Archive for the ‘Life Extension’ Category

Bank of Nova Scotia grew its stake in Sealed Air Corp (NYSE:SEE) by 7.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 128,998 shares of the industrial products companys stock after purchasing an additional 8,668 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia owned about 0.08% of Sealed Air worth $5,519,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SEE. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in Sealed Air in the 1st quarter worth approximately $50,283,000. APG Asset Management N.V. boosted its position in Sealed Air by 173.0% in the 2nd quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 829,152 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $31,148,000 after purchasing an additional 525,381 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in Sealed Air by 23.8% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,408,334 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $60,249,000 after purchasing an additional 271,125 shares in the last quarter. AJO LP purchased a new stake in Sealed Air in the 1st quarter worth approximately $7,036,000. Finally, Cibc World Markets Corp boosted its position in Sealed Air by 287.5% in the 2nd quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 195,749 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $8,374,000 after purchasing an additional 145,235 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.58% of the companys stock.

NYSE SEE opened at $41.37 on Monday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $41.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.47. Sealed Air Corp has a one year low of $30.22 and a one year high of $47.13. The company has a market cap of $6.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.08.

Sealed Air (NYSE:SEE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The industrial products company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.16. Sealed Air had a negative return on equity of 121.14% and a net margin of 7.84%. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. The firms revenue was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Sealed Air Corp will post 2.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th were paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 5th. Sealed Airs dividend payout ratio is currently 25.60%.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SEE. Wells Fargo & Co increased their target price on Sealed Air from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. ValuEngine lowered Sealed Air from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. KeyCorp reiterated a sell rating and set a $39.00 target price on shares of Sealed Air in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Bank of America lowered Sealed Air from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $41.63 target price on the stock. in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. The stock has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $42.69.

Sealed Air Profile

Sealed Air Corporation provides food safety and security, and product protection solutions worldwide. It operates in two segments, Food Care and Product Care. The Food Care segment offers integrated packaging materials and equipment solutions to provide food safety, shelf life extension, and total cost optimization for perishable food processors in the fresh red meat, smoked and processed meats, poultry, and dairy markets under the Cryovac, Cryovac Grip & Tear, Cryovac Darfresh, Cryovac Mirabella, Simple Steps, and Optidure brands.

See Also: Insider Trading

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Sealed Air Corp (NYSE:SEE) Shares Acquired by Bank of Nova Scotia - TechNewsObserver

The idea of paying a company hundreds of thousands of dollars to freeze your body or brain in the hope that they will one day bring you back to life initially may seem farcical.

The mere fact that this notion has featured in several movies and television shows suggests this is make-believe, something that would probably not happen in real life.

Who could forget that fantastic scene from Austin Powers when doctors successfully thaw out Mike Myers so that he can live in another era?

Well, this is no movie. And no joke.

And interestingly, Alcor CEO Max More isn't bothered by cryonics being trivialised for entertainment.

"I don't think it stigmatises it, I think it actually makes it seem more plausible," More says when I asked him about this at his Arizona Headquarters.

He shares the building with about 170 frozen bodies and brains all suspended upside down in liquid nitrogen-filled vats.

As I walked through the room where all these cryopreserved people are, it feels eerie and weird, quite frankly.

But there are more than 1250 Alcor members who've signed up for the same fate from all over the world Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Portugal, the UK, the US, Italy, Israel and more.

These members all have the choice of freezing their whole body for about A$300,000 or just their brain for A$118,000.

That is, needless to say, a lot of cash to hand over for a service the company can't even promise will eventuate.

"There's no guarantee but it seems like it's worth a shot," More says.

Alcor founder Linda Chamberlain explains that members sign a nine-page consent form.

"We tell people everything that could possibly go wrong and that's extremely important because what we are doing is still experimental and people need to know that," she says.

"The Alcor Life Extension Foundation is the world leader in cryonics, cryonics research, and cryonics technology," their website reads.

"Cryonics is the practice of using ultra-cold temperature to preserve a human body with the intent of restoring good health when the technology becomes available to do so."

The hope or as they prefer to call it, "probability" is that one day science will have been developed that is capable of reviving frozen patients.

They would come back to life as the same person, with the same DNA.

I was wildly sceptical about this upon arriving at their Scottsdale building in the hot desert of Arizona.

I was worried members may be vulnerable to handing over thousands of dollars on false promises.

But it was quickly evident that those running this business whole-heartedly believe the plausibility of cryonics recreating life in the future.

The reality is not many people can afford to become a member and embark on such a thing.

But, if you were a millionaire, even if you thought this was questionable, what have you got to lose? When you're dead, you're dead.

Or are you? That's the question.

Even the masterminds behind this concept don't have the answer. Hence the consent form.

Continued here:
Inside the lab where frozen bodies wait for a second lease on life - 9News

The House Science, Space and Technology Committee said it is drafting its own nuclear energy bill, which two people familiar with the matter said will imperil passage of the Nuclear Energy Leadership Act in its current form. But people in talks with the committee say that it is likely to draw heavily from the premier advanced nuclear energy legislation in Congress.

House Science Committee majority staff said in an email Thursday that the committee is still in the process of drafting its legislation. Our bill wont be identical to NELA, but we expect it will comprehensively authorize and guide DOE nuclear energy R&D activities, the committee staff said.

Jeremy Harrell, managing director of policy at the conservative energy nonprofit ClearPath, said the science committees move does not necessarily extend the timeline or complicate passage of much of NELA, which would call on the federal government to establish a 10-year national strategy for nuclear energy and to demonstrate multiple advanced nuclear reactor concepts over the next several years, among other things.

He said the committee appears supportive of NELAs reactor demonstrations provision, for example, through which the Energy Department would need to demonstrate between four and seven advanced nuclear reactor designs by the end of 2035.

I think when push comes to shove, Science and Tech wants to make sure that they have their own bill within their circuit, Harrell said. Theyve got their own ideas; theyre not going to just take something from Lisa Murkowski, the Alaska lawmaker who chairs the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and sponsored the bill in the Senate.

Science moving forward with its own bill means that another vehicle will need to be found to enact an industry-favored provision of NELA to extend the federal power purchase agreement length from 10 to 40 years for nuclear, since the provision falls outside the committees jurisdiction.

I cannot envision any legislation on power purchase agreements coming out of the House any time soon, said a person familiar with the matter, who said there has been no sign from Energy and Commerce that they intend to work on power purchase agreement legislation.

The person, who said the plan appears for the committee to circulate a working draft of the bill to stakeholders before Thanksgiving, said that the science panel is considering including some language on high-assay low-enriched uranium fuel which multiple advanced reactors would require to operate from NELA as well as from the McNerney-Flores HALEU bill that recently passed the House.

The House Science measure, which is intended to lie under the panels sole jurisdiction, means that movement on NELA in the House is now more unlikely, according to two people familiar with the developments.

Alyse Huffman, the committees American Nuclear Society Glenn T. Seaborg congressional fellow, is the lead author of the new legislation. It remains unclear whether the panels nuclear bill will be folded into a broader energy package out of the committee.

In a brief interview Friday morning, House Science EnergySubcommittee Chairman Conor Lamb (D-Pa.) said the committee is considering a possible parallel to the Senate version of NELA, while somewhat separately considering legislation for advanced nuclear research in areas such as the national labs and ARPA-E program. He did not yet have a sense of when the committees legislation might come out and said that talks were ongoing with House Science Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas).

Were looking at things for life extension of the existing plants, which is important, Lamb added, as NELA instead focuses on newer reactor concepts.

It is not yet clear whether the House Energy and Commerce Committee will take separate action on NELA. The bill has also been referred to the House Armed Services and Oversight and Reform committees.

The only thing Im aware of is the positive news that Representative Clyburn is very interested in advancing it, Rep. Elaine Luria (D-Va.) said in a brief interview Friday morning, referring to the Democratic representative from South Carolina. Luria introduced NELA in the House on June 18. Were working with his staff to help that happen.

Lamb said Luria had asked him to champion NELA within the science committee.

An Energy and Commerce Committee spokesperson said in an email Friday that there have been staff-level conversations between it, Luria and others.

David Blee, chief executive of the U.S. Nuclear Industry Council, cautioned that NELA has not yet passed the Senate a difficult feat in the current political climate.

Harrell said that the current expectation is that senators will try to pass NELA as part of a larger energy package, with potential floor time in January or February.

Blee said that the preference is usually to have it as part of a package, since both parties want action across the energy and environmental space, and the House will likely want balancing legislation for renewables and other energy sources if it moves on a nuclear bill.

To the extent the House Science panel comes up with that recipe, thats helpful, Blee added.

Even if NELAs provisions are not enactedquickly, there are promising signs from the Senate that bolstering federal support and development of advanced nuclear technologies is a priority. The Senate Energy and Water appropriations subcommittee, led by NELA co-sponsor Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), has slated key funding for provisions within NELA without cutting other federal nuclear energy R&D efforts, as had been feared. Harrell said the House is also likely to be supportive of nuclear energy funding.

But a lot remains up in the air on the budget and appropriationsas a whole, and it remains useful to pass legislation authorizing the provisions of NELA outright, said Harrell, especially since the demonstration portion runs through 2035.

We think its critical that were demonstrating new technologies in that time frame, Harrell said. Otherwise, nuclears going to get left behind.

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Path Shifts for Advanced Nuclear Legislation in the House - Morning Consult

Growing emphasis on the food safety and longer shelf life has played an important role in the development of ingredients that aid in food preservation. These ingredients vary from simple water content to salt or sugar to chemicals like antioxidants and are used to prevent growth of microorganisms, thereby delaying the spoilage process. In terms of origin, food safety and shelf life extension ingredients can be synthetic or natural in nature.

Food preserving ingredients have been an integral part of kitchen aisles in the form of lemon, ginger, vinegar, spices, salt and sugar. Their traditional utilization was replaced by synthetic ingredients with increasing commercialization of the food industry in past decades. However, with the dissemination of knowledge related to harmful effects of synthetic ingredients, currently, the industry is witnessing a prominent shift toward natural ingredients for food safety and shelf life extension.

Shelf Life Extension Ingredients Market Notable Developments In January 2019, Kemin, a global nutritional ingredient company launched NaturCEASE Dry, a new clean-label and natural food safety solution. The product is a combination of natural plant extract and buffered vinegar for the use in the preservation of processed meat products. Researchers from the Penn State University studied a class of Alkylresorcinils (AR) found in grain plants such as barley, rye and wheat. Scientists revealed that these compounds can act as food preservative owing to their antioxidant and mold and bacteria prevention properties. The European Court of Auditors (ECA) announced publication of the report 'Chemical hazards in our food: EU food safety policy protects us but face challenges on 15 January 2019. The conclusion of the report focuses on updating current EU legal framework and implementing and enforcing new issues that compromise consumer protection from chemical hazard in food.

Shelf Life Extension Ingredients Market Dynamics

Clean-Label Trend Fuels Synthetic to Natural Transition in Food Ingredient Landscape

Browse more detail information about this report at https://www.tmrresearch.com/shelf-life-extension-ingredients-market

Naturally sourced ingredients have gained significant traction as consumer preference for natural products continues to surge. In terms of effectiveness, natural preservatives are superior in delivering greater protection and longer shelf life. As they work with equivalent efficiency and are healthful in nature, adoption of naturally sourced ingredients is increasing consistently as compared to the synthetic options.

Natural ingredients such as antimicrobials or antioxidants have additional potential health benefits also. Well aware of the increasing consumer demand for natural food products that are without artificial ingredients, manufacturers in the food ingredient market are introducing bio-based or naturally sourced food safety ingredients.

Frozen Foods Drive Demand for Specialized Food Safety Ingredients

Ranging from salads to sauces or ready meals to rice, a plethora of food products are available in frozen forms. As the demand for fresh and frozen foods increase across the globe, food manufacturers are seeking innovative ways to introduce novel food safety ingredients to extend the shelf life of frozen foods.

Manufacturers in the food safety and shelf life extension ingredient market are introducing ingredients specific to refrigerated products. Along with providing safety, these ingredients are label friendly and help in reducing sodium content while enhancing consumers sensory experience.

Shelf Life Extension Ingredients Market Regional Outlook

Download Brochure of This Market Report at https://www.tmrresearch.com/sample/sample?flag=B&rep_id=4578&source=atm

North America presents lucrative opportunities for the Shelf Life Extension Ingredients Market on the back of buoyancy in regions the food and beverage industry and presence of leading F&B companies.

The market is likely to witness increasing opportunities in the developing countries of Asia pacific. These countries are witnessing huge demand for frozen foods, RTD food and beverages and processed food, thereby presenting higher potential for the market in the future.

Shelf Life Extension Ingredients Market Segmentation

The Shelf Life Extension Ingredients Market is segmented into following,

Based on type, Shelf Life Extension Ingredients Market can be segmented in, Natural Synthetic

Based in function, Shelf Life Extension Ingredients Market can be segmented in, Anti-oxidant Anti-microbial Others

Based on application, Shelf Life Extension Ingredients Market can be segmented in, Dairy Products Snacks Meat & Poultry Products Beverages Bakery Products Others

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Shelf Life Extension Ingredients Market To Grow in the Coming Years, New Research explores Factors Responsible - NewsStoner

Fall is one of the biggest seasons for publishers, so there are always lots of new books to get excited about. But how many of these books exist outside of the white, cisgender, heterosexual norm? The answer continues to be, not enough.

However, there are still a lot of compelling titles being released over the next few months from LGBTQIA+ writers for those of us who seek broader representation in literature. Theres a sports anthology that bursts with poetry and a decolonization narrative; there are memoirs about aging; short stories; novels that take place in Uruguay and Portland, Oregon,and Brooklyn, New York; new books from debut authors and old favorites of the queer literary canon. Its an exciting time for queer readers: Although we have a long way to go toward diversifying the publishing industry, more of our stories are being given space to be told. Here are some highlights coming up.

Elissa Altman, Motherland(Ballantine, 8/6)

Elissa Altman is the author of two previous memoirs, including Poor Mans Feast: A Love Story of Comfort, Desire, and the Art of Simple Cooking, born of her James Beard Award-winning blog of the same name. In this new memoir, Altman explores her codependent relationship with her mother, a glamorous Manhattan singer named Rita. Growing up, Elissa didnt fit her mothers high-femme standards of makeup, dresses, and generally keeping up appearances. Her identity as a lesbian was also a source of tension between them. As an adult, Elissa moved to New England, where she lived with her wife, Susan, forging her own identity away from her mother. But when Rita hasa fall that results in physical disability, Elissa finds herself taking care of her mother again and coming to terms with the reality of caring for an aging parent. With poignant and often very funny prose, Motherland makes for a wonderful addition to the narrow canon of stories about queer women caring for their aging mothers. Another great memoir in this vein is Cherre Moragas Native Country of the Heart (FSG, 2019).

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Kimberly King Parsons, Black Light (Vintage, 8/13)

If you pay attention to best-of book lists, Black Light has probably come across your radar.The prose in this debut short-story collection is richly detailed in describing both the characterswho are weird, flawed, and so humanand the settings theyre in; its lyricism feels like a delicate dance and a gut-punch at once. The book isnt marketed as queer, but there is a lot of queer content here; Parsons is particularly strong in writing about the complicated intimacies between teenage girls.

Carolina de Robertis, Cantoras (Knopf, 9/3)

The new novel from the author of The Gods of Tango (which also features a protagonist who explores their fluid gender and sexuality), Cantoras begins in 1970s Uruguay as five young queer women come together on an island for a getaway. Over the course of about 40 years, it follows their lives together and apart, including under the Uruguayan dictatorship during the 70s and early 80s. This is another multi character-driven epic, both painful and beautiful to read, with vivid prose. Also, it has one of the best opening paragraphs this reviewer has seen in a while.

Carley Moore, The Not Wives (Feminist Press, 9/10)

In this debut novel, Carley Moore (author of the essay collection 16 Pills) transports the reader right into the heart of the Occupy Wall Street movement. Brimming with details that will bring anyone who remembers the early 2010s right back to that era (from fashion, to the way people talked about politics and queerness), this story follows a sprawling cast of characters, almost all of whom are queer: the protagonist, Stevie, her young daughter Sasha, her friends Mel and Jenny, a young runaway named Johanna, and a number of others. Moore deftly captures the atmosphere of Zuccotti Park as well as the political atmosphere around the movement, which spurred people all over the world to renew discussions about class, race, gender, and social structures.

Gabby Rivera, Juliet Takes a Breath (Penguin Teen re-release, 9/19)

This debut novel from Gabby Riverawho also wrote Marvels Americawas originally published in 2016. An instant queer YA classic, it is now getting the wide distribution it deserves with a reprint from Penguin Teen. It follows maybe one of the best characters ever written, Juliet Milagros Palante, a young queer Latinx woman from the Bronx who spends a summer interning for fictional white feminist icon author Harlowe Brisbane in Portland, Oregon. The ways in which Juliet grapples with coming out, unlearning colonialist and white supremacist ideas, and discovering her own values give this novel teeth. But the real joy of this story is Juliet herself, a character whose self-doubt is rivaled by her self-confidence; whose big heart and book-nerd brain envelop the reader; and whose relationships with the fascinating characters around her make for one of this falls most satisfying reads.

Jacqueline Woodson, Red at the Bone (Riverhead, 9/17)

Jaqueline Woodson is an award-winning author of many YA novels, including Another Brooklyn and Brown Girl Dreaming. Shes now bringing her signature spare and poetic prose to this adult novel set in Brooklyn. The book opens with the seemingly lighthearted scene of 16-year-old Melodys coming-of-age ceremony, which happens to the orchestral tunes of Prince. From there, the story moves back and forth in time, spanning the events faced by three generations of Melodys family. Red at the Bone has one explicitly queer character, but isnt really about being queer. In that way, its a beautiful example of queerness being a part of everyday life, in families and friendships. The book touches on class, gender, sexuality, age, race in the United Statesall within a tender story of love in its many forms. Its a perfect one- or two-sitting read for a crisp fall day, one that will stay with you long after its over.

Jeanette Winterson, Frankissstein (Grove Atlantic, 10/1)

Jeanette Winterson is well-known to many queer readers from her prolific work, notably Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, Written on the Body, The Passion, and Why Be Happy When You Can Be Normal? Her latest novel delivers a reinterpretation of Mary Shelleys Frankenstein. Multiple Frankensteins are being produced and experimented with in this novel:Shelley is creating her novel in the fictionalized chapters about her; scientist Victor Stein is creating an AI in the very near future, while trans nonbinary scientist Ry is falling in love with him; a creepy foundation in Arizona called Alcor Life Extension is scheming to create live humans from body parts; and a man named Ron Lord is creating the next generation of sex dolls. Its a wacky ride about what it means to be human and what it means to be alive, and it will not disappoint Winterson fans.

Natalie Daz & Hannah Ensor, eds., Bodies Built for Game (University of Nebraska Press, 10/1)

You might recognize Natalie Dazname from her professional basketball career, or her poetry collection When My Brother Was an Aztec (shes also got one forthcoming in March called Postcolonial Love Poem); and Hannah Ensors from her collection Love Dream With Television or her recent Lambda Literary 2019 Judith A. Markowitz Award for Emerging Writers win. But if you dont, rest assured that they are a dream team for bringing together this unique and innovative anthology of sports writing. With an array of writers (including Danez Smith, Fatimah Asghar, and Hanif Abdurraqib, among others), this book picks apart the meaning of sport from the perspective of people who are not cis straight white men. From participation in sports (team or otherwise) to sports fandom; from analyzing the metaphor of sport to examining modern sports oppressive, exploitative, and colonialist roots; from exploring the intersections of identity (including gender and sexuality) and sports to grappling with the corporeal demands of athletics; his anthology breaks all kinds of barriers. And although it includes essay, fiction, and creative nonfiction, the book centers poetry as the dominant form, which is unusual for sports anthologies. This is definitely a must-read before that NFL game on Thanksgiving Day.

Edie Windsor and Joshua Lyon, A Wild and Precious Life (St. Martins, 10/8)

Edie Windsors case against the United States led to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that overturned the Defense of Marriage Act. This, in turn,paved the way for Obergefell v. Hodges, which legalized marriage equality nationwide in 2015. But Windsor was more than these headlines, and more than her constant presence at rallies and protests. This memoir, begun by Windsor and completed by her co-writer Joshua Lyon after her death in 2017, chronicles her life beginning with her childhood in Philadelphia and moving through her young adulthood in 1950s Greenwich Village, her life with her partner of 44 years, Thea Spyer, and her fascinating rise in the ranks of computing at IBM. Windsor was a queer woman who believed in her right to take up space and be seen, which makes for an uplifting and inspiring story in which Lyons does an excellent job of making sure Windsors stirring and joyful voice shines through.

Jaquira Daz, Ordinary Girls (Algonquin, 10/29)

Every once in a while a truly electric debut memoir comes along, and this fall, Ordinary Girls is it. As a young person, Dazlife was upended many times by physical and emotional violence. Longing for family and sometimes finding itin her sister, her grandmother, her friendsDaz writes her story in a musical prose that plays with future and past tense, putting the reader in the narrators shoes as she navigates unreliable memories and unknown futures. Daz narrative starts in Puerto Rico, goes to Miami Beach, into schools and juvenile detention centers, into stronger-than-blood relationships with friends, lovers and family; it goes into the navy, into familial legacy and colonial history. Its the story of an ordinary girl; its the story of all of the extraordinary girls. Daz is a skilled writer who strongly layers micro details with the macro structures of identity, white supremacy, colonialism, and brown, queer, and femme resilience and resistance.

Cyrus Grace Dunham, A Year Without a Name (Little, Brown, 10/15)

A Year Without a Name, an honest account of one persons journey with gender, identity, and mental illness, is Cyrus Grace Dunhams snapshot of a recent two-year span in which they become a changing adult in a changing world. Its a quick read, but punchynearly every sentence is sharp, full of importance, at once deeply intellectual and ethereal. Dunham navigates how confusing gender is: how useless it can be while also existing as an essential facet of identity. Theyre extremely self-aware, which at times feels like more of a burden than a gift. Dunham stays true to their unfinished story by packing a lot of meaning into just 176 pages but never reaching concrete conclusions. But the concrete would be antithetical to the story; Dunham lives in the truth that all of us are unfinished, forever growing and learning. This in itself is a very queer frame of thought.

Carmen Maria Machado, In the Dream House (Graywolf, 11/5)

Carmen Maria Machado became everyones gay aunt, thank goodness, when she Mary Poppinsd into our hearts with her genre-bending, brutal, gorgeous, queer, wild debut story collection, Her Body and Other Parties, in 2017. Her debut memoir, In The Dream House, is a firecracker of a follow-upa story that is as scary as it is playful, as intellectual as it is emotional, as personal as it is universal. Its the story of Machados relationship with an abusive partner and how it, along with her upbringing and beliefs imposed by society, affected her growth as a person. It brings to the page something that is sorely lacking in mainstream literature: the reality of abuse in queer relationships, especially lesbian ones. Machado uses her characteristic wit and fearlessness to shed light on love, terror, history, culture, narrative structure, and representation from multiple angles. Its a must-read, haunting story for the dark months ahead.

Tommy Pico, Feed (Tin House, 11/5)

The final installment of Tommy Picos Teebs tetrology (preceeded by IRL, Nature Poem, and Junk), this collection from the superstar queer Indigenous writer-hero returns us to the character of Teebs, a kind of alter-ego. Like his previous volumes, Feed is full of irreverent humor, razor-sharp stanzas, and stream-of-consciousness philosophy. Pico explores uncertainty and seasonality, the horror and ubiquity of todays headlines, friendship and dating, food and aliens, and of course, a few signature dick jokes. Nothing is quite like the experience of reading Picos workits a simultaneously heady and grounding adventure.

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13 Books by LGBTQ Writers to Read This Fall - Rewire.News

This story from the Australian Aviation archives comes from October 2012, when Ellis Taylor wrote about the Bombardier Dash 8 operations in Australia.

A Skippers Dash 8-300. (Paul Sadler)

Since the late 1980s, the Bombardier Dash8 has been a staple of regional aviation in Australia, with various iterations of the turboprop in service across the country.

Today, the 84 Dash 8 aircraft registered in the country serve a number of regional communities, both on scheduled services and in charters, while some have also been modified for special missions.

Those form part of a global fleet of over 1,000 Dash 8s of all types which fly in practically every corner of the globe.

Development of the aircraft started in the late 1970s when De Havilland Canada (DHC) found there to be large demand for a 30-40 seat commuter aircraft. Part of that requirement was to replace the venerable Fokker F27 Friendship, while it also provided a step up from smaller 19seat regional aircraft such as the Fairchild Metroliner.

It also followed the technically successful but sales-challenged Dash 7. That aircraft, which featured four turboprops and a capacity for 50 passengers, was legendary for its short takeoff and landing (STOL) abilities, capable of operating from airstrips as small as 610m.

At the time, it was envisioned that networks of STOL-ports could be established across Europe and North America close to major city centres.

However, the Dash 7 was a relative sales flop, with only 113 produced. While the STOL capabilities were impressive, many commuter airlines in North America and other markets simply did not require it. The higher fuel and maintenance costs of the four engines also made it uneconomical against other types.

That led to the development of the Dash8-100, which made its first flight in 1983 and entered service in 1984.

Powered by two Pratt & Whitney Canada PW120 turboprops driving four-bladed propellers, the Dash 8 promised the capability of carrying up to 39 passengers in an airliner-style cabin. And although it did not have the STOL capability of the Dash7, the aircrafts high wing and still respectable landing performance made it well suited to the regional environment.

The aircraft quickly became a success in the market, with many sold to a range of operators around the world.

Over time, DHC also added tweaks to the 100 series Dash 8. In 1990, it introduced the -101 which had additional headroom in the cabin and introduced PW120A engines. This was followed in 1992 with the -106 variant which introduced more powerful PW121 engines capable of producing 1,605kW (2,150shp) of power, and improved the aircrafts climb and short field performance.

Following the early success of the Dash8 in the 37-seat category, DHC pressed ahead in 1986 with plans to stretch the basic airframe and create a variant capable of accommodating 50 passengers.

That resulted in the launch of the Dash8300, which featured a 3.43m stretch to the fuselage with a stretch to the basic airframe to accommodate 50 seats and more powerful PW123 turboprops.

The first Dash 8-300 made its first flight in May 1987, with first delivery in May 1989.

The underside of a Skippers Dash 8-300. (Les Bushell)

As with the -100 series before it, DHC would launch improved variants of the -300, utilising different engine combinations to deliver more performance. The -311 was introduced in 1990 with new PW123A engines and a revised interior, while the -300A allowed for increased payload.

Then in 1992 DHC announced plans to add further enhancements to the basic -100 design that became the -200 series. Using the same fuselage and wing design as the -100, this variant introduced PW123 engines as used on the -300 series, giving it better range and performance in hot and high conditions. The type entered service in 1995, and most of the 105 produced remain in service today.

A Skytrans Dash 8 Q300 at Sydney Airport in August 2013. (Rob Finlayson)

For a number of years, Dash 8 production and development continued on while DHC underwent a series of changes. In 1986 the company was sold by the Canadian government to Boeing, which later tried to use it to win a significant aircraft order from Air Canada. Following the loss of that competition to Airbus, Boeing immediately put the company up for sale, and in 1992 it was sold to transport conglomerate Bombardier.

Despite the changes in ownership during the late 1980s and early 1990s, DHC/Bombardier continued to work on further developments to the Dash 8. This included the addition of an ingenious active noise and vibration suppression system being added across the lineup in 1996, and resulted in the Q designations being added to aircraft after that.

In total, Bombardier delivered 299 Dash8-100s, 105 Q200s and 267 Q300s before production of those types ceased in 2009 due to the backlog for the models being filled, and production switching solely to the 74-seat Q400.

A file image of a QantasLink Q200 at Mt Hotham. (Australian Aviation archive)

Q400

As with the -300/Q300 before it, the Q400 was largely based on the basic Dash8 design but with a further stretch. That necessitated a number of modifications to the aircrafts tail and wings.

The other major change was to the engines, with the model introducing the PW150A engines capable of producing 3,781kW (5,071shp) and driving six-bladed Dowty composite propellers. These engines also introduced full authority digital engine control (FADEC) to the Dash 8.

In the cockpit, Bombardier added a Thales digital avionics suite, making the cockpit more aligned to modern airliners than the previous Dash 8 models.

The Q400 also introduced two entry doors at the forward and aft ends of the aircraft, while earlier Dash 8s only featured front access doors.

The aircraft had its first flight in January 1998, with Canadian certification awarded in 1999. The first delivery to launch customer SAS Commuter occurred in January 2000.

The Q400 is able to cruise at 360kt, putting it closer towards the speeds of regional jets. Added to that, the aircraft has a ceiling of 27,000ft, allowing it to fly higher than other regional turboprops.

Despite those capabilities, the Q400s reputation became tarnished in 2007 following a series of landing gear failures in Europe. Launch customer SAS even publicly stated that it would dispose of its fleet as a result of the accidents, but the airline later ordered more aircraft after reaching an agreement on compensation with Bombardier.

A file image of an Air Niugini Q400. (Australian Aviation archive)

The Q400 has also had some troubles locally with landing gear issues. Following a manufacturer-mandated inspection in August 2010, QantasLink was forced to ground five Q400s temporarily to replace certain parts of the landing gear after cracks were found.

While it has been the mainstay of production for a number of years, Bombardier has more recently transitioned across to solely produce the upgraded Q400 NextGen.

Compared to the standard Q400, the NextGen has an updated cabin with improved lighting, larger overhead bins and revised windows, while it has also delivered some improvements in maintenance costs and fuel burn.

Last year Bombardier announced that it would offer a two-class configuration on the Q400 NextGen which would also be offered as a retrofit for existing Q400 operators. United Express is the first carrier to operate a Q400 with the three-abreast business class configuration.

Despite the general turn back towards operating turboprops over regional jets, the Q400 has lagged in the sales race, with the rival ATR 72 stealing a number of orders.

On a global scale, the Q400s sales success has been somewhat muted until recently. A number of larger competitions saw orders go to the rival ATR 72, which some analysts say has a lower acquisition price and lower fuel burn.

Nevertheless, Bombardier has recently had significant orders from Canadian carrier WestJet and Polands EuroLot, which have helped to boost its backlog to 54 aircraft.

QantasLink Q400 named Darling Downs at Wellcamp Airport. (Wellcamp)

Local operations

With regional services such a large part of Australias aviation network, it was inevitable that the Dash 8 would have a long career flying in southern skies.

Eastern Australia Airlines received its first Dash 8-100 in 1988. That was followed in 1998 by the arrival of Sunstate Airlines first -200 series aircraft. Sunstate later took delivery of its first Q300 in January 2000, while the Q400 was added to its fleet from January 2006.

Today QantasLink operates 27 Q400s, 16 Q300s and five Dash 8-200s, with one Q400 still to be delivered. The aircraft now operate in almost all states, with routes ranging from Sydney-Canberra right up to the much longer Cairns-Port Moresby sector. The -200 series aircraft are also used to maintain the link between Sydney and Lord Howe Island.

A QantasLink Q300. (Australian Aviation archive)

QantasLink disposed of its last -100 series aircraft in 2010, with most of them joining the other major Dash 8 operators, Cairns-based Skytrans and Perth-based Skippers Aviation.

Skytrans now operates 11 Dash 8-100s and three Dash 8-300s, while Skippers has a fleet of four Dash 8-100s and six Dash8-300s.

Both operators primarily use the aircraft on mining charter services, where the aircrafts range and hot and high capabilities have been especially valued, as well as its ability to operate from unpaved airstrips when serving remote mine sites. The carriers also use them on their limited regular public transport (RPT) networks to remote centres to great effect.

For Skippers, adding the -300 to its fleet has allowed it to ride the resources boom, with the aircraft allowing for bigger shift changes at some of the mines it flies to. Similarly, the aircraft has also given it the option to up-gauge some of its RPT services in WA to meet demand.

Cobham Aviation Services has also been a longtime Dash 8 operator, having leased in -100 and -300 series aircraft to meet the needs of its resource charter clients.

Cobhams Surveillance Australia is also a notable Dash 8 operator, flying six Dash8-200s and four Dash 8-300s, which have been modified to carry a specialised sensor system and larger fuel tanks to enable it to carry out maritime surveillance missions on behalf of Customs.

A file image of a Dash 8 aircraft operated by Cobham conducting aerial surveillance. (Cobham Aviation Services)

Across the Tasman, now-defunct carriers Ansett New Zealand and Origin Pacific operated Dash 8-100s and -300s.

Air New Zealand also ordered Q300s to replace the Saab 340s operated by Air Nelson. The first one was delivered in Montreal in July 2005 and today the airline operates 23.

The Air New Zealand order was something of a coup for Bombardier at the time, especially as one of the carriers other regional subsidiaries, Mount Cook Airline, already operated ATR 72s.

Further north, Dash 8s have been long-term residents of Papua New Guinea, having been flown for many years by AirNiugini and Airlines PNG, providing vital internal connections and also flying between Port Moresby and Cairns.

Air New Zealand Q300 ZK-NEP at Wellington. (Gary Hollier)

Future Developments

Despite the earliest model Dash 8s now having been out of production for three years, demand for the -100, -200 and -300 series remains high and overall plenty of life remains in the fleet, particularly with the manufacturer continuing to support the oldest aircraft still flying.

Bombardier announced in 2009 that it would extend the life of the -100 series out to 120,000 cycles from the previous 80,000 cycles through an Extended Service Program.

The company says that on current usage trends the effective life of the aircraft could be extended for up to 12 years.

One operator Australian Aviation spoke to said that the life extension had meant that the values of Dash 8-100s had increased and that it was getting hard to find aircraft available. As a result, some operators with a requirement for more aircraft are moving up to the larger -300 which are easier to source on the global market.

Another problem for Dash 8 operators has been the lack of new aircraft in the market, especially in the 37-seat category.

The Q400 introduced a Thales digital avionics suite. (Bombardier)

Further support is coming from Fokker Services, which last year signed an agreement with Bombardier to provide spares and logistical services to Dash 8 operators. The service builds on its ABACUS program which helps to support legacy Fokker types.

At the same time, Bombardier has also given every indication that it plans to further extend the Dash 8 design up into a new 90-seat aircraft in future.

In 2007 Bombardier started talking of a Q400X, which would use the basic airframe but feature a stronger wing and upgraded engines and would be aimed at operating on short but dense regional routes. Originally, the manufacturer had indicated that the Q400X could be developed to enter service as early as 2013.

The Q400X talk has also prompted ATR to closely examine a larger aircraft, with the two manufacturers playing a game of cat and mouse over the last few years.

More recently engine manufacturers General Electric and Pratt & Whitney have indicated that they are working on developing more powerful turboprops for both Bombardier and ATR.

However, this year Bombardier has cooled on attacking the 90-seat market, with recent comments from its marketing team indicating that any move on that segment would likely come after 2016.

In the meantime though, the Dash 8 looks set to continue its legacy in Australia of being a flexible and hardy regional workhorse.

VIDEO: A look at a QantasLink Dash 8 Q200 taking off from Lord Howe Island Airport from the wiiwheel64 YouTube channel, which highlights the excellent field performance of the aircraft.

Postscript: In November 2018, Bombardier announced the sale of the Q400 program, as well as all assets, intellectual property and type certificates associated with the out-of-production Dash 8 series, to Longview Aviation Capital. It established a new company with a famous name De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Ltd for manufacturing the Q400 turboprop.

This story first appeared in the October 2012 edition of Australian Aviation. To read more stories like this, subscribe here.

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From the archives: Regional workhorse: Bombardier Dash 8 in Australia - Australian Aviation

Thank you for visiting PromoCodeWatch on your hunt for Life Extension promo codes. We hope that one of our 13 Life Extension coupons for April, 2019 helped you save on your purchase. You can rest assured that weve searched everywhere to find all available Life Extension deals. This includes tracking mentions of Life Extension coupons on social media outlets like Twitter and Instagram, visiting blogs and forums related to Life Extension products and services, and scouring top deal sites for the latest Life Extension promo codes.

When shopping online for Life Extension products and services, it is a wise decision to visit PromoCodeWatch before checking out. Weve saved our visitors an average of 2 million dollars a year, many of which never knew Life Extension discounts were so easily available until visiting our site. Now that you are in the know, bookmark this page and check PromoCodeWatch before all of your online purchases.

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70% Off Life Extension Promo Codes | Top 2019 Coupons @PromoCodeWatch

Studies show that people who eat the most fruits and vegetables enjoy healthier and longer lives, but getting the recommended five servings a day is difficult for even the healthiest diets. That's why we created Life Extension Mix, a daily supplement that provides all the high-potency vitamins and minerals needed to form the cornerstone of a comprehensive health maintenance program.

Benefits at a Glance:

Our formula saves time and money by combining the most important nutrients including unique vegetable, fruit, and botanical extracts into one product, eliminating the need to take dozens of separate supplements.

More facts about Life Extension Mix

Life Extension Mix is a state-of-the-art multi-nutrient formula jam-packed with the purest and most potent forms of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and unique vegetable, fruit, and botanical extracts. In every daily dose of Life Extension Mix, you'll get an extensive array of nutrients:

Bioactive quercetin phytosome

Life Extension Mix contains 5 mg of quercetin that has been integrated into a phytosome. A phytosome is a phospholipid sphere that encases a botanical compound, aiding in its absorption and making it more bioavailable: this quercetin is up to 50 times more bioavailable than standard quercetin. Quercetin supports cellular health, endothelial health, and healthy immune function.

Delphinidins

Found in dark red fruits, delphinidins are potent anthocyanin compounds that activate the production of nitric oxide, promoting vascular relaxation and blood pressure support.14 They can also help inhibit inflammatory factors58 and glycation,9 support immune health, and help maintain healthy blood sugar levels within normal range.

Pyridoxal 5'-phosphate

Glycation is a normal part of the aging process that can affect your health.1014 To help inhibit glycation, each daily dose of Life Extension Mix provides 100 mg of pyridoxal 5'-phosphate a metabolically active B6 that has been shown to help inhibit glycation reactions.15-17

Standardized pomegranate extract

Pomegranate supports healthy cardiovascular function32-37 and DNA structure in prostate cells.18-23 Our pomegranate extract is standardized to provide the biologically active punicalagins that are so unique to this fruit. These punicalagins are 100% water-soluble, have a remarkable 95% absorption rate,24 and are highly potent at inhibiting free radicals.25

Blueberry extracts

Blueberry anthocyanin compounds help inhibit free radicals, while blueberry's other active constituents promote healthy lipid and glucose levels for those already within normal range.26-29 Even more exciting: these blueberry constituents may help protect DNA structure.30-34 Life Extension Mix features the wild blueberry extract packed with active blueberry constituents.

Standardized green tea extract

In recent years, the active polyphenol compounds in green tea have been found to help inhibit LDL oxidation, neuronal peroxidation, and help maintain healthy DNA structure.35-44 Life Extension Mix's daily dose contains 325 mg of a decaffeinated green tea extract standardized to provide 98% of the active polyphenols that scientists attribute to green tea's multiple health benefits.

Standardized vegetable extracts

Life Extension Mix offers a wide array of vegetable extracts, including 8 mg of luteolin, a flavonoid found in parsley, basil, celery, and other foods. Luteolin has been shown to inhibit DNA oxidation45 and to inhibit excess levels of cytokines such as interleukin-4 and interleukin-13.46

Our formula features a concentrated broccoli mixture with standardized extracts of sulforaphane and glucosinolates, compounds attributed to broccoli's detoxification, DNA,47-50 and other health benefits,51-71 as well as chlorophyll.72-83A daily dose also provides 200 mg of calcium D-glucarate (supplying 175 mg of D-glucarate), a phytonutrient found in grapefruit, apples, oranges, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts. D-glucarate supports detoxification processes.84-86

Life Extension Mix also contains lutein and lycopene. Lutein, an extract found in in leafy greens such as kale and spinach, has been shown to help maintain critical pigments in the eye macula.87 Lycopene from tomatoes helps to maintain DNA structure and protect against LDL oxidation.88-98

Standardized fruit extracts

In addition to our standardized pomegranate and wild blueberry extracts, Life Extension Mix also features fruit extracts such as bilberry, grape seed, and citrus bioflavonoids to promote healthy circulation help maintain healthy DNA.

Our unique formula is fortified with maqui berry and tart cherry for their antioxidant benefits for heart health as well as muscle and joint function support.99-118 It also includes a customized blend of blackberry, cranberry, plum, elderberry, persimmon, cherry, and other fruits that studies indicate provide multiple favorable effects on the body.

Numerous studies have pointed toward the many benefits of olive polyphenols, and Life Extension Mix contains an olive extract standardized to provide polyphenols like hydroxytyrosol that have been shown to help inhibit LDL oxidation, free radicals, and promote healthy cell membranes.119-131

Sesame seed lignan extract

Sesame lignans promote healthy levels of gamma tocopherol,132,133 enhance the beneficial effects of fish oils, and helping to maintain already-normal cholesterol/LDL levels.134-143 Life Extension Mix provides 10 mg of a sesame lignan extract to supply the direct benefits of the lignans and to augment the effects of vitamin E174 and other nutrients such as gamma-linolenic acid (GLA).

Nutrients to maintain healthy blood glucose levels

Chromium, magnesium, and biotin help maintain healthy blood sugar for those already within normal range.145-156 In addition to highly absorbable forms of magnesium and biotin, Life Extension Mix contains 500 mcg of Crominex 3+, a biologically active chromium complex. Studies on the benefits of chromium supplementation show that doses exceeding 200 mcg a day are required for optimal effects.157-159

High-potency vitamin D3

Researchers today are concerned that many people are not supplementing with enough vitamin D, a critical nutrient for maintaining bone density and healthy cell division.160-167 Currently, most experts in the field believe that intakes of between 1,000 and 10,000 IU for adults will lead to a more healthy level of serum 25(OH)D, at approximately 50-80 ng/mL.168-170

Each daily dose of Life Extension Mix provides 2,000 IU of vitamin D3. What's more, this formula contains only 500 IU of preformed vitamin A. Preformed (not beta-carotene) vitamin A may interfere with the benefits of vitamin D, yet most multivitamins contain between 5,000 and 25,000 IU of preformed vitamin A.171

Cyanidin-3-glucoside (C3G)

Life Extension Mix contains 1.25 mg of C3G to support eye health. Found in blackberries and black currants, this potent compound promotes healthy levels of rhodopsin a compound that absorbs light in the retina and enhance night vision.172-176

In one study, just 50 mg of a berry extract concentrate containing C3G helped aging individuals see better in the darkness after 30 minutes.177 Bioavailable C3G also supports other body functions,178-191 has potent antioxidant properties,192,193 and supports endothelial cell health.194,195

5-MTHF (5-methyltetrahydrofolate)

Folate helps maintain homocysteine levels within the normal range. One dose of our formula contains 400 mcg of the bioactive 5-MTHF form of folate, which is up to 7 times more bioavailable than ordinary folic acid.

Selenium and Apigenin

Life Extension Mix contains three potent forms of selenium (SelenoExcell, Se-methyl-selenocysteine, and sodium selenite). Also newly included is apigenin, a powerful bioflavonoid found in many vegetables and fruits which boosts cell protection.

Why choose Life Extension Mix?

The ingredients in Life Extension Mix are based on over 35 years of clinical research, and we've selected the purest and most potent forms of plant extracts, vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients for maximum absorption. Discover the extensive benefits of Life Extension Mix!

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Life Extension Mix, 360 capsules | Life Extension

CANDU reactors can operate economically and reliably for up to 60 years. After about 30 years of operation, reactor components are replaced and refurbished, extending the life of a reactor for another 30 years. This process is called life extension.

During life extension, the reactors pressure tubes, calandria tubes and end fitters are removed and replaced. Our experts have designed and delivered multi-tonne, remotely controlled tooling systems to accomplish this in a safe and effective manner. The outage also allows operators to refurbish other key reactor components, and make system upgrades.

All utilities that operate CANDU reactors are currently undergoing or will at some point consider life extension work on their reactors.

One of the worlds top-performing CANDU stations, the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station supplies 20% of Ontarios energy needs. Its refurbishment is crucial to deliver the power required to serve the provinces residents. Refurbishment operations began in the fall of 2016; it is the largest clean energy project in Canada.

This life extension project will allow Argentinas Embalse Nuclear Station to continue producing safe, reliable, low-carbon power for up to another 30 years. The Embalse CANDU 6 reactor began commercial operation in January 1984 and the single-unit has a gross output of 648 Mwe. The station shut down for this project in December 2015; the outage is expected to last until December 2017.

Bruce Power is Ontarios lowest cost source of nuclear, currently generating over 30% of the provinces electricity. Extending the operational life of the Bruce Power Units 3-8 will ensure long-term price stability. We are currently working with Bruce Power to solidify our scope for the Bruce Power major component replacement(MCR) project and look forward to concluding negotiations in late 2016.

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Life Extension | SNC-Lavalin

In 1983, Life Extension introduced a relatively little-known compound called coenzyme Q10. Our review of the literature back then had unearthed data confirming its power to boost the health and energy output of the mitochondria.

Today, scientists recognize mitochondrial dysfunction as a key biomarker of aging.1-6 To take one instance, researchers have recorded evidence of 50% more mitochondrial damage in the brain cells of humans over 70 compared to middle-aged individuals.7 Mitochondrial dysfunction and death are now definitively linked to the development of virtually all killer diseases of aging, from Alzheimers and type 2 diabetes to heart failure.8-11

The good news is that mitochondrial dysfunction can be reversed.12 The scientific literature is now filled with studies documenting the therapeutic power of CoQ10 to thwart degenerative disease by boosting mitochondrial health and bioenergetic (energy-producing) capacity.13-16

The latest advance in the area of mitochondrial bioenergetics is the coenzyme pyrroloquinoline quinone or PQQ.

PQQs critical role across a range of biological functions has only gradually emerged. Like CoQ10, it is a micronutrient whose antioxidant capacity provides extraordinary defense against mitochondrial decay.

But the most exciting revelation on PQQ emerged early in 2010, when researchers found it not only protected mitochondria from oxidative damageit stimulated growth of fresh mitochondria!17

In this article, you will learn of this novel coenzymes ability to combat mitochondrial dysfunction. You will find out how it protects the brain, heart, and muscles against degenerative disease. You will also discover its potential to reverse cellular aging by activating genes that induce mitochondrial biogenesisthe spontaneous formation of new mitochondria in aging cells!

PQQ is ubiquitous in the natural world. Its presence in interstellar stardust has led some experts to hypothesize a pivotal role for PQQ in the evolution of life on Earth.18 It has been found in all plant species tested to date. Neither humans nor the bacteria that colonize the human digestive tract have demonstrated the ability to synthesize it.19 This has led researchers to classify PQQ as an essential micronutrient.20

PQQs potential to stimulate mitochondrial biogenesis was foreshadowed by repeated early findings indicating its central role in growth and development across multiple forms of life.

It has been shown to be a potent growth factor in plants, bacteria, and higher organisms.21,22 Pre-clinical studies reveal that when deprived of dietary PQQ, animals exhibit stunted growth, compromised immunity, impaired reproductive capability, and most importantly, fewer mitochondria in their tissue. Rates of conception, the number of offspring, and survival rates in juvenile animals are also significantly reduced in the absence of PQQ.23-25 Introducing PQQ back into the diet reverses these effects, restoring systemic function while simultaneously increasing mitochondrial number and energetic efficiency.

As the primary engines of almost all bioenergy production, the mitochondria rank among the physiological structures most vulnerable to destruction from oxidative damage. PQQs formidable free radicalscavenging capacity furnishes the mitochondria with superior antioxidant protection.

At the core of this capacity is an extraordinary molecular stability.30 As a bioactive coenzyme, PQQ actively participates in the energy transfer within the mitochondria that supplies the body with most of its bioenergy (like CoQ10).

Unlike other antioxidant compounds, PQQs exceptional stability allows it to carry out thousands of these electron transfers without undergoing molecular breakdown. It has been proven especially effective in neutralizing the ubiquitous superoxide and hydroxyl radicals.31 According to the most recent research, PQQ is 30 to 5,000 times more efficient in sustaining redox cycling (mitochondrial energy production) . . . than other common [antioxidant compounds], e.g. ascorbic acid.21 A consistent finding in the scientific literature is that nutrients like PQQ provide more wide-ranging benefits than conventional antioxidants the general public relies on.

PQQs dual capacity as a cell signaling modulator and a superior antioxidant renders it optimally effective in combating degenerative disease and age-related declines in the bodys most energetic organs: the heart and brain.

The revelation of its ability to favorably affect system-wide cell development, metabolism, and mitochondrial biogenesis affords an explanation for a wealth of data on its neuroprotective and cardioprotective benefits.

PQQ has been shown to optimize health and function of the entire central nervous system. It reverses cognitive impairment caused by chronic oxidative stress in pre-clinical models, improving performance on memory tests.32 It has also been shown to safeguard the Parkinsons disease gene, DJ-1, from self-oxidationan early step in the onset of disease.33

Reactive nitrogen species (RNS), like reactive oxygen species, impose severe stresses on damaged neurons.34 They arise spontaneously following stroke and spinal cord injuries and have been shown to account for a substantial proportion of subsequent long-term neurological damage. PQQ suppresses RNS in experimentally induced strokes.35 It also provides additional protection by blocking gene expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), a major source of RNS, following spinal cord injury.36

PQQ powerfully protects brain cells against oxidative damage following ischemia-reperfusion injurythe inflammation and oxidative damage that result from the sudden return of blood and nutrients to tissues deprived of them by stroke.37 Given immediately before induction of stroke in animal models, PQQ significantly reduces the size of the damaged brain area.38

PQQ also interacts in a beneficial manner with our brains neurotransmitter systems. In particular, PQQ protects neurons by modifying the important NMDA receptor site.39,40 NMDA is a powerful mediator of excitotoxicity, a response to long-term overstimulation of neurons that is associated with many neurodegenerative diseases and seizures.41-43 PQQ also protects against neurotoxicity induced by other toxins, including mercury.44,45

A mounting body of evidence points to PQQ as a potent intervention in Alzheimers disease and Parkinsons disease. Both are triggered by accumulation of abnormal proteins that initiate a cascade of oxidative events resulting in brain cell death. PQQ prevents development of a protein (alpha-synuclein) associated with Parkinsons disease.46 It also protects nerve cells from the oxidizing ravages of the amyloid-beta protein linked with Alzheimers disease.47 A 2010 study revealed that PQQ could prevent formation of amyloid beta molecular structures.48

PQQ has also been shown to protect memory and cognition in both aging animals and humans.49,50 It stimulates production and release of nerve growth factor in cells that support neurons in the brain.51 This may partially explain why PQQ supplementation of aging rats resulted in marked improvement of their memory function.49

In humans, supplementation with 20 mg per day of PQQ resulted in improvements on tests of higher cognitive function in a group of middle-aged and elderly people.50 These effects were significantly amplified when the subjects also took 300 mg per day of CoQ10.

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Generate Fresh Mitochondria with PQQ - Life Extension

Fact Sheet Overview

The federal Shelf Life Extension Program (SLEP) extends the expiration dates on qualifying drugs and other materiel in federal stockpiles. SLEP is administered by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) in cooperation with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).1 The program is an acknowledgement that the actual shelf life of drugs and other medical products may be longer than their stated expiration date, depending on their storage conditions. The purpose of SLEP is to defer replacement costs of stockpiled drugs by extending their useful life.

The program was established in 1986 through an interagency agreement between the DoD and the FDA in response to a Congressional directive to address U.S. Air Force drug stockpiles.2 This initial SLEP program was intended to extend the useful shelf life of medicines with limited commercial use (e.g., chemical agent antidotes) or which the government held in such large quantities that the manufacturer would not accept them for credit when the drugs expired.3 Since then, other federal agencies have entered into a memorandum of agreement with the DoD to participate in SLEP, including other branches of the military, the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS), the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the U.S. Postal Service, and the Bureau of Federal Prisions.2

SLEP is currently available only for federally-maintained stockpiles, although there have been ongoing deliberations between the federal government and the states about extending SLEP to state-maintained stockpiles or creating a separate SLEP-like program for state stockpiles. (See State Stockpiles discussion below.)

Note: As of March 2012, Congress is in the process of reauthorizing the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act (PAHPA), which may impact a number of laws and programs described below. Please see ASTHO EUA Current Issues Winter 2012 for more information about reauthorization and its potential impact on EUAs and related issues. (Download a printable PDF.)

SLEP is a fee-for-service program. Participating agencies are required to pay for the FDAs periodic, comprehensive testing and analysis of the drugs and other medical materiel in the SLEP process. Items eligible for SLEP are tested by the FDA. Products that pass testing are granted extended expiration dates but must undergo ongoing testing to monitor their continued shelf life.4 Products that fail testing at any time are destroyed.4 Products that do not receive additional extensions of their expiration dates or are not tested for SLEP are destroyed at their final expiration dates.4 Maintaining controlled storage conditions appropriate for the product(s) is an important factor in the SLEP process.

The program is operated by the DoD Defense Medical Materiel Program Office (DMMPO) (formerly the Defense Medical Standardization Board [DMSB]) and regularly interacts with the FDA and agencies participating in SLEP.2,5 The DMMPO/DoD role in SLEP is to conduct programmatic and administrative functions, including but not limited to: (1) identifying products eligible for testing to FDA; (2) updating the SLEP expiration database; (3) conducting a cost-benefit analysis of extending a drugs expiration date; (4) ordering labels for relabeled drugs; and (5) billing participant agencies.2

The FDA is responsible for testing and evaluating drugs for SLEP. Specifically, the FDA: (1) determines the appropriate tests and methods for the candidate drugs; (2) conducts tests on samples of the candidate drugs; (3) analyzes test results and determines whether and for how long extension is possible; and (4) performs other research to address SLEP issues.2

Not every item stockpiled is a candidate for SLEP. Because of the costs involved in testing, the program is primarily designed for large stockpiles of drugs and medical materiel that are housed in environmentally controlled facilities.2 FDA-approved prescription drugs are most frequently designated for SLEP testing by program participants. Biological products such as vaccines, serums, and nutritional products or items with a history of poor SLEP performance are not eligible for testing.2,4 Items where testing would be time or cost prohibitive are not accepted.4 The focus on testing has been on products that are militarily significant, have limited commercial use, are purchased in large quantities (e.g., antivirals), or are used only if there is an event requiring their administration.2

The procedure to determine whether a drug or other medical materiel is eligible for extension under SLEP involves testing by the FDA. If an extension is granted, the approval document identifies the length of the extension and relabeling requirements. Products under SLEP are regularly retested and must be destroyed if at any time they fail testing.2

An Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) is a type of permission under FD&C Act 564 that allows for the use of an unapproved medical product or an unapproved use of an approved medical product (drugs, biologics [e.g., vaccines], and devices [e.g., diagnostics]) during certain types of emergencies. Products extended under SLEP through the exercise of FDA enforcement discretion receive a new expiration date that is different than the one originally contained on the products labeling and is considered a deviation from the items prior approved use. Similarly, some SNS products may have been stored in conditions that exceeded labeled temperature ranges. Currently, an EUA is required to ensure that SLEP-extended drugs are not in violation of the FD&C Act. (See also ASTHO Current Issues and UpdatesSummer 2011Evolving Policy Issues.) During the H1N1 influenza pandemic in 2009, Tamiflu (in capsules and suspension form) that was held in the SNS, much of which had been tested and extended under SLEP, was distributed to states and localities.2 The FDA issued an EUA that allowed the use of these products beyond the labeled expiration date without requiring that they be relabeled.

States have developed and maintained their own stockpiles of medicines and supplies in addition to those provided by the federal government through the SNS. In preparation for a pandemic, the federal government offered states a 25 percent subsidy to purchase additional antivirals through the SNS program. However, stockpiles held by states, whether purchased with state or federal funds, are not eligible for SLEP.10 In 2006, the National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza: Implementation Plan directed the HHS, the DoD, the VA, and the states to explore expanding SLEP to state stockpiles.11 Similarly, in a report about antiviral strategies for a pandemic, the Institute of Medicine recommended that the SLEP program be extended to other public and private stockpiles.10 That report also suggested using the information gained through SLEP to facilitate the use of properly stored recently expired drugs held outside SLEP.10 These recommendations acknowledged the high cost of replacing expired stockpiles and the potential scarcity of the drugs during a severe pandemic as important reasons for seeking to extend the drugs expiration dates.10

An FDA-led interagency workgroup that included the DoD, the CDC, and the VA determined that including state antiviral stockpiles in SLEP is not currently feasible.2 Reasons cited for the decision included programmatic, resource, quality, and legal considerations:

In addition to evaluating the feasibility of including states in SLEP, the HHS has been analyzing the feasibility of creating a separate SLEP-like program for extending state stockpiles. The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) within the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) has been evaluating the infrastructure necessary to support a new program for states and analyzing the comparative cost effectiveness of shelf-life testing to repurchasing for state inventories.12 Cost factors to be considered include laboratory testing, storage site inspection, state personnel, relabeling for extended products, destruction for products not extended, and transportation for products being tested or destroyed.12 The HHS, BARDA, and the states conducted a detailed analysis with state-specific data in 2011, but no results have been released as of March 2012.12

SLEP currently impacts states primarily through SNS deployments containing medicines that have received, or subsequently receive, shelf-life extensions. Shelf-life-extended products that have an expired label date or that have been relabeled may cause concern among healthcare providers and the public about the safety and efficacy of the extended items. Liability fears can arise among healthcare providers and others dispensing the shelf-life-extended items. Furthermore, complications can arise in determining what products are eligible for SLEP when SNS assets have been mixed with non-SNS assets in state, local, or regional stockpiles.

While extending expiration dates potentially saves money for states by reducing the frequency of replacing expired stockpiled medicines, if state stockpiles are eventually included in the federal SLEP or a similar program for states, states will also have to consider the logistical, personnel, and financial implications of participating in such an initiative.

Note: This document was compiled from JuneDecember 2011 and reflects the laws and programs current then. It reflects only portions of the laws relevant to public health emergencies and is not intended to be exhaustive of all relevant legal authority. This resource is for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional legal or other advice. The document was funded by CDC Award No. 1U38HM000454 to the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials; Subcontractor PI Elliott, Logan Circle Policy Group LLC.

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Federal Shelf Life Extension Program Fact Sheet | State ...

As is often seen on heritage railways, it is possible to keep old rail vehicles in service virtually indefinitely, although to do so often involves extensive repair and restoration work. Sometimes, circumstances are such that it is necessary for trains in front line operation to undergo similar extensive work.

It was with this thought in mind that Rail Engineer recently visited London Undergrounds project team to view some of the work taking place on the forty-year-old Bakerloo line trains to keep them in service for at least another 10 years.

Background

The Bakerloo line (Baker Street to Waterloo Railway) opened just over 110 years ago in 1906. Since then, it has been extended, had a branch opened, been truncated and eventually settled on its current route from Elephant and Castle in south east London to Harrow and Wealdstone in north east London. From Queens Park to Harrow and Wealdstone, it runs over Network Rails tracks, shared with London Overgrounds Class 378 trains.

Stabling sidings are provided at London Road, Lambeth, and at Queens Park. The main depot at Stonebridge Park is unique in that it is connected to Network Rails track and not to London Undergrounds.

The Bakerloo line is operated by a fleet of 36, seven-car, 1972 tube stock trains originally delivered in 1973/74. These trains are made up of a four-car unit and a three-car unit coupled together. They were designed for a nominal life of 36 years.

At 42 years, the Bakerloo trains are the oldest on the Underground, and amongst the oldest operating anywhere in the UK (other than heritage railways). Their design was based on the original Victoria line fleet, and has an aluminium-framed body with aluminium cladding mounted on a steel underframe.

They have four motor cars, each with four DC motors controlled by a camshaft-operated resistance controller and fitted with rheostatic braking. In addition, the entire train has electro-pneumatic brakes with a Westinghouse emergency brake, and there are electro-pneumatic sliding doors, and train protection is provided by tripcocks.

The fleet of 36 trains is made up of 33 Mk II and three Mk I units. The differences are superficial, and have mostly been eradicated over the years, but there are still some left to catch out anyone thinking they are all the same. They last had major work in the mid-1990s when they were refurbished an extensive visual modernisation whilst eliminating materials that were a fire hazard. For this work they were hauled over the National Rail network to the dockyard at Rosyth, which included travelling over the historic Forth Bridge.

The trains were originally planned for replacement by 2019 as part of the former PPP contracts, and then as the first use of the New Tube for London project. However, in 2013, London Underground decided to extend the life of the Bakerloo line trains to at least 2026.

Current projects

It was to understand more about what it takes to extend the life of a Tube train that Rail Engineer visited London Underground to talk to the project team and see the works over two days in May 2016.

The life extension project is just one of many projects that LU is carrying out on its older trains. LU has set up a Rolling Stock Renewals programme team to manage them all. The teams head, David Caulfield, outlined the various projects being carried out by his team. These include significant modifications to the Central line trains, upgrading 1960s and 1970s battery locomotives, and creating a Rail Adhesion Train (RAT) from some old District line cars to apply Sandite during the autumn leaf fall season.

The aim with all these projects is to keep older trains going to help Keep London Moving (from the Mayors Transport Strategy). David explained how LU is approaching these works.

LU has always carried out modifications to trains and has generally determined the sourcing strategy for each project on a one-off basis. For the future, LU has carried out a strategic review and has decided that it will invest in facilities to manage and execute work in house, bringing in specialist design and implementation resources or using in-house labour as appropriate.

This approach delivers a number of benefits including not having to send trains off site, which can add a week to each trains time out of service. LU train fleets achieve high utilisation and few trains are available to be taken out of service for modifications. An extra week in transit could add a year or more to a programme for fleets the size of LUs.

Bakerloo line

Back to the 42-year old Bakerloo line trains. One of the reasons that life extension was considered was, perversely, because extensive work was already under way to repair cracks and corrosion on the underframe and body. One might imagine these problems would hasten their demise, but the work was essential simply to keep the trains in service until the earliest date that new trains could be delivered.

In designing repairs, it is usually easiest to restore the original strength of the structure. It would be harder, and almost certainly no cheaper, to try and design repairs that would last just, say, five years. Thus the repair works deliver bodies that are structurally as good as new. As such, the work will easily last for the additional time required. Anything else necessary in sub-systems and components can and will be dealt with during routine maintenance, following proper engineering assessment of those components not normally replaced but being required to last beyond their normal lifespan.

The main consequence of extending the life beyond 2020 is the need to carry out modifications to comply with the Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations (2010). This contains similar requirements to those in the Technical Specification for Interoperability for People of Reduced Mobility TSIs do not apply to LU.

The RVAR work was explained by Paul Summers, project sponsor from the Asset Strategy and Investment team, and Zoe Dobell, RVAR project engineer (yes, my daughter!). The RVAR requires a number of features that make it easier to use such as handholds, passenger information displays, priority seats and provision for wheelchairs. Compliance is mandatory by 2020.

However, the Regulations recognise that strict compliance may not be possible for older trains. LU has therefore carried out extensive feasibility studies on the RVAR elements. These studies were then discussed with the Department for Transport with the aim of maximising the degree of compliance whilstnot incurring excessive cost for minimal benefit; DfT has been really supportive.

The main elements that will be installed are the wheelchair spaces (which will be in the trailer car of the three car unit), and an audio/visual passenger information system. The biggest challenge of all is the gap between the train and the platform. LUs practice on other lines is to use a mixture of platform humps and manual boarding ramps depending on the curvature and other factors. For the Bakerloo, LU has agreed with the DfT that no boarding aids will be provided where there is no interchange and no foreseeable prospect of providing street to platform step free access.

With agreement on all these features, the scope of the works is now frozen and work will start in mid-2018 for completion early in 2020, based on having two trains out of service at a time. To provide the wheelchair positions involves removing the seats on one side of the middle seat bay of the designated trailer cars. In common with all LU tube gauge cars, there is equipment under the seats this will have to be relocated and new flooring fitted to match the new floors being fitted as part of the body repairs (see below). Installing the passenger information system will involve work on all cars, and, although mandated by RVAR, will be of benefit to all passengers.

Acton Works

It was with considerable nostalgia that I set off from Acton Town station towards the large Acton Works complex, having first made that journey nearly 47 years ago.

The purpose was to see some of the repair works under way, a programme that will cost LU some 60 million or just over 200,000 per car. I was met by the underframe and body repairs project engineer Rob Bonarski, who is charged, inter alia, with making sure there is an approved repair system for every structural fault found.

Rob took me to shop AC15, which old timers like me will recall as the Heavy Repair shop. On the way, we visited some of the other workshops in which we saw Central line bogies being overhauled, Bakerloo line bogies being repaired, some battery locomotives being refurbished, D stock cars being converted for the new RAT and some 1938 tube stock cars being overhauled for the London Transport Museum.

Since I was last at Acton, AC15 shop has had extensive work carried out to prepare it for the Bakerloo line repairs. In former times, cars would have been lifted in Actons lifting shop and moved by traverser to the relevant workshop. This is no longer possible because the lifting shop was demolished many years ago to make way for LUs Railway Equipment overhaul Workshop (REW). The old wood block floor has been replaced with reinforced concrete to support the Mechan jacks that LU bought to lift the cars (four sets of 4 x 10 tonne jacks for passenger vehicles and one set of 4 x 20 tonne jacks that can also lift battery locomotives). There are nine roads, most of which can accommodate two cars. There has also been extensive work to improve lighting, and provide services for electric and pneumatic power tools.

Incompatible Train Movements

Bakerloo line trains start their journey for repairs at Stonebridge Park Depot in northwest London. From here, they make an overnight journey to Acton via Baker Street, Elephant and Castle, back to Baker Street, onto the Jubilee line to Wembley Park, onto the Metropolitan line to Rayners Lane, where they reverse and then travel via the Piccadilly line to Acton Town (see map right).

They travel overnight because there is no signalling nor train protection on the Jubilee line for Bakerloo line trains (Jubilee line trains use in-cab signalling with ATO and ATP). They travel over the Jubilee line section under special rules called an Incompatible Train Movement Plan.

On arrival at Acton Works, the cars are uncoupled on the reception road next to AC15 and moved via a traverser into AC15 where they are lifted. Here the real work starts.

Swan necks, floor traps and fasteners

Rob explained the voyage of discovery on the first few trains as they discovered the true extent of repairs required and the differences between apparently identical cars. Even he had been surprised by the extent of the work required, despite being involved since the beginning of the job. It soon became clear that what had to be done could only be confirmed, individually on each car, once they were stripped. During myvisit, they were working on train five, and Rob was confident that most of the problems had been discovered. Underframe swan neck repairs: Sole bars are straight, but the underframe also has two steel girders, approximately 300mm deep and 12mm thick, running the length of the car. In the main, as one would expect, the girders are under the floor but, over the bogies, this structure is above floor level and forms the seat risers for the longitudinal seats. The joint that connects the underfloor frame to the above floor frame is known as the swan neck. They are all cracked along the welds. The metal forming the joint is being cut out and replaced by a steel bracket of exactly the right shape machined from solid by WECS Precision of Epsom.

This allows welding to be carried out in locations where stresses are somewhat lower than they were in the original weld locations. The photo of the cut out section shows the cracks; anyone used to welding will not be surprised that they cracked.

Body pillars: Despite coatings applied during manufacture to protect against electrolytic corrosion between aluminium panels and the steel frame and underframes, the accumulation of moisture and cleaning fluids over 40 years has led to corrosion and cracks. These are being cut out and repaired. One of the challenges has been finding fittings that can be used in place of the hot rivets used on the original construction, especially where access is only available on one side. Fortunately, Alcoa Huck BOM fittings (rather like giant pop rivets) came to the rescue.

Body ends: Some of the body end brackets connecting the body end to the underframe have cracked. Investigations showed that many of the underframes were slightly distorted as a result of welding during manufacture and the brackets were adjusted to fit. They have cracked at the point of the adjustment. Rob explained that the replacements are being refitted with a metal putty being used to level the headstock plate.

Floors: The floor fitted during the 1990s refurbishment is a composite of polymer cladding and fire retardant ply on top of stainless steel in doorways and mild steel in seating bays. When the vehicles were stripped, it was found that the cladding was hiding a multitude of sins. The covering and ply is all stripped and the mild steel floor plates in the end seat bays are being replaced. From here, the entire floor is rebuilt with new fire retardant ply and a covering of Tiflex Treadmaster TM7 (see below). A feature of this era of tube train is trapdoors in the floor to access equipment on the underframe. One of the improvements made has been to rationalise the different designs of trapdoors used from 21 to seven.

Roofs: Over 40 years, some of the roof fasteners have become loose and these are being replaced by heavy duty blind fixings and fire retardant Terostat sealant (formerly Sikaflex).

Asbestos: Most of the materials containing asbestos are being replaced. Heat-barrier material is being replaced by Promat DURASTEEL, and the saloon heaters are being replaced by AmTecs low voltage heaters connected in series across the 600V traction supply.

Compressors: The three Mk I trains use a different, less reliable compressor than the remainder of the fleet, and the opportunity is being taken to replace them with compressors recovered from D stock trains (which are being replaced by S stock). This involves welding new mounts onto the underframe.

Drawings: As-built drawings lacked most of the detail necessary to source new parts and, as a result, over 600 new drawings have been produced.

The next challenge is to replace all the removed equipment, including the doors. The doors are a particular issue. Despite putting each door back in the same position from which it was removed, the scale of works on the vehicle has introduced small distortions that necessitate adjustments to each door so that it runs freely without binding.

From here its a case of testing each car, reassembling the vehicles into trains (in the right order!), testing as a train, and returning the trainto Stonebridge Park, from which it can enter service more or less immediately.

Rob told me that the plan is to increase the number of trains in work from one to two. This will have a great benefit in terms of both getting the work done more quickly and in terms of utilisation of the specialist teams who work on the trains. The repair work is due to be completed in 2018.

It was evident that the very high quality work being carried out will, in all probability, provide a structure that is stronger than new. The Bakerloo line structural repairs team are to be congratulated on what they have achieved.

Interior refresh

In parallel with the repair works, the interiors of the Bakerloo trains are being refreshed at Stonebridge Park Depot. Even things as apparently simple as new seat and floor coverings needed significant engineering input from the engineering team based in the LU operations department.

The seats, supplied by Pro Style, Coventry, had both to comply with modern fire standards and be comfortable. The floor had to be cleanable and slip resistant, and there is also a requirement to have a colour contrast between doorways and seating areas, to comply with the RVAR. Conventional wisdom was that the doorways had a higher footfall, would be more prone to dirt and so should be darker than seating areas.

In practice, cleaning around nooks and crannies in seating areas meant that the seated areas were not as clean as they ought to be, so following a trial, the lighter floor was specified for the doorway areas. In addition, to improve slip resistance, a new groove pattern was specified which also contributes to draining water from the floor to the outside.

On a final point, the observant reader might be wondering why the RVAR works were not merged with the weld repairs. It is simply a matter of urgency and timing. The structural repairs were urgent, couldnt be delayed and were under way before the decision was made to extend the life. In contrast, the RVAR works only became necessary as a result of the life-extension decision and a lot of feasibility work had to be completed before the scope could be decided and the works authorised. The teams are making every effort to make these two works streams as integrated as possible.

Thanks to LUs David Caulfield and his team, especially Guy Harris and Rob Bonarski, to Paul Summers from the Asset Strategy and Investment team, and to Sean Long from Operations LU Engineering for their assistance in preparing this article.

Written by Malcolm Dobell

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London Underground train life extension Rail Engineer

Be it through literature, film, or television, the idea of life extension has been nothing short of prolific. The concept has become so ingrained in our cultural psyche that most give its presence little thought. In North America, the average life expectancy today is 78 years of age. Even though our current life expectancy is much higher in the West than in other parts of the world, we nonetheless continue to be fascinated, and in some cases, obsessed with the idea of extending our lives beyond what is currently possible. Today when we hear of someone living to 100, it is considered almost miraculous. But as scientific developments continue to progress, the idea of life extension well beyond 100 may become a reality.

The average age a person could live until would increase to roughly 115 years old.

Scientific studies and technology have since developed even further, and brought hope to those seeking a way to extend human life. That being said, there a lot of questions that are raised when we think about life extension. Will everyone have an equal opportunity to benefit from these scientific discoveries? How will this affect the planet? Or society? Because of these questions, the pursuit of life extension is a highly controversial debate that will only become more important with the growth of technological advancements.

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One of the underlying sentiments behindlife extension is the idea the life isgoodanddeath isbad. For those who are pro-life extension (life extensionists), this perspective is a response to our current experiences and expectations given our limited maximum lifespans. From their perspective, if we were able to live longer lives (and perhaps have better health throughout), this would change how, and if, we perceive deaths as tragic. If we couldlive to 150, woulddying at 90 make us feel the same sadness as it does today?

Another argument amongst life extensionists is thatdeath is a waste sincewe loseaccumulated knowledge, experiences, and memories. Scientist Victoria Stevenswas quoted as saying, "I think the prospect of death it just seems like an awful waste after people spend their lives learning and progressing" (source). For some life extensionists, prolonging human life allows us topreserve the memories and accomplishments of humankind, resulting in positive social consequences. For instance, people may feel a greater sense ofpersonal responsibility and accountabilityfor their actions if they lived longer. If we think about the current state of the environment, this point definitely strikes a chord. If we expect to live longer, we may be more likely to care about how our actions and behaviours influence others, ourselves, and the planet (no more of that, "let the next generation figure it out" mentality).

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Not only wouldonly certainpeople in society be able to afford life extension, but certain societieswill be unable to afford itat all.

If humans were to somehow have indefinite life spans, the question of life's meaning may become even more complex and confoundingthan it already is. And what would we do with the time that we have? Though it may seem to open us up to endless possibilities, the reality is that our lives would be similar to how they are now - just longer. We would have the same joys, but also the same struggles.

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There is also the argument that life extension technologies and treatments will createsocial problemsdue to the likely cost of these services. At first, they will undoubtedly be very expensive, essentially meaning that they wouldonly beaccessible to higher-incomeindividuals.This presents society with a wholemyriad of issues, as only certainpeople in society would be able to afford life extension, and certain societies (such as third worldcountries, for instance) would be unable to afford itat all. This couldcause greater social inequality, and greater social unrest. Disparities between rich and poor individuals, communities, and countries wouldgrow - the implications of which we cannot possibly know or predict. But it's likely safe to say that whatever these implications would be, they would not be positive.

There are alsoenvironmentalconcerns to consider. Our planet is suffering greatly from climate change. Earth is over-populated, and does not have enough natural resources to continue to support the current population (that is growing exponentially each year!) So, if life extension is thrown into the mix, what does this mean? If everyone is able to live longer lives, there would have to be entire generations of human beings that were unable to reproduce in order to avoid further overcrowding our world. We would also have to reevaluate how our resources are distributed and preserved. Needless to say, there would have to be a great deal of thinking and rethinking regarding our planet's population and use of resources in order for life extension to be at all a reasonable pursuit.

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According to scholar Shai Lavi, one of the biggest changes in the 20th century was the way that death came to be seen as a failure, while medicine and science offered an intelligible hope in the face of a hopeless existence. While life extensionists want to showcase a highly optimistic future, the arguments against extending life are worthy of serious consideration. Our new will to master death goes hand-in-hand with the ways in which we avoid death. But as those in the Death Positive movement have tried to argue, death acceptance can bring us a long way towards fulfillment in life, and even hope in death (to say nothing of the role of religion in this respect).

A shift in our values and ethics will be unavoidable in the face of such a dramatic change in the way we live. Additionally, even if we live until 178 instead of 78, human beings are still just that: humans. Radical life-extensionist Aubrey de Grey acknowledges that humans will always be subject to violence, war, suicide, and accidents (Source). Life extension is not the same as invincibility. The extension of our human lives may makeus feel more than human, but that is what we will remain all the same.

With these arguments in mind, and regardless of which side of the debate you are on, it is important to consider how life extension will affect how human beings think about themselves and each other.

Originally posted here:
The Ethics of Life Extension | TalkDeath

Life ExtensionPower/Ability to:

extend one's life

The power to extend one's life. Sub-power of Lifespan Manipulation. Variation of Immortality. Opposite to Life Reduction.

User can somehow extend their or others' lifespan significantlyor maybe even indefinitelyin order to live longer.

By continuously bathing in the Lazarus Pits, Ra's al Ghul (DC Comics) has extended his life for over 600 years.

Toki (Fist of the North Star) was able to use his knowledge of pressure points to extend the mortally wounded Rei's life by a few days.

By continuously lengthening her telomeres, Tomiko Asahina (From the New World) has extended her life for over 200 years.

Lachesis (Valkyrie Crusade) can extend the years of life of anyone she wants as much as she wants.

Heart of Atlantis (Atlantis: The Lost Empire) provides phenomenal longevity, with the ability to extend an individual's lifespan by almost 500 times.

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eBay determines this price through a machine learned model of the product's sale prices within the last 90 days.

eBay determines trending price through a machine learned model of the products sale prices within the last 90 days. "New" refers to a brand-new, unused, unopened, undamaged item, and "Used" refers to an item that has been used previously.

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life extension | eBay

About Life Extension

Life Extension is a dietary supplements manufacturer that claims to offer the highest quality award-winning, science-based vitamins and supplements. As their name suggests, they and their Life Extension Foundation (more about this in the following section) are focused on anti-aging research and integrative health, and many of their supplements reflect this.

Life Extension is based out of Fort Lauderdale, FL, and claims to have been in business for more than 34 years. During this time, they claim to have reinvested $125 million into helping find cures for age-related diseases. The company is listed with the Better Business Bureau under Life Extension Foundation Buyers Club, Inc., and has an A+ rating, with just one closed complaint over the past three years. Unusually, despite the length of time the company has been in business, we were unable to locate any online customer reviews during our research.

By sourcing only the highest quality raw materials from all over the world, Life Extension claims to manufacture over 350 of the highest quality supplements available on the market, all of which are clinically validated and tested. In addition, the company claims that their supplements are created by scientists who analyze thousands of scientific studies every week, and who are on the forefront of medical research. In fact, the company claims to maintain a Certificate of Analysis on file for each one of their products, which guarantees potency and purity.

When talking about the company, its important to remember that the Life Extension Buyers Club is the consumer-focused portion, while the nonprofit Life Extension Foundation is an organization dedicated to extending human life, controlling aging, and eradicating disease.

At the time of this writing, the most popular Life Extension supplements included:

According to the companys website, all Life Extension products are GMP certified, and include dosages that accurately replicate the most successful results obtained in scientific studies for maximum efficacy.

In addition to products, Life Extension also offers blood testing services, as well as cutting-edge clinical trials that you can apply for, most of which are compensated.

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With more than 350 products in their catalog, Life Extension supplements can vary greatly in price. However, based on a moderate sample size, most supplements appear to range between $10 and $82. Keep in mind that the more you buy, the lower per-bottle price youll pay.

During the checkout process, youll be required to become a Life Extension member in order to complete the purchase. As such, youll have six different options:

Whichever option you choose, membership allows you to save 25%-50% when compared to health food store prices. All options other than a monthly membership will also give you access to two free bonuses:

Disease Prevention & Treatment, a 1,400-page book that bridges the gap between cutting-edge science and mainstream medicine.Life Extension Directory, which details all of the companys supplements.

US-based basic shipping costs $5.50, while 2nd Day Air is priced at $12.50 and Overnight at $21.50.

All Life Extension products come with a one-year, 100% satisfaction guarantee. You can also sign up for VIP AutoShip, which allows you to receive your favorite supplements on a recurring basis.

To set yourself up on the AutoShip program or to begin the refund process, youll need to contact customer service at 800-226-2370, or use their online contact form.

With all of this in mind, whats the bottom line: Is Life Extension a scam? While nothing we encountered during our research would lead us to believe this is the case, keep the following in mind:

First, Life Extension is a very big company, and has been in business for more than 34 years, so its products clearly resonate with a large percentage of the population. To drive home this fact, according to this article, as of 2009 it had assets of over $25 million andnetted more than $3 million on revenue of more than $18 million that year.

Regardless of the companys size though, the nutritional supplements industry is rife with unsubstantiated claims. For those with clinical studies that appear to support their claims, many are based on thin science, or on studies not conducted on humans. Were not saying this is the case with Life Extension, but its a rampant problem within the industry. Also, when factoring in the specific makeup of individuals, keep in mind that not all supplements will work for every consumer.

Furthermore, the Life Extension Foundation has a long history of legal woes in its relationship with the FDA, many of which date back more than 25 years. On top of this, the Foundations tax exempt status was revoked in May 2013, although this appears to have more to do with funding than it does with anything related to their products.

Finally, we were unable to locate any legitimate online customer reviews about Life Extension, which is surprising considering the companys age. However, the good news is that you can be a star by writing about your experience with Life Extension. So go ahead and share your experience with the world now!

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Life Extension Reviews - Is it a Scam or Legit?

New research indicates that melatonin does much more than help some people sleep better. Exciting studies show that melatonins multifaceted effects may improve treatment outcomes in cancer patients and extend their lives. Additional applications of melatonin include guarding the nervous system against degenerative diseasessuch as Alzheimers disease and strokeand preventing debilitating migraines.

Melatonin is secreted from the pineal gland deep inside the brain. For more than a quarter-century, scientists have been intrigued by melatonins ability to coordinate the bodys physiological rhythms that help set the brains biological clock.

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Fortunately, melatonin supplements can safely and effectively restore balance to the bodys circadian rhythm of this important hormonehelping achieve a restful nights sleep and keeping your biological clock ticking throughout a long, healthy life span.

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Melatonin levels are particularly low in patients with Alzheimers disease. Nearly half of affected individuals suffer from sleep disturbances and sundowningincreased confusion, agitation, and other symptoms in the afternoon and evening.2 Not surprisingly, melatonin supplementation benefits patients with Alzheimers disease by improving sleep and reducing late-day aggravation of symptoms. Melatonin has also been found to decrease cognitive deterioration in individuals with Alzheimers disease, possibly by protecting brain cells from the toxic protein, beta-amyloid.2

Melatonin may likewise play an important role in assisting patients suffering from Parkinsons disease. Parkinsons disease is associated with disrupted melatonin secretion in the brain, and supplemental melatonin may help improve sleep efficiency in affected adults.3

The brain can suffer dramatic, irreparable damage when an individual suffers a stroke. Utilizing animal models of stroke, scientists have found that melatonin may offer important protection against stroke-related damage and deterioration. When administered at the time of stroke, melatonin limited the area of brain tissue damage, decreased brain cell death, lessened behavioral deficits, and reduced the rate of stroke-related death. These investigators believe that melatonins protective actions stem from its free-radical-scavenging and antioxidant activities, and suggest that melatonin may hold promise in improving stroke outcomes in humans.4

Melatonin may help manage one of the leading risk factors for strokeelevated blood pressure. While an earlier study reported that hypertensive men taking melatonin experienced reduced nighttime blood pressure, a newer study confirms the same benefit for women.5 In a randomized, double-blind study, 18 women

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When women with metastatic breast cancer who had failed to respond to tamoxifen received melatonin supplements (20 mg every evening), they demonstrated an improved response to the chemotherapy drug. More than one quarter of the subjectswhose disease otherwise was expected to progress rapidlybegan responding to the chemotherapy treatment. Most of the women also experienced anxiety relief from the melatonin supplementation.8 Laboratory studies suggest that melatonin may help fight hormone-responsive breast cancers by inhibiting the aromatase enzyme, which is responsible for the local synthesis of estrogens.9,10

Emerging research suggests that melatonin may help fight one of the most common malignancies in aging menprostate cancer. In the laboratory, scientists treated androgen-sensitive and androgen-insensitive prostate cancer cells with pharmacological concentrations of melatonin. Treatment with melatonin dramatically reduced the number of prostate cancer cells, while the remaining cells displayed signs of slowed replication and increased differentiationcharacteristics of healthy, non-cancerous cells. Melatonin may thus hold promise against prostate cancers, whether they are hormone-sensitive or hormone-insensitive.11

Scientists conducted a meta-analysis of 10 randomized, controlled trials examining melatonins effects (alone or as an adjuvant treatment) on patients with various types of cancer. Supplementation with melatonin reduced the relative risk of death at one year by an impressive 34%regardless of the type of cancer or the melatonin dosage. Importantly, no adverse effects were reported.12

In addition to its benefits for cancer survival, melatonin may also help counteract the toxicity of chemotherapy treatment. Two-hundred-fifty individuals undergoing chemotherapy for advanced cancers of the lung, breast, gastrointestinal tract, or head and neck received chemotherapy, either alone or in combination with melatonin (20 mg/day). After one year, the melatonin-supplemented individuals demonstrated a higher rate of survival, and were significantly protected against many of the side effects associated with chemotherapy, including decreased platelet count, neurotoxicity, heart damage, mouth sores, and fatigue.13

A promising study suggests that migraine sufferers may be able to reduce the frequency and severity of their headaches by using melatonin. Researchers gave 34 migraine sufferers (29 women and 5 men) a 3-mg dose of melatonin, 30 minutes before bedtime, for three months. Of the 32 patients who finished the study, more than two thirds experienced at least a 50% reduction in number of headaches per month. Additionally, the intensity and duration of headaches decreased. The scientists believe that melatonins anti-inflammatory effect and free-radical-scavenging effects contribute to its headache-relieving benefits.14

Obtaining sufficient amounts of quality sleep is an absolute necessity for good health, yet many of us experience sleep difficulties on occasion. Insomnia occurs due to a variety of factorsranging from long hours of work or travel to sleep-disruptive conditions, such as urinary frequency and stressful events. Elderly adults may be particularly susceptible to difficulty sleeping and nighttime awakenings, due to the decline in melatonin levels associated with aging.15 Melatonin can help promote healthy sleep patterns in some people, regardless of the cause of insomnia.

A large analysis revealed several of melatonins sleep-enhancing benefits. Reviewing 15 studies of sleep in healthy adults, scientists noted that melatonin administration significantly reduced sleep latency (the amount of time needed to fall asleep), while boosting sleep efficiency (the percentage of time in bed spent asleep) and increasing total sleep duration.16

Men with benign prostatic enlargement often experience poor sleep due to nighttime urinary frequency. Scientists from the United Kingdom found that melatonin may offer an effective solution. When 20 older men were treated with 2 mg of melatonin each day for one month, they experienced a significant decrease in nighttime urination, and reported that their condition was less bothersome than before treatment.15

Individuals who work the night shift are often chronically tired due to difficulty falling asleep during the daytime. Supplementing with melatonin has helped improve the length and quality of daytime sleep in these individuals. These findings demonstrate an important characteristic of melatonin: the hormone exerts its hypnotic (sleep-inducing) and sedative (anxiety-relieving) effects, regardless of dosage time.7

Traveling to different time zones often leads to the fatigue and insomnia known as jet lag. Supplementing with melatonin can help prevent or reduce jet lag, particularly when traveling across several time zones. Melatonin works by helping re-synchronize the bodys circadian rhythms, helping the traveler adapt to the local time.7

Melatonin is used in doses ranging from 0.3-5.0 mg to promote sleep, with doses of 1-3 mg most common.17 Studies examining melatonins effects on cancer have utilized doses of 3-50 mg/day.7

Melatonin has a sedating effect, which may be magnified by the use of benzodiazepines or other sedating drugs such as antihistamines or antidepressants. Similarly, the use of melatonin with valerian, 5-hydroxytryptophan, or alcohol may increase sedation.17

The bioavailability of oral melatonin is increased by co-administration of the antidepressant drug fluvoxamine (Luvox).17 Beta blockers, as well as aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, may decrease melatonin production in the body.17

A factor in restorative sleep, melatonins benefits extend to neuroprotection and fighting cancer. Its powerful antioxidant effect offers important enhancements to the brain and nervous system, helping protect against age-related damage. Most exciting are melatonins benefits for cancer patientsrelieving anxiety and improving survival from an array of cancers. Finally, migraine sufferers using melatonin may enjoy a vast decline in the frequency and severity of their headachesleading to a tremendously improved quality of life.

See the rest here:
Melatonin - Impressive Health Benefits | Life Extension ...

A common and frustrating complaint we at Life Extension hear is how to stop urinary incontinence.

Our frustration has been that despite aggressive research, we could not identify a safe solution to this problem that plagues so many aging women (and men to a lesser extent).

Even more numerous are inquiries we receive from people seeking relief from frequent daytime and nighttime urinary urges.

In a breakthrough discovered by Japanese scientists, a natural plant extract combination has been shown to reduce incontinent episodes by up to 79%,1 daytime urination by up to 39%,2 and nighttime urination by up to 68%.3

This article will discuss the research findings on maturing women who found significant relief after taking this novel supplement for only six to eight weeks.

Additionally, this article will discuss more limited data obtained when men suffering from nighttime urinary urgencies were given this same plant extract.

Urinary frequency becomes more common with advancing age, with nearly half of people over 60 reporting to suffer from nocturia (two or more episodes of urination during the night).

Urinary incontinence is defined as an involuntary loss of urine. It represents a major social and hygiene problem in the aging population. About 48% of women and 17% of men over age 70 suffer urinary incontinence.4

Overactive bladder affects one in six adults over age 40, and is defined as having an urgent need to empty the bladder during the day-night, along with incontinence. Those afflicted with an overactive bladder have to go to the bathroom frequently, leak urine into their clothes, and report feeling depressed, stressed, and sleep-deprived.

In women, stress incontinence (involuntary loss of urine during physical activity such as sneezing or exercise) is usually caused by a weakening of the bladder sphincter and pelvic floor muscles. Shrinkage (atrophy) of tissues where the bladder and urethra meet also contributes to the problem. Hormonal changes occurring after menopause are thought to be an underlying cause of these anatomical changes in the bladder sphincter that lead to urinary incontinence.

In postmenopausal women, decreased androgen (testosterone) levels weaken the pelvic floor and sphincter muscles, while an estrogen deficit induces atrophy of the urethra.

Mainstream medicine offers only mediocre therapies to address urinary incontinence. Drugs commonly used for this condition are expensive and side-effect-prone. Only a small proportion of the affected population seeks treatment because most people consider their urinary symptoms a consequence of normal aging.

Fortunately, a safe, natural, and low-cost approach has been developed that has demonstrated remarkable benefits in human clinical trials.

Pumpkin seeds were traditionally used by Native American tribes to facilitate passage of urine. A European herbal encyclopedia first mentioned the use of pumpkins seeds to treat urinary problems in the year 1578. The German health regulators approve pumpkin seed as a treatment for irritable bladder.

Pumpkin seed oil has been included in products used to alleviate urinary difficulties. While some effects have been shown when using the fat-soluble (oil) fraction of the pumpkin seed, it is the water-soluble portion that demonstrated impressive symptomatic effects in recent studies.

Japanese scientists have patented a method to obtain the water-soluble constituents of the pumpkin seed, which are absorbed far more efficiently into the bloodstream.

Urinary incontinence worsens after menopause. While menopausal problems are usually associated with estrogen deficit, low levels of testosterone and progesterone are also underlying culprits.

Water-soluble pumpkin seed extract exerts an anabolic (tissue-building) effect on the pelvic floor muscles via several mechanisms. By inhibiting the aromatase enzyme, it may make more testosterone available to strengthen the pelvic muscles.5

Secondly, this water-soluble pumpkin seed fraction binds to the androgen receptor on pelvic muscle cells, thus inducing a strengthening effect. This is important because androgen receptors are expressed in the pelvic floor and lower urinary tract in humans.6 By promoting androgenic activity, water-soluble pumpkin seed extract may play an important role in female pelvic floor structural integrity and lower urinary tract disorders.5

Nitric oxide is a molecule critically involved in lower urinary tract functions. For the urination muscles to relax when the bladder is full, nitric oxide is required. When nitric oxide synthesis is inhibited, the result is bladder hyperactivity and reduced bladder volume.

The dual mechanisms of strengthening pelvic floor muscles, while increasing nitric oxide synthesis,5 help explain how water-soluble pumpkin seed extract alleviated urinary incontinence in three separate studies on aging women.1-3

Soy extracts provide standardized phyoestrogens that are potentially effective in ameliorating geriatric symptoms relating to estrogen deficit.

The ingestion of standardized soy extract has been hypothesized to decrease the atrophy of tissues where the bladder and urethra meet and thus alleviate frequent urinary urges and incontinence.

A study was done to evaluate the effects of water-soluble pumpkin seed extract in anesthetized rats to determine bladder functionality.7

As measured by a cystometrogram, bladder parameters showed a dramatic 54.5% improvement in rats receiving water-soluble pumpkin extract compared to other agents.

When the excretion frequency was measured, a 60% reduction in urine excretion frequency occurred after administration of water-soluble pumpkin seed extract. No improvement was seen in the group given inactive solvent.

Conclusions from the study showed that water-soluble pumpkin extract significantly increases maximum bladder capacity while decreasing urination frequency.

A study of 39 incontinent females (aged 55-79 years) using water-soluble pumpkin seed and soy isoflavone extracts was conducted over a six-week period.1 The objective was to evaluate the effects on frequency of daytime and nighttime urinations and number of incontinent episodes.

After six weeks, the number of nighttime urinations was reduced from 3.3 to 2.0 a 39% improvement. Daytime urinations went from 8.0 to 6.7 after six weeks a modest 16% improvement.

The number of incontinent episodes, however, plunged to a remarkably low number. Prior to receiving the water-soluble pumpkin seed-soy extract, these women experienced an average of 7.3 incontinent episodes a day. After six weeks of using this supplement, daily incontinent episodes averaged only 1.5 an astounding 79% decrease in urinary incontinence!

When these women were questioned about the effects they noticed in response to taking water-soluble pumpkin seed-soy extract, there was a 73% subjective improvement in the highest fulfilled category. When the global improvement ratio was evaluated, which included degree of satisfaction after sleeping, 81.8% of women with two to four episodes of nightly urinations reported that they were markedly improved.

A study of 50 incontinent women (aged 35-84 years) was conducted using the same water-soluble pumpkin seed-soy extract supplement to evaluate the effect on stress incontinence episodes.3

Before the pumpkin seed-soy supplement was given, these women averaged 2.1 incontinent events each day. After taking the supplement for six weeks, incontinent events fell to an average of only 0.7 a day a remarkable 67% decrease in stress-induced incontinent episodes!

A consumer test of 10 women (aged 45-65 years) was conducted using the same water-soluble pumpkin seed and soy extract supplement.2

After eight weeks, daytime urinations went from 9.3 to 5.6 a 39% reduction. Nighttime urinations went from 2.0 to 0.8 a 60% reduction.

Prior to initiating the pumpkin seed-soy supplement, there was an average of 2.3 incontinent episodes each day. After eight weeks, the frequency of incontinent episodes declined to only 1.0 per day a 57% reduction!

Link:
Relief of Overactive Bladder - page 1 | Life Extension ...

Dr Undenge

From Walter Nyamukondiwa in KARIBAThe Kariba South Extension Project is now 92 percent complete and on course for commissioning by end of December as Government moves to clear the power deficit.

This is part of an eight-pronged approach to increasing power generation amid indications that about $500 million is being mobilised for the Hwange Life Extension project.

With a daily deficit of between 300MW and 600MW, the shortfall is being reduced progressively.In an interview on the sidelines of the Zimbabwe Institute of Engineers biennial congress here yesterday, Energy and Power Development Minister Dr Samuel Undenge hailed the collaboration between the contractors and Zesa management.

We are very pleased with the progress so far and to date we know that the Kariba South Extension Project is now 92 percent complete and everything is on course for its commissioning on 24 December, 2017, said Dr Undenge.

We applaud the focused work and effort that is being exhibited by the contractor (Sinohydro) and Zesa management that has seen so much progress.

He said initial challenges of foreign currency to pay suppliers were being overcome with the involvement of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe. The two new units will add a further 300MW to the national grid.

Zimbabwe has not had load-shedding for the last 20 months, as more than 300MW are being imported to offset the supply deficit.Expansion works and implementation of new projects ties in with regional efforts within SADC to offset the 8 247MW deficit.

This is largely due to lack of meaningful investment in power generation over the last two decades.Zimbabwes major investment in the power sector was in 1987 when Hwange Stage II was commissioned.

Dr Undenge said load-shedding is a major cost and inconvenience to consumers, undermines economic growth and suppresses foreign and local investment.The Hwange Life Extension seeks to recondition the power plant and add another 25 years to its productive life.

There are also plans to increase the thermal plants generation capacity from 550MW to 750MW.Government is implementing eight strategies including optimising existing generation plants, development of renewable energy and conservation among others.

This also includes guaranteeing production at Harare II and III (40MW), Bulawayo (25MW) and Munyati (30MW) thermal power stations.The Energy minister revealed that tendering for the Batoka Gorge South Bank which will add a further 1 400MW to the national grid will be out soon.

In terms of the Batoka Gorge project there are feasibility studies that have just been completed, then tenders will be send out. So that process is underway, said the Minister.

Other projects in the pipeline include the Devils Gorge (1 000MW), Hwange Western Area (1 200MW), Tokwe-Mukosi Hydro (15MW) and Gairezi Small Hydro (30MW).

Dr Undenge said the Minister of Finance and Economic Development Patrick Chinamasa was working on incentives to make investment into the energy sector attractive.

The Minister (Chinamasa) is trying to come up with a regime of incentives so that we make investment into the energy sector by private players more attractive. We need them to augment what Government is doing, said Minister Undenge.

Originally posted here:
Kariba project 92pc complete - The Herald

SEPTEMBER 7, 2017

TWO TRENDS are on the rise, and one is about to make the other worse.

The first is epitomized in a July 2017 report in The Economist on the United Statess urban-rural divide, which noted that deaths of despair suicide, heart disease, and drug overdoses are increasing in the southeastern corner of West Virginia. Life expectancy for men is now 16.5 years lower than in neighboring Arlington. Christian H. Coopers moving essay in Nautilus entitled Why Poverty Is Like a Disease, Karin Goodwins journalism in the Guardian, and James Bloodworths op-ed in New Scientist have piled on additional accounts of how chronic stress and loss of a sense of control can be our undoing.

Meanwhile, in the second trend, biotechs rise, ever more powerful tools are being developed for in vitro fertilization, and for anti-aging and cancer technologies. Some of the latter run to six figures, which means some insurance companies may not cover them.

As economist Thomas Piketty noted in 2014, and so many have since Trumps election, the United States is embroiled in an intensifying era of class struggle, which expresses itself not only in differential impacts on health as pegged to class, but also in the growing unlikelihood that the rural poor, and indeed the poor in general, can securely provide for their children, no doubt a factor in the declining fertility rate. At the same time, the commercialization of science steadily escalates, along with its corollary: the commercialization of human life. Many life scientists hope to start a company and strike it rich. Many have. Entrepreneurial scientists now count themselves among the wealthiest of Americans, and, as the market so freely allows, some of them build their careers on the development and sale of biotech solutions. Offering a route to positive eugenics, longer life, and interventions into deadly diseases, these life-saving and life-enhancing technologies will assuredly widen the public health gap.

First, consider birth. In December 2015, I attended a meeting at the National Academy of Sciences in which a member of the American Society of Reproductive Medicine stood up to proclaim that parents have a right to use the gene-editing tool CRISPR-Cas9 and in vitro, or IVF, technologies to have a genetically connected child. These technologies could be used, he explained, to repair the code for deleterious genes that run in certain families or improve older parents chances of a birth. Bioethicist Hille Haker argued that there is a difference between a negative right, which is a freedom from harm or tyranny, and a full positive right, which is a freedom to access potential benefits. Having a healthy child is a negative right, according to Haker, meaning a right you have unless someone (such as the Chinese government) takes it away, but not a full positive right. If it were a full positive right, society would be hidebound in debt to pay for each of its citizens to have children, applying genetic tests and in vitro techniques as needed. Almost no one would contend that society has such a responsibility, she argued. You may disagree with me, but as an ethicist I put the consequential assessment in terms of rights and obligations, Haker said. There is no right to a genetically related child, it is a high value, not a right.

In August, Shoukhrat Mitalipov, at the Oregon Health & Science University in Portland,controversially became the first scientist in the United States to use the gene modification system CRISPR to alter a human embryo. He modified the gene MYBPC3; when mutated in a single copy of that gene, it can increase your risk for a rare heart condition. Forty-two of the 58 embryos he altered, or 72 percent, had two mutation-free copies of the gene in every cell, and, most importantly, there were no unintended mutations. This study suggests that any technical limitations will soon be overcome, which will then open up a landslide of ethical questions related to equity. Keep in mind that many of us carry a genetic variant that predicts risk for a serious condition. Will insurance companies pay for these gene modifications, and to what extent? Or will the wealthy alone be able to afford to modify their embryos?

This past winter, the National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of Medicine published a report entitled Human Genome Editing: Science, Ethics, and Governance that signals support for gene editing to the heritable, or germline, code, but only in cases where no safer options are available. In her book, A Crack in Creation, Jennifer Doudna, one of the inventors of CRISPR-Cas9, also signaled her openness to CRISPR-ized babies through gene modification.

Already, insurance coverage of in vitro fertilization varies widely by state, and now gene modification techniques may further challenge the concept of what is medically necessary. A mutated APP gene can predict early-onset Alzheimers. A mutated BRCA gene can predict breast or ovarian cancer. A disrupted PCSK9 can lower LDL cholesterol. The Food and Drug Administration actually thinks of CRISPR as a drug rather than a device, so in the United States, CRISPR must pass through a regulatory process for each target it modifies, even in an embryo. For some single-gene or Mendelian diseases such as Tay-Sachs and cystic fibrosis, or the immune disorders NEMO or X-SCID, CRISPR technology could be a fairly straightforward new treatment modality in vitro. Keep in mind, however, that generating an embryo without a heritable mutation can, in the vast majority of cases, already be accomplished by screening embryos before implantation. This raises the question of when CRISPR would be indispensable. In fact, genetic variants in BRCA, which tend to run in high-risk families, are nested in complex so-called epistatic relationships involving the interaction of multiple genetic variants. It would be impossible to know whether altering that single gene reduces cancer in a family in future generations. And if it did, would poor families be able to afford it? Probably not.

Marcy Darnovsky, director of the Center for Genetics and Society in Berkeley, California,and her team have counted as many as 45 countries that ban germline modification. The United States is not one of them, and instead it handles germline editing in vitro much as it does stem cell research by prohibiting funding to scientists to do this research and prohibiting funding to the FDA to review applications for clinical trials of CRISPR babies. We can be sure that entrepreneurial scientists who stand to cash in on such technologies are working to alter such policies. Using gene-editing techniques in a test tube is arguably safer than using gene modification techniques on a living person in a test tube, youre modifying a clump of 64 cells or fewer, rather than trillions of cells, and eliminating the risk of an immune reaction. But those test tube techniques still require genetic diagnostics to know something about a familys risk, not to mention requiring the capital outlay to pay for expensive genetic diagnosis and IVF treatments in short, not particularly realistic or affordable for most of us.

Ultimately, none of this would help living people who develop a disease such as cancer. New technologies such as genetically engineered T-cells combined with CRISPR will enable doctors to coax the bodys immune system into fighting cancer,the first of which wasapprovedonAugust 30, which Novartis will sell in the U.S. for$475,000, a drug price that is nine times the median income in the United States. This means that high-cost medicines will create wealthy scientists and just as surely will exacerbate the health divide. This may be the reality if the Trump administration repeals the Affordable Care Act, but it may also be the reality in a single-payer system such as the National Health Service in Britain, which isnt prepared to pay for these high-priced medicines either. Indeed, oncologist and author Siddhartha Mukherjee warned this summer at the annual American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting about dividing the world into the rich who can afford personalized cancer treatment and the poor who cannot. If health insurance is unequal or inadequate, the only solution may be to use the power of the state to regulate the cost of cancer drugs. A drug price fairness initiative is in fact already on the ballot in Ohio; and transparency laws, established in Vermont, are clarifying their cost. We may have to cap them by executive order.

In the 1970s, Michel Foucault developed the influential notions of biopower and biopolitics, which gave power its access even to the body. In his words, biopolitics is the endeavour, begun in the eighteenth century, to rationalize problems presented to governmental practice by the phenomena characteristic of a group of living human beings constituted as a population: health, sanitation, birth rate, longevity, race. He defines biopower as the techniques for achieving the subjugation of bodies and the control of populations. But even Foucault had yet to conceive of how new biotechnologies could be leveraged. The industrial revolution of the human genome initiates an era in which social divisions are amplified by means of genomics technologies.

Foucault was wrong about some things, such as health and mental illness being solely the result of social forces. But he may have been only partially wrong. As neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky and so many others have noted, stress is distributed unequally across the social spectrum. Hierarchies of wealth and power institutionalize certain forms of stress, including chronic forms, and, according to a spate of recent research, social hierarchies are then embedded in body chemistry through social imprinting. If this research holds up, then it seems clear that we cant undo the damages accrued by years of poverty or poor social status by giving more funding to wealthy scientists. Theres been a clear shift to funding genetics research into mental illness, but the fact is that this research supports the drug-maker model, which then mostly benefits those who control and sell those drugs. It supports their careers through generous amounts of public funding. It does not support the disenfranchised who may need more than drug-based interventions.

The philosopher Nick Bostrom defines transhumanism as the doctrine that

holds that current human nature is improvable through the use of applied science and other rational methods, which may make it possible to increase human health-span, extend our intellectual and physical capacities, and give us increased control over our own mental states and moods.

This not-so-subtle movement includes efforts by the National Institute of Mental Health to monetize the field of psychiatry by basing research on a molecular biomarker or gene target that can be pursued as a diagnostic test or drug target, an agenda that is, in fact, now in retreat because so few reliable biomarkers or targets have actually been discovered. Clinical biomarkers and biochemical transformations have failed to make a dent in suicide rates, not to mention in the incident rates or prognosis of serious psychiatric ills. The most promising discovery coming out of research into psychiatric drugs in recent years may be a street drug called ketamine, or Special K, a worldly knowledge that experts have expropriated from regular folks.

As for the budding life-extension industry, it is built around over-the-counter drugs, such as nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN), and the development of new drugs to degrade proteins that build up in brains and are associated with age-related diseases such as Alzheimers and Parkinsons disease. In 2013, the Time magazine cover story Can Google Solve Death? became part of the transhumanist spectacle when it noted that, for CEO Larry Page, solving cancer may not be a big enough task. The article introduced life extension company Calico, which is currently working on ways to degrade proteins that build up in the brain and are correlated with age-related diseases. But insurers may not have an incentive to pay for life-extension techniques that add bonus years, since insurance is more costly when we are older. As a result, these pursuits only contribute to the trope that life extension is a luxury pursued by wealthy Silicon Valley entrepreneurs stymied by their own loss of control. The most potent real news is precisely the connection between income and longevity. In short: The fact that such studies have led to no major societal shifts in how we value life suggests that the longevity that drug makers pursue as a financial prospect is solely about extending life for the wealthy.

An urgent question, therefore, is the following: Are our scientific institutions working on behalf of the public and fairness, and so of distributive justice, or are they working for commercial interests? And another disturbing question: Are these interests being normalized before we can even debate them? The fact that scientists themselves like to appeal to economic interests when asking for public funding should offer one clue. And of course it doesnt help that scientists want to sell us stuff.

In the famous 1971 Chomsky-Foucault Debate, Foucault argued that those who take up social justice causes are in fact doing so only because they want to take power. Chomsky demurred:

I think its too hasty to characterize our existing systems of justice as merely systems of class oppression [] they also embody a kind of groping towards the true humanly valuable concepts of justice and decency and love and kindness and sympathy, which I think are real.

Of course, institutions can be applied to advance justice and fairness, or be exploited for special interests. If authority is broadly distributed and innate to the wellsprings of the mind, then institutions are an extension of principles that reside within us and should seek to ensure access and fairness. But if scientists are working toward selling biotech solutions at the highest price the market will allow, then scientific institutions may be exploited for power and profit and thats just capitalism.

The irony is that we may need the state to ensure fair access to medicines we fund, and to prohibit genetic enhancement or reproductive advantages if all of us cant afford or access them. This is no small problem. Political scientist Francis Fukuyama called transhumanism the worlds most dangerous idea, suggesting that the commercialization of biotech would create increasing unfairness. In his book Our Posthuman Future, he qualifies his original end of history thesis, arguing that human genetic engineering and in vitro fertilization might perpetuate social divisions, putting liberal democracy at risk. If there is one imperial power left on the world stage, Fukuyama argues, it is biotech. What should we do in response to biotechnology that in the future will mix great potential benefits with threats that are either physical and overt or spiritual and subtle? he asks. The answer is obvious: We should use the power of the state to regulate it.

Here are some recommendations: the price of biologic medicines (gene and cell therapies) should be fixed or capped that is, if the public is expected to subsidize their cost through National Institutes of Health funding. If that sounds too much like socialism, then we need to stop socializing the costs and risks of drug development through NIH funding. A second point: The federal legislators and the FDA should have strong regulatory control over the creation of gene modifications to the heritable code of newborns. For the moment, they are able to constrain those enterprises as mentioned earlier, the FDA regulates gene modifications as a drug, and any specific target must pass through an extensive regulatory process. Once approved, then some sort of public insurance must make them accessible to everyone, or else biotech will assuredly exacerbate social and economic inequality, thus affecting the Freedom Index in the United States.

Scientists are readily using taxpayer funding to advance their own economic interests, thereby institutionalizing power and wealth. Indeed, many managerial scientists count themselves among the wealthiest Americans with annual salaries in the six and seven figures. If the state has a role, it is to live up to the ideals which we are groping towards, the concepts of justice and decency, rather than the current reality of scientific institutions seeding biotech startups. The fact is that scientists are increasingly testing public trust. Whether they should continue to receive tax-exempt funding ought to depend on whether they are working toward fair and equal access to medicine, lest by the time science funding reaches a commercial shelf, life is simply up for sale.

Jim Kozubek is the author ofModern Prometheus: Editing the Human Genome withCrispr-Cas9,published by the Cambridge University Press.

Continue reading here:
Biopower in the Era of Biotech - lareviewofbooks

The cost approach requires the identity and quantification of three types of obsolescence physical, functional and economic. Assessors frequently account only for physical depreciation (although some assessors/appraisers apply a special factor in an attempt to capture functional and economic obsolescence). Physical depreciation is dependent upon accurately determining: (1) the effective age, which is the chronological age or the weighted chronological age (if physical improvements have been made) adjusted for physical condition; and (2) the appropriate service life of the facility (some also measure and apply remaining life). Needless to say, an assessor/appraiser can increase a propertys value by misstating any one of these factors. So, the taxpayer must closely review the assessment process to make sure that each factor reflects market realities and the facilitys physical condition. It is also essential that the assessor/appraiser apply an appropriate service life that considers the major components of the facility and their interaction on the life of the facility. A purchaser of the building only recognizes value to the extent that the building can continue to produce profitable net operating income at a required rate of return. An example is an old K Mart or Sears building. Physically, for retail purposes, they are likely to have short term life, as major reparations are likely necessary to make the facilities operable in todays demanding retail environment. Nonetheless, taxing jurisdictions often apply longer physical lives that are based on the effect of such reparations (i.e., life extension); even though, they have not yet been incurred and without accounting for their cost. This artificially boosts the facilitys valuation.

Bottom line, if the taxpayer does not accurately identify and quantify the physical age, condition and service life, its property will continue to be over valued by the assessor/appraiser. If economic life is applied, the appraiser needs to recognize and quantify the other non-physical forms of obsolescence captured in the economic life to avoid double counting.

Originally posted here:
Beware of the Overstated Service Life in the Cost Approach - Lexology (registration)

The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Eagle moors at Point Lumley Park in Old Town Sept. 4, marking the first time in 11 years that the vessel known as Americas Tall Ship returned to the Washington area.

Alexandria For the first time in 11 years, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Eagle arrived in the

Washington area, mooring at Old Towns Point Lumley Park Sept. 4 as part of the tall ships summer deployment.

Also known as Americas Tall Ship, Eagle is the largest tall ship flying the U.S. flag and the only active commissioned sailing vessel in American military service. Eagle is the only square-rigger in the U.S. military services and is used to train students at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn.

The Eagle has a fascinating history, said Old Town resident Hal Hardaway after touring the vessel Sept. 5. Eagle was hull #508 built in the Blohm and Voss shipyard in Hamburg in 1936. That yards next hull # 509 was Bismark.

Alexandria is Eagle's final stop in its summer deployment, which has spanned

five months and included 14 ports, including multiple ports along the Eastern Seaboard, Canada and Bermuda.

Also known as the Coast Guard Barque Eagle, the ship left Baltimore April 26 bound for New London to commence the 2017 cadet summer training program. Eagle and her crew, including Capt. Matthew Meilstrup as commanding officer, have been at the Coast Guard Yard facility in Baltimore as part of a Service Life Extension Project that will keep the ship away from its home port of New London for several years.

The ship was built in 1936 in Germany and commissioned as Horst Wessel, one of three sail training ships operated by the pre-World War II German navy. At the close of World War II, Horst Wessel was taken as a war reparation by the United States, recommissioned as the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Eagle and sailed to New London. The vessel is used for at-sea leadership and professional development training for future officers of the U.S. Coast Guard.

Eagle is scheduled to depart Point Lumley at approximately 4:30 a.m. Sept. 8. The Woodrow Wilson Bridge span will be raised at that time to allow Eagle to sail through as it makes its return to Baltimore.

For more information, visit http://www.cga.edu/eagle.

Continued here:
'America's Tall Ship' - Virginia Connection Newspapers

Imagine taking a pill that couldextend your lifespan. This plotline exists in the pages of science fiction novels, but a class of drugthat supports healthy aging, known as a senolytic drug, is currentlybeing tested, and if proven safe, could do more than add years to your life.A new studywhich showed the drugs preventedage-related bone loss in micehas important implications in treating a host of other diseases related to aging, researchers said.

Cells constantly divide, a process that allows us to grow and heal, but as we age, some cellsstop dividingand become senescent. These cellsalsoemit toxins that contribute to a number of health conditions such as cancer, dementia, and arthritis. The older we are, the more of these senescent cells we accumulate. Enter senolytic drugs.

These drugs are designed toclearaway senescentcells while leaving adjacentcells unharmed. According to the research,published online in Nature Medicine, these drugssupported healthy aging in mice and prevented bone loss. Considering that clearing senescent cells improves cardiovascular function and reduces frailty and other issues, this treatment could have important implications for treating not only osteoporosis, but other age-related problems, the authors wrote.

In a related article, the authors alsodescribea new screening platform to better identifyother potential senolytic drugs, which would help us address age-related conditions as a group, instead of one at a time.

"The emerging repertoire of senolytic drugs shows that they are having an impact on a huge range of diseases," said study researcher Dr. James Kirkland in a recent statement. "Our goal is to achieve the same success in humans as we have in preclinical animal models in efforts to prevent or delay the conditions associated with aging."

Moving forward, the researchers would like to further explore the potential of these drugs and figure out optimal drugcombinations forthe best results. Though"median lifespan" or "healthspan" aredifficult endpoints to determine in research,animal trials have given us a good idea of the drugs' potential therapeutic benefits.

This week has been exciting for the study of human aging and lifespan, as a recent Dutch article claimed to have found the maximum human lifespan:115.7 for women, and 114.1 for men, IFL Science reported. This number is based off a study of 75,000 now-deceased Dutch people, and while the researchers admit that people on average are living longer than before, this ceiling age still remains unchanged.

The research is controversial, with some researchers arguing thatit is possible to live beyond these ages, although rare.

The evidence points towards no looming limit. At present the balance of the evidence suggests that if there is a limit it is above 120, perhaps much above and perhaps there is not a limit at all,Jim Vaupel, a specialist in aging at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Germany, who wrote a paper criticizing these results, told The Guardian.

Regardless of what the ultimate age may be (or if it even exists), its still exciting that something as simple as a pill mayhelp us reach it. The senolytic drugs still need to be tested in human clinical trials, but according to CNN, it may be time to take that leap.

Source: Farr JN, Xu M, Weivoda MM, et al. Targeting cellular senescence prevents age-related bone loss in mice. Nature Medicine . 2017

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Want To Live Longer? Life Extension Drugs On Horizon; How They Work - Medical Daily

This is paid content as part of a partnership between The Good Men Project and ChromaDex.

Do you feel yourself slowing down recently? Over time, sun exposure, excessive food and alcohol consumption, and jetting between time zones are just a few factors that can depress your metabolism and cellular health.

There is a clinically-studied vitamin that can help reduce the effects of aging and help your cells function like they did when they were younger. Is your metabolism missing this crucial component?

Men and women in their 40s and beyond are turning to a form of vitamin B3 called nicotinamide riboside (NR) to defend against the adverse effects of slowing metabolism.

Dr. Charles Brenner, the Roy J. Carver Chair of Biochemistry at the University of Iowa and the founding co-director of the University of Iowa Obesity Initiative, is responsible for discovering the link between NR and a co-enzyme called NAD+, which is a crucial key to human health.

Dr. Brenner is also the Chief Scientific Advisor behind TRU NIAGEN, the only NR supplement directly from the ingredients patent-holder.

We invite you to read our Q&A with Dr. Brenner to learn more about his discovery, cellular health and why NR should be part of your morning routine.

GMP: What is NR and why do people take it?

CB: NR is a vitamin that maintains and boosts the central regulator of metabolism: NAD+.

NAD+ is required for us to convert our fuels (fats, proteins, and carbohydrates) into the energy we need to move, think and stay in optimal health. NAD+ is also required to protect our DNA and maintain nerve and muscle function.

Levels of NAD+ naturally decline with age. In addition, our levels of NAD+ are challenged by many metabolic stresses including sun and alcohol exposure, toxins, overeating and jetting between time zones. People take NR to maintain their youthful metabolism and resilience as we age and experience stress.

What kind of results can one expect to see from taking NR and in what time period?

People who have started taking TRU NIAGEN report subtle changes in their overall feelings of well-being including improved sleep, consistent energy, improved mental clarity and alertness, and improved skin and digestive health within 2 to 4 weeks of taking their first dose.

Can you describe the best candidates for NR supplementation?

NR is not intended to treat any disease or condition. NR is for adults, and given a reduction of NAD+ with age, will likely benefit those age 40 and above more than younger people. NR is not a substitute for a bad diet or poor sleep and hygiene, but it helps to optimize health and smooth out some of the stressors in life.

Is there anyone who shouldnt consider taking NR?

NR is not contraindicated for any conditions. However, we recommend that you talk to your about NR if you have a disease or any concerns at all.

Does NR have common side effects?

Based on clinical studies, there are no known side effects of NR. This is very different from another, commonly known form of vitamin B3 called niacin, which notoriously causes the uncomfortable side effect called flushing (reddening of the skin, often accompanied by a burning or itching sensation).

What kind of studies have been done with NR to prove its efficacy?

In people, weve shown that NR safely boosts NAD+ levels in a dose-dependent manner. Many more human studies are in process with some nearing publication.

Without getting too technical, how does NR impact longevity?

Well start by taking a deep breath and assure you we will not make human longevity claims. We have no plans specifically to test NR as a life extension supplement in people, but rather, a health extension supplement. Its reasonable to consider that by boosting NAD+, NR can help people age better, increasing many functional metrics of living that are collectively termed healthspan.

What is the number one reason someone would consider supplementing with TRU NIAGEN?

It is nutritional support for healthy aging. Of course, you should also eat right, and stay physically and mentally active.

Learn more about TRU NIAGEN today.

ChromaDex, the worldwide patent-holder of NIAGEN (nicotinamide riboside), previously only sold NR to third-party brands, but recently made NR available directly to consumers under the brand name TRU NIAGEN. With TRU NIAGEN from ChromaDex, you can be sure that you are getting patented, extensively researched and rigorously tested NIAGEN straight from the company that pioneered it. Every bottle of TRU NIAGEN has to meet the highest standards for safety, potency, and purity.

NOTE: These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Photos/StockSnap.io/Author

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Want to Age Better? Look to Your Cells - The Good Men Project (blog)

Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) have figured out a way to extend the life of female fruit flies by 20 percent by manipulating what the school has called a "cellular time machine." The biologists who carried out the work are hopeful that their findings will have implications for human aging and help fight off age-related diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

The researchers focused on mitochondria, tiny structures that act a bit like digestive organs inside our cells. These "cellular power plants" take the chemicals and oxygen in our systems provided through food and respiration, and convert them into a molecule known as ATP, which the cell can then use as food. When mitochondria age however, they can become damaged and build up in the body, creating a toxic environment conducive to disease formation.

In the research, UCLA biologists studied the mitochondria in fruit flies and figured out that as the insects reach middle age which, for a fruit fly, is about one month old their mitochondria change shape, making it tough for their cells to clear them out when the organelles are no longer functioning properly.

"We think the fact that the mitochondria become larger and elongated impairs the cell's ability to clear the damaged mitochondria," said David Walker, a UCLA professor of integrative biology and physiology, and the study's senior author. "And our research suggests dysfunctional mitochondria accumulate with age, rather than being discarded."

So the scientists gave the flies a hand by increasing a protein called Drp1 for one week when they reached 30 days of age. The result was that the damaged mitochondria was broken up into smaller pieces that the flies were able to expel from their cells. This not only led female flies to live about 20 percent longer and male flies to live about 12 percent longer than their typical two-month lifespans, but the researchers also found that the flies had increased energy levels and endurance.

What's more, the boost in Drp1 also held off a condition in which the flies get leaky intestines about a week before they die. The condition is not only a precursor to death in fruit flies but it has also been implicated in the death of monkeys, worms and mice.

"It's like we took middle-aged muscle tissue and rejuvenated it to youthful muscle," said Walker. "We actually delayed age-related health decline. And seven days of intervention was sufficient to prolong their lives and enhance their health."

The biologists also further experimented with a protein called Mfn, which keeps mitochondria from clumping together and getting too big for cells to deal with. When they turned its production off in the flies, they saw similar benefits in terms of health and life extension.

"You can either break up the mitochondria with Drp1 or prevent them from fusing by inactivating Mfn," said Anil Rana, a UCLA project scientist and the study's lead author. "Both have the same effect: making the mitochondria smaller and extending lifespan."

The team hopes that it may eventually be possible to create a drug that would work in the same way as the proteins to not only extend and improve the lives of humans, but to help stave off age-related diseases. Walker points to the fact that the treatment worked so fast as a major plus, considering that it could lessen the negative effects often associated with the long-term use of pharmaceuticals.

The findings have been reported in the journal Nature Communications.

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Biologists beat back death in fruit flies. Humans next? - New Atlas