Website Revamp

We are in the process of doing a major revamp of our website http://www.2012survivornet.com/

We are also pleased to advise that the celebrated author and researcher Robert Bauval has agreed for us to link to his site and we will be doing a profile on one of the top, if not the very best, minds on ancient Egypt and the Pyramids, so keep your eyes peeled.

Your doctor has you on a daily dose of RAT POISON

It's so horrifying, it almost seems like a joke. Imagine -- the most widely prescribed anticoagulant in the United States was developed to KILL RATS AND MICE. And it's still used for that same purpose today!

It's the dirty little secret Big Pharma would rather you didn't know...the pills you trust to keep your heart healthy were first developed as pesticide! So what do you do now? Because the problem is still there -- blood clots are silent killers. Heart attacks, strokes, embolisms...the key to preventing them is keeping the blood smooth and flowing. Sometimes you can only do that by using a blood thinner.

Read whole story here: https://web-purchases.com/640SHDHD/E6DDL6AT/landing.html?o=111810&u=42986942&l=121935&g=151&r=Milo&s=113602

(We are not affiliated with this product in any way, we place this article as a service to our readers.

New study on bad med under way

The diabetes drug Avandia doesn't need more study -- it needs to be taken out back and shot, like a disloyal thug in a crime family.Yet instead of pulling the trigger, the feds and Big Pharma are pushing forward on yet another study. Just one hitch: They can't find anyone dumb enough to swallow these death pills.You'd have to be in a diabetic coma to have missed the all the studies that have linked Avandia to heart attacks and other serious problems. GlaxoSmithKline, its maker, just paid out $60 million to settle 700 lawsuits, and that's just the beginning -- at least 4,000 suits have been filed so far.

But what do they care? Even with sales plummeting, Avandia still manages to bring home the bacon. It took in $1.2 billion last year alone.The study just getting under way now was ordered by the feds in 2007, when evidence of the heart problems first emerged. And so far, at least two U.S. trial sites have pulled out because they can't find any suckers willing to risk their lives in the name of bad medicine.But that won't stop 'em.You know the policy: If Americans won't do your dirty work, head south of the border... so they're recruiting Mexicans to try this med instead of you.

They're also recruiting in countries like India, Pakistan, Colombia, Latvia and anyplace else where the Avandia story didn't make big headlines. They're planning to study this med through 2015, giving who-knows-how-many Third Worlders their own First World lesson in diabetes mismanagement.Better them than us -- but no wonder these people hate our guts. After all, this isn't exactly a rare occurrence. Overseas guinea pigs are the hottest thing in drug trials, since many of these countries have loose laws, low overhead, corruptible officials and legions of uninformed saps ready to volunteer.The new Avandia study pushes the limits of decency even further -- because we already know this is a dangerous drug. Even some FDA officials have called this study unethical.Good for them -- but I hope they're not planning on long careers in public health. You won't get very far by worrying about ethics!

Highly recommended DVD

http://www.whatthebleep.com/index2.shtml

Telomere Treatment

Chromosomal telomere repair treatment is near. Ultimately this could produce new ways to reverse aging in tissues and organs, and new treatments that may one day cure or even eradicate cancer. The hope of treatments for such age-related diseases as macular degeneration, osteoporosis, arteriosclerosis, cirrhosis and Progeria is right around the corner.

Commercially, telomere therapy has been successfully used to extend the life span of cell cultures used in producing pharmaceuticals, growing artificial corneas, and accelerating the healing process in skin grafts. He  predicts cosmetic use of telomere therapy could be available within two years, and may not require FDA approval. Other uses of telomere therapy, as developed by Telomolecular, include regeneration of damaged
muscle and bone, accelerating wound healing, treating trauma disorders such as strokes, growing replacement organs, and preventing cancer development during stem cell therapy.

Treating macular degeneration, osteoporosis, arteriosclerosis and cancer is a lengthy process taking months or years of therapy, often unsuccessful. But with advancements in nanotechnology and molecular biology  such as those achieved at Telomolecular, it's conceivable that treatment of these diseases may soon involve only a single, routine outpatient visit to a hospital or clinic. And shortly after that, preventative treatments may eliminate those diseases completely.
 
http://nextbigfuture.com/2006/08/telemere-repair-treatments-near-2-5.html

2012 / PROJECT CHEOPS / HAWARA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ej-s7L74KP8&feature=player_embedded

Bruce Lipton : Internationally Recognized Leader In Bridging Science And Spirit

An Intimate Interview with Author Bruce H. Lipton, Ph.D.

“When I first recognized that the brain of the cell was the cell membrane, rather than genes, I was blown away, for the mechanism revealed that life was controlled by signals from the “environment.” The significance of this finding is that the identity of the “self,” distinguishing one individual from another, would also represent an environmental (external) signal.”

What is it like for you to be pressing the edges of the conventional, entrenched wisdom of the medical/health care field?

I am on an amazing journey that is filled with exhilarating life experiences expressing both sweet and sour consequences. On the sweet side is the fact that I am having the most exciting time of my life!! My research revealed a revolutionary understanding of how life “worked” twenty years ago and this awareness is now beginning to be recognized by leading edge science. The beautiful part is that with a twenty year head start over my former colleagues, I have not only benefited by applying this empowering awareness in creating the joyous life I am experiencing, but I have been able to extend that knowledge to reveal how the world can thrive and evolve.

The sweetness of that knowledge is also where the “sour” part comes in to the picture. Our conventional world is engaged in a ruthless survival of the fittest competition, based upon science’s endorsement of Darwinian theory, a belief that emphasizes, “life is a struggle for survival.” In contrast, the new biology reveals a completely different understanding of our place in the world. Science is now recognizing that we are an integral part of a giant living community, collectively referred to as Gaia. The new science underscores the fact that our survival is based upon the cooperation of all the organisms in the biosphere. Unfortunately, our social consciousness, shaped by Darwinian science, is so destructive to the environment that it has already precipitated the planet’s sixth mass extinction—which of course threatens the survival of humanity.

Yet there is also good news. Just as some terminal cancer patients undergo a spontaneous remission, the living Gaia can do the same. As with those cancer patients, all we need to do to save our world is change our beliefs, and this is precisely the consequence of the evolving new science. My book, The Biology of Belief: Unleashing the Power of Consciousness, Matter and Miracles, provides an easy to understand explanation of how our thoughts and mind create both our internal (biological) and external (social) life experiences.

What about your discoveries has most profoundly affected your life and the way you live it?

In the first instant of acquiring my new insights into how cells worked, I was completely transformed. As a conventional scientist, I taught my students that genes controlled life and that we were essentially “victims” of our heredity. When I first recognized that the brain of the cell was the cell membrane, rather than genes, I was blown away, for the mechanism revealed that life was controlled by signals from the “environment.” The significance of this finding is that the identity of the “self,” distinguishing one individual from another, would also represent an environmental (external) signal.

If the cell (organism) dies, its identity signal is still present in the environment. At that moment of awareness, I realized that we have an externalized “identity” (spirit) and are immortal. The realization of a transcendent “identity” brought an amazing sense of peace into my life, for I had truly lost the greatest of all fears…death. It was the most profound experience for me, a non-spiritual scientist that wasn’t even looking for that particular understanding.

Subsequently, my life was transformed when I realized how my developmental experiences programmed my genes and behaviour. With this knowledge I was able to rewrite limiting, self-sabotaging beliefs that were keeping me from experiencing the health, love and joy we all seek. I have actively created a wonderful healthy, fulfilling life and supporting environment. I love my days, sleep like a baby and enjoy life without the necessity of taking a single pharmaceutical drug!

One of the most important things I learned through my research was that human beings were biologically modelled after the anatomy and physiology of single cells. Cells are in a sense, miniature people. My research provided insight into understanding how the fifty trillion cells that comprise the human body can live in health and harmony under the skin. I was able to apply the fundamental principles of cellular life to the way I was living my life with great success. In the words of old hippie philosophy, I was “cleaning up my own backyard before cleaning up the world.” I learned to live better and healthier on less money, not only through modelling my efficiency upon cellular life, but also because my personal joy and satisfaction in life was no longer linked to consumerism. My pleasures are now directly derived through my appreciation of Gaia, my family and my community.

If you were to choose one area that you feel is your greatest challenge in sharing your discoveries, what would that be?

As mentioned, the new science reveals that our preoccupation with competition and consumerism is compromising our species and our environment. There is a lot of money trying to keep us from evolving. Corporate and government interests, playing on our Darwinian fears, are undermining our civilization and environment. Simply, self-empowerment is not in the interest of those whose focus is to “control” civilization.

Wars, social and moral decay, faltering education, famine and much of our disease will be eliminated when the new science becomes common knowledge. The self-empowerment offered by the new science is a threat to those organizations that profit from war and ill health. Among others, these organizations include the military-industrial complex, the larger biomedical-pharmaceutical industry and those fundamentalist religions that encourage violence and self-limitation in seeking their ends.

Presently, these organizations are spending vast sums of money, enough to solve civilization’s problems, to “control” and limit our abilities via the news, magazines and television programming. Consequently, it is a difficult endeavour to fight the tide of self-limiting, self-defeating propaganda sponsored by the moneyed interests. Yet, in recent years I have noticed vast changes in consciousness by people who intuitively know we are on the wrong track and are looking for a course correction. Fortunately, books like The Biology of Belief, as well as a number of other new works of science, are aimed at introducing the mass reading audience to the life-changing power of their conscious mind. I believe we are approaching a threshold, like the notion of the hundredth monkey, where the new science will appear to spontaneously change the direction of civilization and save us from our excesses.

When you consider your existing science and what other discoveries undoubtedly lie ahead, who do you believe human beings are capable of becoming?

We will learn that if there is a “heaven,” it is right here on Earth. We will learn how to recreate the proverbial Garden of Eden. In this new awareness we will be able to guide our own stem cells to renew our lives, without the use of pharmaceutical agents. Like breathairian’s, we will also learn to capture energy directly from the environment and will no longer be dependent upon the massive quantities of food we now think we need to eat. This awareness should provide us with a natural lifespan of at least 120-140 years, while simultaneously taking the pressure off the environment to feed us. Interestingly, current research reveals that we can double the life of laboratory organisms by simply curtailing their metabolic intake.

The new science provides insight into how we manifest our reality. Since most people are looking for happiness, joy and health, their collective vision can create such a reality. Such a culture would be one that does not encourage disharmony and disease. That’s already a good start in revitalizing Eden.

When you witness the range of responses to your material - from great joy to outrage, no doubt! - what is it that keeps you moving forward?

The simplest answer is that I have found Heaven on Earth by personally applying the principles of the new science to the way I carry out my own life. I love my job of bringing this new science to the public, for in my travels, I have seen many people use this information to “taken control” of their own lives. There is nothing more joyous than to see an individual overcome physical and emotional adversity through self-empowerment. And on a more self-serving level, the more people create harmony in their world, the more harmony I experience in my world.

Books and media by Dr. Lipton can be found in our store on our website at www.2012survivornet.com

Bruce Lipton : Internationally Recognized Leader In Bridging Science And Spirit

Backgrounder: Epigenetics and Imprinted Genes

 

Backgrounder: Epigenetics and Imprinted Genes

There is far more to genetics than the sequence of building blocks in the DNA molecules that make up our genes and chromosomes. The "more" is known as epigenetics.

What is epigenetics?

Epigenetics, literally "on" genes, refers to all modifications to genes other than changes in the DNA sequence itself. Epigenetic modifications include addition of molecules, like methyl groups, to the DNA backbone. Adding these groups changes the appearance and structure of DNA, altering how a gene can interact with important interpreting (transcribing) molecules in the cell's nucleus.

How do epigenetic modifications affect genes?
Genes carry the blueprints to make proteins in the cell. The DNA sequence of a gene is transcribed into RNA, which is then translated into the sequence of a protein. Every cell in the body has the same genetic information; what makes cells, tissues and organs different is that different sets of genes are turned on or expressed.

Because they change how genes can interact with the cell's transcribing machinery, epigenetic modifications, or "marks," generally turn genes on or off, allowing or preventing the gene from being used to make a protein. On the other hand, mutations and bigger changes in the DNA sequence (like insertions or deletions) change not only the sequence of the DNA and RNA, but may affect the sequence of the protein as well. (Mutations in the sequence can prevent a gene from being recognized, amounting to its being turned off, but only if the mutations affect specific regions of the DNA.)

There are different kinds of epigenetic "marks," chemical additions to the genetic sequence. The addition of methyl groups to the DNA backbone is used on some genes to distinguish the gene copy inherited from the father and that inherited from the mother. In this situation, known as "imprinting," the marks both distinguish the gene copies and tell the cell which copy to use to make proteins.

 

What is "imprinting?"

"Imprinted genes" don't rely on traditional laws of Mendelian genetics, which describe the inheritance of traits as either dominant or recessive. In Mendelian genetics, both parental copies are equally likely to contribute to the outcome. The impact of an imprinted gene copy, however, depends only on which parent it was inherited from. For some imprinted genes, the cell only uses the copy from the mother to make proteins, and for others only that from the father.

Imprinting in genetics is not new, but it is gaining visibility as it is linked to more diseases and conditions that affect humans. Centuries ago, mule breeders in Iraq noted that crossing a male horse and a female donkey created a different animal than breeding a female horse and a male donkey. In the modern scientific era, however, the initial evidence for parent-of-origin effects in genetics didn't appear until the mid 1950s or so.

Then, in the mid 1980s, scientists studying mice discovered that inheritance of genetic material from both a male and a female parent was required for normal development. The experiments also revealed that the resulting abnormalities changed depending on whether the inherited genetic material was all male in origin or all female.

Around the same time, others discovered that the effects of some transgenes in mice differed when they were passed from the male or female parent. The first naturally occurring example of an imprinted gene was the discovery of imprinting in the IGF-2 gene in mice in 1991, and currently about 50 imprinted genes have been identified in mice and humans.

Why should it matter which parent donated the gene copy?
Why imprinting evolved in animals is unclear, but one hypothesis is that imprinting represents a genetic "battle of the sexes," since many imprinted genes regulate embryonic growth. Maternally-expressed imprinted genes (for which the copy from mom is always used) usually suppress growth, while paternally expressed genes usually enhance growth.

The "battle of the sexes" hypothesis is partly based on studies in animals that suggest growth-promoting imprinted genes help ensure the continuation of the father's genes, a particularly important issue for species in which more than one male can contribute to a single litter of offspring. The mother, however, is more interested in maintaining her own health, biologically speaking, and hence her genes "fight" the paternal genes and limit the size of the embryo or fetus.

What role does imprinting play in disease?
Because of their growth-related aspects, imprinted genes likely play a major role in the development of cancer and other conditions in which cell and tissue growth are abnormal. Imprinted genes in which the copy from the mother is turned on (maternally expressed) usually suppress growth, while paternally expressed genes usually stimulate growth (see above).

In cancer, some tumor suppressor genes are actually maternally expressed genes that are mistakenly turned off, preventing the growth-limiting protein from being made. Likewise, many oncogenes -- growth-promoting genes -- are paternally expressed genes for which a single dose of the protein is just right for normal cell proliferation. However, if the maternal copy of the oncogene loses its epigenetic marks and is turned on as well, uncontrolled cell growth can result.

In the collection of birth defects known as Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome (BWS), abnormal epigenetics leads to abnormal growth of tissues, overgrowth of abdominal organs, low blood sugar at birth and cancers. Similiarly, in the imprinting disorder Prader-Willi syndrome, abnormal epigenetics causes short stature and mental retardation as well as other syndromic features.

There's also evidence in mice that some imprinted genes may play a role in behavior, particularly in nurturing and social situations.

How does imprinting get messed up?
Just as mutations in the sequence of DNA can be acquired as a cell copies its DNA, changes in a cell's epigenetics can be acquired as well, although how those errors occur isn't as well understood. Scientists do know that epigenetic alterations can be caused by environmental changes, such as the laboratory conditions used for growing cells, but the details are murky.

For example, researchers are still trying to understand the process by which cells maintain or change their gene's imprinting marks. In sperm and egg, for instance, imprinted gene copies have to be re-imprinted. Imagine one copy of a paternally imprinted gene passed from a father to his daughter (the copy is paternally inherited and will be "on") and then to her child (it's now a maternally inherited copy and will be "off").

Many scientists believe that "incorrect" epigenetic changes to tumor suppressor genes and oncogenes are some of the first steps in cancer initiation. Determining when and how imprinting marks get re-written during egg and sperm development is crucial in figuring out whether imprinting abnormalities could be corrected in cancer.

What's next for imprinting research?
As more is learned about what role abnormal imprinting plays in biology and disease, it's important to continue learning about exactly how imprinting works. What marks distinguish maternal and paternal gene copies, and are they the same for all imprinted genes? How and when during conception or formation of sperm and egg are the tell-tale marks changed? Can epigenetics be manipulated to return normal control to cells in tumors?

To find answers to these and other questions, imprinting in early stage embryos will need to be studied. Hopkins researchers recently created a mouse model in which the paternal and maternal gene copies are easily distinguished in order to help answer these questions. The true test will be one day evaluating the questions in humans, although such experiments are not currently permitted.

Backgrounder: Epigenetics and Imprinted Genes

Epigenetics? - Dining for your descendants - Epigenome NOE

An expectant mother might well logically reason that what she eats will affect her unborn child. But the evidence is mounting that not only her children, but her grandchildren and subsequent generations will be affected by her nutrition. What she eats may not only affect her descendants as they develop, but potentially throughout their adult lives.

Brona McVittie reports :: November 2008
The early environment of a developing child can talk to its genome by epigenetic means. Environmental cues trigger changes to epigenetic tags on our genome, which shape the way genes are expressed. These tags on the genome can be carried through from cell to cell as we replace damaged body tissue. When such changes occur inside egg or sperm cells, they can pass through to the next generation. So, we don’t just inherit our genes, but potentially also their modes of expression.
A recent study published in Diabetes by Josep Jimenez–Chillaron and colleagues on 19th November adds further strength to this argument.  Based on recent research, which indicates that low birth weight is associated with increased risk of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease during adult life, the team wanted to know whether such disease risks might be passed on to future generations.
They bred mice with low birth weight by starving pregnant mothers during the last week of pregnancy.  Animals with low birth weight were mated and compared to the offspring from normal crosses. The experimental results indicated that starving pregnant mothers “programs” a low birth weight not only in her infants, but those of the next generation.
Coupled with this, males from the first-generation crosses were found to be glucose intolerant, which increased with age. All of the subsequent generation developed glucose intolerance by four months. Other studies have confirmed that diabetes can pass through more than a single generation through the maternal line, but this is the first study that shows inheritance of glucose intolerance through the male line.
Exactly how such changes manifest at the molecular level remains to be fully elucidated, although the team pinpointed a gene called Sur1, which could be linked to the glucose intolerance. While the researchers haven’t yet established the epigenetic basis of this inheritance, further studies will investigate changes to epigenetic tags that might be responsible. Such research has important medical implications, but will also cast light on the role of epigenetics in evolution.

Epigenetics? - Dining for your descendants - Epigenome NOE

Bruce Lipton, PhD | The Living Matrix

 

The Living Matrix – The Science of Healing, uncovers new ideas about the intricate web of factors that determine our health.

Tapping into the power of information

Leaders in science are examining the body through the lens of quantum physics. They’ve discovered that we're far more than biochemical machines

Instead, our cells are senders and receivers of information, controlling our health in ways we never imagined.

Renowned cell biologist, former University of Wisconsin Medical School professor and Stanford University researcher Dr. Bruce Lipton has turned his scientific exploration to the integration of mind, body and spirit. In short, he studies how our beliefs affect our health.

In 1982, Dr. Bruce Lipton began exploring quantum physics to more fully explain the cell’s information processing systems. His breakthrough studies on the cell membrane revealed its function as essentially an organic computer chip, the cell’s equivalent of a brain.

A decade later, Dr. Bruce Lipton made a discovery that ran counter to everything scientists believed about the role of genes in the body. His research showed that environmental forces outside the cell control its behavior and physiology, turning genes on and off. This idea opened the door to a new and important field, the science of epigenetics.

Dr. Bruce Lipton’s two major scientific papers based on these studies defined the molecular pathways connecting the mind and body. Subsequent papers by other researchers have validated his concepts.

A sought-after lecturer, Dr. Bruce Lipton has appeared on numerous TV and radio shows and speaks to audiences around the world.

 

Bruce Lipton, PhD | The Living Matrix

Cellular Aging: Telomeres | Cellular Aging: Telomeres Information | HighBeam Research - FREE Trial

 

CELLULAR AGING: TELOMERES

Aging is a complex process that occurs on multiple levels. The end result of aging is that life span is limited in multicellular organisms. The cells that make up multicellular organisms also have limited life spans. The limitation on cellular life span is comprised of two parts: (1) cells become unable to continue dividing but remain metabolically active, and (2) at some future time cell death occurs. Many cells in the human body are continually undergoing cellular division. Cellular division is a normal condition of certain tissues; examples include hair growth, the sloughing off of skin every several days, and the complete turnover and replacement of the cells of the immune systems every few months. In some instances, cellular division occurs in order to heal damaged tissues. Thus, having a limited number of cellular divisions available could contribute to aging by slowing down processes such as wound healing, as well as affecting general tissue maintenance.

In the 1960s, Leonard Hayflick first noted that human cells undergo a limited number of divisions when placed in culture. Furthermore, he noted that the number of divisions cells undergo is related to the number of prior divisions undergone by the cells. This observation suggested the existence of an intracellular clock that marked the division history of each cell. In addition, it suggested that once a predetermined number of divisions has occurred, a signal (or signals) is generated that prevents the cell from undergoing further divisions. The timing mechanisms underlying and regulating this process remained elusive until the end of the twentieth century. The first of these clocks to be identified and characterized, the telomere, is active in several human cell types.

Telomeres are chromosome caps

Telomeres are specialized structures present at the end of liner chromosomes; they serve the essential function of protecting and stabilizing chromosome ends. The telomere was first defined in the 1930s following observations that naturally occurring chromosome ends behave differently than chromosome breaks induced by damaging agents such as ionizing radiation. Both structures are ends of double-stranded DNA molecules. However, chromosome ends are stable, allowing accurate transmission of chromosomes from generation to generation without loss of genetic material, whereas induced breaks are very unstable, reacting with other chromosomes in the cell to create rearrangements and chromosome fusions. In addition, broken ends of DNA trigger cellular protective responses. These responses act either to allow the DNA damage to be repaired, or to remove the cell from the population by cellular suicide, called apoptosis. Even though telomeres are the physical end of a DNA molecule, they do not trigger these protective responses. These observations indicated that there is something special about naturally occurring chromosome ends.

Telomere structure

Telomeres are made up of short tandem repeats of a simple DNA sequence and associated proteins. In humans, and all other vertebrates, the telomeric DNA sequence is 5'(TTAGGG)3', oriented towards the end of one DNA strand, with the complimentary sequence 5'(CCCTAA)3' oriented towards the interior of the chromosome. The duplexed telomeric repeats are arranged in tandem and are present in more than a thousand copies at the end of each human chromosome. At the very end of the chromosome there is a single-stranded protrusion of the G-rich strand that extends for twenty or more repeats.

Cellular Aging: Telomeres | Cellular Aging: Telomeres Information | HighBeam Research - FREE Trial

Study provides direct evidence of the role of telomeres in disease development. - Cancer Weekly | HighBeam Research - FREE trial

 

Study provides direct evidence of the role of telomeres in disease development. - Cancer Weekly | HighBeam Research - FREE trial

Telomere shortening may be early marker of cancer activity. - Biotech Week | HighBeam Research - FREE trial

 

Telomere shortening may be early marker of cancer activity. - Biotech Week | HighBeam Research - FREE trial

ARE TELOMERES THE KEY TO AGING AND CANCER?

Inside the center or nucleus of a cell, our genes are located on twisted, double-stranded molecules of DNA called chromosomes. At the ends of the chromosomes are stretches of DNA called telomeres, which protect our genetic data, make it possible for cells to divide and hold some secrets to how we age and get cancer.

Telomeres have been compared with the plastic tips on shoelaces because they prevent chromosome ends from fraying and sticking to each other, which would scramble an organism's genetic information to cause cancer, other diseases or death. Yet, each time a cell divides, the telomeres get shorter. When they get too short, the cell no longer can divide and becomes inactive or "senescent" or dies. This process is associated with aging, cancer and a higher risk of death. So telomeres also have been compared with a bomb fuse.

What are telomeres?

Like the rest of a chromosome and its genes, telomeres are sequences of DNA - chains of chemical code. Like other DNA, they are made of four nucleic acid bases: G for guanine, A for adenine, T for thymine and C for cytosine. Telomeres are made of repeating sequences of TTAGGG on one strand of DNA bound to AATCCC on the other strand. Thus, one section of telomere is a "repeat" made of six "base pairs."

In human blood cells, the length of telomeres ranges from 8,000 base pairs at birth to 3,000 base pairs as people age and as low as 1,500 in elderly people. (An entire chromosome has about 150 million base pairs.) Each time a cell divides, an average person loses 30 to 200 base pairs from the ends of that cell's telomeres.

Cells normally can divide only about 50 to 70 times, with telomeres getting progressively shorter until the cells become senescent, die or sustain genetic damage that can cause cancer. Telomeres do not shorten with age in tissues such as heart muscle in which cells do not continually divide.

Why do chromosomes have telomeres?

Without telomeres, the main part of the chromosome - the part containing genes essential for life - would get shorter each time a cell divides. So telomeres allow cells to divide without losing genes. Cell division is needed so we can grow new skin, blood, bone and other cells when needed.

Without telomeres, chromosome ends could fuse together and degrade the cell's genetic blueprint, making the cell malfunction, become cancerous or die. Because broken DNA is dangerous, a cell has the ability to sense and repair chromosome damage. Without telomeres, the ends of chromosomes would look like broken DNA, and the cell would try to fix something that wasn't broken. That also would make them stop dividing and eventually die.

Why do telomeres get shorter each time a cell divides?

Before a cell can divide, the chromosomes within it are duplicated so that each of the two new cells contains identical genetic material. A chromosome's two strands of DNA must unwind and separate. An enzyme (DNA polymerase) then starts to make two new strands of DNA to match each of the two unwound strands. It does this with the help of short pieces of RNA. When each new matching strand is completed, it is a bit shorter than the original strand because of the room needed at the end by this small piece of RNA. It is like someone who paints himself into a corner and cannot paint the corner.

Does anything counteract telomere shortening?

An enzyme named telomerase adds bases to the ends of telomeres. In young cells, telomerase keeps telomeres from wearing down too much. But as cells divide repeatedly, there is not enough telomerase, so the telomeres grow shorter and the cells age.

Telomerase remains active in sperm and eggs, which are passed from one generation to the next. If reproductive cells did not have telomerase to maintain the length of their telomeres, any organism with such cells soon would go extinct.

What role do telomeres play in cancer?

As a cell begins to become cancerous, it divides more often, and its telomeres become very short. If its telomeres get too short, the cell may die. It can escape this fate by becoming a cancer cell and activating an enzyme called telomerase, which prevents the telomeres from getting even shorter.

Studies have found shortened telomeres in many cancers, including pancreatic, bone, prostate, bladder, lung, kidney, and head and neck.

Measuring telomerase may be a new way to detect cancer. If scientists can learn how to stop telomerase, they might be able to fight cancer by making cancer cells age and die. In one experiment, researchers blocked telomerase activity in human breast and prostate cancer cells growing in the laboratory, prompting the tumor cells to die. But there are risks. Blocking telomerase could impair fertility, wound healing, and production of blood cells and immune system cells.

What about telomeres and aging?

Geneticist Richard Cawthon and colleagues at the University of Utah found shorter telomeres are associated with shorter lives. Among people older than 60, those with shorter telomeres were three times more likely to die from heart disease and eight times more likely to die from infectious disease.

Rest of artickle here: http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/begin/traits/telomeres/

What YOUR Brain can do

Your Brain's Potential

In the brain there are 1,000,000,000,000 (a million million) individual neurons or nerve cells.

If each neuron can interact with anywhere between 1 and 100,000 other neurons then the brain's potential for pattern forming (the number of possible permutations) is a massive number that even in normal text would require 10.5 million kilometres of space to write one after the other!

That means that your brain has an almost infinite capacity for storing information.

What are you going to learn today to start realising your potential?

Prominence eruption from sun is seen

A prominence eruption from the sun is seen in this image taken by the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) on March 30, 2010. NASA released the first publicimages from the SDO on April 21, 2010.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/NASA-releases-images-sun/ss/events/sc/042210nasasun#photoViewer=/100422/ids_photos_wl/r938069384.jpg

Best Camera Prices in South Africa

Highly Recommended: Looking for the best value and service for cameras in South Africa?

One sees cameras advertised all over. If you are a beginner photographer looking for start-up or a Pro looking for an upgrade, there is really only one place we can recommend with all good faith. In stead of providing a link to the main website (which will require you to register and go through a lengty process) we will give you the shortcut. Send a mail to the link below and provide your requirements and they will mail you back with exact details on how to get hold of what you really need.

In the first place, we have bought many cameras from the company without ever having a single hitch in order nor delivery. Their cameras are sources internationally as well as having an international warrenty. We had one camera that had a simple problem and the money was refunded even before the camera was returned to them (then I may add we have a long relationship with the dealer so there were mutual trust) and neither have they ever received any complaints on their service from buyers to the best of our knowledge.

One of the big electronic stores in SA which are advertising low prices has a few catches which you are not told about: 1) Their products are Grey Market and  2) there is no exchange policy (which is why it is Gray Market). Meaning, if you bought the camera today, get home, find a problem and take it back the following day, they do not replace or refund you, they send it in for repairs and you can wait up to six weeks to get the repair back, if it has been fully repaired.

So with years of experience in the photographic field we recommend this one single dealer in SA and if you now or ever require a camera of any model or photographic equipment, we recommend sending an email and you will in all likelyhood get what you want at the best price you can pay anywhere. All equipment are sent via overnight courier so you have to wait just one day.

We do not publish the name of the dealer since they advertise in other media and it could constitute a conflict of their agreement with their normal sales channels to be listed somewhere else and we would not want that. At 2012survivornet.com we aim to help people in all communities and countries and thus this is a service we offer our subscribers and readers.

eMail address: sales@eezeehost.com

Note: We have no affiliation of any nature with the seller neither do we receive any compensation for this recommendation. In fact we have not contacted the seller beforehand advising that we will publish this post.

If you are a dealer of any type of commodities that benefit the community and help the person on the street, you are welcome to mail us for consideration of including your service or product in future posts.

The government has your baby's DNA!

(CNN) -- When Annie Brown's daughter, Isabel, was a month old, her pediatrician asked Brown and her husband to sit down because he had some bad news to tell them: Isabel carried a gene that put her at risk for cystic fibrosis.

While grateful to have the information -- Isabel received further testing and she doesn't have the disease -- the Mankato, Minnesota, couple wondered how the doctor knew about Isabel's genes in the first place. After all, they'd never consented to genetic testing.

It's simple, the pediatrician answered: Newborn babies in the United States are routinely screened for a panel of genetic diseases. Since the testing is mandated by the government, it's often done without the parents' consent, according to Brad Therrell, director of the National Newborn Screening & Genetics Resource Center. In many states, such as Florida, where Isabel was born, babies' DNA is stored indefinitely, according to the resource center. Many parents don't realize their baby's DNA is being stored in a government lab, but sometimes when they find out, as the Browns did, they take action. Parents in Texas, and Minnesota have filed lawsuits, and these parents' concerns are sparking a new debate about whether it's appropriate for a baby's genetic blueprint to be in the government's possession." We were appalled when we found out," says Brown, who's a registered nurse. "Why do they need to store my baby's DNA indefinitely? Something on there could affect her ability to get a job later on, or get health insurance."

According to the state of Minnesota's Web site, samples are kept so that tests can be repeated, if necessary, and in case the DNA is ever need to help parents identify a missing or deceased child. The samples are also used for medical research.

Video: Government has your baby's DNA Art Caplan, a bioethicist at the University of Pennsylvania, says he understands why states don't first ask permission to screen babies for genetic diseases. "It's paternalistic, but the state has an overriding interest in protecting these babies," he says. However, he added that storage of DNA for long periods of time is a different matter. "I don't see any reason to do that kind of storage," Caplan says. "If it's anonymous, then I don't care. I don't have an issue with that. But if you keep names attached to those samples, that makes me nervous."

DNA given to outside researchers

Genetic testing for newborns started in the 1960s with testing for diseases and conditions that, if undetected, could kill a child or cause severe problems, such as mental retardation. Since then, the screening has helped save countless newborns. Over the years, many other tests were added to the list. Now, states mandate that newborns be tested for anywhere between 28 and 54 different conditions, and the DNA samples are stored in state labs for anywhere from three months to indefinitely, depending on the state. (To find out how long your baby's DNA is stored, see this state-by-state list.) Brad Therrell, who runs the federally funded genetic resource consortium, says parents don't need to worry about the privacy of their babies' DNA. "The states have in place very rigid controls on those specimens," Therrell says. "If my children's DNA were in one of these state labs, I wouldn't be worried a bit." The specimens don't always stay in the state labs. They're often given to outside researchers -- sometimes with the baby's name attached. According to a study done by the state of Minnesota, more than 20 scientific papers have been published in the United States since 2000 using newborn blood samples. The researchers do not have to have parental consent to obtain samples as long as the baby's name is not attached, according to Amy Gaviglio, one of the authors of the Minnesota report. However, she says it's her understanding that if a researcher wants a sample with a baby's name attached, consent first must be obtained from the parents.

More Empowered Patient news and advice

Scientists have heralded this enormous collection of DNA samples as a "gold mine" for doing research, according to Gaviglio.

"This sample population would be virtually impossible to get otherwise," says Gaviglio, a genetic counselor for the Minnesota Department of Health. "Researchers go through a very stringent process to obtain the samples. States certainly don't provide samples to just anyone."

Brown says that even with these assurances, she still worries whether someone could gain access to her baby's DNA sample with Isabel's name attached.

"I know the government says my baby's data will be kept private, but I'm not so sure. I feel like my trust has been taken," she says.

Parents don't give consent to screening

Brown says she first lost trust when she learned that Isabel had received genetic testing in the first place without consent from her or her husband. "I don't have a problem with the testing, but I wish they'd asked us first," she says.

Since health insurance paid for Isabel's genetic screening, her positive test for a cystic fibrosis gene is now on the record with her insurance company, and the Browns are concerned this could hurt her in the future.

"It's really a black mark against her, and there's nothing we can do to get it off there," Brown says. "And let's say in the future they can test for a gene for schizophrenia or manic-depression and your baby tests positive -- that would be on there, too."

Brown says if the hospital had first asked her permission to test Isabel, now 10 months old, she might have chosen to pay for it out of pocket so the results wouldn't be known to the insurance company.

aplan says taking DNA samples without asking permission and then storing them "veers from the norm."

"In the military, for instance, they take and store DNA samples, but they tell you they're doing it, and you can choose not to join if you don't like it," he says.

What can parents do

In some states, including Minnesota and Texas, the states are required to destroy a baby's DNA sample if a parent requests it. Parents who want their baby's DNA destroyed are asked to fill out this form in Minnesota and this form in Texas. Parents in other states have less recourse, says Therrell, who runs the genetic testing group. "You'd probably have to write a letter to the state saying, 'Please destroy my sample,'" he says. He adds, however, that it's not clear whether a state would necessarily obey your wishes. "I suspect it would be very difficult to get those states to destroy your baby's sample," he says.

Source:  http://www.naturalnews.com/028651_government_DNA.html

Antidepressants: Best for Severe Depression?

Jan. 5, 2010 -- Some antidepressants may work best for people with very severe depression, according to a new analysis, but may provide little or no benefit over placebo for those with mild, moderate, or severe depression.



''For patients with very severe depression, the medication did have a potent effect compared to placebo," says Jay C. Fournier, a psychology graduate student at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, and lead author of the analysis, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

But, he says, ''the effects of the active ingredients of the medication were pretty small or nonexistent for patients with mild or moderate depression or even into the severe range."

However, the analysis only looked at two antidepressants.

Effects of Antidepressants: Study Details



Fournier and his colleagues pooled the results of six previously published studies that compared the effects of antidepressants to placebo for 718 adults with varying levels of depression.

Three of the studies looked at paroxetine (Paxil) and the others looked at imipramine (Tofranil).

Paxil is a type of antidepressant known as an SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor), which is thought to boost mood by making more of the neurotransmitter serotonin available in the brain. Other popular SSRIS include citalopram (Celexa), fluoxetine (Prozac), and sertraline (Zoloft).

Tofranil is an older medication, known as a tricyclic antidepressant, which works by making more of the neurotransmitters serotonin and norepinephrine available.

In the new analysis, Fournier's team only included studies that met their criteria. Studies, for instance, had to have individual patient data, not just overall results.

And the patients evaluated had a broader range of depression severity than those in most studies. Although many other studies only look at severely depressed patients (with a score of 23 or above on a commonly used scale known as the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale), Fournier's team evaluated studies that included patients with scores in the low teens, considered mild or moderate depression, through the 30s, or very severe.

Effects of Antidepressants: Study Results


''We were looking for differences between placebo and medications," Fournier tells WebMD. "We were interested in whether there was a clinically meaningful difference." One way the researchers defined ''clinically meaningful" was to have an improvement of three or more points on the Hamilton scale between placebo takers and medicine users.


''The main finding is that the benefit of medication, over and above the placebo, varied as a function of the severity of the depression," he says. "The effect of the medication for the mild, moderate, and even severe fell below this three-point difference that would be clinically significant."


The analysis suggests that some depressed people do respond to placebo, he says, and that severely depressed people are most likely to benefit from antidepressants.

Even so, he tells WebMD, individual treatment decisions should be made in consultation with a physician.

Source: http://www.webmd.com/depression/news/20100105/antidepressants-best-for-severe-depression

Acupuncture could help period pain, researchers say

Acupuncture may be an effective way of easing severe period pain, a South Korean review of 27 studies suggests.

Researchers said there was "promising evidence" for acupuncture in treating cramps, but that more work was needed.

In the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, they noted two studies found little difference between real and sham acupuncture in treating pain.

Acupuncture is a less contentious form of complementary medicine than some, but its value is still disputed.

Period pain can be severe in some women and may be accompanied by nausea, diarrhoea, migraine and backache. Common treatments include pain killers, applying heat and exercise - although a recent study questioned the efficacy of the latter.

This latest review involved 27 studies - which included nearly 3,000 women. They addressed a variety of forms of acupuncture - from classical to acupoint injection. Traditional acupuncturists insert needles in acupuncture points located along what they describe as "energy meridians" - a concept for which many scientists say there is no evidence. Sham acupuncture places needles away from these points.

It is not clear whether either form alleviates pain as a result of the placebo effect - the very ritual of undergoing acupuncture - or cause subtle changes in the nervous system and brain activity which can be beneficial.

Nice backs needles

The analysis by the team from Kyung Hee Medical Centre found that patients with severe period pain reported a greater reduction in their symptoms when using acupuncture compared with pharmacological treatments.

But they stressed there were methodological flaws in some studies, and that the findings did need to be interpreted with caution. Nevertheless, there was "promising evidence", they wrote.

In the UK, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) has backed the use of acupuncture in the treatment of low back pain - a move welcomed by some but criticised by those who say there is little evidence for its efficacy.

The editor-in-chief of the BJOG, Professor Philip Steer, noted that some women had period pain, also known as primary dysmenorrhoea, so badly they were "unable to function normally".

"Women with primary dysmenorrhoea should consult their GPs or gynaecologists on the best treatment available to them. Complementary therapies should not be used exclusively, at the expense of conventional treatment, unless significant improvements have been made and your doctor tells you otherwise."

Source of Article: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8518745.stm

2012 - The Movie

http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/2012/

We saw the movie yesterday, has a feel of "Independance Day" to it. Accept for the obvious framtization, at the beginning of he movie there are some factual statements made though. When the movie was released Sony Pictures put out a release stating people should be aware it is fiction and not take it seriously. Last week I spoke to some people in China who seemed to have taken it quite seriously though.

If you want to get behind the facts of the 2012 phenomenon then we suggest the one person who probably are the authoritive figure on 2012, Mr. Patrick Geryl.

Patrick wrote a brilliant book which became an international bestseller called The Orion Prophecy.

Find it here: http://www.2012survivornet.com/store.html

He has followed this up with his latest book, How To Survive 2012 which we will review in here shortly.

To find out more about Mr. Geryl visit his Blog at http://www.myspace.com/howtosurvive2012

Highly Recommended Organization

The author have been honoured to have undergone training from the Internationally acclaimed Growthpoint Organization with Dave and Val Wyllie. We highly recommend a visit to their website and for you to investigate the benefits of joining their family of graduates worldwide. There is not enough space on this Blog to expand the value their TAG training offers, we urge you to pay them a visit and drop an email to them if you have any questions.

Quicklink: www.Growthpoint.com

TAG is a graded step-by-step system of self-discovery. This is obtained through the implementation of uncommon sense, personal discovery, practical experience and the realisation that we create our world and control our lives with the power of our own thinking.

Study Redefines Placebo as Part of Effective treatment

Researchers used the placebo effect to successfully treat psoriasis patients with one quarter to one half of their usual dose of a widely used steroid medication, according to an early study published online today in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine. Early results in human patients suggest that the new technique could improve treatment for several chronic diseases that involve mental state or the immune system, including asthma, multiple sclerosis and chronic pain. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/174710.php

New Books, Supplies and DVD's Updated

The http://www.2012survivornet.com/store.html store has been updated with the latest books and DVD's on the 2012 subject. We have also now added a new category for 2012 Survival Supplies, everything you need to plan for self-sustainment.

Telomeres: Your LIFE gene discovered. The most important scientific longevity discovery ever made.

They are so important that their discoverers received the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2009.

"You were probably taught in high school biology that each time a cell divides, it produces two genetically identical copies of itself. That’s just not true. Each time a cell divides, the telomeres get a little bit shorter. The cell just can’t copy the very ends of the chromosomes because there’s nothing to hold onto. That means that a cell can only divide so many times before the telomeres run out. When that happens, the cell dies. The telomeres are literally the biological clock. It’s the basic mechanism of aging." – Extract of a conversation with Dr. Sears.
We will have a full page article on this significant discovery in a few days.

Messages in Water prooven scientifically correct and on Tamiflu - Big Pharma does it again.

Dr. Emoto (Messages In Water) proven scientifically correct in double blind study.

The discovery of Dr. Emoto that became public knowledge after his studies were shown in the movie The Secret, was proven to be scientific fact after scientists did a double blind study on the effect that intention has on the formation of water crystals. For those unfamiliar with the study it means, very shortly, that if you change your intention it can have a very beneficial, or devastating, effect on your body.

Tamiflu anti-viral drug revealed as a complete hoax; Roche studies based on scientific fraud.

Big Pharma trying to patent nature all over again. The drug giant Roche has been caught red handed again in defrauding the public by patenting a Chinese herbal medicine for profit. The catch is though they have been using only certain elements bio-engineered from the traditional herb and this has severe medical risks for the unsuspecting sick patient.

What should REALLY make you worry is the fact that the FDA made Roche print the following on the leaflets of the drug: "Tamiflu has not been proven to have a positive impact on the potential consequences (such as hospitalizations, mortality, or economic impact) of seasonal, avian, or pandemic influenza."

See http://www.justgetthere.us/ for detailed on the last two articles.

In Child Pain Relief, Antidepressant And Placebo Found To Be Equally Effective

When used "off-label," the antidepressant amitriptyline works just as well as placebo in treating pain-predominant gastrointestinal disorders in children, according to a new study in Gastroenterology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute. To view this article's video abstract, go to the AGA's YouTube Channel at http://www.youtube.com/AmerGastroAssn.

"Many pharmaceutical products are prescribed for off-label use in children due to the lack of clinical trials testing the efficacy of the drugs in children and adolescents. Therefore, the pediatric gastroenterologist frequently has to make treatment decisions without the evidence of how drugs work in children," said Miguel Saps, MD, of Children's Memorial Hospital and lead author of the study. "The high placebo effect we identified in this study suggests that further studies of the use of certain antidepressants in children with functional bowel disorders are needed. While several trials have demonstrated a beneficial effect of antidepressants, including amitriptyline, for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in adults, more research is needed to determine how effective this drug is, if at all, in children." http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/165906.php

Extraterrestrial DNA in your body?

Scientists find Extraterrestrial genes in Human DNA

An article that appeared in The Canadian National Newspaper in 2007 stated that a group of scientists found our so called "Junk DNA" to be related to Extraterrestrial origin. Also that that DNA is anti cancer drug resistant. Here is a short extract of the article:

"A group of researchers working at the Human Genome Project indicate that they made an astonishing scientific discovery: They believe so-called 97% non-coding sequences in human DNA is no less than genetic code of extraterrestrial life forms.

The non-coding sequences are common to all living organisms on Earth, from moulds to fish to humans. In human DNA, they constitute larger part of the total genome, says Prof. Sam Chang, the group leader. Non-coding sequences, originally known as "junk DNA", were discovered years ago, and their function remained a mystery. The overwhelming majority of Human DNA is "Off-world" in origin. The apparent "extraterrestrial junk genes" merely "enjoy the ride" with hard working active genes, passed from generation to generation.

After comprehensive analysis with the assistance of other scientists, computer programmers, mathematicians, and other learned scholars, Professor Chang had wondered if the apparently "junk Human DNA" was created by some kind of "extraterrestrial programmer". The alien chunks within Human DNA, Professor Chang further observes, "have its own veins, arteries, and its own immune system that vigorously resists all our anti-cancer drugs." Author: John Stokes

They have the picture of an "Allien" living amongst us as shown. I have tried to follow the links provided but was unable to trace the origin as yet, (link of article below)

Whether or not the above is true I would not know, what I DO know however, is that a genius Biophysicist, Dr. Bruce Lipton PH .d has made a remarkable discovery: The cells in our bodies constantly listens in to our emotions and then does Exactly as instructed, and we don't have to, or probably very infrequently are, aware of it.

Dr. Lipton further discovered that our DNA contrary to what we have been taught, is NOT the living stuff of our cells, it merely is the Blueprint. Cells can live for two months or more without the embedded DNA. What is even more astonishing is that we can re-program the DNA. This means that if you have a dis-ease you have within the potential to override the "bad" code in your DNA, so next time the cell need to make a copy of the DNA to reproduce a cell, it will will make a new "good" cell instead of the old "bad" one.

The implication is also that if you have "good" DNA, you can by the power of your perception also make it "bad" DNA.

Knowing this makes so much more sense about the power of your belief system.

So in actual fact, to quote the Bible, the verse "The kingdom of God is within you" gets new meaning. And even "You are created in the image of God, Nothing is impossible to you if you believe"

The books by Dr. Lipton is available here: http://www.2012survivornet.com/page28.html

Source of article on DNA:

http://web.archive.org/web/20071013000423/www.agoracosmopolitan.com/home/Frontpage/2007/01/08/01288.html