherford explains, anyone alive today with a British ancestral lineage is almost certainly descended from Edward III, and all of his regal ancestors, including William the Conqueror. It may sound far-fetched, but so did six degrees of separation the idea that everyone on the planet is six, or fewer, social connections away from each other.

Remarkably, we only need to travel back 1,000 years to reach a special moment in time dubbed the genetic isopoint. Every person alive at this point in 10th-century Europe who left descendants is an ancestor of all Europeans alive today. This mind-numbing concept is a mathematical and genetic certainty that is far removed from the ancestry, family trees and identity that we learn from such TV programmes as Who Do You Think You Are?. Logically, there must also be a global isopoint, a time when the entire population of the Earth were the ancestors of everyone alive today. There is, and it was just 3,400 years ago.

How ancestry and family trees actually work shows the concept of racial purity to be pure fantasy. For humans, Rutherford explains, there are no purebloods, only mongrels enriched by the blood of multitudes. So, like the rest of us, every white supremacist and racist has African, Indian, Chinese, Native American, Middle Eastern and Indigenous Australian ancestors to name but a few.

Human genetics is the study of the similarities and differences between people and populations. Although the idea that genetic variations between traditional racial groupings have any meaningful influence on behaviour or innate abilities has been widely discredited, papers are still being published in peer-reviewed journals in which the genetics for complex human traits is sliced and diced along racial lines.

Attempts to justify racism have long been rooted in science, more accurately pseudoscience. Rutherford understands that racism is a social phenomenon, but rightly believes that when science is warped, misrepresented or abused to justify hatred and prejudice it must be challenged. He focuses on what genetics says about skin colour, ancestry, intelligence, sporting prowess, and about so-called racial purity and superiority. And he attempts to equip the reader with the scientific tools necessary to tackle questions concerning race, genes and ancestry, as he explains what DNA does and does not reveal about the concept of race.

No one has ever agreed how many races there are, nor what their essential features might be. The emergence of the pseudoscientific approach to human taxonomy that relies on physical traits such as skin colour or physiognomy coincided with the empire building of European powers. Unsurprisingly, the invention of race occurred in an era of exploration, exploitation and plunder.

Skin colour may be the most obvious difference between people but it has little to do with the total amount of similarity or difference between individuals and between populations. If we accept that people are born with different innate capabilities and potential, then how these abilities cluster within and between populations has more to do with history and culture than DNA and biology. Studies reveal that genetic differences between populations do not account for differences in academic, intellectual, musical or sporting performance between those populations.

So-called racial differences are literally just skin deep: genetics and human evolutionary history do not support the traditional or colloquial concepts of race. As a result, Rutherford argues, we are prone to say race doesnt exist, or race is just a social construct. However, race does exist precisely because it is a social construct, and racism is real because people enact it. One has to admire his desire to challenge Jonathan Swifts dictum: Reasoning will never make a Man correct an ill Opinion, which by Reasoning he never acquired.

How to Argue with a Racist: History, Science, Race and Reality by Adam Rutherford is published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson (RRP 12.99). To order a copy go to guardianbookshop.com. Free UK p&p over 15.

More:
How to Argue with a Racist by Adam Rutherford review were all related - The Guardian

Genetics

How Genetic Testing with 23andMe Can Improve Your Health – Yahoo Finance

Survey finds 23andMe Health + Ancestry results motivate customers to make positive lifestyle changes.

NEW YORK, Jan. 30, 2020 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- At-home DNA testing service 23andMe is more than just a tool to discover ancestry - it also offers insight into how genes can impact overall health and wellness. 23andMe offers a wealth of reports that provide genetic health information that can help customers be more proactive about their health. Recently, 23andMe Genetics Trends Expert, Madeline Lynch, and customer Michelle Martinez, teamed with YourUpdateTV to discuss.

A video accompanying this announcement is available at: https://youtu.be/VAKAywAd4VY

A recent survey of 23andMe's Health + Ancestry Service customers found that more than three-quarters reported that after receiving their personalized genetic reports they made at least one positive change in their health behavior. Designed by 23andMe and M/A/R/C Research, researchers asked 23andMe Health + Ancestry customers about the overall impact of their 23andMe experience, regardless of their results.

51 percent of respondents reporting they've set future goals to be healthier. Changes included eating healthier, getting more sleep, and exercising more, among others. Of those who responded to the survey:

For more information and to get started, visit 23andMe.com

Madeline Lynch: Madeline Lynch is the Genetics Trends Expert at 23andMe. She serves as a subject matter expert and company spokesperson for media engagements, the analyst community, online communities, and the general public at large. Her responsibilities on the customer care team include providing input on prioritization and resolution of customer-facing issues and working directly with cross-functional teams to influence and support development of new and existing communications materials and messaging from the perspective of the customer. She holds a BA from University of California, Davis.

About Michelle Martinez: Michelle Martinez is a 51-year-old lab assistant from Arlington, Texas. Michelle was inspired to order a 23andMe Health + Ancestry kit to help prepare for any potential genetic health risks, due to several serious health risks running in her family. When she opened her Genetic Weight wellness report, she saw that she is genetically predisposed to weigh less than average. She thought, "I've been denying my genetics and just falling into bad habits. I'm not being my best self." That report, along with the knowledge of lifestyle and environmental factors that affect one's health, inspired Michelle to make better lifestyle decisions like eating healthier. She has since lost more than 50 pounds and gained confidence in being in her own skin. She believes that her weight loss journey is one of patience and acceptance with and of herself -- no matter her size.

About 23andMe: 23andMe, Inc. is the leading consumer genetics and research company. Founded in 2006, the mission of the company is to help people access, understand and benefit from the human genome. The company was named by TIME as a "Genius Company" in 2018 and featured as Fast Company's #2 Most Innovative Health Company in 2018. 23andMe has millions of customers worldwide, with more than 80 percent of customers consented to participate in research. 23andMe, Inc. is located in Sunnyvale, CA. More information is available at http://www.23andMe.com.

About YourUpdateTV: YourUpdateTV is a social media video portal for organizations to share their content, produced by award-winning video communications firm, D S Simon Media (http://www.dssimon.com). It includes separate channels for Health and Wellness, Lifestyle, Media and Entertainment, Money and Finance, Social Responsibility, Sports and Technology.

SOURCE 23andMe

Read more:
How Genetic Testing with 23andMe Can Improve Your Health - Yahoo Finance

Genetics

Top geneticist should resign over his teams laboratory fraud – The Guardian

A row over scientific fraud at the highest level of British academia has led to calls for one of the countrys leading geneticists and highest-paid university chiefs to leave his posts.

David Latchman, professor of genetics at University College London and master of Birkbeck, University of London a post that earns him 380,000 a year has angered senior academics by presiding over a laboratory that published fraudulent research, mostly on genetics and heart disease, for more than a decade. The number of fabricated results and the length of time over which the deception took place made the case one of the worst instances of research fraud uncovered in a British university.

Latchman blames junior lab staff for falsifying data, and two investigations at UCL, the first in 2015, found no evidence that he intended to commit, or was aware of, the fraud. A disciplinary hearing in 2018 concluded that there were insufficient grounds for dismissal or for any formal action against him.

But the investigations were deeply critical of Latchman. Both found that his failure to run the lab properly, and his position as author on many of the doctored papers, amounted to recklessness, and upheld an allegation of research misconduct against him.

The outcome of the case has riled a number of senior academics, who believe Latchman has taken responsibility neither for the fraud nor for the waste of grant money that happened on his watch. Many of the fraudulent papers covered projects funded by the British Heart Foundation.

He should be fired by UCL because he was leading a lab that published systematically fraudulent science

Professor John Hardy, a fellow of the Royal Society at UCL, and winner of the $3m Breakthrough prize for his work on Alzheimers, told the Observer he wanted to go public because he was angry about the situation. Some minion carries the can. This is how it is, all the time. The powerful get away with it, he said.

As the senior author, he has to take responsibility, Hardy said. He should be fired from UCL and Birkbeck. He should be fired by UCL because he was leading a lab that published systematically fraudulent science. And at Birkbeck, he sets the tone. He shouldnt be in that position.

Before opening its formal investigations, UCL convened two screening panels to review 60 papers from Latchmans lab dating back to 1997. Fraud had been alleged in all of them by a pseudonymous whistleblower, Clare Francis. One panel, chaired by Hardy, looked at a subset of the papers and found that images had been doctored in eight of them. The panel could only examine fraud where the images had been altered, he said.

In one paper, six images had been flipped or copied and relabelled as new. In a statement retracting the study, one of the authors, Anastasis Stephanou, now at the European University in Cyprus, said he regretted the inappropriate figure manipulations of which the co-authors were completely unaware. Dr Stephanou did not respond to a request for comment.

The second screening panel uncovered six more fraudulent papers. In one, an image of rat tissue appeared to be passed off as human. Another paper contained clear evidence of cloning, where parts of an image are copied and pasted.

The formal investigations that followed upheld allegations of misconduct against Latchman and two other scientists, whose names were redacted from the final reports that UCL released under the Freedom of Information Act last year. One member of Hardys panel was Professor Gudrun Moore, a geneticist at UCL. She said: The outcome of this has shown, at the very least, that he is a very poor leader of a scientific team, and under his leadership, paper after paper was published with incorrect data.

I was surprised that he did not resign. Things go wrong in science all the time but the facts and the data have to be sacred. If we are not telling our young researchers that, what are we telling them? That if you dont get the outcome you want, you can just make it up?

Two senior scientists familiar with the case, who spoke on condition of anonymity, were dismayed at its outcome. One said Latchman should consider standing down a move that would send a clear signal to the scientific community about the seriousness of research fraud. They said scientists around the world had asked what UCL and Birkbeck planned to do about the papers well before 2014, a situation that was very embarrassing.Another said: I expected him to come out and say I am deeply sorry, I behaved inappropriately, and at least admit that he had some responsibility.

In a statement, Birkbeck said the investigations had nothing to do with Professor Latchmans leadership of the college.

Latchman no longer has a lab and has stopped supervising research, but he is still a part-time professor of human genetics at UCL, and master of Birkbeck. To date, six of the papers have been withdrawn and two more corrected. PubPeer, an online forum used by academics, has raised questions over dozens of studies carried out by Latchmans group.

The investigations led the Wellcome Trust to tell Latchman he would need to provide evidence of research-integrity training before applying for personal funding in future. Professor Sir Nilesh Samani, medical director at the British Heart Foundation, said he was extremely concerned by the findings of UCLs investigations, adding that the British Heart Foundation was no longer funding the scientists involved. The charity is reviewing the need for further action.

A spokesman for Latchman said the academic had rejected the misconduct claim at the UCL disciplinary hearing, and that his lab management was not inadequate. The fraud was, he went on, confined to one sub-group of the lab and would have been apparent only to reviewers actively looking for such deception.

There have been many instances of frauds by individual lab workers, but in no cases has this led to the head of the laboratory having to resign, except in an instance where they were directly involved in the fraud themselves, the statement said. Attempts by individual academics at UCL to promote allegations of fraudulent behaviour against the hearings conclusions are unbecoming and a breach of confidentiality and good practice.

See the rest here:
Top geneticist should resign over his teams laboratory fraud - The Guardian

Genetics

EMA Validates Seattle Genetics’ Marketing Authorization Application for Tucatinib for Patients with Locally Advanced or Metastatic HER2-Positive…

Today, we achieved a significant milestone towards our goal of making tucatinib available to patients with locally advanced unresectable or metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer, including those with brain metastases, around the world, said Roger Dansey, M.D., Chief Medical Officer at Seattle Genetics. We look forward to working with the EMA throughout the review process. If approved, tucatinib has the potential to be a clinically meaningful advance for patients in this disease setting.

The MAA is based on data from the pivotal HER2CLIMB clinical trial, which compared tucatinib in combination with trastuzumab and capecitabine to trastuzumab and capecitabine alone in patients with locally advanced unresectable or metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer. Patients had previously received trastuzumab, pertuzumab and T-DM1 (ado-trastuzumab emtansine). Patients had received a median of four prior lines of therapy overall and three in the metastatic setting. Forty-seven percent of the patients enrolled in the trial had brain metastases at the time of enrollment. Results of the pivotal HER2CLIMB trial were presented during an oral presentation at the 2019 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS) and simultaneously published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

The New Drug Application (NDA) for tucatinib was submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on December 23, 2019 under the Real-Time Oncology Review Pilot Program. The review of the tucatinib NDA is also being conducted under Project Orbis, an initiative of the FDA Oncology Center of Excellence. Project Orbis provides a framework for concurrent submission and review of oncology drugs among participating international partners. Tucatinib was recently granted Breakthrough Therapy designation by the FDA in combination with trastuzumab and capecitabine, for the treatment of patients with locally advanced unresectable or metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer, including patients with brain metastases, who have been treated with trastuzumab, pertuzumab, and T-DM1. This designation was based on data from the HER2CLIMB trial.

About HER2CLIMB

HER2CLIMB is a multinational randomized (2:1), double-blind, placebo-controlled, active comparator, pivotal clinical trial comparing tucatinib in combination with trastuzumab and capecitabine compared with trastuzumab and capecitabine alone in patients with locally advanced unresectable or metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer who were previously treated with trastuzumab, pertuzumab and T-DM1. The primary endpoint of the trial was progression-free survival (PFS) per Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) v1.1 as determined by blinded independent central review (BICR) in the first 480 patients enrolled in the trial. HER2CLIMB enrolled a total of 612 patients to support the analyses of key secondary endpoints, including overall survival, PFS per BICR in patients with brain metastases at baseline and confirmed objective response rate (ORR). Safety data were evaluated throughout the study.

About HER2-Positive Breast Cancer

Patients with HER2-positive breast cancer have tumors with high levels of a protein called human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), which promotes the aggressive spread of cancer cells. An estimated 271,270 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in the U.S. in 2019.1 Between 15 and 20 percent of breast cancer cases worldwide are HER2-positive.2 Historically, HER2-positive breast cancer tends to be more aggressive and more likely to recur than HER2-negative breast cancer.2, 3, 4 In patients with metastatic breast cancer, the most common site of first metastasis is in bone, followed by lung, brain, and liver.5, 6 Up to 50 percent of metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer patients develop brain metastases over time.2, 7 Despite recent treatment advances, there is still a significant need for new therapies that can impact metastatic disease, especially brain metastases. There are currently no approved therapies demonstrating progression-free survival or overall survival benefit for the treatment of patients with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer after progression on T-DM1.8, 9, 10

About Tucatinib

Tucatinib is an investigational, orally bioavailable, potent tyrosine kinase inhibitor that is highly selective for HER2 without significant inhibition of EGFR. Inhibition of EGFR has been associated with significant toxicities, including skin rash and diarrhea. Tucatinib has shown activity as a single agent and in combination with both chemotherapy and other HER2 targeted agents such as trastuzumab.1,2 Studies of tucatinib in these combinations have shown activity both systemically and in brain metastases. HER2 is a growth factor receptor that is overexpressed in multiple cancers, including breast, colorectal and gastric cancers. HER2 mediates cell growth, differentiation and survival. Tucatinib has been granted orphan drug designation by the FDA for the treatment of breast cancer patients with brain metastases.

In addition to HER2CLIMB, tucatinib is being evaluated in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-center phase 3 trial of tucatinib in combination with T-DM1 compared to T-DM1 alone, in patients with unresectable locally advanced or metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer, including those with brain metastases, who have had prior treatment with a taxane and trastuzumab. The primary endpoint is PFS per RECIST criteria. Secondary endpoints include overall survival, objective response rate and duration of response. This global trial is expected to enroll approximately 460 patients. More information about the phase 3 trial, including enrolling centers, is available at http://www.clinicaltrials.gov.

Tucatinib is also being evaluated in a multi-center, open-label, single-arm phase 2 clinical trial known as MOUNTAINEER, which is evaluating tucatinib in combination with trastuzumab in patients with HER2-positive, RAS wildtype metastatic or unresectable colorectal cancer. The primary endpoint of the trial is ORR by RECIST criteria. PFS, duration of response, overall survival and safety and tolerability of the combination regimen are secondary objectives. Results for 26 patients were evaluated in an analysis and presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2019 Congress. Enrollment is ongoing. More information about the MOUNTAINEER trial, including enrolling centers, is available at http://www.clinicaltrials.gov.

About Seattle Genetics

Seattle Genetics, Inc. is a global biotechnology company that discovers, develops and commercializes transformative medicines targeting cancer to make a meaningful difference in peoples lives. ADCETRIS (brentuximab vedotin) and PADCEVTM (enfortumab vedotin-ejfv) use the companys industry-leading antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) technology. ADCETRIS is approved in certain CD30-expressing lymphomas, and PADCEV is approved in certain metastatic urothelial cancers. In addition, investigational agent tucatinib, a small molecule tyrosine kinase inhibitor, is in late-stage development for HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer, and in clinical development for metastatic colorectal cancer. The company is headquartered in Bothell, Washington, and has offices in California, Switzerland and the European Union. For more information on our robust pipeline, visit http://www.seattlegenetics.com and follow @SeattleGenetics on Twitter.

Forward Looking Statements

Certain of the statements made in this press release are forward looking, such as those, among others, relating to the therapeutic potential of tucatinib, including its possible efficacy, safety and therapeutic uses; anticipated development activities including ongoing and future clinical trials; and the potential to obtain regulatory approvals of tucatinib in the United States, the European Union and in countries participating in Project Orbis. Actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected or implied in these forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause such a difference include the difficulty and uncertainty of pharmaceutical product development, the risk of adverse events or safety signals, the possibility of disappointing results in ongoing or future clinical trials despite earlier promising clinical results, the possibility that data from the HER2CLIMB trial may not be sufficient to support approval of tucatinib in the United States, the European Union or in other countries participating in Project Orbis or that other adverse regulatory actions could occur. More information about the risks and uncertainties faced by Seattle Genetics is contained under the caption Risk Factors included in the companys Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2019 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Seattle Genetics disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

References:

1. American Cancer Society, Cancer Facts and Figures 2018-2019.

2. Loibl S, Gianni L (2017). HER2-positive breast cancer. The Lancet 389(10087): 2415-29.

3. Slamon D, Clark G, Wong S, et al. (1987). Human breast cancer: correlation of relapse and survival with amplification of the HER-2/neu oncogene. Science 235(4785): 177-82.

4. American Cancer Society (ACS) (2018). Breast cancer HER2 status. Accessed: December 10, 2018.

5. Kennecke H, Yerushalmi R, Woods R, et al. (2010). Metastatic Behavior of Breast Cancer Subtypes. Journal of Clinical Oncology 28(20): 3271-7.

6. Berman AT, Thukral AD, Hwang W-T, et al. (2013). Incidence and Patterns of Distant Metastases for Patients With Early-Stage Breast Cancer After Breast Conservation Treatment. Clinical Breast Cancer 13(2): 88-94.

7. Duchnowska R, Loibl S, Jassem J (2018). Tyrosine kinase inhibitors for brain metastases in HER2-positive breast cancer. Cancer Treatment Reviews 67: 71-7.

8. Verma S, Miles D, Gianni L, et al. (2012). Trastuzumab Emtansine for HER2-Positive Advanced Breast Cancer. New England Journal of Medicine 367(19): 1783-91.

9. Geyer CE, Forster J, Lindquist D, et al. (2006). Lapatinib plus Capecitabine for HER2-Positive Advanced Breast Cancer. New England Journal of Medicine 355(26): 2733-43.

10. Blackwell KL, Burstein HJ, Storniolo AM, et al. (2012). Overall Survival Benefit With Lapatinib in Combination With Trastuzumab for Patients With Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2Positive Metastatic Breast Cancer: Final Results From the EGF104900 Study. Journal of Clinical Oncology 30(21): 2585-92.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200131005084/en/

Read more:
EMA Validates Seattle Genetics' Marketing Authorization Application for Tucatinib for Patients with Locally Advanced or Metastatic HER2-Positive...