Steve Perrin, Ph.D., CEO and CSO, discusses why iPS technology is ready for drug discovery for today's ALS patients. Click here to learn why Steve believes TDI is uniquely suited to implement this technology in ALS research.

Fernando Vieira, M.D., director of research operations, discusses how iPS technology can be used to model sporadic ALS, help to identify sub-types of ALS patients and accelerate drug development as part of a comprehensive translational research program at ALS TDI.

Jessie St. Martin, associate scientist, talks about induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS cells) and their importance in ALS research. Jessie, a recent addition to the translational research team, will play an integral part in developing this program at ALS TDI. Click here to learn more about iPS cells.

Jenny Dwyer, board member, explains why your support of the iPS program at ALS TDI may have the ability to rapidly accelerate treatments for today's patients. Jenny was a longtime ALS caregiver of her husband, Pat. Together, they were advocates for ALS research. Click here to listen to her message.

The rest is here:
Invest in iPS @ TDI | ALS Therapy Development Institute

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Your doctor will conduct a physical exam during which he or she will note whether your sexual development, such as your pubic hair, muscle mass and size of your testes, is consistent with your age. Your doctor may test your blood level of testosterone if you have any of the signs or symptoms of hypogonadism.

Early detection in boys can help prevent problems from delayed puberty. Early diagnosis and treatment in men offer better protection against osteoporosis and other related conditions.

Doctors base a diagnosis of hypogonadism on symptoms and results of blood tests that measure testosterone levels. Because testosterone levels vary and are generally highest in the morning, blood testing is usually done early in the day, near 8 a.m.

If tests confirm you have low testosterone, further testing can determine if a testicular disorder or a pituitary abnormality is the cause. Based on specific signs and symptoms, additional studies can pinpoint the cause. These studies may include:

Testosterone testing also plays an important role in managing hypogonadism. This helps your doctor determine the right dosage of medication, both initially and over time.

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Male hypogonadism Tests and diagnosis - Mayo Clinic

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Impact Factor: 2.204* Journal of Molecular and Genetic Medicine will accept manuscripts in most areas of molecular and genetic medicine both basic and applied. Keeping in view the considerable health-related problems faced by the developing nations, particular consideration will be given to articles on applied biomedical issues of the developing world, especially, research focusing on malaria, HIV/AIDS, viral hepatitis and microbial diseases. Journal of Molecular and Genetic Medicine is a peer reviewed scientific journal known for rapid dissemination of high-quality research. This Molecular and Genetic Medicine Journal with high impact factor offers an open access platform to the authors in academia and industry to publish their novel research. It serves the International Scientific Community with its standard research publications. Manuscripts in the following categories will be considered for publication: reviews and mini-reviews, research articles and short research reports, new methods and technologies, opinions on previously published literature and letters to the editor, meeting reports and commercial, patent and product news (inquiries to the Editor). Submit manuscript at http://www.editorialmanager.com/jmgm/ (OR) Submit manuscripts as an E-mail attachment to the Editorial Office at editor.jmgm@omicsonline.net Unofficial 2014 Impact Factorwas established by dividing the number of articles published in 2012 and 2013 with the number of times they are cited in 2014 based on Google search and the Scholar Citation Index database. If X is the total number of articles published in 2012 and 2013, and Y is the number of times these articles were cited in indexed journals during 2014 than, impact factor = Y/X. Aims and Scope

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Journal of Molecular and Genetic Medicine

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In genetic counseling, specially-trained professionals help people learn about genetic conditions, find out their chances of being affected by or having a child or other family member with a genetic condition, and make informed decisions about testing and treatment.

There are many reasons that people go for genetic counseling, such as:

Clinical geneticists and genetic counselors often work together as part of a health care team. They diagnose and care for people with genetic conditions and give information and support to people with genetic conditions and their families.

Clinical geneticists are medical doctors with special training in genetics. In addition to educating families about genetic conditions, they perform clinical exams and order lab tests to diagnose the causes of birth defects and other genetic conditions. They can explain how a genetic condition may affect a person and give advice about treatment options and recurrence risks for future pregnancies.

Genetic counselors are professionals who have special training to help people and families cope with and understand genetic conditions. They are also trained to provide counseling and support for people and families with genetic conditions.

Some of the things a genetic counselor or clinical geneticist might do during a clinical visit include:

Genetic Testing Registry The Genetic Testing Registry (GTR) provides a central location for voluntary submission of genetic test information by providers and includes an international directory of genetic testing laboratories.

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Genetic Counseling | Family Health History and Genetics ...

Recommendation and review posted by sam

The spinal cord contains the nerves that carry messages between your brain and body. The cord passes through your neck and back.

Spinal cord trauma can be caused by injuries to the spine, such as:

A minor injury can damage the spinal cord if the spine is weakened, such as from rheumatoid arthritis or osteoporosis. Injury can also occur if the spinal canal protecting the spinal cord has become too narrow (spinal stenosis) due to the normal aging process.

Direct injury, such as bruises, can occur to the spinal cord if the bones or disks have been weakened. Fragments of bone (such as from broken vertebrae, which are the spine bones) or fragments of metal (such as from a traffic accident or gunshot) can damage the spinal cord.

Direct damage can occur if the spinal cord is pulled, pressed sideways, or compressed. This may occur if the head, neck, or backis twisted abnormally during an accident or intense chiropractic manipulation.

Bleeding, fluid buildup, and swelling can occur inside or outside the spinal cord (but within the spinal canal). Thebuildup of blood or fluid canpress onthe spinal cord and damage it.

Most spinal cord trauma happens to young, healthy individuals. Men ages 15to 35 are mostoften affected. The death rate tends to be higher in young children with spinal injuries.

Risk factors include:

Older people with weakenedbones (from osteoporosis) or persons with other medical problems (such as stroke) that make them more likely to fallmay also have spinal cord injury.

Read the rest here:
Spinal cord trauma: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia

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Vasculitis (plural: vasculitides)[1] is a group of disorders that destroy blood vessels by inflammation.[2] Both arteries and veins are affected. Lymphangitis is sometimes considered a type of vasculitis.[3] Vasculitis is primarily caused by leukocyte migration and resultant damage.

Although both occur in vasculitis, inflammation of veins (phlebitis) or arteries (arteritis) on their own are separate entities.

Possible symptoms include:[4]

Vasculitis can be classified by the cause, the location, the type of vessel or the size of vessel.

According to the size of the vessel affected, vasculitis can be classified into:[6]

Some disorders have vasculitis as their main feature. The major types are given in the table below:

Takayasu's arteritis, polyarteritis nodosa and giant cell arteritis mainly involve arteries and are thus sometimes classed specifically under arteritis.

Furthermore, there are many conditions that have vasculitis as an accompanying or atypical symptom, including:

Several of these vasculitides are associated with antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies.[7] These are

In this table: ANA = Antinuclear antibodies, CRP = C-reactive protein, dsDNA = double-stranded DNA, ENA = extractable nuclear antigens, RNP = ribonucleoproteins; VDRL = Venereal Disease Research Laboratory

Originally posted here:
Vasculitis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Article byJohn Miller

The most common cause of Knee Arthritis is Knee Osteoarthritis (OA).

Knee osteoarthritis is a degenerative knee condition where the articular cartilage of your knee joint gradually wears away, exposing the underlying bone.

As your knee arthritis progresses, bony spurs also develop in and around your knee joint in response to the change in load distribution and biomechanics.

Within your knee there are two joints which can be affected by knee arthritis: the tibiofemoral joint- the joint between your thigh bone (femur) and your lower leg (tibia) and the patellofemoral joint (the joint between the kneecap and the femur itself).

There are several factors which have been found to predispose people to developing osteoarthritis in the knee joints:

As you age it is normal for joint surfaces to wear down, especially the major weight bearing joints of the lower limb. The ability of joint cartilage to repair itself also declines as you grow older.

Your weight will directly affect the amount of load the joints in your lower limb have to support during weight bearing activities.

Previous injury to your knee can change the biomechanics of your knee joint. This leads to abnormal distribution of load through the knee in everyday tasks.

The gene that produces your articular knee cartilage is sometimes defective and can lead to either decreased lay down of cartilage, or normal lay down of defective cartilage on the joint surfaces.

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Knee Arthritis - Physio Works

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Personalized Medicine: The Background

Personalized medicine is an extension of traditional approaches to understanding and treating illness. Since the beginning of the study of medicine, physicians have employed evidence found through observation to make a diagnosis or to prescribe treatment. In the past, this was presumably tailored to each individual, but personalized medicine makes treatment more specific.

In the modern conception of personalized medicine, the tools provided to the physician are more precise, probing not just the obvious, such as a tumor on a mammogram or cells under a microscope, but the very molecular makeup of each patient. Looking at the patient on this level helps the physician get a profile of the patients genetic distinction, or mapping. By investigating this genetic mapping, medical professionals are then able to profile patients, and use the found information to plan out a course of treatment that is much more in step with the way their body works. Genomic medicine and personalized medicine use genetic information to prevent or treat disease in adults or their children.

Having a genetic map or a profile of a patients genetic variation can then guide the selection of drugs or treatment processes. This can be used to minimize side effects or to create a strategy for a more successful outcome from the medical treatment. Helping the physician cover all the bases is imperative. Genetic mapping can also indicate the propensity to contract certain diseases before the patient actually shows recognizable symptoms, allowing the physician and patient to put together a plan for observation and prevention.

The ability to profile how genes are put together in sequence and expression level is helping to redefine the ways in which medical professionals classify diseases and discover treatments, allowing physicians to go beyond the "one size fits all" model that may be ineffective or have undesirable side effects. Through further organization, and the use of personalized medicine, medical professionals are developing many sub populations for complex diseases and physical conditions such as these.

Personalized medicine may be able to help the medical community make the most effective clinical decisions for each patient on an individual level.

Personalized medicine, when coupled with personal pharmacogenetics, is a unique approach that may be well suited for the health challenges we face in the new millennium. Although the medical and scientific communities, through research and discovery, got the upper hand over many of the diseases weve encountered since the advent of advanced medicine, we are still threatened by many more complicated diseases.

Diseases like Diabetes, heart disease, cancer and Alzheimers are thought to caused by a combination of genetic and other factors. Coupled with the fact that they tend to be chronic, they place a significant burden on not only the patient, but on the healthcare system as a whole. Personalized medicine aims to provide the tools and knowledge to fight chronic diseases and treat them more effectively than ever before.

Genetic profiles can help physicians to better discern subgroups of patients with various forms of cancer in addition to other complex diseases, helping to guide doctors with accurate forms of predictive medicine and preventative medicine. With personalized medicine, the physician is intending to select the best treatment protocol or even, in many cases, avoid passing the expense and risks of unnecessary medical treatments on to the patient altogether. Also, personalized medicine, when used correctly, aims to guide tests that detect variation in the way individual patients metabolize various pharmaceuticals. Personalized medicine is working to help determine the right dose for a patient, helping to avoid hazards based on familial history, environmental influences, and genetic variation.

Continue reading here:
Personalized Medicine - Information and Resources

Recommendation and review posted by sam

Given the nature of personalized medicine, the FDA places high priority on helping to ensure that the agency, drug manufacturers, physicians and patients have adequate information about the product and its use. Product labeling and tracking of use in the marketplace are critical to the proper application of personalized medication tools.

Product Labeling

The FDA requires product labeling to be balanced, scientifically accurate and not misleading, and that clear instructions be communicated to healthcare practitioners for drug prescribing and/or administration. Personalized medicines that may only be safe and effective in particular sub-populations, or must be administered in different doses in different sub-populations, must be labeled accordingly. To date, the labeling of more than 100 approved drugs contain information on genomic biomarkers (including gene variants, functional deficiencies, expression changes, chromosomal abnormalities, and others).

Post-market Surveillance

While personalized medicine will likely allow for more focused clinical trials by increasing the proportion of responders in the trial or increasing the average effect size, or both, one implication of dramatically smaller pre-market exposure is a general increase in the importance of and emphasis on post-market monitoring, because relatively rare adverse events, in particular, are unlikely to show up when a drug is being tested in a small population, may arise when a broader population is treated. Post-market surveillance, then, is critical to the success of personalized medicine.

For more information:

Read more:
Personalized Medicine - Food and Drug Administration

Recommendation and review posted by sam

Though great progress has been made in medicine, current evidence-based and palliative treatments are increasingly unable to keep pace with patients' needs, especially given our aging population. There are few effective ways to treat the root causes of many diseases, injuries and congenital conditions. In many cases, clinicians can only manage patients' symptoms using medications or devices.

Regenerative medicine is a game-changing area of medicine with the potential to fully heal damaged tissues and organs, offering solutions and hope for people who have conditions that today are beyond repair.

Regenerative medicine itself isn't new the first bone marrow and solid-organ transplants were done decades ago. But advances in developmental and cell biology, immunology, and other fields have unlocked new opportunities to refine existing regenerative therapies and develop novel ones.

The Center for Regenerative Medicine takes three interrelated approaches:

Rejuvenation. Rejuvenation means boosting the body's natural ability to heal itself. Though after a cut your skin heals within a few days, other organs don't repair themselves as readily.

But cells in the body once thought to be no longer able to divide (terminally differentiated) including the highly specialized cells constituting the heart, lungs and nerves have been shown to be able to remodel and possess some ability to self-heal. Teams within the center are studying how to enhance self-healing processes.

Replacement. Replacement involves using healthy cells, tissues or organs from a living or deceased donor to replace damaged ones. Organ transplants, such as heart and liver transplants, are good examples.

The center aims to expand opportunities for transplants by finding ways to overcome the ongoing donor shortage, the need for immunosuppression and challenges with organ rejection.

Regenerative medicine holds the promise of definitive, affordable health care solutions that heal the body from within.

Stem cells have the ability to develop through a process called differentiation into many different types of cells, such as skin cells, brain cells, lung cells and so on. Stem cells are a key component of regenerative medicine, as they open the door to new clinical applications.

See the original post:
About Regenerative Medicine - Mayo Clinic

Recommendation and review posted by sam

In the 1990s there was great hope that this novel approach may provide an answer to many hitherto incurable diseases. The basic idea is to correct defective genes responsible for disease development. This can be achieved in a number of ways:

When a normal gene is inserted into the genome, a carrier molecule (a vector) is used. This will deliver the new gene to the target cells. The most commonly used vectors are viruses. The most commonly used viruses are:

These viruses are altered to carry normal human DNA. The patient's target cells are infected with the vector, which deposits its genetic load including the gene to be replaced . The target cell is then able to produce a functioning protein. More recently, success has been seen by combining a tumour-specific adenovirus vector and several single therapy genes. Targeting gene-virotherapy has killed tumour cells with minimal damage to normal cells in mice.[1][2] There are also nonviral insertion options. The simplest method is direct introduction of new DNA into the target tissues. This is limited by the type of tissue and the amount of DNA required. An artificial lipid sphere with an aqueous core is created - a liposome - which can both carry the therapeutic DNA and pass it through the target cells membrane. The therapeutic DNA can also bind chemically to molecules that will attach to target cell receptor sites. These are then taken into the cell's interior. This tends to be less effective than the other methods.

Human gene therapy is still largely in the experimental phase. There have been few big breakthroughs since the first trial started in 1990. There has also been at least one death attributed to therapy and two cases of leukaemia developing post-therapy. There are also technical problems involved:

In a bid to alleviate disease at the earliest possible stage, in utero fetal gene therapy has also been tried.[6] Prenatal screening for severe genetic disease such as Crigler-Najjar syndrome, Pompe's disease and haemophilia B has been tested in mouse models. There have been issues with the development of liver tumours, insufficient target cells are reached and the therapy is not toxic enough to target cells. There are attempts underway to manufacture antitumour vaccines.In this technique Epstein-Barr virus vectors mediate gene transfer into human B lymphocytes.[7] Other areas of research include:

A recent trial, approved by the American Food and Drug Administration, is for the treatment of Parkinson's disease. This is a phase 1 clinical trial with 11 patients already enrolled. They are aiming to produce the neuroprotective and restorative subthalamic glutamic decarboxylase. There have been no adverse events reported to date.[13]

Read more here:
Gene Therapy | Doctor | Patient.co.uk

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Please choose from the following list of questions for information about testing to identify changes in a persons genes, chromosomes, or proteins.

On this page:

Genetic testing is a type of medical test that identifies changes in chromosomes, genes, or proteins. The results of a genetic test can confirm or rule out a suspected genetic condition or help determine a persons chance of developing or passing on a genetic disorder. More than 1,000 genetic tests are currently in use, and more are being developed.

Several methods can be used for genetic testing:

Chromosomal genetic tests analyze whole chromosomes or long lengths of DNA to see if there are large genetic changes, such as an extra copy of a chromosome, that cause a genetic condition.

Genetic testing is voluntary. Because testing has benefits as well as limitations and risks, the decision about whether to be tested is a personal and complex one. A geneticist or genetic counselor can help by providing information about the pros and cons of the test and discussing the social and emotional aspects of testing.

MedlinePlus offers a list of links to information about genetic testing.

The National Human Genome Research Institute provides an overview of this topic in its Frequently Asked Questions About Genetic Testing. Additional information about genetic testing legislation, policy, and oversight is available from the Institute.

The National Institutes of Health fact sheet Genetic Testing: What It Means for Your Health and for Your Familys Health provides a brief overview for people considering genetic testing.

Educational resources related to genetic testing are available from GeneEd.

See the article here:
Genetic Testing - Genetics Home Reference

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

What is genetic testing?

Genetic testing looks for specific inherited changes (mutations) in a persons chromosomes, genes, or proteins. Genetic mutations can have harmful, beneficial, neutral (no effect), or uncertain effects on health. Mutations that are harmful may increase a persons chance, or risk, of developing a disease such as cancer. Overall, inherited mutations are thought to play a role in about 5 to 10 percent of all cancers.

Cancer can sometimes appear to run in families even if it is not caused by an inherited mutation. For example, a shared environment or lifestyle, such as tobacco use, can cause similar cancers to develop among family members. However, certain patternssuch as the types of cancer that develop, other non-cancer conditions that are seen, and the ages at which cancer typically developsmay suggest the presence of a hereditary cancer syndrome.

The genetic mutations that cause many of the known hereditary cancer syndromes have been identified, and genetic testing can confirm whether a condition is, indeed, the result of an inherited syndrome. Genetic testing is also done to determine whether family members without obvious illness have inherited the same mutation as a family member who is known to carry a cancer-associated mutation.

Inherited genetic mutations can increase a persons risk of developing cancer through a variety of mechanisms, depending on the function of the gene. Mutations in genes that control cell growth and the repair of damaged DNA are particularly likely to be associated with increased cancer risk.

Genetic testing of tumor samples can also be performed, but this Fact Sheet does not cover such testing.

Does someone who inherits a cancer-predisposing mutation always get cancer?

No. Even if a cancer-predisposing mutation is present in a family, it does not necessarily mean that everyone who inherits the mutation will develop cancer. Several factors influence the outcome in a given person with the mutation.

One factor is the pattern of inheritance of the cancer syndrome. To understand how hereditary cancer syndromes may be inherited, it is helpful to keep in mind that every person has two copies of most genes, with one copy inherited from each parent. Most mutations involved in hereditary cancer syndromes are inherited in one of two main patterns: autosomal dominant and autosomal recessive.

With autosomal dominant inheritance, a single altered copy of the gene is enough to increase a persons chances of developing cancer. In this case, the parent from whom the mutation was inherited may also show the effects of the gene mutation. The parent may also be referred to as a carrier.

Continued here:
Genetic Testing Fact Sheet - National Cancer Institute

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

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Life Extension Vitamins | Health Supplements | Garcinia ...

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Current findings published by news media worldwide on the topics of health and wellness, dietary supplements, diseases such as atherosclerosis, arthritis and stroke, and numerous other subjects of interest to those who wish to live a longer, healthier life are posted each day in Life Extension Daily News. New articles posted seven days a week under the headings of vitamins, nutrition, disease and aging cover a range of subjects, from health tips for the lay person to peer-reviewed medical journal reports.

Under Aging, cutting-edge research that improves our understanding of the aging process is revealed, in addition to suggestions for anti-aging supplements as we grow older.

The Disease section reports medical breakthroughs as well as alternative therapies for conditions and diseases that affect many of us, such as stroke, atherosclerosis, and arthritis.

Items posted under Vitamins provide the latest research findings and practical information on the best vitamins contained in food and dietary supplements, as well as legislative information.

Can't visit http://www.lef.org every day? Articles are archived under Aging, Disease, Nutrition and Vitamins (for a limited time period) to allow you to browse them at your leisure.

Articles featured in Life Extension Daily News are derived from a variety of news sources and are provided as a service by Life Extension. These articles, while of potential interest to readers of Life Extension Daily News, do not necessarily represent the opinions nor constitute the advice of Life Extension.

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NEWS - Life Extension

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The University of Cincinnati Genetic Counseling Program is an excellent choice for students who value an academically challenging curriculum that is well-balanced in the major areas of genomic sciences, counseling skills, and research. Our program provides students with opportunities, as well as choices. For example, a student may work on an existing project with a world-renowned researcher or he/she may want to delve into a relatively unexplored research topic. Or, as another example, a student who in the future hopes to become a genetic counseling program director may elect to participate in UC's Preparing Future Faculty program.

Students have the freedom to focus on areas of interest by developing a personalized elective rotation or by taking elective courses. We are committed to collaboration and teamwork, by providing students with experience working with other genetics professionals, other health care providers, with educators, and withagencies in our community and beyond. Because we value critical thinking, a genetic counseling student graduating from our program will have the tools to evaluate just about any case or professional dilemma, and to develop an action plan. Lastly, our program values diversity, in the broadest sense of the word. Each student, supervisor and instructor brings a unique set of strengths to the educational environment and we learn from each other every day.

Originally posted here:
Genetic Counseling Graduate Program, UC/CCHMC

Recommendation and review posted by sam

Choose a program Field description

Genetic counselors are health care professionals who have specialized education and training in the field of medical genetics. Genetic counselors interpret family history information and educate patients and professionals about genetic diseases.

As health care professionals, genetic counselors help individuals and families understand and adjust to a genetic diagnosis or the possibility of having a hereditary disorder. As specialized counselors, they help them understand genetic testing options and the implications of undergoing genetic testing, as well as address psychosocial and ethical issues associated with a genetic disorder or genetic test result.

As members of a health care team, genetic counselors serve as educators to patients, physicians, other health care providers and society.

Genetic counselors obtain a Master of Science degree from an accredited two-year graduate program in genetic counseling. Following graduation, genetic counselors become certified through the American Board of Genetic Counseling after passing rigorous board examinations.

Genetic counselors may work in a variety of clinical settings, including preconception, prenatal, pediatrics, oncology, neurology and other medical specialties. Genetic counselors are often affiliated with teaching universities, but many also work in private practice settings. Genetic counselors also work in administrative, teaching, laboratory and research areas.

Continued growth of the genetic counseling field is expected for many years. The emphasis on individualized (personalized) medicine resulting from the genomic revolution will increase the demand for genetic counselors who are specifically trained to translate complex medical and scientific information for families and other health professionals.

Genetic counselors typically earn between $50,000 and $100,000 a year depending on their position, level of expertise, and area of the U.S. or world where they practice.

View post:
Genetic Counselor - Mayo Clinic

Recommendation and review posted by sam

Frequently Asked Questions About Genetic Counseling What are genetic professionals and what do they do?

Genetics professionals are health care professionals with specialized degrees and experience in medical genetics and counseling. Genetics professionals include geneticists, genetic counselors and genetics nurses.

Top of page

Genetic professionals work as members of health care teams providing information and support to individuals or families who have genetic disorders or may be at risk for inherited conditions. Genetic professionals:

Top of page

Your health care provider may refer you to a genetic professional. Universities and medical centers also often have affiliated genetic professionals, or can provide referrals to a genetic professional or genetics clinic.

As more has been learned about genetics, genetic professionals have grown more specialized. For example, they may specialize in a particular disease (such as cancer genetics), an age group (such as adolescents) or a type of counseling (such as prenatal).

Top of page

Your health care provider may refer you to a geneticist - a medical doctor or medical researcher - who specializes in your disease or disorder. A medical geneticist has completed a fellowship or has other advanced training in medical genetics. While a genetic counselor or genetic nurse may help you with testing decisions and support issues, a medical geneticist will make the actual diagnosis of a disease or condition. Many genetic diseases are so rare that only a geneticist can provide the most complete and current information about your condition.

Along with a medical geneticist, you may also be referred to a physician who is a specialist in the type of disorder you have. For example, if a genetic test is positive for colon cancer, you might be referred to an oncologist. For a diagnosis of Huntington disease, you may be referred to a neurologist.

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FAQ About Genetic Counseling

Recommendation and review posted by sam

Prospects for improving female fertility in dairy cattle via genetic selection are reviewed. Today's high-producing cows have shorter estrous cycles, fewer standing events, shorter duration of estrus, and more frequent multiple ovulations. Although high milk production is often implicated as the cause of impaired fertility, the impact of inadequate body condition appears to be greater, as the latter has a significant impact on probability of conception, rate of embryonic loss, and proportion of anestrous animals. Genetic improvement of female fertility can be achieved by indirect selection for productive life (PL) or body condition score (BCS), or by direct selection for traits such as daughter pregnancy rate (DPR). Most leading dairy countries have implemented genetic evaluation systems for female fertility in the past decade, but refinement of these systems to account for hormonal synchronization, differences in the voluntary waiting period, exposure to natural service bulls, and other confounding factors is warranted. Recent work has focused on the development of data collection and genetic evaluation systems that will allow selection of bulls that have daughters that are resistant to common health disorders, including mastitis, lameness, ketosis, displaced abomasum, and metritis. Such systems will allow selection of animals that can remain healthy and fertile while producing large quantities of milk.

The challenges associated with achieving pregnancy in modern, high-producing dairy cows have received considerable attention from scientists, veterinarians, and farmers in recent years. Todays dairy cows tend to have lower conception rate, greater days open, and greater likelihood of culling due to infertility than their counterparts from two or three decades ago. Genetic selection programs have led to rapid gains in milk yield and conformation traits; but performance for traits such as female fertility, longevity, and susceptibility to disease has tended to decline. While it is impossible to completely disentangle the effects of selection from simultaneous changes in nutrition, cow care, and reproductive management, it is clear that geneticists failed to pay adequate attention to health, fertility, and longevity traits until the past decade. The magnitude of genetic variation in such traits is surprising, and we are now poised to take advantage of recent research and development efforts regarding the definition, measurement, and genetic analysis of these traits.

The objective of this paper is to review the relationships between female fertility and other economically important dairy traits and to discuss opportunities for improving reproductive performance through direct selection of highly fertile animals or indirect selection of animals that maintain adequate body condition and resist metabolic and infectious diseases during lactation.

Please check this link first if you are interested in organic or specialty dairy production

Milk production of dairy cows on modern commercial farms has roughly doubled over the past four decades. First parity cows on large commercial dairy farms typically peak at 40 to 45 kg/d, while second and later parity cows typically peak at 50 to 55 kg/d. Furthermore, each group typically sustains daily milk production of 40 kg/d or more during the first seven months postpartum. Therefore, one might expect differences in the reproduction of high-producing cows, as compared with low-producing cows or yearling heifers.

Lopez et al. (2005) discussed some of the differences between the reproductive biology of lactating Holstein cows and yearling Holstein heifers. In particular, Lopez et al. (2005) noted that lactating cows have shorter duration of estrus (7 to 8 hr vs. 11 to 14 hr), longer and more variable estrous cycles (20 to 29 d vs. 20 to 23 d), larger diameter of ovulatory follicles (16 to18 mm vs. 14 to 16 mm), and greater rates of anovulation (20 to 30% vs. 1 to 2%), multiple ovulation (20 to 25% vs. 1 to 3%), and pregnancy loss (20 to 30% vs. 3 to 5%).

Lopez et al. (2005) also documented differences in these characteristics between lactating cows according to levels of milk production. They (Lopez et al., 2005) used the HeatWatch system (DDx Inc., Denver, Colorado) to monitor the estrous characteristics of 146 high-producing Holstein cows (46.4 kg/d for the 10 d preceding estrus) and 177 low-producing Holstein cows (33.5 kg/d for the 10 d preceding estrus). High-producing cows had shorter duration of estrus (6.2 hr vs. 10.9 hr), fewer standing events (6.3 vs. 8.8), and shorter standing time per event (21.7 sec vs. 28.2 sec). Duration of estrus decreased linearly from 14.7 hr for cows milking 25 to 30 kg/d to 2.8 hr for cows milking 50 to 55 kg/d. In addition, the percentage of cows with multiple ovulations increased from 0.0% for cows milking between 25 and 30 kg/d to 51.6% for cows between 50 and 55 kg/d.

The rate of early embryonic loss in Holstein cows is also a major concern, as noted in several recent studies that have used ultrasound for pregnancy detection at 27 to 31 d after breeding, followed by pregnancy confirmation via rectal palpation at 39 to 48 d after breeding. Reported rates of embryonic loss during this interval ranged from 0.70 to 1.40% per day (e.g., Cartmill et al., 2001; Cerri et al., 2004; Santos et al., 2004). However, estimates of the rate of embryonic loss (particularly those from commercial farms) may be biased upward by false positive diagnoses at the early ultrasound exam, as most veterinarians tend to use caution when declaring cows as non-pregnant in herds that use hormonal resynchronization programs.

On large western dairy farms, mean veterinary-confirmed conception rates of Holstein cows at 75 d after breeding were nearly constant over the first five inseminations (0.30, 0.31, 0.31, 0.29, and 0.28, respectively), while means for Jersey cows declined linearly from the first through fifth insemination (0.42, 0.38, 0.34, 0.29, and 0.27, respectively). Mean conception rate at first service tended to decline with age in both breeds (0.35, 0.29, 0.28, 0.26, and 0.25, respectively, for first through fifth parity Holsteins and 0.44, 0.43, 0.41, 0.39, and 0.37, respectively, for first through fifth parity Jerseys), though the rate of decline was less noticeable for repeat inseminations than for first insemination (Weigel, 2006 (unpublished)). Both breeds have been selected for many generations under similar management conditions, and both have made rapid genetic progress over the past three decades (mean mature equivalent 305 d milk yield increased from 6,904 to 11,608 kg in Holsteins and from 4,461 kg to 8,273 kg in Jerseys from 1970 to 2000). Differences in mean conception rate within the Holstein breed were found among cows at different levels of daily milk yield, but such differences were smaller than one might expect (Weigel, 2005 (unpublished)). Mean conception rates at 75 d after breeding were 0.33, 0.33, and 0.32 for primiparous Holstein cows that averaged < 27 kg/d, 27 to 36 kg/d, and > 36 kg/d, respectively, during the first 3 mo of lactation; whereas corresponding means were 0.28, 0.28, and 0.27 for multiparous Holstein cows that averaged < 36 kg/d, 36 to 45 kg/d, and > 45 kg/d, respectively. In Wisconsin Holsteins, Lopez et al. (2005) found no relationship between the percentage of cows exhibiting anovulatory condition and level of daily milk yield. The percentage of anovular cows was 27.8% for cows that were milking 25 to 30 kg/d and 26.3% for cows that were milking 50 to 55 kg/d (means for 5-kg intervals in between ranged from 21.7% to 35.1%, with no apparent trend). In California Holsteins, Santos et al. (2004) found a weak, nonsignificant relationship between milk yield and rate of embryonic loss between 31 and 45 d after breeding, with rates of 9.7% for cows that were milking 36 kg/d and 12.7% for cows that were milking 52 kg/d. Thus, it does not appear that increased milk yield is solely responsible for the decline in mean reproductive performance.

High milk production, whether achieved through genetic selection, enhanced nutrition, or improved management, is often implicated as the cause of health, fertility, and culling problems on modern dairy farms. However, a complex relationship exists between milk yield, health, and reproductive performance. High-producing cows tend to be more susceptible to metabolic disorders and infectious diseases, and these can lead to impaired fertility. On the other hand, healthy cows tend to have higher milk production and greater reproductive performance than unhealthy cows. Conversely, cows that remain nonpregnant for much of the lactation tend to achieve higher levels of total production because fewer resources are allocated to the developing calf. Thus, one must be cautious when attempting to formulate cause-effect relationships between these traits.

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Impact of Genetic Selection on Female Fertility - eXtension

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Member Type: Silver Member Age: 39 Location: Mexico City Juarez, Mexico Orientation: Straight (Genetic Male ) Listed As: Girl (M2F) Looking For: Friends, Genetic Female (GG), Girls (MtoF) Last Active: May 20th, 2015 Joined: Jul 18th, 2007 About Me

Hello everyone!

It is proven that having too much information in your profile is not an effective way to meet people LOL.

So I think that now I would rather say: "Please ask if you want to know".

I consider myself a big fan of everything feminine, and in a certain way I feel empathic towards anyone who shares this passion with me.

I'm not into kinky stuff such as having cybersex, sex-cams, phone, etc. Of course I prefer to talk with people that have complete profiles but I do understand why some people needs to remain anonymous.

Please check out my Facebook profile. I will add you if you happen to have a complete profile too 😉

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1317181520

XOXO

Lynda

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URNotAlone Profile for Lynda Flores, Genetic Male Straight ...

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Summary

Genetic counselors assess individual or family risk for a variety of inherited conditions, such as genetic disorders and birth defects.

Genetic counselors assess individual or family risk for a variety of inherited conditions, such as genetic disorders and birth defects. They provide information and advice to other healthcare providers, or to individuals and families concerned with the risk of inherited conditions.

Genetic counselors work in university medical centers, private and public hospitals, physicians offices, and diagnostic laboratories. They work with families, patients, and other medical professionals. Most genetic counselors work full time.

Genetic counselors typically need at least a masters degree in genetic counseling or genetics. Although most genetic counselors have a masters degree, some earn a Ph.D.

The median annual wage for genetic counselors was $56,800 in May 2012.

Employment of genetic counselors is projected to grow 41 percent from 2012 to 2022, much faster than the average for all occupations. Genetic counselors should have better than average job prospects overall.

Compare the job duties, education, job growth, and pay of genetic counselors with similar occupations.

Learn more about genetic counselors by visiting additional resources, including O*NET, a source on key characteristics of workers and occupations.

Genetic counselors provide information and advice to other healthcare providers, or to individuals and families concerned with the risk of inherited conditions.

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Genetic Counselors : Occupational Outlook Handbook: : U.S ...

Recommendation and review posted by sam

At its simplest, biotechnology is technology based on biology - biotechnology harnesses cellular and biomolecular processes to develop technologies and products that help improve our lives and the health of our planet. We have used the biological processes of microorganisms for more than 6,000 years to make useful food products, such as bread and cheese, and to preserve dairy products.

Modern biotechnology provides breakthrough products and technologies to combat debilitating and rare diseases, reduce our environmental footprint, feed the hungry, use less and cleaner energy, and have safer, cleaner and more efficient industrial manufacturing processes.

Currently, there are more than 250 biotechnology health care products and vaccines available to patients, many for previously untreatable diseases. More than 18 million farmers around the world use agricultural biotechnology to increase yields, prevent damage from insects and pests and reduce farming's impact on the environment. And more than 50 biorefineries are being built across North America to test and refine technologies to produce biofuels and chemicals from renewable biomass, which can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Recent advances in biotechnology are helping us prepare for and meet societys most pressing challenges. Here's how:

Biotech is helping toheal the worldby harnessing nature's own toolbox and using our own genetic makeup to heal and guide lines of research by:

Biotech uses biological processes such as fermentation and harnesses biocatalysts such as enzymes, yeast, and other microbes to become microscopic manufacturing plants. Biotech is helping tofuel the worldby:

Biotech improves crop insect resistance, enhances crop herbicide tolerance and facilitates the use of more environmentally sustainable farming practices. Biotech is helping tofeed the worldby:

Source: Healing, Fueling, Feeding: How Biotechnology is Enriching Your Life

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What is Biotechnology? | BIO

Recommendation and review posted by sam

Pamela Peters, from Biotechnology: A Guide To Genetic Engineering. Wm. C. Brown Publishers, Inc., 1993.

Biotechnology in one form or another has flourished since prehistoric times. When the first human beings realized that they could plant their own crops and breed their own animals, they learned to use biotechnology. The discovery that fruit juices fermented into wine, or that milk could be converted into cheese or yogurt, or that beer could be made by fermenting solutions of malt and hops began the study of biotechnology. When the first bakers found that they could make a soft, spongy bread rather than a firm, thin cracker, they were acting as fledgling biotechnologists. The first animal breeders, realizing that different physical traits could be either magnified or lost by mating appropriate pairs of animals, engaged in the manipulations of biotechnology.

What then is biotechnology? The term brings to mind many different things. Some think of developing new types of animals. Others dream of almost unlimited sources of human therapeutic drugs. Still others envision the possibility of growing crops that are more nutritious and naturally pest-resistant to feed a rapidly growing world population. This question elicits almost as many first-thought responses as there are people to whom the question can be posed.

In its purest form, the term "biotechnology" refers to the use of living organisms or their products to modify human health and the human environment. Prehistoric biotechnologists did this as they used yeast cells to raise bread dough and to ferment alcoholic beverages, and bacterial cells to make cheeses and yogurts and as they bred their strong, productive animals to make even stronger and more productive offspring.

Throughout human history, we have learned a great deal about the different organisms that our ancestors used so effectively. The marked increase in our understanding of these organisms and their cell products gains us the ability to control the many functions of various cells and organisms. Using the techniques of gene splicing and recombinant DNA technology, we can now actually combine the genetic elements of two or more living cells. Functioning lengths of DNA can be taken from one organism and placed into the cells of another organism. As a result, for example, we can cause bacterial cells to produce human molecules. Cows can produce more milk for the same amount of feed. And we can synthesize therapeutic molecules that have never before existed.

Go to next story: Where Did Biotechnology Begin?

Return to About Biotech directory

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What is Biotechnology ? - Access Excellence

Recommendation and review posted by sam

Stem cells: When will they heal the heart?

Its been 15 years since a University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher isolated embryonic stem cells the do-anything cells that appear in early development. Its been six years since adult human cells were transformed into the related induced pluripotent stem cells.

ENLARGE

Some day, stem cell therapy could restore cells, save hearts, and avoid the need for some heart transplants, such as this one. This heart is ready for its new home.

And yet the early hope to grow spare parts turning stem cells into specialized cells for repairing a failing brain, pancreas or heart, remains mostly promise rather than reality.

Researchers have since found how to transform stem cells into a wide variety of body cells, including heart muscle cells, or cardiomyocytes. But the holy Grail tissue supplementation or replacement remains tantalizingly out of reach.

Last week, Why Files attended a symposium on treating cardiovascular disease with stem cells, at the BioPharmaceutical Technology Center Institute near Madison, Wis. We found the picture unexpectedly complicated: as multiple kinds of stem cells are grown and delivered in a bewildering variety of ways to treat a catalog of conditions.

So far, stem cells have not been approved to treat any heart disease in the United States.

Still, the need remains clear. Disorders of the heart and blood vessels, which deliver oxygen and nutrients to the body, continue to kill. Today, one of every 2.6 Americans will die of some cause related to their heart, writes Columbia University Medical Center.

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Stem cell therapy : When will it help the heart? | The Why ...

Recommendation and review posted by sam

Heart attacks and congestive heart failure remain among the Nation's most prominent health challenges despite many breakthroughs in cardiovascular medicine. In fact, despite successful approaches to prevent or limit cardiovascular disease, the restoration of function to the damaged heart remains a formidable challenge. Recent research is providing early evidence that adult and embryonic stem cells may be able to replace damaged heart muscle cells and establish new blood vessels to supply them. Discussed here are some of the recent discoveries that feature stem cell replacement and muscle regeneration strategies for repairing the damaged heart.

For those suffering from common, but deadly, heart diseases, stem cell biology represents a new medical frontier. Researchers are working toward using stem cells to replace damaged heart cells and literally restore cardiac function.

Today in the United States, congestive heart failurethe ineffective pumping of the heart caused by the loss or dysfunction of heart muscle cellsafflicts 4.8 million people, with 400,000 new cases each year. One of the major contributors to the development of this condition is a heart attack, known medically as a myocardial infarction, which occurs in nearly 1.1 million Americans each year. It is easy to recognize that impairments of the heart and circulatory system represent a major cause of death and disability in the United States [5].

What leads to these devastating effects? The destruction of heart muscle cells, known as cardiomyocytes, can be the result of hypertension, chronic insufficiency in the blood supply to the heart muscle caused by coronary artery disease, or a heart attack, the sudden closing of a blood vessel supplying oxygen to the heart. Despite advances in surgical procedures, mechanical assistance devices, drug therapy, and organ transplantation, more than half of patients with congestive heart failure die within five years of initial diagnosis. Research has shown that therapies such as clot-busting medications can reestablish blood flow to the damaged regions of the heart and limit the death of cardiomyocytes. Researchers are now exploring ways to save additional lives by using replacement cells for dead or impaired cells so that the weakened heart muscle can regain its pumping power.

How might stem cells play a part in repairing the heart? To answer this question, researchers are building their knowledge base about how stem cells are directed to become specialized cells. One important type of cell that can be developed is the cardiomyocyte, the heart muscle cell that contracts to eject the blood out of the heart's main pumping chamber (the ventricle). Two other cell types are important to a properly functioning heart are the vascular endothelial cell, which forms the inner lining of new blood vessels, and the smooth muscle cell, which forms the wall of blood vessels. The heart has a large demand for blood flow, and these specialized cells are important for developing a new network of arteries to bring nutrients and oxygen to the cardiomyocytes after a heart has been damaged. The potential capability of both embryonic and adult stem cells to develop into these cells types in the damaged heart is now being explored as part of a strategy to restore heart function to people who have had heart attacks or have congestive heart failure. It is important that work with stem cells is not confused with recent reports that human cardiac myocytes may undergo cell division after myocardial infarction [1]. This work suggests that injured heart cells can shift from a quiescent state into active cell division. This is not different from the ability of a host of other cells in the body that begin to divide after injury. There is still no evidence that there are true stem cells in the heart which can proliferate and differentiate.

Researchers now know that under highly specific growth conditions in laboratory culture dishes, stem cells can be coaxed into developing as new cardiomyocytes and vascular endothelial cells. Scientists are interested in exploiting this ability to provide replacement tissue for the damaged heart. This approach has immense advantages over heart transplant, particularly in light of the paucity of donor hearts available to meet current transplantation needs.

What is the evidence that such an approach to restoring cardiac function might work? In the research laboratory, investigators often use a mouse or rat model of a heart attack to study new therapies (see Figure 9.1. Rodent Model of Myocardial Infarction). To create a heart attack in a mouse or rat, a ligature is placed around a major blood vessel serving the heart muscle, thereby depriving the cardiomyocytes of their oxygen and nutrient supplies. During the past year, researchers using such models have made several key discoveries that kindled interest in the application of adult stem cells to heart muscle repair in animal models of heart disease.

Figure 9.1. Rodent Model of Myocardial Infarction.

( 2001 Terese Winslow, Lydia Kibiuk)

Recently, Orlic and colleagues [9] reported on an experimental application of hematopoietic stem cells for the regeneration of the tissues in the heart. In this study, a heart attack was induced in mice by tying off a major blood vessel, the left main coronary artery. Through the identification of unique cellular surface markers, the investigators then isolated a select group of adult primitive bone marrow cells with a high capacity to develop into cells of multiple types. When injected into the damaged wall of the ventricle, these cells led to the formation of new cardiomyocytes, vascular endothelium, and smooth muscle cells, thus generating de novo myocardium, including coronary arteries, arterioles, and capillaries. The newly formed myocardium occupied 68 percent of the damaged portion of the ventricle nine days after the bone marrow cells were transplanted, in effect replacing the dead myocardium with living, functioning tissue. The researchers found that mice that received the transplanted cells survived in greater numbers than mice with heart attacks that did not receive the mouse stem cells. Follow-up experiments are now being conducted to extend the posttransplantation analysis time to determine the longer-range effects of such therapy [8]. The partial repair of the damaged heart muscle suggests that the transplanted mouse hematopoietic stem cells responded to signals in the environment near the injured myocardium. The
cells migrated to the damaged region of the ventricle, where they multiplied and became "specialized" cells that appeared to be cardiomyocytes.

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9. Can Stem Cells Repair a Damaged Heart? [Stem Cell ...

Recommendation and review posted by sam