Dr. Howard Smith Oncall

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Czo_2W2rVdN/ Neuroscientists and bioengineers at Duke University have collaborated to develop enhanced multichannel flexible liquid crystal polymer electrode arrays that could be implanted into the brains of patients with neurodegenerative diseases in order to restore their speech.  These implantable prostheses are capable of recording the higher resolution microelectrocorticographic neural signals that more accurately represent a person’s intended communications.  These signals have a 35% greater quality compared with standard recording techniques.  This greater signal fidelity will be critical for driving the future prostheses capable of translating signals from the brain into audible speech…someday soon. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-42555-1 #electrocortiography #communications #implant #brain #electrodes #speech #neurodegenerative

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Czo--R0LdFz/ Researchers at Canada’s University of Alberta have developed a new method for efficiently turning stem cells into full-fledged insulin-secreting pancreatic islet cells.  Working out the system in a pre-clinical mouse model, the process involves treating stem cells capable of becoming any cell in the body with the anti-tumor drug AT7867 that inhibits enzymes and results in the enhanced generation of islet cells after transplantation into the host animal.  The so-called pancreatic progenitor stem cells treated in this way reverse the diabetic state 36% faster than untreated stem cells.  More testing and clinical trials lie ahead before this technique is approved for routine use in human diabetics, but it will hopefully find its way to the clinic…..someday soon. https://www.cell.com/stem-cell-reports/fulltext/S2213-6711(23)00407-1?_returnURL=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S2213671123004071?showall=true #stemcells #pancreaticprogenitor #diabetes

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Czo9yNOrFDg/ We all love chocolate, but the latest Consumer Reports’ exposé reveals that about one in every three chocolate products contains unacceptably high levels of the toxic heavy metals cadmium and lead.  These elements work wonderfully in batteries; not so well in your food or in your body.   The lead in tainted chocolate is most dangerous for the nervous systems of growing children and the fetuses growing within pregnant women.  Cadmium accumulates in the body and leads to weakened bones and kidney damage. Lead lands on the cocoa beans during processing. Cadmium originates from the soil in which the cocoa plants grow.  Ultimately, both toxins end up in all chocolate products, but in some more than others.  Then too, chocolate also contains some mercury and arsenic.   Consumer Reports uses California’s Prop 65 maximal allowable levels of cadmium and lead in foods to define which products are unacceptably risky if consumed repeatedly.   Dark chocolate contains

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Czo7weWrHNX/ Those with conservative political beliefs were 31% less likely than political moderates and 74% less likely than progressives to believe and follow cancer research and therapeutic strategies authenticated by federal health agencies including the CDC and the FDA.  This the finding reported after a collaborative study of 3254 respondents by investigators at the University of Texas and Harvard Medical School. This study depicts the sad reality currently facing American public health efforts.  One-third of Americans tend to reject proven medical scientific principles not only putting themselves at risk but also their family, friends, neighbors, and their entire communities.  The number dropped following the 2020 election and the advent of CoVid but it remains worrisome. While rejecting recommended and lifesaving cancer treatment creates personal and familial tragedies, refusing to follow public health recommendations including appropriate vaccination, mask we

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Czo63YULomd/ Those suffering from continuing life-limiting symptoms following an acute CoVid infection have significantly lower levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin compared with those who enjoy a full recovery.  University of Pennsylvania neurobiologists performed detailed metabolic analyses of 58 subjects with Long CoVid and compared them with those from 30 fully-recovered CoVid patients and with those from 60 patients currently suffering from acute Covid infections. The data revealed that persons with Long CoVid not only lacked normal levels of serotonin but also that serotonin levels during and immediately following an acute infection predicted whether a person would fully recover.  Levels of other metabolites were either unchanged during acute CoVid infections or uniformly returned to normal following the infection. This serotonin depletion that accompanies Long CoVid suggests that FDA-approved agents commonly used for managing depression, so called selective

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Czo6CZTLLxe/ Women using oral contraceptive medications that combine synthetic estrogen and progesterone hormones experience a thinning of a brain fear-promoting region.  Quebec neuropsychiatric researcher report this finding following their study of 37 young oral contraceptive users, 40 never users, and 41 men, Both groups of women, contraceptive users and non-users, demonstrated enhanced brain fear centers compared with men.  Compared with non-users, those women regularly taking combined oral contraceptives had thinner fear centers in their prefrontal brain zones.  These reductions in the brain tissues responsible for mounting fear and flee responses are associated with the lower doses of estrogens  found in oral contraceptives that also contain progesterone. The study does not address whether or not these anatomic brain changes put women at greater risk by significantly impeding their defensive instincts, but it raises that possibility. https://www.frontiersin.org

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/Czo5NNWLeY_/ Those living in severely polluted areas have as much as a 60% higher risk of developing Parkinson’s Disease.  This the conclusion of a population-based, geographic study of nearly 22 million Medicare beneficiaries by researchers at Arizona’s Barrows Neurological Institute and St. Louis’ Washington University School of Medicine. Their analysis revealed a steadily increasing, linear risk of Parkinson’s with increasing exposures to polluted air from the lowest or about 2 um.m2 PM2.5 to 13 ug/M2.  At that point, the Parkinson’s risk is about 56% higher with the risk rising to 60% as the pollution level risk nearly doubles to 24 ug/M2. This geographic map shows that the hot spots for both pollution and Parkinson’s occur in the industrialized zones of Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, reaching southward into Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas.  The cold spots for pollution and Parkinson’s occur in the far west, in the mid and northern we

Vidcast: https://www.instagram.com/p/Czo4AqPrg_l/ Those who always add salt to their food were 28% more likely to have developed Type 2 diabetes over a 12 year period.  Tulane University epidemiologists analyzed data from 402,982 mildly overweight subjects in the UK Biobank. All were diabetes-free at the beginning of a 12 year period.  Each completed a survey regarding their use of salt in food, and the group was divided into those who rarely added salt, sometimes did, usually did, and always did.  Compared to those who never added, those who sometimes did were 11% more likely to have developed diabetes, those who usually did were 18% more likely, and those who always did were 28% more likely. Looking at other characteristics of each of the groups, there were few differences in the percentages who consumed alcohol, regularly exercised, had high cholesterol, had high blood pressure.  However, each group that added more and more salt had a greater percentage of tobacco smokers.  The percentage who currently

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CzWQO_LOhed/ Recall By: Fda;  Mid-America Pet Food; Blue Ridge Beef Problem:  Victor Super Premium Dog Food, Select Beef Meal & Brown Rice Formula with a Best By date of 6/12/2024 and Breeders Choice Raw dog food Lot# 8/2/24 both have salmonella contamination.  These pet foods can trigger a gastroenteritis for your dog who can pass the bacterium on to you leading to a similar gastrointestinal infection with progression to a systemic septicemia. Actions:  Do not feed these products to your dog.  Carefully destroy the products so that children, pets, and wildlife will not consume them.  For more information and refunds, contact Mid America Pet Food Consumer Affairs at info@mapf.com or 1-888-428-7544 or Blue Ridge Beef at 1-704-880-4500 or via the email blueridgebeefnc@yahoo.com. https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/mid-america-pet-food-issues-voluntary-recall-victor-beef-meal-rice-dog-food-due-possible-salmonella https://www.fda.gov/s

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CzUXRxkRRaK/ Recall By: Fda;  Wanabana LLC Problem:  WanaBana Apple Cinnamon Fruit Purée pouches contain elevated lead levels.  Lead is neurotoxic to the developing child brain. Actions:  If you have any WanaBana Apple Cinnamon Fruit Purée pouches at home, do not feed the product to your baby.  Contact WanaBana via the email support@wanabanafruits.com to check if your lot is included in the recall and to arrange for a full refund. https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/wanabana-issues-voluntary-recall-wanabana-apple-cinnamon-fruit-puree-pouches-due-elevated-lead #wanabana #applecinnamon #child #pouch #lead #toxicity #recall

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CzUWXTux8hA/ Recall By: Fda;  Cardinal Health, Inc.; Harvard Drug Group, Inc. Problem: LEADER and Rugby branded over-the-counter eye drops including eye irritant relief, dry eye relief, and lubricant eye drops were manufactured in facilities with unsanitary conditions that lead to drop contamination and lack of necessary sterility. Actions:  If you have any of these eye drops, do not use them.  For LEADER products, contact Sedgwick, Inc. by phone at 1-855-215-4940 or via email at Cardinalhealth7720@sedgwick.com for a refund.  For Rugby branded products, contact Harvard Drug by phone at 1-866-891-1981 or via email at HarvardDrug8430@sedgwick.com for a refund. https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/cardinal-health-inc-issues-voluntary-nationwide-recall-certain-leadertm-brand-eye-drops-supplied https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/harvard-drug-group-llc-issues-voluntary-nationwide-recall-certain-rugbyr-laborat

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CzUVGrixMAo/ Recall By: Cpsc;  Grizzly Industrial Inc. Problem:  Grizzly Industrial and Shop Fox Wood Lathes have defective cutting tools that can break off creating projectiles that strike the operator and bystanders with lacerations and other injuries. Sold:  About 21,300 of these lathes were sold in the US and about 60 were sold in Canada were sold at Alaska Industrial Hardware, Bibb Tool Co., Workshop Tools Inc., Bargain Supply, Big Tool Store and other hardware stores nationwide, and online at Amazon.com, The Home Depot, Northern Tool, Hardware Sales, Optics Planet and Grizzly.com and on other websites. Actions:  Stop using these recalled wood lathes and contact Grizzly Industrial at 1-888-615-7944 or via email at recalls@grizzly.com to receive a free repair kit. https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2024/Grizzly-Industrial-Recalls-Wood-Lathes-Due-to-Injury-and-Laceration-Hazards #grizzly #woodlathe #cuttingtool #projectiles #iinjuries #lacerations #recall

Recall By: CPSC;  Yoocaa Direct Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CzUUMzERg5L/ Problem:  Yoocaa Baby Loungers fail to meet federal safety standards as they lack a stand and have dangerously short side heights, overly thick sleeping pads, and openings at the foot of the lounger that could entrap the baby. Sold:  About 4140 baby loungers were sold at amazon.com. Actions:  Stop using these baby loungers and contact Yoocaa Direct by email at yoocaa-cs@hotmail.com for instructions about receiving a full refund.  Alternatively, I’d contact Amazon customer service. https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2024/Yoocaa-Baby-Loungers-Recalled-Due-to-Suffocation-Risk-and-Fall-and-Entrapment-Hazards-Fails-to-Meet-Safety-Requirements-for-Infant-Sleep-Products-Exclusively-on-Amazon-com-by-Yoocaa-Direct #yoocadirect #babylounger #falls #suffocation #entrapment #recall

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CzUThPkxzR2/ Recall By: CPSC; UncleWu Life Problem:  Uncle Wu Infant Bath Seats fail to meet federal safety regulations for infant baths seats including stability and leg opening size.  They can tip over leading to infant drowning. Sold:  About 360 bath seats were sold at amazon.com. Actions:  Immediately stop using these recalled infant bath seats and contact UncleWu Life via email at wuxijay@me.com  to receive a pre-paid label to return the infant bath seat.  Alternatively, I’d contact Amazon customer service. https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2024/UncleWu-Life-Recalls-Infant-Bath-Seats-Due-to-Drowning-Hazard-Violation-of-Bath-Seat-Requirements-Sold-Exclusively-on-Amazon-com-Recall-Alert #unclewu #amazon #bathseat #tipping #drowning #recall

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CzUSteNxmSE/ Recall By: CPSC;  Lochinvar Problem: Lochinvar, A.O. Smith, and State Industries brandwed condensing residential boilers have defective flue collectors that crack allowing the boiler to release carbon monoxide that may poison and kill you.  Carbon monoxide ties up the hemoglobin in your red blood cells preventing them from carrying oxygen and killing you. Sold: About 17, 370 of these boilers were sold in the US and about 782 units were sold in Canada by independent contractors, plumbers, and plumbing supply vendors and distributors between August 2021 through September 2023. Actions:  If you have one of these boilers in your home, contact your installer to verify that your boiler is recalled and to schedule a free repair. https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2024/Lochinvar-Recalls-Condensing-Boilers-Due-to-Risk-of-Carbon-Monoxide-Poisoning #boilers #lochinvar #aosmith #stateindustries #carbonmonoxide #poisoning #recall

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CzUSCC_R5Ox/ Recall By: CPSC;  Murf Electric Bikes LLC Problem:  These electric bikes do not meet US safety standards for effective braking power due to a brake control line defect and this leads to falls and injuries. Sold:  About 9,000 electric bikes were sold at Murf’s store in San Clemente, CA, at bicycle stores nationwide, and online at murfelectricbikes.com. Actions:  Immediately stop using these electric bikes until you have contacted Murf at 1-888-855-0770, watched the online video, and made the repair to the brake lines.   https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2024/Murf-Electric-Bikes-Recalls-Electric-Bicycles-Due-to-Fall-and-Injury-Hazards-Recall-Alert https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yomCMeGnVTE #murf #electricbike #brakes #falls #injuries #recall

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CzURW2Pxpef/ Recall By: CPSC;  Dixon Ticonderoga Problem: These children’s craft buttons contain toxic lead levels above the federal lead content safe specification. Lead is neurotoxic to the developing child brain. Sold: About 890 button seats were sold at Blick Art Materials and Staples stores nationwide and online at dickblick.com, staples.com, quill.com, schoolspecialty.com, sprichards.com and aquaphoenixsci.com. Actions:  Take these recalled buttons away from your children and contact Dixon Ticonderoga Customer Service at 1-800-333-2545 or via the email compliance@dixonusa.com to receive a prepaid mailer in order to return the buttons and receive a refund. https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2024/Dixon-Ticonderoga-Recalls-Creativity-Street-Childrens-Assorted-Craft-Buttons-Due-to-Violation-of-Federal-Lead-Content-Ban #creativitystreet #buttons #children #lead #toxicity #recall

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CzUQhuVxe0-/ Bioengineeers at the Washington State University have developed a relatively compact machine for rapidly growing the T killer cells employed by many immunotherapeutic regimens to destroy cancer cells.  Their system utilizes centrifugal flow techniques to accelerate immune cell propagation to a speed 30% faster than most current techniques.  Since one popular and effective cancer immuotherapy, the CAR-T strategy used for treating leukemias, requires as many as 250 million modified T-cells for each infusion, rapid amplification of T cell numbers is mandatory.  The researchers are hard at work modifying this initial bioreactor in order to produce greater numbers of cells even faster.  Patents are pending to facilitate commercialization. https://aiche.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/btpr.3388 #bioreactor #centrifugalflow #tcells #immunotherapy #cart #leukemia

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CzUOXNWR0i9/ The Mayo Clinic and a biotech spinoff Anuman have developed 3 separate ECG-AI models that together can pinpoint hearts at risk for potentially devastating attacks some 3 years earlier.  These independent AI algorithms look at coronary arterial calcium deposits, coronary arterial blockages, and left ventricular wall movement abnormalities.  To develop these models, the researchers retrospectively analyzed the electronic medical records of more than 7 million patients from across the US.  Anumana specializes in the use of AI to develop enhanced interpretive models for analysis of ECGs and ECHO cardiograms that not only predict coronary artery-related disease but also arrhythmias, degenerative heart disease, valvular disease, and pulmonary hypertension. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/eclinm/article/PIIS2589-5370(23)00436-4/fulltext https://anumana.ai/ #AI #ECG #coronaryarterydisease #myocardial #echo #mayo #anumana

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CzUNZXCxzeV/ A literal “body on a chip” permits the testing of drugs and other biologics on multiple organs simultaneously.  Developed at Northwestern University, the so-called Lattice device permits the simultaneous testing of potential therapeutics on up to 8 different organ systems.  The organ tissue samples or artificially-generated organoids are placed in separate wells, and the medications to be tested flow into each well via micro-channels.  Another function of Lattice permits testing the effects of one organ on another or others.  For example, a hormone-producing organ in one well is bathed in nutrient media that picks up the hormones and carries them to other wells containing other organs.  It’s a brave new world, and it’s coming……Someday soon. https://pubs.rsc.org/en/Content/ArticleLanding/2023/LC/D3LC00378G #microfluidics #organoids #drugtesting #lattice