Are you getting enough vitamin D?

The sunshine vitamin: Researchers sound alarm over shortage among non-whites

MARTIN MITTELSTAEDT

Vitamin D tests conducted on a group of University of Toronto students have found that virtually all non-whites had insufficient levels of the sunshine vitamin, putting them at elevated risk of debilitating diseases such as osteoporosis, cancer and diabetes.

The research, which is awaiting publication in a medical journal, found that 100 per cent of those of African origin were short of vitamin D, as were 93 per cent of South Asians (those of Indian or Pakistani origin), and 85 per cent of East Asians (those of Chinese, Indochinese or Filipino origin, among other countries).  continue reading »»»

A video from YouTube that describes what Multiple Sclerosis is and how it acts on the Central Nervous System (CNS)

Haesun Kim, Assistant Professor, Rutgers University,Newark, N.J.Newark, NJ ? Uncover the neural communication links involved in myelination, the process of protecting a nerve?s axon, and it may become possible to reverse the breakdown of the nervous system?s electrical transmissions in such disorders as multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injuries, diabetes and cancers of the nervous system.

With $697,065 in grants from the New Jersey Commission on Spinal Cord Injury and the New Jersey Commission on Brain Injury Research, Haesun Kim of Teaneck, NJ, assistant professor of biological sciences at Rutgers University in Newark, is working on gaining a better understanding of those links.

Specifically, her work focuses on Schwann cells within the peripheral nervous system and their communication links with the axons they myelinate by enwrapping them in myelin. Axons are the long fibrous part of neurons that carry the nerve?s electrical signals. A fatty substance, myelin covers those axons both to protect them and to provide a conduit for the fast conduction of electrical signals within the nervous system. Once that myelin is lost,the electrical signal breaks down and eventually the neuron dies ? like a cell phone that loses its signal.

Determining how Schwann cells and axons communicate with one another could lead to an understanding of how to promote remyelination, the rebuilding of myelin, and restoration of that signal. One unique aspect of the communication link between Schwann cells and axons is that they are mutually dependent upon that connection for their existence.

?When Schwann cells are generated during development, axons send out signals to the Schwann cells and tell them, ?You are going to become myelin cells and you are going to myelinate me,?? explains Kim. ?The Schwann cells in turn guide the axons to where they need to go and direct the axons to grow.? continue reading »»»

Summary

The International Multiple Sclerosis Genetics Consortium (IMSGC) has identified two new genetic variations associated with MS, completing the largest replicated whole genome scan (scan of all the genes in the body) for multiple sclerosis to date. In addition, two independent collaborating groups published papers in Nature Genetics confirming one of these gene variations. The findings point to potential mechanisms underlying the disease and present possible new targets for designing better therapies to stop the immune attack in MS. The IMSGC, a group of international MS genetic experts created with funding from the U.S. National MS Society, report their results in The New England Journal of Medicine (published early online July 29, 2007). The U.S. MS Society and Harvard united to jointly raise a total of $3.63 million to fund this genome scan study.

“By pinpointing genes that elevate the risk of developing MS and other autoimmune diseases,” stated Dr. John R. Richert, Executive Vice President, Research & Clinical Programs at the National MS Society, “these studies lead us in new directions for both treating and eventually preventing these diseases.” All of the data from the gene scan is being made publicly available to aid future research. continue reading »»»

BACKGROUND Increased familial risks in multiple sclerosis (MS) range from 300-fold for monozygotic twins to 20-40-fold for biological first-degree relatives, suggesting a genetic influence. Yet if one identical twin has MS the other usually will not. One way of sorting out the contributions of genes and environment is to study half-sibs. METHODS In a Canadian population-based sample of 16 000 MS cases seen at 14 regional MS clinics one half-sib (or more) was reported by 939 index cases. continue reading »»»