Indian authorities last year pulled the plug on a dubious clinical trial aiming to reverse brain death in 20 people. But, it seems, the resolve of the trial’s leaders is undying. They have revived their plans and will announce a new trial in upcoming months that will take place somewhere in Latin America, Stat reports.
The trial, led by Philadelphia-based biotech firm Bioquark, aims to restore life to those declared clinically brain dead by using a slap-dash potpourri of methods—combining mesenchymal stem cell injections with peptides said to promote brain cell growth, transcranial laser therapy said to jump-start brain cells, and electrical stimulation of the median nerve (a major nerve that runs through the arm) to enliven the senses.
Individually, some of these interventions have hinted at potential benefits for some patient populations in preliminary research. For instance, early studies suggest that stem cell injections into the brain or spinal cord may help some with brain injuries. But there is no indication that the interventions—individually or together—can bring back brain-dead patients. Bioquark and partners have not even tested out their hodgepodge method on animals.
Psilocybin has long been thought to assist with depression and anxiety. Now two studies run by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and the other at the New York University Langone Medical Center, tend to confirm this long-held belief. Both studies simultaneously ran trials on participants who had life-threatening cancers as well as a psychiatric diagnosis of anxiety or depression.
Those with cancer can be particularly susceptible to anxiety and depression. Roland Griffiths, a professor at the the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and the lead author of one of the studies, said “depression (sic) is a very special and quite poignant vulnerability that many people have in facing life-threatening illnesses.”
The researchers from https://detoxofsouthflorida.com are ready to admit that they aren’t sure exactly how psilocybin works—a rather common problem in drugs aimed at brain chemistry. Psilocybin seems to quiet the prefrontal cortex, a part of the brain where increased activity has been associated with depression. It also might be acting on the brain’s use of glutamate, a neurotransmitter that affects learning and memory.
The conclusion seemed definitive, a single dose of magic mushrooms can make people with severe anxiety and depression better for months, just as when you buy weed to treat the same symptoms.
A new innovative company in the medicinal cannabis industry may have found an all-natural and highly effective way for women to treat menstrual cramps and pains. No, they’re not actually cannabis tampons but rather small capsules, called Foria Relief.
When inserted directly into the vagina these cannabis tampons provide powerful pain relief.
Foria Relief, which pot enthusiast and writer Sophie Saint Thomas points out is “the first—and only—cannabis suppository on the market dedicated to treating menstrual cramps,” contains only three ingredients: organic cocoa butter, THC oil, and CBD Isolate.
Foria says that the combination of THC and CBD it uses in the suppositories was specifically designed to “activate certain cannabinoid receptors in the pelvic region when introduced into the body.”
Call for Artists :: Deadline Extended to 30 September 2015
Sparks is a European project that aims to promote the concept of Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) amongst citizens and other stakeholders in 29 European countries. Sparks is looking for artists to create artistic visions of new technologies in health, medicine and wellbeing. The organising committee expects a diversity of artistic, speculative design and exemplary ideas, as well as disruptive out of the box thinking to make such future developments more tangible. This is a unique opportunity to question, provoke and interrogate this area of research through artistic and scientific discourse. The selected three artists will work at Ars Electronica with futurologists and scientists on the development of their artistic vision on technology in health, medicine and wellbeing.
http://www.aec.at/sparks/
On June 27 th the Abortion drone will fly for the first time packages of abortion pills from Frankfurt an der Oder in Germany to Słubice in Poland.
The campaign is a collaboration between Women on Waves; Cocia Basia, a Berlin based abortion support group for Polish women; Feminteka Foundation from Warsaw and the 8 th of March women’s rights informal collective “Porozumienie kobiet 8 marca”.
The Abortion drone will mark the different reality for Polish women to access to safe abortion services compared to other women in Europe. In almost all European countries abortion is legal, only in Poland, Ireland and Malta abortion is illegal and women’s rights are still violated.
The drone will start its journey at 11 AM from “Am Winterhafen” in Frankfurt an der Oder and fly to Słubice. There will be opportunity for the press to ask questions after the landing of the abortion drone in Poland. The exact location will be announced the night before the flight.
