One Blood Type Increases Memory Problems; Research Examines Dementia Risk

What can our blood tell us about our memory and thinking process? The red liquid coursing through our veins has more power over our brain function than scientists originally thought. A three-year research study has found individuals with blood type AB were twice as likely to experience memory problems as those with type O blood. The findings should come as no alarming news, according to experts, because there are other factors that impact dementia and memory risks more than blood types.

"Our study looks at blood type and risk of cognitive impairment, but several studies have shown that factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes increase the risk of cognitive impairment and dementia," the study’s lead researcher Dr. Mary Cushman from the University of Vermont College of Medicine, told the BBC. "Blood type is also related to other vascular conditions like stroke, so the findings highlight the connections between vascular issues and brain health. More research is needed to confirm these results."

Researchers examined 495 participants who had developed thinking, memory, or other cognitive problems and compared them to 587 people who had no cognitive problems. Those who had AB blood type made up six percent of the entire group and they were the ones who experienced cognitive impairment. In addition, they were 82 percent more likely to have difficulties with everyday memory recall, language, and attention, which are all signals of progressive memory deficit dementia. "Current evidence suggests the best ways to keep the brain healthy are a balanced diet, not smoking, and regular exercise," Dr. Simon Ridley, head of research at Alzheimer's Research UK, told BBC. He added that the research did not look at risk of dementia specifically and that further research was needed in order to make a definitive link between AB blood type and the risk of dementia. Previous research has found that blood type AB can affect blood clotting characteristic and the risk of blood vessel-related conditions due to its higher levels of clotting protein VIII. It helps to clot the blood and stop bleeding, but those with blood type AB clot too easily and can potentially lead to heart attacks, stroke, or other vein clogging. Still, those who have this blood type should be more afraid of what smoking or other bad health practices are doing to their body to decrease their memory function and ability to process thoughts. "People who have AB blood type should not be overly worried about these findings, since the association we saw was relatively small and requires other research for confirmation," Cushman said. Finding a link does not mean that one has caused the other until it can be repeated through clinical trials and proven. Until it’s been shown through research, maintain a healthy lifestyle of regular exercise, not smoking, eating a healthy diet, and controling blood pressure, and blood sugar.

Source: Alexander KS, Zakai NA, Gillett S, McClure LA, Wadley V, Cushman M, et al. ABO blood type, factor VIII, and incident cognitive impairment in the REGARDS cohort. Neurology. 2014.

By 

Kokilavani

III B.SC-Biochemistry (14UBC024)

Department of Biochemistry 

Vitamin B12 Deficiency and Metformin Use

          Vitamin B12 (cobalamin) is a water-soluble vitamin obtained essentially from animal sources such as meat and fish. Deficiency of Vitamin B12 causes anemia. It is a vital cofactor in the conversion of homocysteine to methionine and recovery of folate. This is an important step in the metabolic procedure that leads to DNA synthesis and formation and protection of the myelin sheath. Metformin is a medication utilized for the treatment of diabetes. Metformin increases insulin sensitivity in the liver and decreases glucose generation. It is also used to treat polycystic ovarian disorder, an ailment linked to high blood glucose levels. Metformin is presently concentrated on as a treatment for heart attack recovery, tuberculosis and cancer prevention.

By

Chandrasekharan

III B.Sc 

Department of Biochemistry

The pineal gland, also known as the pineal body, conarium or epiphysis cerebri, is a small endocrine gland in the vertebrate brain. The shape of the gland resembles a pine cone, hence its name. The pineal gland is located in the epithalamus, near the center of the brain, between the two hemispheres, tucked in a groove where the two halves of the thalamus join. The pineal gland produces melatonin, a serotonin derived hormone which modulates sleep patterns in both circadian and seasonal cycles.Nearly all vertebrate species possess a pineal gland. The most important exception is the hagfish, which is often thought of as the most primitive extant vertebrate. Even in the hagfish, however, there may be a "pineal equivalent" structure in the dorsal diencephalon. The lancelet Branchiostoma lanceolatum, the nearest existing relative to vertebrates, also lacks a recognizable pineal gland. The lamprey (considered almost as primitive as the hagfish), however, does possess one. A few more developed vertebrates, including the alligator, lack pineal glands because they have been lost over the course of evolution.

The results of various scientific research in evolutionary biology, comparative neuroanatomy and neurophysiology, have explained the phylogeny of the pineal gland in different vertebrate species. From the point of view of biological evolution, the pineal gland represents a kind of atrophied photoreceptor. In the epithalamus of some species of amphibians and reptiles, it is linked to a vestigial organ, known as the parietal eye which is also called the third eye. René Descartes believed the pineal gland to be the "principal seat of the soul" (a mystical concept). Academic philosophy among his contemporaries considered the pineal gland as a neuroanatomical structure without special metaphysical qualities; science studied it as one endocrine gland among many. However, the pineal gland continues to have an exalted status in the realm of pseudoscience.

By 

Kokilavani

III B.SC-Biochemistry (14UBC024)

Department of Biochemistry 

Department of Biochemistry along with other Biological Sciences department and Department of Computer Applications is Organising DBT Sponsored National Level Workshop on "Entering the Life Science Research Arena through Big Data", 23rd & 24th August, 2016. 

By

Dr. G. Saravanan

Associate Professor & Head

Department of Biochemistry

Department of Biochemistry Students (II M.Sc, I M.Sc & III B.Sc) has been went to Industrial Visit to Cochin & Munnar on 19.08.2016&20.08.2016

By 
Dr. G. Saravanan
Associate Professor & Head
Department of Biochemistry

Diagrams of Fetus development in Mother's Womb....

 Drawn By
G. Dhiksha
I M. Sc - Biochemistry
Department of Biochemistry

With a trick of engineering, scientists at the Gladstone Institutes improved a potential weapon against inflammation and autoimmune disorders. Their work could one day benefit patients who suffer from inflammatory bowel disease or organ transplant rejection.

In the new study, published in Stem Cells Translational Medicine, the scientists engineered tiny sugar-based particles that they loaded with pro-inflammatory proteins and stuck into the middle of clusters of MSCs. The particles slowly delivered the inflammatory trigger to the cells in a steady dose. This method increased the amount of anti-inflammatory proteins produced by the MSCs, enhancing the suppression of immune cells. In short, the cell-protein packets worked better and longer than other treatments.

"No one has successfully used biomaterials to deliver pro-inflammatory signals to control how MSCs affect the immune system," said first author Josh Zimmerman, PhD, a former graduate student in the McDevitt lab. "Our research suggests bioengineering has real potential to improve the anti-inflammatory and therapeutic abilities of MSCs. The next step is to test this method in a mouse model of autoimmune disease."

By

Dr. G. Saravanan

Associate Professor & Head

Department of Biochemistry

By
V. V. SATHIBABU UDDANDRAO
JRF-DST & Ph.D Research Scholar
Department of Biochemistry

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY TO ALL

BY

Dr. G. Saravanan

Associate Professor & Head

Department of Biochemistry

By 
Dr. G. Saravanan
Associate Professor & Head
Department of Biochemistry

By
L. Arunkumar
III B.Sc-Biochemistry (14UBC004)
Department of Biochemistry

Peanut Allergy in Children can be Treated with Oral Immunotherapy

          Studies have shown that peanut OIT in older children can offer some protection against life-threatening anaphylaxis caused by peanut exposure. Peanut OIT involves eating small amounts and peanuts daily and gradually increasing the amounts. ‘Low and high doses of oral immunotherapy were safe and equally effective at suppressing allergic immune responses to peanut.’ The study was conducted by Wesley Burks, a researcher at the University of North Carolina in the US. Peanut allergy in younger children is usually short. The researcher assessed whether giving OIT to younger children could alter the course of the allergy and allow safe introduction of peanut into the diet. The study involved 40 peanut-allergic children aged 9 to 36 months. The children were randomly assigned to either high-dose peanut OIT with a target daily dose of 3,000 milligrams peanut protein or a low-dose regimen with a target dose of 300 milligrams. All the participants experienced side effects such as mild abdominal pain that required little or no treatment. The participants were given OIT for 29 months. Participants avoided peanut completely for four weeks before reintroducing it into their diets. Eighty percent of peanut-allergic preschool children successfully incorporated peanut-containing foods into their diets after receiving peanut OIT. OIT-treated children were more likely to successfully incorporate peanut into their diets than those children who had avoided the therapy. The study is published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 

BY

Dr. A. Praveena

Assistant Professor

By
V. V. Sathibabu Uddandrao
JRF - DST & Ph.D Research Scholar
Department of Biochemistry

Cases of Dengue Drop 91 Percent Due to Genetically Modified Mosquitoes

                                                                         --Richard Levine

          Once again, a technique that modifies insects in order to control their populations has been proven effective. RIDL, which stands for Release of Insects carrying a Dominant Lethal, has been applied to diamondback moths, Mediterranean fruit flies, and olive flies, and it has been used in field trials on mosquitoes in order to reduce cases of dengue.

          Scientists apply the RIDL technique to male insects in the lab, which basically makes them die young unless they receive a substance called tetracycline. As long as they have tetracycline, they will live, but take it away from them and they’re goners. It’s almost as if they’re breeding insects that are drug addicts from birth Next, they release millions of these male insects into the wild and allow them to mate with females. Since they no longer have tetracycline, the males die soon after mating. Their offspring, which also need tetracycline to live, will die before reaching adulthood since they have no access to the substance. Using this technique, scientists have reduced the cases of dengue, which can be deadly, by 91% in a neighborhood called CECAP/Eldorado in the city Piracicaba, which is located in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. There were only 12 cases of dengue in the area, versus 133 cases the previous year. Surrounding areas also saw a reduction of dengue cases by 52%.

          This is good news not only for potential victims of dengue, but also for people who may be susceptible to Zika, chikungunya, and yellow fever because the mosquito that transmits dengue — Aedes aegypti — also transmits these other diseases. The Brazilian health authorities and Oxitec, the company that produces the mosquitoes, call this undertaking the Friendly Aedes project. “Over the course of one year, we were able to bring the dengue fever incidence down by more than 50% in Piracicaba — the outcome of diligent work to eliminate still water spots, the breeding site of the mosquito,” said the city’s Secretary of Health, Pedro Mello. “In CECAP/Eldorado, where we had the Friendly™ Aedes project, the reduction was extraordinary, going over 90%.” “We are delighted with the result achieved so far by Friendly™ Aedes which shows the potential of our approach,” said Glen Slade, Oxitec do Brasil director. “We hope to see this effect on a larger scale beyond the limited area of CECAP/Eldorado with our expansion into Piracicaba’s downtown city.” Friendly Aedes mosquitoes have been used in Piracicaba since April 30, 2015, when the first insects were released in CECAP/Eldorado. By January 2016, the technology had already reduced the number of wild Aedes aegypti larvae by 82% in the treated area, compared to a non-treated area.

          This novel way of reducing the mosquito population has the added benefit of reducing the use of chemical insecticides. Scientists saw similar reductions of dengue in previous trials in the Cayman Islands in 2010 and in a suburb called Juazeiro, which is located in the state of Bahia in Brazil.

By

Mr. S. Karthi

Assistant Professor