Genetic Differences Determine Taste Perception

By Daniel DeNoon
WebMD Medical News
Scientists looked at a specific taste receptor for a bitter substance known as PTC. Small changes in the genes made big differences in the receptor's ability to recognize the bitter chemical. This helps explain why some people can't taste PTC at all while others find it terribly bitter - and still others find it bitter in varying degrees.
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Interview: Genes and Deafness

Host Jennifer Ludden discusses the new research breakthrough on hearing loss with Dr. James Battey, who directs the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders at the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Battey explains what research remains to be done, before gene therapy can be tested on humans.

Listen to the interview by Jennifer Ludden

Gene Therapy for Deafness

By Roger Highfield
American scientists have found that the transplant of a specific gene permits the growth of new hair cells in the inner ear.. The technique, which one day could help millions of people worldwide, was described yesterday by Dr Yehoash Raphael of the Kresge Hearing Research Institute, University of Michigan, in the journal Nature Medicine.
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Cure for sensorineural deafness?

Researchers in the US have for the first time restored hearing in deaf mammals - a feat that represents a major step toward treating people with acquired hearing loss.

By inserting a corrective gene with a virus, the team at the University of Michigan Medical School induced the formation of cochlear hair cells - the key intermediaries in converting sound waves into electrical impulses - in the ears of artificially deafened adult guinea pigs, according to the Los Angeles Times.

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Just when you taught it was safe!

from REDNOVA
'The prevalence of asthma has increased worldwide. The reasons for this rise remain unclear. Various studies have reported an association between acetaminophen, a widely used analgesic, and diagnosed asthma. In a prospective cohort study, the rate of newly diagnosed asthma was 63% higher among frequent acetaminophen users than nonusers in multivariate analyses. Studies of patients with asthma suggest that acetaminophen challenge can precipitate a decline in FEV^sub 1^ > 15% among sensitive individuals. Plausible mechanisms to explain this association include depletion of pulmonary glutathione and oxidative stress. This article reviews the existing literature and evaluates the epidemiologic and pathophysiologic evidence underlying a possible link between acetaminophen and asthma. (CHEST 2005; 127:604-612)'

-- An excellent article reviewing the association between acetaminophen and atopic diseases. Could it also be related to allergic rhinitis? Just when you taught some drugs were safe... Ed.

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Men 20-29 most at risk for sleep apnea

by GLOBES Correspondent
'According to a new study, men in their 20s are most at risk for sleep apnea, and need to be screened the most. The study, carried out by the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, showed that men aged 20 to 29 with severe sleep apnea have 10 times the risk of dying from heart related ailments than their non-sleep apnea peers in the general population, and a much higher risk than older men with sleep apnea.

The Technion study, which appears in the March 2005 European Respiratory Journal, was based on the largest population of sleep apnea patients (nearly 15,000 men) ever to be studied. All were recorded in the Technion sleep clinics in Israel from 1991 through 2000. The researchers compared the risk of dying for men with severe sleep apnea -- having at least 50 breathing stops per hour -- with the general population.'
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An aberration in a natural pattern

by Joan Skelton
'With so many other grieving parents, I weep at this variance. I am 25 years older than he is. I should be dying, not him.

He had actively been in the medical system for three months with golf-ball size lymph nodes, head, face and neck pain, blocked ears, difficulty swallowing, weight loss and fatigue. His treatment was a stent in his ear, then the recommendation of two weeks of bed rest because of "exhaustion" and "viruses," finally antibiotics for "sinusitis" and Percocet. Percocet! Then, a CT scan showed the possibility of a tumour.

At least four health professionals made grievous mistakes in the care of my son. Were they irresponsible? Negligent? Incompetent? Unlikely. Undoubtedly, they are over-worked, tired, stressed out, scratching to maintain a semblance of sanity in a system that would suck out their soul, if they let it. Such is our Canadian health-care system.'

- A grim but not uncommon story to remind us of the 'failures' of the health care system. If only to keep us alert. YY

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Brain gene for Presbycusis

from Health India
A new study conducted by researchers at University of Rochester Medical Center suggests that a "feedback" problem in the brain diminishes our ability to hear.
"Traditionally, scientists studying hearing problems started looking at the ear. But we are finding patients with normal ears who still have trouble understanding a conversation. There are many people who have good inner ears who just don't hear well. That's because their brains are aging." lead researcher, Robert D. Frisina was quoted as saying.
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Saliva Testing for Head and Neck Cancer?

by Robert Preidt
'New discoveries in proteomics -- the study of proteins found in saliva and elsewhere throughout the body -- is bringing saliva testing within spitting distance of other much-used screens, such as blood or urine testing, the experts said.
Saliva and other oral fluids contain many of the same proteins and other molecules found in blood and urine that can reveal the presence of diseases, including head and neck cancers, the researchers noted.'
Read the FULL ARICLE at Forbes Health

Lives together, beds apart

by PAULA GANZI LICATA, Newsday.com
'While many older couples remain young valentines at heart, experts say, the increase of snoring, sleep disorders and stirring in bed often spurs partners to consider separate bedrooms. Hertz recommends separate beds or bedrooms for some patients, but stresses taking gradual steps to determine a solution. If the sleep disorder is just movement, as in restless leg syndrome, separate beds in the same room will work, she said. But if the disorder is a noise issue such as snoring, separate rooms may be needed.'
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Gene Profiling May Improve Treatment of Head and Neck Cancer

NEW YORK JAN 10, 2005 (Reuters Health)
'The gene expression profile of metastatic head and neck cancer is distinct from that seen with forms that have not spread, a finding that could improve the treatment of this malignancy, Dutch researchers report.

For certain cancers, such as head and neck squamous carcinomas (HNSCCs), early detection of metastases to nearby lymph nodes is critical for appropriate therapy, senior author Dr. Frank C P. Holstege, from University Medical Center Utrecht, and colleagues note. Unfortunately, these metastases are often difficult to detect, resulting in inappropriate treatment for many individuals.

In the present study, reported in the February issue of Nature Genetics, Dr. Holstege's team describes the identification of gene expression profiles that correlate with HNSCC lymph node metastases.'

AAAAI Urges Seasonal Allergy Sufferers to Consider Immunotherapy

from An AAAAI News Release
'For seasonal allergy sufferers, the cold winter weather brings much needed relief from watery eyes and runny noses. But with the peak allergy season around the corner, few allergy sufferers find time to relax. Rather than dreading the months ahead, a technique called immunotherapy, or allergy shots, may rid their suffering once and for all.'

Insect Ears?

Many leave their hearing aids at home, by Mary Duenwald, NEW YORK TIMES

'In the pipeline are hearing aids that mimic the hearing apparatus of a kind of parasitic fly, Ormia ochracea, which has a keen sense of where sounds come from.

This insect's ears are connected by a platelike structure that senses both vibrations and pressure in such a way as to act like a tiny directional microphone, said Lynn Luethke, an audiologist and neurologist at the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders in Bethesda, Md.

Hearing aids patterned after the fly's ear are expected to be ready in the next three to six years, Luethke said.'

Through with Chew Week

Herald-Dispatch.Com
'In an effort to call attention to the dangers of using smokeless tobacco, The Appalachian Family and Children First Council has proclaimed the week of February 13-19 as "Through with Chew Week."

The public awareness campaign is designed to reduce the use of smokeless tobacco, especially among young people, said Maxine Lewis, community tobacco prevention specialist for the Lawrence County, Ohio, Health Department. According to the Centers for Disease Control, 6.6 percent of senior high school students use smokeless tobacco.'

Adverse Effects of Fluoride

New York (ArriveNet - Feb 10, 2005) “The combination of gastric problems, difficulty in swallowing, leg muscle pain, and pain in the knee and hip joints is a key indicator of fluoride toxicity, and patients using high-concentration home fluoride treatments should be monitored for these symptoms,” is reported in the January 2005 Journal of the American Dental Association.

Laryngopharyngeal reflux reviewed

'Over the last 3 decades, many reports have implicated refluxed gastric acid as a cause of, or as a contributory factor in, development of chronic laryngeal and pharyngeal disorders. Although this putative cause-effect relationship has been strengthened by more recent evidence, the body of evidence on causation, diagnosis, and treatment of these increasingly diagnosed disorders is still evolving. A variety of symptoms, functional and structural abnormalities involving the larynx, and other contiguous structures positioned proximal to the esophagus constitute the spectrum of these disorders (see the list below). Various terms such as supraesophageal gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), atypical GERD, laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR), and extraesophageal complications of GERD have been used to describe this group of symptoms and signs.'
- Jeegar Jailwala and Reza Shaker reviews the theory and literature regarding laryngopharyngeal reflux at emedicine.com.

Dystonia and Botox injections

The first thing you notice about "Joey" is that his head is turned and tipped to one side; his left ear rests on his hunched-up left shoulder. He has to turn his whole upper body to look at you. Joey has torticollis, also known as cervical dystonia, meaning that his neck muscles are in an involuntary spasm that forces his head into its painful, abnormal position. - Mary Kugler from About.com writes about the diagnosis and treatment of facial and cervical dystonia.

How I straightened out my dizzy BPPV world

from The Republican
In writing this column, I run the risk of being charged with practicing medicine without a license. But if what I have to share helps just one person, I'm willing to take the chance. I'm going to write about BPPV, the acronym for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. It's a dizziness that is caused by infinitesimal granules of debris that have the formal name of "otoconia," and are crystals of calcium carbonate, which come from a spot in one's ear called the utricle.

Top 10 reasons for sore throat

Throats are Easy Targets for Irritation
There are many causes of irritating, scratchy and painful sore throats, making it difficult at times to swallow, eat and talk. According to Lisa Chavis, R.Ph., pharmacist consultant to Cepacol® sore throat products, "Viruses and bacterial infections are frequently to blame, but are not always the culprit." Here is a breakdown of the top 10 reasons throats get sore:

Rhinitis news

FDA MedWatch: ZyPREXA (olanzapine) and ZYRTEC (cetirizine HCI)
PharmaLive.com (press release) - Newtown,PA,USA. Eli Lilly and Company has received reports of medication dispensing or prescribing errors between our atypical antipsychotic ZyPREXA (olanzapine) and the antihistamine ZYRTEC (cetirizine HCI) marketed by Pfizer. These reports include instances where Zyprexa was incorrectly dispensed for Zyrtec and vice versa, leading to various adverse events in some instances. These errors could result in unnecessary adverse events or potential relapse in patients suffering from schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.

MOLD Allergies
allergies.about.com - USA
Molds may be a major contributor to seasonal and perennial allergic rhinitis, as well as other health problems. Although thousands of molds exist, only a few dozen different types are significant allergens. Mold spores can easily become airborne and can be found almost anywhere. Because they are so small, mold spores may invade the protective mechanisms of the nose and upper respiratory tract.