Thursday, March 28, 2013

Healthy Computing - A Guide to better Computer Ergonomics

Healthy Computer Guide.

Introduction

We?ve developed this guide with the objective of offering a more helpful and convenient way to operate your personal computer. This guideline will also play a good role in lessening the usual problem of the occurrence of disabling as well as agonizing injuries which have been discussed in the Health Warning section given below. You don?t need to spend a long time looking over this guide but you will get a long-lasting benefit from whatever information you do apply.

HEALTH WARNING

The mouse and keyboard that we use lead to various severe disorders and health injuries.

When a person uses a computer, he has to undertake multiple activities at a time resulting in occasional irritations in various body parts like hands, shoulders, arms, neck etc. If you experience some symptoms like pain, discomfort, aching, throbbing, numbness, tingling, stiffness, burning sensation etc. persistently and even at the time when you are not involved in computer works,

NEVER IGNORE THESE SYMPTOMS AS THESE ARE WARNING FOR YOU AND CONSULT WITH A PHYSICIAN AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE.?

?These symptoms may be associated with the injuries which permanently disable muscles, nerves, tendons and other body parts. Some of such musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are tendonitis, tunnel syndrome, tenosynovitis etc.

Although, researchers still don?t know everything about MSDs, they agree that there are some factors which might contribute to the occurrence of MSDs for example stress and the sensitivity of a person to it, overall health, medical as well as physical condition, the positioning of a person?s body during work etc. Another factor is how much time a person spends on working.?

This ?Healthy Computer Guide? will show you the ways to work in a more convenient way with computer and decrease the possibility of encountering MSDs.?

If you want to extract detailed information on the arrangement of working place and development of the habits which may facilitate the decrease in the risk of MSDs, read ?Healthy Computing Guide? thoroughly. As there are lots of reasons which play a role in developing MSDs, so this guide may not give you idea about all the facts but you will definitely come to know about the predominant reasons. There is a history of lots of people of have gained better comfort as well as productivity after following the ways suggested by this guide. One thing you need to be clear that this guide will not act as an alternative to professional health expert or health program. If you want to know about the influence of your activities, lifestyle, medical and physical condition over MSDs then you should consult with a qualified physician.

Self-positioning

During working hour or when you are playing, try to avoid uncomfortable posture and always keep your body in comfortable position. This will not only enhance the overall productivity of you but also help to avoid the occurrence of MSDs. Don?t forget to change your positioning during lengthy task which will help you to get rid of fatigue and discomfort.

At the time of working with computer, adjust your surroundings as well as computer equipments to get a stress-free and contented posture of body parts. The arrangement of your work place in a comfortable way depends on the body size which is very unique for a person and also the work environment. The suggestions given below may help you to get a more flexible working environment.

Tips on supporting the back:

?

  • In order to support lower back, use a chair (see above image).
  • Make an adjustment between the surface of working area and the height of the chair to achieve a natural as well as convenient body posture (see below image).

?How to promote comfortable postures of leg:

  • Clear the underneath portion of your desk to get better leg movement and comfortable positioning.
  • If you feel that your feet are not having comfortable rest on floor, you can employ a footrest.

In order to obtain flexible arm and shoulder posture and minimize reaching, you may use the following tricks:

  • Keep the keyboard as well as mouse at the level of same height which will be good if it is at elbow level. The upper arms of the computer operator need to fall comfortable at the sides (see detail 3).
  • During typing task, keep the keyboard centered in front of the mouse (see detail 4).
  • Keep the items within the reach of your arms which are more commonly used (see detail 5).

?To attain perfect positioning of wrist and finger, follow the tips given below:

  • During typing work and operating mouse, hold your wrist straight and don?t bend wrists to the sides or up and down. If you have legs with your keyboard, then you can extend them to get a straight wrist posture and better comfort.
  • While you are typing, your wrists should float above your keyboard to enable you the usage of whole arm to catch the distant keys without stretching your fingers.

?To avoid bending of neck, try the tips stated below:

  • Adjust the positioning of top portion of the screen at your eye level (see detail 6). In case of bifocal wearers, screen may be lowered or the glasses may be customized specially for computer works upon the consultation of a professional physician.?
  • It?s necessary to center the monitor in front of you. If you need to have look over the documents more than the monitor, then place the documents in front of your eye and the monitor may be placed on a side slightly.
  • In order to adjust the position of documents at eye level, you may use a document holder.
In order to reduce the stress on eye, try the following:
  • In order to sit comfortably in front of monitor, keep it at an arm away distance.
  • Keep your monitor at a distant place from light sources which are involved in creating glare or you may also use window blinds for controlling the level of light.
  • Never forget to clean the screen as well as the glasses if you use them.
  • Learn how to adjust the brightness and contrast of the monitor.
  • Select the font size on screen which is more comfortable for you if you have that facility in your computer program.

Work Lightly

All the physical forces are involved in close interaction with our body. It?s not only the high impact forces like car crash that causes injury to our body but also low impact forces result in discomfort, injury and fatigue when these physical forces are encountered over long time.

Example of some low forces:

Dynamic force: The force which is generated through movement for example pressing key during mouse clicking or typing.? ?

Static force: The force which exists for a long period for example holding phone or mouse for long time.

Contact force: A force which is generated by resting on a hard surface for example resting wrists on your desk?s edge.

Try to embrace the following ways to reduce the influences of low-impact forces:

  • During typing, keep your hands as well as fingers flexible and type with very light touch, after all you don?t need to give big effort to operate your keyboard?s keys.
  • Click mouse with light touch, the same formula is applicable while using joystick or any other gaming controller device. ?
  • Keep your hand relaxed while holding the mouse and avoid gripping your mouse forcefully.
  • Never rest your wrist or palm on a surface during typing (see detail 7). This type of rest can be taken when you have a break from typing.
  • When you are on break, try to make your hands and arms relaxed. Never rest the arms or hands on the edge of your desk.
  • Make the adjustment of your chair in a way that no pressure from the seat pushes the back of knees (see detail 8).

Don?t forget to take breaks

?When you will take some break from your computer work, it will give time to your body for recovering activity and thus you can avoid MSDs. Based on the type of your work, you have to decide how long you will rest and how frequent you need to take rest. Not only postponing works and relaxing is the way to enjoy a break but also some other forms of breaks are present for instance choosing a different mode of work. If you change your position from sitting to standing during phone conversation, it will definitely help you to make muscles relax.

To alter day to day tasks and work productively, embrace the following ways:

  • Make a planning for both work and play in such a way that you don?t need to perform the same task over a long period.
  • In order to do the same job, try to use diversified input devices. Suppose, you are doing a scrolling job, you can use both keyboard arrow key and the wheel of mouse.
  • To decrease your work pressure, adopt various software and hardware. For example, you have the opportunity to use Windows logo key to enter into the Windows start menu.
  • Try to learn the operations of hardware and software by following the instructions given with the products. For instance, in order to highlight the test commonly, allocate your mouse to do ClickLock.

Be Healthy

?A healthy lifestyle is also necessary to perform daily tasks in proper way with enjoyment. You need to learn the detail about your health if you want to stay productive and flexible with your computer tasks.

?In order to maintain a healthy status of health, adopt the following ideas:

  • Take balanced diet as well as sufficient rest.
  • Don?t miss exercise as it will improve the flexibility, strength and overall fitness of body. In order to choose the right form of exercise for you, you may consult with a qualified physician.
  • Make proper stress management. By planning your work area and program properly, you can keep the racket and disturbances to a minimum level.
  • In order to be clear about the relevance of different factors like diabetes, injuries, rheumatoid arthritis, pregnancy etc. to MSDs, consult with a professional health specialist.

Source: http://blog.jpofficeworkstations.com.au/2013/03/healthycomputingguide.html

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Monoclonal antibody targets, kills leukemia cells

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego Moores Cancer Center have identified a humanized monoclonal antibody that targets and directly kills chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) cells.

The findings, published in the online Early Edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on March 25, 2013 represent a potential new therapy for treating at least some patients with CLL, the most common type of blood cancer in the United States.

CLL cells express high levels of a cell-surface glycoprotein receptor called CD44. Principal investigator Thomas Kipps, MD, PhD, Evelyn and Edwin Tasch Chair in Cancer Research, and colleagues identified a monoclonal antibody called RG7356 that specifically targeted CD44 and was directly toxic to cancer cells, but had little effect on normal B cells.

Moreover, they found RG7356 induced CLL cells that expressed the protein ZAP-70 to undergo apoptosis or programmed cell death. Roughly half of CLL patients have leukemia cells that express ZAP-70. Such patients typically have a more aggressive form of the disease than patients with CLL cells that do not express that specific protein.

Previous research by Kipps and others has shown that CLL cells routinely undergo spontaneous or drug-induced cell death when removed from the body and cultured in the laboratory. They found that CLL cells receive survival signals from surrounding non-tumor cells that are present in the lymph nodes and bone marrow of patients with CLL. One of these survival signals appears to be transmitted through CD44. However, when CD44 is bound by the RG7356 monoclonal antibody, it seems to instead convey a death signal to the leukemia cell.

"By targeting CD44, it may be possible to kill CLL cells regardless of whether there are sufficient numbers of so-called 'effector cells,' which ordinarily are required by other monoclonal antibodies to kill tumor cells," said Kipps. "We plan to initiate clinical trials using this humanized anti-CD44 monoclonal antibody in the not-too-distant future."

###

University of California - San Diego: http://www.ucsd.edu

Thanks to University of California - San Diego for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

This press release has been viewed 25 time(s).

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/127444/Monoclonal_antibody_targets__kills_leukemia_cells

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Monday, March 4, 2013

Syrian opposition head visits rebel areas in north

AAA??Mar. 3, 2013?12:17 PM ET
Syrian opposition head visits rebel areas in north
AP

In this image taken from video filmed on Thursday, Feb. 28, 2013 and released Saturday evening, March 2, 2013, Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks during an interview with the Sunday Times, in Damascus, Syria. Iran and Syria condemned a U.S. plan to assist rebels fighting to topple Assad on Saturday and signaled the Syrian leader intends to stay in power at least until 2014 presidential elections. Assad told the Sunday Times in the interview timed to coincide with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's first foreign trip that "the intelligence, communication and financial assistance being provided is very lethal." Kerry announced on Thursday that the Obama administration was giving an additional $60 million in assistance to Syria's political opposition and would, for the first time, provide non-lethal aid directly to the rebels. (AP Photo/Sunday Times via AP video) THIS IMAGE IS FOR USE FOR 24 HOUR NEWS ACCESS ONLY, SUNDAY TIMES LOGO MUST NOT BE OBSCURED, NO ARCHIVES, NO SALES /PLEASE CONTACT SUNDAY TIMES SYNDICATION DEPARTMENT BY EMAIL TO ENQUIRIES@NISYNDICATION.COM FOR QUESTIONS REGARDING USE OUTSIDE THE 24 HOUR NEWS ACCESS WINDOW

In this image taken from video filmed on Thursday, Feb. 28, 2013 and released Saturday evening, March 2, 2013, Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks during an interview with the Sunday Times, in Damascus, Syria. Iran and Syria condemned a U.S. plan to assist rebels fighting to topple Assad on Saturday and signaled the Syrian leader intends to stay in power at least until 2014 presidential elections. Assad told the Sunday Times in the interview timed to coincide with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's first foreign trip that "the intelligence, communication and financial assistance being provided is very lethal." Kerry announced on Thursday that the Obama administration was giving an additional $60 million in assistance to Syria's political opposition and would, for the first time, provide non-lethal aid directly to the rebels. (AP Photo/Sunday Times via AP video) THIS IMAGE IS FOR USE FOR 24 HOUR NEWS ACCESS ONLY, SUNDAY TIMES LOGO MUST NOT BE OBSCURED, NO ARCHIVES, NO SALES /PLEASE CONTACT SUNDAY TIMES SYNDICATION DEPARTMENT BY EMAIL TO ENQUIRIES@NISYNDICATION.COM FOR QUESTIONS REGARDING USE OUTSIDE THE 24 HOUR NEWS ACCESS WINDOW

In this image taken from video filmed on Thursday, Feb. 28, 2013 and released Saturday evening, March 2, 2013, Syrian President Bashar Assad gestures while speaking during an interview with the Sunday Times, in Damascus, Syria. Iran and Syria condemned a U.S. plan to assist rebels fighting to topple Assad on Saturday and signaled the Syrian leader intends to stay in power at least until 2014 presidential elections. Assad told the Sunday Times in the interview timed to coincide with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's first foreign trip that "the intelligence, communication and financial assistance being provided is very lethal." Kerry announced on Thursday that the Obama administration was giving an additional $60 million in assistance to Syria's political opposition and would, for the first time, provide non-lethal aid directly to the rebels. (AP Photo/Sunday Times via AP video) THIS IMAGE IS FOR USE FOR 24 HOUR NEWS ACCESS ONLY, SUNDAY TIMES LOGO MUST NOT BE OBSCURED, NO ARCHIVES, NO SALES /PLEASE CONTACT SUNDAY TIMES SYNDICATION DEPARTMENT BY EMAIL TO ENQUIRIES@NISYNDICATION.COM FOR QUESTIONS REGARDING USE OUTSIDE THE 24 HOUR NEWS ACCESS WINDOW

In this image taken from video filmed on Thursday, Feb. 28, 2013 and released Saturday evening, March 2, 2013, Syrian President Bashar Assad gestures while speaking during an interview with the Sunday Times, in Damascus, Syria. Iran and Syria condemned a U.S. plan to assist rebels fighting to topple Assad on Saturday and signaled the Syrian leader intends to stay in power at least until 2014 presidential elections. Assad told the Sunday Times in the interview timed to coincide with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's first foreign trip that "the intelligence, communication and financial assistance being provided is very lethal." Kerry announced on Thursday that the Obama administration was giving an additional $60 million in assistance to Syria's political opposition and would, for the first time, provide non-lethal aid directly to the rebels. (AP Photo/Sunday Times via AP video) THIS IMAGE IS FOR USE FOR 24 HOUR NEWS ACCESS ONLY, SUNDAY TIMES LOGO MUST NOT BE OBSCURED, NO ARCHIVES, NO SALES /PLEASE CONTACT SUNDAY TIMES SYNDICATION DEPARTMENT BY EMAIL TO ENQUIRIES@NISYNDICATION.COM FOR QUESTIONS REGARDING USE OUTSIDE THE 24 HOUR NEWS ACCESS WINDOW

(AP) ? The chief of the Syrian National Coalition has, for the first time, visited rebel-held areas near the embattled city of Aleppo in northern Syria.

Aleppo, the nation's largest city, has been a major front in the nearly 2-year-old conflict. Government forces and rebels have been locked in a stalemate there since July.

Mouaz al-Khatib met Sunday with Syrians living in two suburbs of Aleppo that are controlled by the opposition.

A coalition statement says the goal of his trip to Manbah and Jarablus was to inspect the living conditions of residents there.

The opposition controls large swathes of land around Aleppo, and several areas within the city while the government maintains controls of others.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-03-03-Syria/id-9ed749c309454c2b8c60f9d34970ad78

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Seven genetic risk factors found to be associated with common eye disorder

Mar. 3, 2013 ? An international group of researchers has discovered seven new regions of the human genome -- called loci-that are associated with increased risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of blindness. The AMD Gene Consortium, a network of international investigators representing 18 research groups, also confirmed 12 loci identified in previous studies. The findings are reported online today in the journal Nature Genetics. Supported by the National Eye Institute (NEI), a part of the National Institutes of Health, the study represents the most comprehensive genome-wide analysis of genetic variations associated with AMD.

"This compelling analysis by the AMD Gene Consortium demonstrates the enormous value of effective collaboration," said NEI Director Paul A. Sieving, M.D., Ph.D. "Combining data from multiple studies, this international effort provides insight into the molecular basis of AMD, which will help researchers search for causes of the disease and will inform future development of new diagnostic and treatment strategies."

AMD affects the macula, a region of the retina responsible for central vision. The retina is the layer of light-sensitive tissue in the back of the eye that houses rod and cone photoreceptor cells. Compared with the rest of the retina, the macula is especially dense with cone photoreceptors and is what humans rely on for tasks that require sharp vision, such as reading, driving, and recognizing faces. As AMD progresses, such tasks become more difficult and eventually impossible. Some kinds of AMD are treatable if detected early, but no cure exists. An estimated 2 million Americans have AMD.

Scientists have shown that age, diet, and smoking influence a person's risk of developing AMD. Genetics also plays a strong role. AMD often runs in families and is more common among certain ethnicities, such as people of Asian or European descent.

Since the 2005 discovery that certain variations in the gene for complement factor H -- a component of the immune system -- are associated with major risk for AMD, research groups around the world have conducted genome-wide association studies to identify other loci that affect AMD risk. These studies were made possible by tools developed through the Human Genome Project, which mapped human genes, and related projects, such the International HapMap Project, which identified common patterns of genetic variation within the human genome.

The AMD Gene Consortium combined data from 18 research groups to increase the power of prior analyses. The current analysis identified seven new loci near genes. As with the previously discovered 12 loci, these seven loci are scattered throughout the genome on many different chromosomes.

"A large number of samples was needed to detect additional genetic variants that have small but significant influences on a person's disease risk," said Hemin Chin, Ph.D., NEI associate director for ophthalmic genetics, who assembled the consortium and helped coordinate the study. "By cataloging genetic variations associated with AMD, scientists are better equipped to target corresponding biological pathways and study how they might interact and change with age or other factors, such as smoking."

The consortium's analysis included data from more than 17,100 people with the most advanced and severe forms of AMD, which were compared to data from more than 60,000 people without AMD. The 19 loci that were found to be associated with AMD implicate a variety of biological functions, including regulation of the immune system, maintenance of cellular structure, growth and permeability of blood vessels, lipid metabolism, and atherosclerosis.

"Like a map that identifies neighborhoods where the electricity has been knocked out by a storm, the AMD Gene Consortium's study effectively tagged regions within the genome where researchers are most likely to find short circuits in DNA that cause AMD," said Anand Swaroop, Ph.D., chief of the NEI Laboratory of Neurobiology and Neurodegeneration and Repair, and one of the group leaders of this consortium effort. "Once you are in the right neighborhood, going block to block or house to house to look for downed power lines goes much faster. Likewise, by limiting their search to the 19 genomic regions identified by the AMD Gene Consortium, scientists can more efficiently search for specific genes and causative changes that play a role in AMD."

As with other common diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, an individual person's risk for getting AMD is likely determined not by one but many genes. Further comprehensive DNA analysis of the areas around the 19 loci identified by the AMD Gene Consortium could turn up undiscovered rare genetic variants with a disproportionately large effect on AMD risk. Discovery of such genes could greatly advance scientists' understanding of AMD pathogenesis and their quest for more effective treatments.

Lead authors of the study include Gon?alo R. Abecasis, D. Phil., University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; Lindsay A. Farrer, Ph.D., Boston University; Iris Heid, Ph.D., University of Regensburg, Germany; and Jonathan L. Haines, Ph.D., Vanderbilt University, Nashville.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by NIH/National Eye Institute.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal Reference:

  1. Lars G Fritsche et al. Seven new loci associated with age-related macular degeneration. Nature Genetics, 03 March 2013 DOI: 10.1038/ng.2578

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/pCRM9VVS1Qc/130303154954.htm

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Saturday, March 2, 2013

Annual shark kills 'hit 100 million'

The most accurate assessment to date of the impact of commercial fishing on sharks suggests around 100 million are being killed each year.

The researchers say that this rate of exploitation is far too high, especially for a species which reproduces later in life.

The major factor driving the trade is the ongoing demand for shark fins for soup in Chinese communities.

The report has been published in the Journal Marine Policy.

Researchers admit that establishing the true level of global shark fishing is extremely difficult, as the quality of the data is poor. Many sharks that are caught have their fins removed at sea with the body dumped overboard. These fish are often not included in official reports.

Fin margin

However, the scientists estimate a mortality range of between 63 and 273 million sharks in 2010.

Continue reading the main story

?Start Quote

They are not reproducing fast enough to keep up with the rate we are pulling them out of the ocean?

End Quote Dr Demian Chapman Stony Brook University

"There is a very large range and that speaks to the quality of data, which is not great," said Dr Demian Chapman from Stony Brook University in New York, US.

"Certainly 100 million is the median estimate and that's the best estimate there is," he added.

While the number of sharks being caught has not changed substantially between 2000 and 2010, the authors of the research argue that the commercial fishing fleets are simply changing location and the shark species they target in order to keep up with demand. The fear is that eventually these shark species will crash.

Fuelling the concern is the fact that many of the species that are most threatened are very slow to reproduce.

"A lot of the sharks that are prized in the trade take more than a decade to reach maturity," said Dr Chapman.

"There is a really razor-thin level of mortality that sharks can experience before their population trajectory becomes negative - that is really what's been happening.

"They are not reproducing fast enough to keep up with the rate we are pulling them out of the ocean," he added.

The biggest driver for shark fishing has been the demand for shark fin soup, a product that is seen as a luxury item among Chinese communities.

While fins are still being cut off sharks at sea, several countries including Canada, the US and the European Union have tried to restrict this by law.

But this has not had the desired effect, Dr Chapman explained.

"The problem is that the fins are so valuable that now people are not 'finning' the sharks at sea - they're keeping the whole thing. But it is still dead; the finning bans have not stopped the root problem."

On Sunday, negotiators from 178 countries will gather in Bangkok for the meeting of the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites). There are proposals to regulate the trade in five of the most threatened species of shark.

At a previous meeting in 2010, similar restrictions fell just short of the required-two thirds majority. This time, campaigners say they have broad support among developed and developing countries and are optimistic they will be able to muster the required votes.

Follow Matt on Twitter.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21629173#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa

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