This post on NPR's health blog piqued my interest, since I am an avid music fan, and certain songs have the ability to completely change my mood, for better or worse.
Those [teenagers] who listened to lots of music were 8 times more likely to be depressed than those who didn't listen very much.
While the author is very clear about the uncertainty of the causation versus correlation of this study, the data is the data...but why are 1 in 12 teenagers suffering from depression? That's the bigger question in my head. Is the incidence that high, or are we now more aware and therefore diagnosing more? Seems like an opportunity to get to the root cause rather than prescribe more drugs.
19 May 2011
03 May 2011
Cool Stuff = Nanoparticles
In addition to the ever-elusive, yet-to-be-discovered cures for cancer, AIDS, Alzheimer's, etc. (although there I hear they're not too far away), there is another important world health concern that needs addressing, and it seems to fall on and off the radar for most of us...especially when we're feeling "like a cold's coming on" and just want anything that will zap it.
The prevalent use of antibiotics over the past several decades has an unintended consequence: the emergence of "superbugs", infectious bacteria that have resistance to all available antibiotics on the market -- and there are few, if any, promising drugs in the pipeline. "Some experts warn health-care provision is in danger of reverting back to a pre-antibiotic era in which hip replacements, care of preterm babies and advanced cancer treatment are no longer possible."
But, check it out!
IBM researchers created a new type of nanoparticles that are capable of destroying the membrane walls of certain drug-resistant bacteria strains, leaving the cells to harmlessly degrade without any trace. The new system works by using biodegradable plastic to engineer electrically charged nanoparticles that in turn attract to the bacteria’s opposite charge, in turn destroying the membrane walls hence the cell entirely.
Of course there are many more questions to consider regarding manufacturing of a nanoparticle type of drug (What would the dosage form be? How expensive is it to produce? etc), but I read these findings and just think "man, science is cool."
The prevalent use of antibiotics over the past several decades has an unintended consequence: the emergence of "superbugs", infectious bacteria that have resistance to all available antibiotics on the market -- and there are few, if any, promising drugs in the pipeline. "Some experts warn health-care provision is in danger of reverting back to a pre-antibiotic era in which hip replacements, care of preterm babies and advanced cancer treatment are no longer possible."
But, check it out!
IBM researchers created a new type of nanoparticles that are capable of destroying the membrane walls of certain drug-resistant bacteria strains, leaving the cells to harmlessly degrade without any trace. The new system works by using biodegradable plastic to engineer electrically charged nanoparticles that in turn attract to the bacteria’s opposite charge, in turn destroying the membrane walls hence the cell entirely.
Of course there are many more questions to consider regarding manufacturing of a nanoparticle type of drug (What would the dosage form be? How expensive is it to produce? etc), but I read these findings and just think "man, science is cool."
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