This video undercover exposé blowing the whistle on the cruel treatment of animals at KFC’s factory farm and slaughterhouse suppliers.
The video details just how horribly KFC treats chickens—birds are so crippled that they can’t even walk, live birds are forced into tanks of scalding-hot water while completely conscious and able to feel pain, and in Moorefield, West Virginia slaughterhouse workers kill birds by slamming them against the wall and stomping on them!
Pamela Anderson is calling on consumers to “Kick the Bucket” and boycott KFC until the company agrees to make some simple improvements in the way it treats animals.
The original post can be found at https://secure.peta.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=1810&c=kfcmdba1009&s_src=padba
Novavax, Inc. announced today that it has initiated a two-stage clinical study of its virus-like-particle (VLP) H1N1 influenza vaccine in Mexico in collaboration with Avimex Laboratories (Avimex) and GE Healthcare. Avimex distributes biological and pharmaceutical products for use in Mexico and more than 25 other countries around the world. Avimex is providing financial support for the trial and is expected to distribute the H1N1 VLP vaccine in Mexico in 2010 if it is approved for commercial sale. In addition, Novavax also announced today that GE Healthcare (a unit of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE – News)) has agreed to support this program by providing its single-use bioprocessing technologies for vaccine production. GE Healthcare and Novavax have worked together since December 2007 to develop innovative vaccine production solutions using GE Healthcare’s manufacturing technologies.
The video can be viewed at Novavax Starts H1N1 Vaccine Study
US President Barack Obama won the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for “his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples,” the Norwegian Nobel Committee said, citing his outreach to the Muslim world and attempts to curb nuclear proliferation.
The stunning choice made Obama the third sitting US president to win the Nobel Peace Prize and shocked Nobel observers because Obama took office less than two weeks before the Feb. 1 nomination deadline.
Obama’s name had been mentioned in speculation before the award but many Nobel watchers believed it was too early to award the president.
“Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world’s attention and given its people hope for a better future,” the committee said. “His diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world’s population.”
The committee said it attached special importance to Obama’s vision of, and work for, a world without nuclear weapons.
“Obama has as president created a new climate in international politics. Multilateral diplomacy has regained a central position, with emphasis on the role that the United Nations and other international institutions can play,” the committee said.
Theodore Roosevelt won the award in 1906 and Woodrow Wilson won in 1919. Former President Jimmy Carter won the award in 2002, while former Vice President Al Gore shared the 2007 prize with the UN panel on climate change.
The Nobel committee received a record 205 nominations for this year’s prize.
In his 1895 will, Alfred Nobel stipulated that the peace prize should go “to the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between the nations and the abolition or reduction of standing armies and the formation and spreading of peace congresses.”
Unlike the other Nobel Prizes, which are awarded by Swedish institutions, he said the peace prize should be given out by a five-member committee elected by the Norwegian Parliament. Sweden and Norway were united under the same crown at the time of Nobel’s death.
The committee has taken a wide interpretation of Nobel’s guidelines, expanding the prize beyond peace mediation to include efforts to combat poverty, disease and climate change.
Taking a step closer towards a wonder pill that could extend people’s lifespan by up to 25 years, scientists have claimed that over half of babies born in the new future in the UK and other wealthy nations will live to 100 years.
The drug, touted as the “elixir of life” drug, works by using a molecule called spermidine, which helps to protect the body against damaging chemicals known as free radicals.
The scientists, led by Dr Frank Madeo, of the University of Graz in Austria, hope that the findings could lead to the creation of drugs that dramatically slow down ageing, allowing people to be healthier for longer.
The findings come in line with a new study, which claims that the average life expectancy in Britain, which is currently 81 years, could jump to more than 100 years. “Ageing results from complex processes that cause programmed cell death,” The Daily Express quoted Madeo as saying.
“Here, we report that administration of spermidine markedly extended the lifespan of yeast, flies and worms, and human immune cells,” added the bio-scientist.
Ageing is associated with the decrease of spermidine, which is known to be necessary for cell growth and maturation.
However, it was unclear if this was the cause or consequence of ageing.
The researchers saw that when the chemical was applied to old yeast cells their lifespan increased by a factor of up to four times that of untreated cells.
Similarly, the average longevity of fruitflies and nematode worms went up by 30 per cent and 15 per cent respectively, according to the findings.
In another experiment, just 15 per cent of human immune blood cells cultured in the lab survived after 12 days compared with 50 per cent of those treated with spermidine. And when mice were fed the chemical for 200 days through their drinking water, the free radicals reduced by about 30 per cent, indicating “reduced age-related oxidative stress”.
“One of the most widely accepted theories of ageing is the free radical theory, which attributes ageing to accumulating oxidative stress,” said Madeo.
“Together, these data indicate supplementation of spermidine can retard ageing in several species,” he added.
The findings suggest the chemical has this effect on cells and ultimately organisms as it provides an alternative mechanism for cellular “clean up”.
The study has been published online in Nature Cell Biology.
Experts warn that some ‘skinny foods’ are no different than chocolates or other high-fat options.
They insist that having so-called light food can sometimes result in consuming the same amount of kilojoules as eating ‘full-fat’ varieties.
Experts caution that over-eating of low-fat biscuits, light yoghurts and low-carb beers can be waist-bloating.
And though many of those items may be light in kilojoules they could be responsible for hunger pangs only 10 minutes later.
Dietician Clare Evangelista, from the Dietitians Association of Australia, said so-called diet drinks were also a waste.
“Recent research suggests people who consume large amounts of diet soft drink do not weigh less than those who don”t,” the Courier Mail quoted Evangelista as saying.
“This may be because after drinking diet soft drink, the body does not get the fluctuation in blood-glucose levels that helps tell the body we are full.
“So, drinking diet soft drink may increase food cravings and feelings of hunger,” Evangelista added.
CHENNAI, INDIA: A group of doctors and specialists in Chennai and Coimbatore have registered the first successful treatment of thalassaemia in a child using a sibling’s umbilical cord blood.
Senthil Kumar and Sarojini were shattered when their 18-month-old daughter, Thamirabharani, was diagnosed with thalassaemia. The blood disorder left the infant, born in 2000, at the mercy of transfusions and with little energy for anything else.
Sarojini aborted her next two pregnancies, fearing a repeat of the disorder in her children and it began to look like Thamirabharani would have neither a good life nor a sibling. Today, she has both — and, to double the family’s joy, her brother also turned out to be her saviour.
Giving a happy ending to a poignant family tale and raising fresh hope of leveraging stem cell therapy, a group of doctors and specialists in Chennai and Coimbatore have registered the first successful treatment of thalassaemia in a child using a sibling’s umbilical cord blood. Stem cells extracted from the cord blood during Pugazhendi’s birth were transplanted in Thamirabharani in March. After the mandatory five months’ observation period, doctors on Wednesday announced Thamirabharani cured of thalassaemia.
The genetic disorder that affects production of haemoglobin in red blood cells carrying oxygen to various parts of the body has remained a challenge to doctors the world over. “Thamira looked and behaved healthy for more than a year. Then, one day she suddenly went pale. Doctors initially treated her for jaundice, but when she did not recover, they did a blood test,” said Kumar, a carpenter from Coimbatore. “That’s when I first heard the word thalassaemia.”
Doctors at the Coimbatore Medical College told Kumar his daughter should undergo blood transfusion every month. “When we first saw her, she was very anaemic and needed frequent transfusion,” said Dr V Bhooma, assistant professor of paediatrics at the medical college.
Every month, Thamirabharani’s little hands were pricked. “It hurt,” she recalled. Despite transfusion, she continued to be weak. “She would complain of pain in her legs. She was not able to play with her friends,” said Sarojini, a housewife. “I aborted my second pregnancy. A few months later, I was pregnant again. This time I consulted a doctor.”
That was when Dr R Thiruveni, obstetrician-gynaecologist at Sri Krishna Speciality Hospital in Coimbatore, advised her to go in for a prenatal diagnostic test to determine if the child would have thalassaemia. Fifteen days later, a Chennai lab confirmed that the foetus had the disorder. Sarojini went in for another abortion.
The couple then met Dr Revathy Raj, consultant pediatric haemato-oncologist, Apollo Speciality Hospital, Chennai. “We told the doctor that we had decided not to have any more children, but she advised us to have another baby. She told us that the cord blood from a healthy baby could be used for Thamira’s treatment. We were still scared, but decided to give it a try,” said Kumar.
Sarojini became pregnant again, and this time, luck smiled on the couple. Tests showed that the fetus had healthy blood cells. LifeCell, which banks cord blood cells, offered to store the stem cells for free. After Sarojini’s delivery in a Coimbatore hospital, the cord blood cells were brought to the Chennai laboratory, where it was processed and stored in liquid nitrogen at minus 196 degrees Celsius.
But it was still a long road ahead for Thamirabharani. The couple kept their fingers crossed because the tissues had to match. The test showed a perfect match. Then came another challenge: they needed Rs 10 lakh for the therapy Thamirabharani had to undergo. “As I could not afford treatment, I requested NGOs and philanthropists. Everyone helped willingly,” said Kumar.
Finally, Thamirabharani underwent chemotherapy so that existing disease cells in the bone marrow were destroyed before the transplant happened. “I lost all my hair. They even shaved off what was remaining when I was taken in for treatment in March. I was scared. I thought they would prick my veins again. But doctors made me feel comfortable,” said Thamirabharani, with Pugazhendi tugging at her skirt.
“Since then, her haemoglobin level has been maintained at 12.5 gm/dl. She does not carry diseased cells anymore,” said Lifecell scientific officer Dr Ajit Kumar. “These siblings share a special bond. We have now decided to offer stem cell banking free of cost for poor people with children who have curable disorders,” he said.
A vaccine which produces a robust immune response at one go might make swine flu easier to handle, but authorities in India feel any such Swine flu vaccine immunisation needs intensive testing as it may compound any side effects the vaccine might have.
According to Director of Indian Council of Health Research (ICMR), V M Katoch, any vaccine which is introduced in India will have to be tested on the Indian population as any side effects which the vaccine might have will be compounded.
Katoch’s remarks came in the backdrop of reports of a single shot vaccine which is expected to be welcomed by health authorities because it means more people can be protected as quickly as the vaccine becomes available.
A recent study by researchers at CSL Ltd, a global vaccine and plasma protein company with its headquarters in Australia, showed that a single jab fo vaccine might be enough to produce strong antibodies in the body to fight the disease.
The researchers report early results of an ongoing trial that is evaluating a two-dose vaccine in healthy adults between the ages of 18 and 64 at a single site in Australia.
The study was published in the latest issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
The findings suggest that one dose was enough to produce an immunogenic response, with “mild to moderate” side effects.
They also reported that the vaccine appears to have side effects similar to seasonal flu vaccines.
NEW YORK: Some of the world’s most prominent technology companies are offering suggestions to publishers on how they can charge readers for news online.
IBM, Microsoft, Oracle and Google — a company some newspapers blame for helping dig their financial hole — responded to a request by the Newspaper Association of America for proposals on ways to easily charge for news on the web.
But building the infrastructure for charging readers is one part of the equation. The other part looks more challenging: getting publishers to make the leap and stop giving news out for free on the web.
Randy Bennett, the senior vice-president of business development at the newspaper association, said his group initiated the process after a meeting of publishers in May near Chicago. A report that was posted online on Wednesday by the Nieman Journalism Lab at Harvard University includes 11 different responses from technology companies.
Google’s proposal may be the most eyebrow raising, if only because the company — which aggregates thousands of articles from media outlets on its news pages — is so closely associated with the freewheeling ethos of an open internet.
Google proposed offering news organizations a version of its Google Checkout system, which is used for processing online payments. It would give readers a place to sign in to an account and then pay for media from a variety of sources without having to punch in their information over and over. And the company says it could offer publishers several pay methods, from basic subscriptions to so-called “micropayments” on a per-article basis.
Along with the technology heavyweights offering ideas are tiny startups. CircLabs, run by just four people and incubated at the Missouri School of Journalism, is developing a program that would feed news from different sources into a bar across the top of web browsers. Martin Langeveld, the company’s executive vice-president, said the application will offer both targeted advertising and the option of charging.
Internet world has been abuzz about Apple launching iPhone Nano for quite sometime. Every few months, grapevines suggest Apple working on a Nano version of iPhone. In fact, only last month a new patent filed by Apple again fueled iPhone Nano rumors. But all these so far remain mere speculations, with no official confirmation.
However, in faraway Shenzhen (China) an iPhone Nano has actually hit the shelves. The made in China iPhone Nano is widely available in the country including on online stores (may be you can check our own grey markets too!). These iPhone Nano models available from several Chinese companies offer several high-end features and come at an attractive price tag.
Here’s looking into the Chinese avatar of iPhone Nano.
- Display: 2.4 inch touchscreen LCD, 260 thousand color; 240 x 320px
- Dimensions: 105x55x10mm (LxWxH)
- Language: English, Chinese (Simplified)
- MP3 & MP4 player
- FM radio
- 5 MP Camera, with video recording;
- ROM: 512MB
- Data Transfer: USB cable/ card-reader/Bluetooth (file transmission, voice, stereo)
- Lithium batteries
- Supports caller’s picture option, group ring tone; 64 chord ring tone
- Telephone directories: 300 groups of contacts
- Messages: Supports both SMS and MMS (150 messages, MMS)
- Schedule power on/off: Supports auto start/close
- Standby time: 220-260 hours
- Talk time: 120-180 minutes
- Colours available: Black and silver
- Price $90
LONDON: A controversial study by British scientists who claimed to have created human sperm from embryonic stem cells has been retracted, the researchers’ institutes said on Friday.
The paper was withdrawn because part of it had been copied from another author without attribution, they said, while adding that the science itself had not been questioned.
The researchers, led by Professor Karim Nayernia at Newcastle University and the NorthEast England Stem Cell Institute (NESCI), said they had created sperm precursor cells in a lab dish from human embryonic stem cells that carried XY, or male, chromosomes.
The derived cells were able to divide and generate cells with just one set of chromosomes, characteristic of sperm, they said in the paper, published on July 8 in a US academic journal, Stem Cells and Development.
Embryonic stem cells are the hugely versatile master cells found in early-stage embryos that differentiate into becoming all of the tissues of the body.
The study caused huge excitement, as it conjured the idea of a revolution in treating male infertility.
But other researchers were doubtful, saying the work had failed to provide evidence that the spermatozoa behaved and functioned like sperm rather than being just sperm-like cells.
Retraction by a journal can be a major humiliation for scientists, denting the credibility of the work and its authors. The editor and publisher of Stem Cell and Development could not be immediately reached for comment.
In the statement, Newcastle University and NESCI said the paper had been peer-reviewed and “no questions have been raised about the science conducted or the conclusions of the research.”
“The withdrawal relates to text in the introduction of an old version of the paper that was submitted in error,” the statement said.
“The text was copied without attribution to its original author by a research associate, Dr. Jae Ho Lee, who has since left the University. He has apologised to the authors for his mistake and the name of Dr Lee has been removed from the first authorship.”
The paper “will now be submitted to another peer-reviewed academic journal,” it said, without elaborating.
Stem cells are one of the new frontiers of biomedical research.
This area has drawn lavish funding over the past decade, dangling the glittering vision of growing replacement cells in a lab dish that can replenish diseased or damaged tissue.
But it has also known setbacks and scandal. In 2005, South Korea’s Hwang Woo-Suk, once lionised as a pioneer, fell into disgrace after it emerged he had faked two landmark papers, published in the prestigious US journal Science, about creating human stem cells through cloning.
