Doctor End Medicine Mouse Naked Reboot Silicon Valley Will

Just two years since conception and personal genome services company 23andMe’s Personal Genome Service™ has earned TIME Magazine’s Best Invention of the Year for "its exceptional work in making personal genomics accessible and affordable".

Dubbed the Pioneer in retail genomics, 23andMe is able to provide genetic risk and predisposition for more than 90 traits and conditions to clients for only $399.00 and a saliva kit. Clients don’t even have to leave home to do it, and they can access it all in their personal website/database. If they so wish, clients can even compare their genomes with other family members who are also 23andMe participants.

This award makes the point that genomics revolution is here faster than we thought possible when the human genome first got sequenced. As more people get hold of their genetic information, it is all the more important for a thoughtful regulation be put in place, and a more effective education of genomic revolution be made available.

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Even mad scientists like me need to beautify every once in a while. And, it’s the first ever give-away at Genetics and Health so let’s see how it goes -

Go! Go! Beauty is a natural plant-based skin lotion that are themed to celebrate the world’s beautiful diversity. Go! Go! comes in 2 scents for each kind of lotion -

• Go!Go! Asian – Green Tea Antioxidant Lotion
• Go!Go! Latin – Verbena, Grapeseed & Olive Oil Lotion
• Go!Go! African – Shea Butter Lotion
• Go!Go! European – Oatmeal & Soy Lotion

All natural Go!Go! Beauty products have never been or ever will be tested on animals. The ingredients are biodegradable, that none are derived from animals (with the exception of bee pollen and honey) and that all of their packaging is recyclable. Every purchase of Go!Go! products also gives something back. For every 200 bottles sold, Go!Go! will donate $100 to Women for Women International, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping women in war-torn countries around the world rebuild their lives.

Go! Go! donated three lotions. So, how do you join?

• One entry per person per day. Check out the scent from below and let me know which one you want.
• It’s open to residents of the US only.
• Contest ends 11:59 midnight EST on November 7, 2008 (Friday).
• Three winners will be randomly chosen and announced via blog and email the week after.
• If a winner does not reply within 3 days, he/she forfeits her winnings and an alternate entry will be chosen.
• REMINDER #1 : In previous contests, I have had several winners forfeited for failure to reply to my emails.  Please make sure your settings don’t put my email into the junk folder, otherwise you’ll have no idea you won. Better yet, please check this blog for the winners’ list after the contest ends. Best bet, come back often and stay a reader!

Go!Go! Asian – Green Tea Antioxidant Lotion. Green tea is anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory lotion that can do wonders for our health and our skin. Blended harmoniously with vitamin E, A, D, deep-penetrating B-5 and beta-carotene, this lavish cream not only moisturizes, but naturally slows signs of aging by fighting the damage done by the sun and pollution. Enjoy ageless skin and timeless refinement.

“Koi Garden” Scent. The gentle water laps at your toe as jewel-toned koi fish glide below. A breeze momentarily stirs the calm, and carried on it are the floral notes of cherry blossom, peony, and delicate white lotus.

“Golden Temple” Scent. With each pure, ringing note from a nearby Tibetan singing bowl, you are carried deeper into meditative serenity. Floating in the air around you are the heady, cleansing scents of amber, sandalwood, rosewood, and a fleeting hint of rice flower.

Go!Go! Latin – Verbena, Grapeseed & Olive Oil Lotion. Verbena, found from Colombia and Brazil to Argentina and Chile—is popularly used in smooth, soothing balms. Grapeseed is prized for its regenerative and moisturizing properties (also reduces the appearance of stretch marks!), while olive oil is packed with natural, nutritive antioxidants. Both have been used in Spain for centuries in emollients and massage oils. Add to that the organic botanicals of aloe, mandarin, and lavender, plus green tea, vitamins C and E, shea and jojoba, and you and your skin will be left looking muy caliente!

“Playa Tropical” Scent. Golden sands at your feet, silver crests on the waves, and a copper glint on your skin. You’re rich! And just when you thought you couldn’t ask for more, the luscious smells of tropical fruits drift by: banana, coconut, mango, pineapple, and papaya.

“Café Romance” Scent. The warmth seeps through the cup and into your hands. Before you take a sip, you breathe in the decadent aroma. Mmm! Fresh coffee, with a kiss of dulce de leche, a ribbon of chocolate, the sweet embrace of vanilla bean and Valencia orange… You’re in love.

Go!Go! African – Shea Butter Lotion. This rich, creamy lotion contains 5% pure African shea butter, just enough of the emollient to shield your skin from the fierce elements and provide enduring hydration. Bring your inner radiance to the surface with healing aloe, rejuvenating sugar cane, and anti-oxidant grapeseed and vitamin E. Smooth it on. Your skin laps it up so that you will feel absolutely royal.

“Emerald Canopy” Scent. A flash of an iris, the flutter of a wing, a rustle, a puff. Out here, the movements of animals and the borders of plants blend. You, too, are part of this drumming, this humming of nature. Breathe it: fresh herbaceous perfumes, exotic fruits, and everywhere, a clean mist.

“Spice Bazaar” Scent. The heat of the day lingers as darkness falls, and you venture into the night market where sultry sights and sumptuous flavors await. Dip your hand into a basket and let the spices sift through your fingers. If mystery has a scent, here it is: cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger…

Go!Go! European – Oatmeal & Soy Lotion. Rich and nourishing, oats have been enjoyed as a staple in Europe since their cultivation 3,000 years ago.  Colloidal oatmeal calms and relieves dry, itchy and chapped skin, while the soy herein enhances your skin’s ability to retain moisture. Add in the benefits of cooling aloe and algae, avocado, glycerin, grapeseed and vitamin E, and you’ll soon find your skin not only soothed, but soft and supple too.

Cobblestone Bakery” Scent. What a day! You allow your feet relief from walking, your eyes reprieve from sightseeing, and you take a seat. Comfort comes your way from inside the bakery. You indulge in the warm aroma of cinnamon, sweet almond and spicy gingerbread.

“Blooming Orchard” Scent. Far from the city squalor, the provincial air does both you and the trees a world of good. You pluck a crisp apple from a bough and inhale the fragrance of its skin. Scents wafting over from nearby branches bearing plump peaches and pears make for an enchanting potpourri.

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Malnourishment in a pregnant woman has a lasting effect on her child’s DNA. This was the implications of a new study on children born during the famine of World War II.

Scientists studied the DNA of children who were born to women starved during the 1944 Hunger Winter in the Netherlands. They analyzed a gene called insulin-like growth factor 2 or IGF2, an important growth hormone. Methyl groups that attach to IGF2 very early in fetal development determine how much of the growth hormone is made later, and protect the DNA from damage.

The scientists found that those children (now in their 60s)  who were exposed to famine in the first trimester of pregnancy had lesser methyl groups in the IGF2 gene than their siblings of the same sex.

Loss of methylation in IGF2 has previously been linked to colorectal cancer in humans. In this latest study, it’s too early to tell what the epigenetic effects are of a mother’s starvation on the adult life of her child. But the take home from this is that extreme maternal diet (either starvation or eating disorder) does affect the fetal DNA, and those effects leave their mark decades later.

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I first learned of this rare recessive disorder mucopolysaccharidosis VI, or MPS VI from the story of 3-year old boy Trey Lane, who suffers from it.

Mucopolysaccharidosis VI, or MPS VI is a rare unpredictable disorder resulting from a deficiency of arylsulfatase B, thus preventing the degradation of polysaccharides. The excessive amounts of polysaccharides in the affected person’s body compresses soft tissues and bones and hinders proper growth of the bones. Most affected individuals have short stature, deformed facial structures, stiff joints, and corneal clouding.

Featured in the Arizona Central, Trey’s story captured media attention when his doctors told him that his $20,000-per-week treatment didn’t seem to be working (in delaying the progression of the disease). Trey hasn’t grown an inch or gained a pound in months. Trey soon met a 20-year old man who has been suffering from the same disorder and the two families found mutual support. Later, word got out about the young boy’s struggles and schools and other children began donating to his treatment. Next month, Trey will go back to Minnesota and try another round of treatments. The Arizona Central article didn’t mention the specific treatments for Trey, but a clinical trial for an enzyme replacement therapy using recombinant human arylsulfatase B (rhASB) recently found success.

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An interesting article on the suicidal brain came out of Biological Psychiatry this week - A gene for neurotransmitter reception is shut down in the suicidal brain.

Scientists found chemical changes relating to regulation of cell development were happening in the brains of people with major depressive disorder who committed suicide. The gene controlling neurotransmitter reception plays a role in regulating behavior. It’s very interesting. Without proper regulation of behavior, then I assume the behavior would be erratic and contribute to suicidal tendencies.

This is another example of epigenetics at work. Without even changing the DNA structure, environment can cause heritable changes in gene function. In this case, depression triggers the brain

via medical news today

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