From: martinez@ejovial.info
Subject: Creative Inspire 5.1
Date: Thu, 2 Mar 2006 21:28:44 -0800
FIN That's all for my commentary this time: a news roundup for the past two weeks follows below. DISCUSSION Have comments for us, or want to discuss the newsletter? Visit the Longevity Meme forum at http://ejovial.info/forum.cfm, or send e-mail to newsletter@longevitymeme.org. Reason reason@longevitymeme.org Founder, Longevity Meme ______________________________ RECENT NEWS Seeking Answers To Age-Related Blindness (July 13 2003) http://ejovial.info/memphis/stories/2003/07/07/story7.html We humans have a tendency to assume that things are easy if they are proceeding well. So it is with medical research. Research has been progressing very rapidly of late, but this is due to the hard work of tens of thousands of scientists. This article from the Memphis Business Journal shows us a small piece of the overall picture: the hard work required to solve one small part of the aging process. This is how aging will be beaten; one small step at a time, with the hard work of researchers like Malinda Fitzgerald and the support of people like you and I. Stem Cell Therapies For Muscule Degeneration? (July 10 2003) http://ejovial.info/News/news.aspx?articleID=2003-07-10-3 While we are on the subject of stem cell therapies, here is an article from Betterhumans on the subject. Research shows that stem cells cultivated from a patient could be used to treat regenerate muscle lost to degenerative conditions. Unlike similar work that regenerates damaged heart tissue (and was recently blocked by the FDA), this muscle regeneration is in the very early stages. Still, it shows that there should be a wide range of regenerative therapies resulting from stem cell work that should be available before the end of the decade. This is very promising indeed, and could have very beneficial effects on our future longevity. This is why we must stand up to support and defend medical research; it is in our own best interests to age in a world with stem cell medicine rather than one without. EU Moving To Permit Stem Cell Research (July 10 2003) http://ejovial.info/cgi-bin/srchidadb?CALLER=NHP_EN_NEWS&ACTION=D&SESSION=&RCN=EN_RCN_ID:20554 As reported in Cordis (found via Transhumanity), the EU is leaning towards allowing funding for embryonic stem cell research. This is something of a big fuss and bother over what is really a non-event. EU member countries can (and will) ignore EU guidelines. Both France and Germany already either ban or strongly restrict this promising research, while the UK would be funding it in any case. Who is Responsible For Your Health? (July 09 2003) http://ejovial.info/2003/jul/9/health_responsibility.htm An excellent article from Dr. Mercola's site asks this question. A quote: "Your answer to this question can increase or decrease the quality and length of your life, so consider carefully: Who is responsible for your health?" This is very, very true. We are individually responsible for our health and longevity. We cannot sit back and hope to be healthy, just as we cannot sit back and hope that the future of medical science turns out to be rosy. We must work for a positive outcome both in our personal health and in the future of medicine. Building Replacement Organs To Order (July 08 2003) http://ejovial.info/news/news.jsp?id=ns99993916 One of the grails of regenerative medicine is the ability to grow organs for transplant from the cells of the recipients. There would be no need for donors and far fewer medical complications during a transplant. As this article from the New Scientist makes clear, researchers are getting closer to this goal. A cheap, unlimited source of replacement organs for everyone will be a very important step in the road to extending our healthy lifespans. Of Twins and Centenarians (July 08 2003) http://ejovial.info/news_063003.cfm An easy-reading article by Chris Mooney at SAGE Crossroads discusses twin studies and what they can tell us about genetics and aging. Ongoing studies of twins and centenarians illuminate the way in which some genetic combinations can help us to live longer lives. As the article points out, however, good genes are usually no substitute for good medical care and a healthy lifestyle! It will take more research and advances in medicine before we can have our cake, eat it, and still live to be 100. Debating The Future of Life Extension (July 08 2003) http://ejovial.info/Events/Debating_the_Future/ Betterhumans is hosting a bioethics debate in late August in Toronto. Amongst the topics is radical life extension, but most other advanced medical technologies (nanotechnology, genetic engineering, and so forth) will have a strong bearing on our health and longevity as well. It looks to be an interesting event given the distance between the positions argued by the two sides. It should be very similar to the recent Stock vrs McKibben debate (which is well worth reading). Publicity materials are available in PDF form for those who want to help out with spreading the word. Ted Williams Cryonics Dispute Continues (July 07 2003) http://ejovial.info/2003/07/05/Tampabay/Dispute_over_slugger_.shtml You may have thought that the dispute over Ted William's cryonic suspension was over and done with, but apparently not. This article from the St. Petersburg Times brings us up to date on recent happenings. From where I stand, it looks like the man made a rational choice to be suspended. The heirs who disagree should respect that choice rather than continue to try and have him cremated to satisfy their own selfish desires. The article also notes naive and uninformed efforts by someone unrelated to Ted Williams to have Alcor investigated for fraud! This will hopefully come to nothing. Taming Cancer (July 06 2003) http://ejovial.info/dailyglobe2/187/metro/Advances_begin_to_tame_cancer+.shtml From the Boston Globe, a good article on the way in which cancer has been tamed over the past decade. Incremental but significant advances in medicine have brought us to this point. I bring cancer up often, as the past 30 years of fighting cancer is the model for the next 30 years spent fighting aging. What we see now - cancer almost a mere chronic condition and nearly cured - is the fruit of success in activism, funding and hard scientific work. This can happen for aging as well: we merely have to work for it. Aging Research Becoming Entrepreneurial (July 06 2003) http://ejovial.info/arizonarepublic/business/articles/0707research07.html The Arizona Republic discusses the move towards business realities by many medical research centers, including those working on aging and age-related diseases. This is a very good thing to see; this short of shift happens as a field becomes more legitimate and profitable therapies are seen as being closer to hand. It opens up reserves of funding that would otherwise go elsewhere. It encourages faster development and commercialization of new medicines and therapies. All in all, it should make us all very happy to see more articles like this in print! Vitamin Study Creating Confusion (July 05 2003) http://ejovial.info/news_article.html?SMContentIndex=1&SMContentSet=0 InfoAging is reprinting a couple of items on the recent government study on the effectiveness of vitamins. The mainstream press didn't emphasise that this was a narrow, short single study. In short, the results aren't all that useful or meaningful unless repeated in a lot more studies. It's always best to take a wait and see approach to recent research. The results in this study related to smoking are odd: if you want to lower your cancer risk, quit smoking, not taking vitamins! Unusual Regeneration Via Stem Cells (June 30 2003) http://ejovial.info/News/news.aspx?articleID=2003-06-30-4 In another example of stem cells leading to neural regeneration in unusual ways, researchers have found that these cells release molecules that aid neuron survival and improve motor ability. (Article from Betterhumans). This was something of a suprise. There was impressive regeneration and recovery in the studies carried out on paralyzed rats, but it was not occurring for the expected reasons. Still, the researchers are excited: this is yet more proof that stem cell therapies can cure a wide range of degenerative conditions of aging. More on the Genetic Roots of Longevity (July 03 2003) http://ejovial.info/news/life-03ze.html From SpaceDaily, a longer, better article on the recent research into the set of genes that promote longevity in roundworms. This really is an impressive set of work that opens a whole set of doors for further investigation into genetic and biochemical ways of lengthening healthy lifespan. The impressive speed of this study is due to equally impressive advances in biomedical technology. It has not been long at all since the original target longevity gene in this research was discovered. ______________________________ Do you have comments for us, or want to discuss the newsletter? Visit the Longevity Meme forum at http://ejovial.info/forum.cfm, or send e-mail to newsletter@longevitymeme.org. 
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