Bird strain is 'one of most lethal' flu viruses

By Sui-Lee Wee and Kate Kelland

BEIJING/LONDON (Reuters) - A new bird flu strain that has killed 22 people in China is "one of the most lethal" of its kind and transmits more easily to humans than another strain that has killed hundreds since 2003, a World Health Organization (WHO) expert said on Wednesday.

The H7N9 flu has infected 108 people in China since it was first detected in March, according to the Geneva-based WHO.

Although it is not clear exactly how people are being infected, experts say they see no evidence so far of the most worrisome scenario - sustained transmission between people.

An international team of scientists led by the WHO and the Chinese government conducted a five-day investigation in China, but said they were no closer to determining whether the virus might become transmissible between people.

"The situation remains complex and difficult and evolving," said Keiji Fukuda, the WHO's assistant director-general for health security.

"When we look at influenza viruses, this is an unusually dangerous virus for humans," he said at a briefing.

Another bird flu strain - H5N1 - has killed 30 of the 45 people it infected in China between 2003 and 2013, and although the H7N9 strain in the current outbreak has a lower fatality rate to date, Fukuda said: "This is definitely one of the most lethal influenza viruses that we've seen so far."

Scientists who have analyzed genetic sequence data from samples from three H7N9 victims say the strain is a so-called "triple reassortant" virus with a mixture of genes from three other flu strains found in birds in Asia.

Recent pandemic viruses, including the H1N1 "swine flu" of 2009/2010, have been mixtures of mammal and bird flu - hybrids that are more likely to be milder because mammalian flu tends to make people less severely ill than bird flu.

Pure bird flu strains, such as the new H7N9 strain and the H5N1 flu, which has killed about 371 of 622 the people it has infected since 2003, are generally more deadly for people.

UNSETTLING

The team of experts, who began their investigation in China last week, said one problem in tracking H7N9 is the absence of visible illness in poultry.

Fukuda stressed that the team is still at the beginning of its investigation, and said that "we may just be seeing the most serious infections" at this point.

Based on the evidence, "this virus is more easily transmissible from poultry to humans than H5N1", he said.

Besides the initial cases of H7N9 in and around Shanghai, others have been detected in Beijing and five provinces. On Wednesday, Taiwan's Health Department said a businessman had contracted H7N9 while travelling in China and was in a serious condition in hospital.

Samples from chickens, ducks and pigeons from poultry markets have tested positive for H7N9, but those from migratory birds have not, suggesting that "the likely source of infection is poultry", said Nancy Cox, director of the influenza division at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

John Oxford, a flu virologist at Queen Mary University of London, said the emergence of human H7N9 infections - a completely new strain in people - was "very, very unsettling".

"This virus seems to have been quietly spreading in chickens without anyone knowing about it," he told Reuters in London.

Flu experts say it is likely that more cases of human infection with H7N9 flu will emerge in the coming weeks and months, at least until the source of infection has been completely confirmed and effectively controlled.

Anne Kelso, the Melbourne-based director of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza said there has been a "dramatic slowdown of cases" in the commercial capital of Shanghai, which has recorded most of the deaths, something she described as "encouraging".

After Shanghai closed down its live poultry markets in early April, there was an almost immediate decline in new H7N9 cases, she said. "The evidence suggests that the closing of the live poultry markets was an effective way to reduce the risks."

Even so, the WHO's China representative, Michael O'Leary, issued figures last week showing that half of the patients analyzed had no known contact with poultry.

(Editing by Louise Ireland)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/says-bird-strain-one-most-lethal-flu-viruses-072106064.html

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New York political consultant in pension fund scandal granted parole

By Karen Freifeld

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Henry "Hank" Morris, once chief political adviser to disgraced ex-New York State Comptroller Alan Hevesi, will be out of prison by June 3 after serving more than two years for his role in a "pay-to-play" scheme at the state pension fund.

A board granted Morris parole after a hearing on Monday, about four months after Hevesi was released from prison.

The scandal revealed how politics and placement fees resulted in favored treatment by pension funds nationwide.

Eight people pleaded guilty in the New York scheme. Others, including Steve Rattner, co-founder of private equity firm Quadrangle Group LLC, agreed to civil settlements.

Morris, 59, was sentenced in February 2011 to up to four years behind bars for his role at the heart of the scheme. He acted as a middleman for investment firms who wanted access to the New York State Common Retirement Fund, valued last year at $150 billion.

Morris forfeited $19 million in fees he received as part of his guilty plea.

As state comptroller, Hevesi ran the pension fund from 2003 to 2006. He resigned as comptroller after pleading guilty to using state employees to drive his wife around, and went to prison in 2011 in connection with the pension fund corruption.

Morris, who was granted the parole after being rejected three times, will remain under community supervision until February 2015. He cannot work on the campaign of any public official without permission of his parole officer.

Morris told the parole board the biggest thing he learned from his crime is, "You don't go over the line," according to a transcript of the hearing. "You don't even go to the line."

He said he had written a pilot for a television show, a screenplay and a "large chunk of a book" while behind bars. He did not say what they were about.

"Maybe I have one campaign left in me, I doubt it," he said.

He said he could earn "several hundred thousand" dollars at a business, the details of which were redacted in the transcript.

He is being held at Hudson Correctional Facility, a medium-security prison in upstate New York.

(Reporting by Karen Freifeld)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/york-political-consultant-pension-fund-scandal-granted-parole-013637504--sector.html

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WHO: Bird-to-human infections easier with new flu

SYDNEY, April 24 (Reuters) - Australia named the following squad for the Ashes test series against England in July and August. Squad: Michael Clarke (captain), Brad Haddin (vice captain), Ed Cowan, David Warner, Phillip Hughes, Shane Watson, Usman Khawaja, Chris Rogers, Matthew Wade, Nathan Lyon, James Faulkner, Peter Siddle, Ryan Harris, James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc, Jackson Bird (Compiled by Greg Stutchbury; Editing by Peter Rutherford)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/bird-human-infections-easier-flu-051053020.html

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Richie Havens Dies; Folk Singer Was 72

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/04/richie-havens-dies-folk-singer-was-72/

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Kim Kardashian says she's ready for childbirth

NEW YORK (AP) ? Kim Kardashian says she's gotten more used to pregnancy, is more comfortable in her skin and is no longer feeling the aches and pains of expectant motherhood.

"Now I think I'm past all the awkward phases and stages, and once you feel the baby kick it's a whole new experience," Kardashian said Monday while attending the E! Network Upfront in New York. "I finally really embrace it. I love it now, but it took a minute. It was a lot, you know, a lot of body changes and stuff."

The reality star has received a lot of scrutiny over how she's chosen to dress her baby bump. For a while she avoided maternity clothes, wearing see-through tops and leather pants. The 32-year-old also opted to still wear designer clothing but in larger sizes that maybe weren't meant for an expectant woman.

Kardashian says she's not only feeling better but is pretty calm about giving birth and isn't nervous.

"At the beginning that was what I feared the most, and now, I mean, it's inevitable," she said. "It's gonna happen. I'm really not worried or nervous."

Kardashian and her baby's father, rapper Kanye West, know the gender of their child but are keeping it a secret. She said she's careful when she goes shopping to not give anything away.

"We buy all white," she said, laughing. "Or we'll go and buy both (girls' and boys' clothing), and then no one will know."

Besides Kardashian's belly, the cast of "Keeping up with the Kardashians" is getting bigger. The upcoming eighth season will include stepdad Bruce Jenner's sons, Brandon and Brody Jenner, along with Brandon's wife, Leah Jenner.

Brandon and Brody Jenner's mom is actress Linda Thompson, who was engaged to Elvis Presley.

Kardashian said it only makes sense to feature her step-brothers on the show.

"Our parents got married when I was 10 years old so people don't see that side of our lives," she said, "but they've been in our lives for so long so it's fun to share that with everyone."

___

Online:

http://www.eonline.com/shows/kardashians

___

Alicia Rancilio covers entertainment for The Associated Press. Follow her online at http://www.twitter.com/aliciar

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/kim-kardashian-says-shes-ready-childbirth-040901856.html

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On Earth Day 2013: 13 excellent books to consume

Environmentalists are sometimes seen as modern-day apocalyptic prophets ? a group of seers doing their best to wake the rest of us up before it's too late.

The environmental movement started out with transcendentalism and conservationism and efforts to protect natural sites. Nowadays, however, many environmentalists tend to focus on the food industry and modern consumerism ? areas that are closer to home for the average reader. To celebrate Earth Day, here are 13 classic environmental titles to help reconnect you with nature.

- Ben Frederick,?Contributor

1. "Silent Spring," by Rachel Carson

Let's start at the very beginning, a very good place to start. Rachel Carson's book about the effect of DDT and pesticides on the environment sparked the modern environmental movement. Even without the historical context, it's still a fantastic read and surprisingly relevant. First published in 1967, it put Carson on the list of Time's 100 most influential people of the century list.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/2Hdd0Ly1EsY/On-Earth-Day-2013-13-excellent-books-to-consume

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Novel monoclonal antibody inhibits tumor growth in breast cancer and angiosarcoma

Novel monoclonal antibody inhibits tumor growth in breast cancer and angiosarcoma

Monday, April 22, 2013

A monoclonal antibody targeting a protein known as SFPR2 has been shown by researchers at the University of North Carolina to inhibit tumor growth in pre-clinical models of breast cancer and angiosarcoma.

In a paper published in the April 19 issue of Molecular Cancer Therapeutics, a team led by Nancy Klauber-DeMore, MD, professor of surgery and a member of UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, used a monoclonal antibody to target SFRP2 expressed in cells from triple-negative breast cancer and the aggressive blood-vessel malignancy angiosarcoma, reducing the rate of tumor growth. The antibody, created at the University of North Carolina, is the first therapeutic discovered that targets SFRP2.

"We showed in this paper that targeting SFRP2 with a monoclonal antibody in pre-clinical models inhibits tumor growth. This demonstrates that SFRP2 is a therapeutic target for cancer" said Dr. DeMore.

The DeMore lab first discovered the role of SFRP2 in tumor growth while looking to develop an alternative to the FDA-approved anti-angiogenesis drug known as Avastin (bevacizumab). Avastin targets the protein VEGF, which has also been tied to angiogenesis (the production of new blood vessels). Although Avastin is of benefit to some patients with cancer, not all tumors respond to Avastin, and of those that respond, some eventually progress. To find a solution for patients whose tumors are resistant to Avastin, DeMore began looking at other proteins linked to angiogenesis that could be used as therapeutic targets.

"We previously microdissected blood vessels from malignant human breast cancers and compared gene expression to blood vessels microdissected from normal tissue. We found a number of genes that were highly over-expressed in the malignant blood vessels compared to normal. One of those genes was SFRP2," said Dr. DeMore.

The DeMore lab found that SFRP2 is expressed in a variety of human cancers, including breast, prostate, lung, pancreas, ovarian, colon, kidney tumors, and angiosarcomas, DeMore, working with Dr. Cam Patterson, Ernest and Hazel Craige Distinguished Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, discovered that SFRP2 acted as a potent stimulator of angiogenesis, leading their team to hypothesize that targeting SFRP2 could inhibit tumor growth. In collaboration with Dr. Russ Mumper, the John A. McNeill Distinguished Professor in the Division of Molecular Pharmaceutics, their group developed a drug to target SFRP2. "Demonstrating that a monoclonal antibody to SFRP2 inhibits tumor growth in pre-clinical models opens up a new potential for drug development. This treatment is not presently available for human studies, but our efforts are focused on obtaining funding for further drug development that would lead to a clinical trial" said DeMore.

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University of North Carolina Health Care: http://www.med.unc.edu

Thanks to University of North Carolina Health Care for this article.

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/127838/Novel_monoclonal_antibody_inhibits_tumor_growth_in_breast_cancer_and_angiosarcoma

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