From “The Week” Magazine

“Health officials in Seoul banned gyms from playing music with a tempo faster than 120 beats per minute, on the grounds that such music inspires gymgoers to exercise and breathe harder, thus raising the risk of spreading COVID.”

 

What is PM2.5 and Why Do I Itch?

 

PM refers to particulate matter that hangs in the air creating haze and off-color sunshine.  The 2.5 refers to the size of these particles, which is 2.5 microns or less, which are produced by vehicle exhaust, burning fuels (wood, oil, coal), and wildfires. They are easily carried over long distances. As you can well imagine, such tiny particles can pass deep into lungs and through blood vessel walls into the bloodstream thus increasing risk for heart and lung disease. Several thousand of the smaller particles could fit on the period at the end of this sentence. What came as a surprise to me as I investigated this hazardous air-borne matter was its effect on the skin.

 “These pollutants often contain chemical compounds that act like keys, allowing them to slip past the skin’s outer barrier and penetrate into cells, where they can disrupt gene transcription, trigger oxidative stress or cause inflammation.” 

 Past studies have found a link between atopic dermatitis (AD, aka eczema) and air pollution in cities with high background levels of PM2.5 from cars and industry.  The latest study, published in April of this year in JAMA Dermatology, was conducted by researchers in San Francisco as they perused medical records from November, 2018.  At that time, a serious wildfire nearby (Camp Fire), while extinguished in about two weeks, caused a notable increase in the number of clinic visits for itching and new rashes in both pediatric and adult populations. The authors of the study concluded that even short-term exposure to high PM2.5 environmental particulate matter is associated with increased skin woes, and the majority of new patients scratching n’ rashing had no history of dermal disorders.

 Ugh, walked this morning through the PM2.5 haze, and now I’m itching all over! Little red itchy bumps on the forearm; PM2.5 or creepy little noseeums (a catch-all name for 5,000 species of tiny biting flies)?

 

Here Comes Delta!

 

Q:  Why is the Delta Variant so transmissible?

A:  Because people infected with it carry a viral load of roughly 1,000 times higher than those infected with the original coronavirus strains.

 

Understatements of the Pandemic

 “Putting it all together, Delta’s really difficult to stop.”

                        Benjamin Cowling, University of Hong Kong

 

“This virus has surprised us.”

                        Emma Hodcraft, University of Bern

 

Kanopy.com

 A free streaming site is yours by signing up through your local library.  City librarians were available by phone at the Denver Public Library (and others, I assume, throughout the country).  Denver libraries are finally open; what a pleasure to browse for books rather than wait at the curb for one's order.

For a good laugh, Kanopy streams the silly movie “What We Do in the Shadows 2014.”  Not the series which is mildly funny through the first episode but then collapses into plain stupid, watch the movie!  It is also available on YouTube for $2.99.  A wide range of other movies, both short (and well-done) and long.

 

“There’s always a little bit of tension around

these issues of, well, is the drug going

to work, or not.”

Dr. Robert Shafer, Stanford infectious disease specialist

 

Good news from a phase 2 investigation pitting Molnupiravir (an oral antiviral agent still in clinical trials) against SARS-CoV-2.  After years of testing this-a-vir and that-a-vir in various labs, Molnupiravir and Remdesivir proved most likely to succeed.  Here’s the background story followed by the test results.

RNA viruses rely on their RNA-dependent polymerase (RdRP)* to stitch together  viral messenger RNA.  The sequenced mRNA in turn produces various proteins used for the production of new virions as the invading virus overtakes host cells. What’s needed for halting viral reproduction is a reliable RdRp inhibitor. Many those-a-virs created in labs have been tested against SARS-CoV-2. A successful compound will plop itself into the developing viral sequence causing mutations in the proteins and…hurray! no new offspring created. Remdesivir showed strong inhibition in lab and animal trials, and was subsequently approved for treatment in patients. Unfortunately, while it works well in toning down the severity of the illness thus speeding recovery, it requires IV infusion in a hospital setting and doesn’t reduce deaths in difficult cases. 

There are currently 246 antivirals in development. Creating antiviral meds is rather tricky, the difficulty being how to stop propagation of more virions produced within the host cell without killing the cell itself. Merck’s Molnupiravir, originally developed by Emory University then bought by Ridgeback Bio that sold it to Merck, originally targeted Influenza for Phase 1 animal trials. The drug proved to be effective at curbing flu infections in mice, guinea pigs, ferrets and human-airway organoids (human cells grown in petri dishes into viable tissues).. 

But then along came March, 2020 and the onset of SARS-CoV-2 which completely changed their plans. A successful test with ferrets proved that Molnupiravir blocked both developing cases as well as ferret to ferret transition. They went on to a Phase 2 safety trial with 202 outpatients with early symptoms of SARS-CoV-2. Those who received 400 or 800 mg. daily were completely free of virus by Day 5. Only 11.1% of the placebo group had similar clearance. Phase 2/3 testing is underway with results expected in September.

Here’s hoping!!

 By the way, I began publishing my e-mail newsletter again.  If you would like to receive this type of information via e-mail, please feel free to send me your e-mail to denverdoconline@gmail.com.  There will be overlap between the newsletter and the blog.  I will not share your e-mail with anyone, and you can always unsubscribe by replying to the newsletter with 'unsubscribe.'

Best wishes,

DenverDoc

 

Oops, I forgot to include the illustration that goes with yesterday's post.

 

I spend hours on the internet reading various e-magazines, often going down a path of interest leading me far from my goal—namely getting a thought-provoking newsletter to you more or less every two weeks.  Yesterday, I found this study in the journal ‘Brain Communications’ about how near-death experiences (NDE) in humans may have an evolutionary origin; it’s a definite read and share investigation.  Let’s start with thanatosis (feigned death or ‘playing possum’) as it occurs in animals under attack by predators. 

An artist created the above cartoon from a real-life video involving an impala who goes limp after being caught by a cheetah who then is bullied by a hyena thus allowing the impala to make a get-away.  If you would like to see the actual dramatic footage from Africa, check out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqlGjX1MtVg.  After that, google ‘thanatosis’ or ‘thanatosis in insects’ to see an enormous array of animals, and insects, many on their backs with feet in the air, feigning death when threatened by those higher on the food chain. Another interesting link is found at https://www.thoughtco.com/why-some-animals-play-dead-373909.

 The authors of this study define NDEs as “unique conscious, self-related emotional, spiritual and mystical unexplained experiences occurring in life-threatening situations or situations that may feel life-threatening, including cardiac arrests, traffic accidents, physical assaults and drug abuse.”

They searched for examples of encounters between humans and big animals including sharks, and heard or read testimonials from survivors of mass executions, genocide, or terrorists attacks for examples of thanatosis or NDEs. After compiling their data, they concluded that thanatosis occurs across a wide range of creatures from arthropods to humans, and that playing dead or going into an NDE sort of dream or trance was definitely associated with survival.  See below for an archived account of a human/lion interaction in the 19^th century, and a few other such stories are included in the material in “Brain Communications”.

 You can skim or read the entire study material at https://academic.oup.com/braincomms/article/3/3/fcab132/6307709 .  Next newsletter I will include the physiology that accompanies human and probably other animal species when flight is not an option but feigning death or entering a dreamlike state may be a life saver. And the NDEs associated with “out-of-body experiences, feeling one with the universe, feeling peace and acceptance, sometimes even joy, and visual and auditory hallucinations, including seeing bright lights, being in a tunnel and meeting spirits or ancestors” can become a life-changing memory.

 Interested in reading the entire study?  Visit: https://academic.oup.com/braincomms/article/3/3/fcab132/6307709.

 Thanks for reading, double thanks for feedback!

 DenverDoc

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Developing… not on the market yet

A recently-tested new topical goo for atopic dermatitis (AD) suggests that a combination of cannabidiol (CBD) and aspartame applied regularly to the itchy, inflamed, scaley skin of AD alleviates or clears all those symptoms in a satisfying sort of way.  The trial included 57 people who were randomized to control group, CBD cream alone, or the new combo.  Researchers used the ISGA score (investigator’s static global score) to record baseline symptom assessment compared to change after 2 weeks of use. ISGA scores range from 0 (no trouble at all) to 4 (a hot mess of skin misery).  After 14 days, 50% of the group receiving CBD/aspartame scored 0-1, down 2-3 points from the start of the trial whereas the CBD and control group participants scored the satisfying ISGA 0-1 in just 20% and 15% respectively.

CBD-enriched creams have proven success in multiple dermatological problems including AD, acne, psoriasis, skin cancer, pruritus, and pain.  But who thought aspartame was an effective dermal soother? 

Aspartame apparently has analgesic functions that are similar to those of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin and ibuprofen. A rodent trial in 2015 exposed the mice to topical 2, 4-dinitrofluorobenzene thus creating the mousy version of AD. Sucrose in the mice’s drinking water did nothing to soothe the itch and inflammation whereas drinking aspartame in water inhibited ear swelling and skin eruptions.  Please note, the International Sweeteners Association does not recommend adding aspartame to your drinking water based on other not-so-successful animal studies.

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A Scientist’s Fashion Tip

“Once you can accept the universe as matter expanding into nothing that is something, wearing stripes with plaid comes easy."

Albert Einstein