Popular Articles

Navitar Optics Used In Military Applications For Over Sixty Years
Navitar, Inc."s cutting edge optical technology dates back over 60 years when the company"s founder, David Goldstein, pioneered his way into the optics industry. Originally forming Elgeet Optical in 1946, Goldstein set out to make innovative optics for the most revolutionary applications and industries. His decision to develop and manufacture optical technologies for Military applications was fundamental in establishing the Navitar name brand. Today, Navitar continues to develop product lines to meet changing technological advancements and is one of the most recognized and respected names in the optics industry.

Local Food Environments Can Lead To Obesity
Living in an area with more fast food outlets and convenience stores than supermarkets and grocers has been associated with obesity in a Canadian study. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Public Health have shown that your local food environment can affect your weight.
News of the day
National Organization for Women Establishes Kansas Abortion-Rights PAC To Fill Void After Death Of Abortion Provider Tiller
The Kansas chapter of the National Organization for Women has formed its own political action committee to replace ProKanDo, a PAC founded in 2002 by abortion provider George Tiller that was closed after his murder in May, the AP/Hays Daily News reports. ProKanDo spent more than $1 million over the last four years to advocate for abortion rights, assist candidates who support abortion rights and oppose antiabortion-rights candidates. The organization had more than 6,400 contributors but received between one-third and one-half of its annual funding from Tiller, according to former Director Julie Burkhart.NOW has scheduled a conference in Wichita on July 25 to discuss legislative strategy and Kansas elections. Marla Patrick, coordinator of NOW"s Kansas chapter,÷ said that although the new PAC will not have the same financial support from Tiller that ProKanDo received, his death has invigorated grassroots support. She added, "I think that can be every bit as effective, if not more so, especially in light of all the recent events" (Hegeman, AP/Hays Daily News, 7/18).
Oncology

Cigarette Smoking Does Not Affect Everyone In Same Way

Cigarette smoking induced COPD, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, is a disease that results in severe breathing difficulty. According to World Health Organization (WHO) it is the fourth leading killer worldwide. However the mechanisms responsible for some smokers developing COPD and others evading the disease have not been well understood. Dr.Manuel Cosio from the McGill University Health Centre, in collaboration with Italian and Spanish scientists, reports in the New England Journal of Medicine that an autoimmune mechanism, compounded by genetic predisposition in COPD, would explain the progression of the disease in some smokers and the evasion in others. COPD has a family connection and next of kin of patients with COPD have a much higher chance of developing the disease, a characteristic of autoimmune diseases. Although smoking is the primary risk factor for COPD in the western world, open fire pollutant cooking and heating fuels in the home is an important risk factor for the development of COPD in women in developing nations. "Smoke can play an important role in autoimmune diseases such as COPD, and other diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, because it accentuates genetic predispositions to the disease," warns Dr. Cosio. Yet contrary to previous scientific beliefs, COPD does not progress in the same way in all smokers. The authors describe three steps in the potential progression to COPD in smokers: "COPD does not go from stage one, two and three in all people," Dr. Cosio says. "Depending on their personal balance between immune response and immune control some people would stop at stage one, others at stage two, and some will progress to stage three, full autoimmunity and lung destruction." "Hopefully investigators will now see the disease in a totally different way," Dr Cosio stresses. "Our hope is that our research will open the door for a different investigation on COPD, where scientists learn more about the immunological processes and how these processes could be controlled and modulated to eventually provide the right treatment." Notes: Dr Manuel Cosio: Dr Manuel Cosio is Professor of respiratory medicine at the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) and an investigator in "Respiratory health" at the Meakins Christie laboratories of the Research institute of the MUHC. Funding: This study was supported by the Lloyd-Carr Harris Foundation, the Italian Ministry of University and Research and CIBERES (Centro de investigaci̚n biom̩dica en red sobre enfermedades respiratorias). Partners: This article was authored by Dr.Manuel G. Cosio of the McGill University Health Centre (Canada), Dr.Marina Saetta of the University of Padua, (Italy) and Dr.Alvar Agusti of the Hospital Universitario Son Dureta, (Spain). Isabelle Kling McGill University Health Centre


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