Are There Any Viable Treatments For Age Related Macular Degeneration?

Stem cells seem to offer an alternative venue for treating many cell related diseases, such as age-related macular degeneration (ARMD). ARMD is a progressive neurodegenerative medical condition, which primarily affects the retinal pigmented epithelium (RPE), resulting in degeneration of photoreceptors. Scientists have been successful in implanting stem cells into the eyes of rats. These injected cells sustained visual function and photoreceptor integrity without any cancerous cell formation. There are numerous treatments available to slow down the progression of ARMD. Depending on the type of ARMD, doctors may either recommend leading a healthier lifestyle or that one should undergo surgery. Numerous risk factors can increase one’s chances of getting ARMD depending on one’s age and race. Bad habits, such as cigarette smoking, can contribute to the progression of ARMD. It is important to get a comprehensive dilated eye exam periodically. Many eye diseases that don’t have any warning signs can be detected with such an eye exam

Low expression of gamma-glutamyl hydrolase mRNA in primary colorectal cancer with the CpG island methylator phenotype

The CpG island methylator phenotype (CIMP+) in colorectal cancer (CRC) is defined as concomitant and frequent hypermethylation of CpG islands within gene promoter regions. We previously demonstrated that CIMP+ was associated with elevated concentrations of folate intermediates in tumour tissues. In the present study, we investigated whether CIMP+ was associated with a specific mRNA expression pattern for folate- and nucleotide-metabolising enzymes. An exploratory study was conducted on 114 CRC samples from Australia. mRNA levels for 17 genes involved in folate and nucleotide metabolism were measured by real-time RT-PCR. CIMP+ was determined by real-time methylation-specific PCR and compared to mRNA expression. Candidate genes showing association with CIMP+ were further investigated in a replication cohort of 150 CRC samples from Japan. In the exploratory study, low expression of γ-glutamyl hydrolase (GGH) was strongly associated with CIMP+ and CIMP+-related clinicopathological and molecular features. Trends for inverse association between GGH expression and the concentration of folate intermediates were also observed. Analysis of the replication cohort confirmed that GGH expression was significantly lower in CIMP+ CRC. Promoter hypermethylation of GGH was observed in only 5.6% (1 out of 18) CIMP+ tumours and could not account for the low expression level of this gene. CIMP+ CRC is associated with low expression of GGH, suggesting involvement of the folate pathway in the development and/or progression of this phenotype. Further studies of folate metabolism in CIMP+ CRC may help to elucidate the aetiology of these tumours and to predict their response to anti-folates and 5-fluorouracil/leucovorin.K. Kawakami, A. Ooyama, A. Ruszkiewicz, M. Jin, G. Watanabe, J. Moore, T. Oka, B. Iacopetta and T. Minamot

Imaging systems for biomedical applications. Final report

Many of the activities of the human body manifest themselves by the presence of a very weak magnetic field outside the body, a field that is so weak that an ultra-sensitive magnetic sensor is needed for specific biomagnetic measurements. Superconducting QUantum Interference Devices (SQUIDs) are extremely sensitive detectors of magnetic flux and have been used extensively to detect the human magnetocardiogram, and magnetoencephalogram. and other biomagnetic signals. In order to utilize a SQUID as a magnetometer, its transfer characteristics should be linearized. This linearization requires extensive peripheral electronics, thus limiting the number of SQUID magnetometer channels in a practical system. The proposed digital SQUID integrates the processing circuitry on the same cryogenic chip as the SQUID magnetometer and eliminates the sophisticated peripheral electronics. Such a system is compact and cost effective, and requires minimal support electronics. Under a DOE-sponsored SBIR program, we designed, simulated, laid out, fabricated, evaluated, and demonstrated a digital SQUID magnetometer. This report summarizes the accomplishments under this program and clearly demonstrates that all of the tasks proposed in the phase II application were successfully completed with confirmed experimental results

Barriers and facilitators of electronic patient portal uptake for asthma management.

OBJECTIVE: An active patient-practitioner partnership is a key aspect of asthma management and patient-reported data helps with shared decision making. Technological advances such as the electronic patient portal can facilitate partnership, with the goal of improved asthma outcomes. However, uptake of portals by end-users for asthma management has been low. We studied portal-based asthma interventions to understand barriers and facilitators to its use. DATA SOURCES: We searched within the PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, MEDLINE, and Google Scholar databases. STUDY SELECTIONS: We used the PRISMA extension for scoping reviews to guide our analysis of studies related to asthma and patient portals. We summarized relevant studies in terms of barriers and facilitators as well as study characteristics. RESULTS: Sixteen studies were included in our final analysis. Common barriers to patient portal use for asthma management were lack of perceived value by the end-user, low end-user technological literacy, and limited resources. Facilitators of portal use included ease of use, personalization, and adequate technical support. Patient portals in these studies were used for a variety of applications related to core asthma management concepts of assessment and monitoring, education for a partnership in asthma care, environmental factors, co-morbidities, and medications. CONCLUSIONS: Patient portal use for asthma management can be encouraged by ensuring the portal is easy to access and navigate, demonstrates values, as well as has readily available technical support. Involving end-users closely in the design process and implementation may help address barriers. Special attention is needed for groups with technological resource limitations

Partnered decision support: Parental perspectives of completing a pre‐visit pediatric asthma questionnaire via the patient portal

BackgroundCollection of patient-reported data has been demonstrated to improve asthma outcomes. One method to collect information is through the electronic patient portal. In practice, patient portal use in pediatrics and, specifically for asthma management, has had low uptake.ObjectiveTo understand parental/caregiver experience of pediatric asthma care management, and perceptions of the use of patient portal questionnaires before the clinic visit.MethodsWe conducted semi-structured interviews with caregivers of children 5-11 years old with asthma in the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Health System. We included patient portal "users" (n = 20) and "non-users" (n = 5). Interview questions were developed based on clinic visit workflow with a focus on perceived usefulness and ease of use to complete pediatric asthma questionnaires in the patient portal before the visit. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and codes were generated from themes using constant comparative analysis.ResultsWe identified eight themes related to caregiver-physician communication, perception of portal questionnaires, facilitators, and barriers to portal questionnaire use. A salient finding was that caregivers considered the portal questionnaire as a tool to be integrated into the visit to facilitate a conversation about their child's asthma. Caregiver portal-based questionnaire use was more likely if the ongoing data entered was accessible to caregivers to track and update, and if caregivers were reassured the clinicians would use questionnaire responses during the visit.ConclusionCaregivers of children with asthma are more likely to complete a patient portal intake questionnaire before the visit if they trust their responses will be used during the visit to inform care