Stef

Week 4-- Zoos Must Decide Which Animals Survive
[|Zoo Article]


 * I thought that since the main focus of class has been about environmental concern, that this article would flow nicely with that idea. The article emphasizes species/population concerns and conservation.**


 * People expect zoos to "rescue" endangered species. Numbers of endangered species are rising, including many mammals, birds, frogs and insects. However, zoos now face the issue of which species they must devote their time and resources to. They believe that it is more beneficial to rescue a select few species instead of trying to stretch their resources for many. Unfortunately, this puts zookeepers in a terrible situation-- which species should they keep? Which is more likely to survive?** **For instance, zoos have been saving lemurs because they have received funding to preserve a rare fauna from the island of Madagascar. On the other hand, lion-tailed macaques, native to Indian forests, are being removed from zoos because they can carry a deadly form of Herpes. Sadly, only a small population still remains in captivity. A species advisory group is expected to put this particular species on the "phaseout list" soon.**


 * One controversial question arises over the role/ purpose of zoos in general. Is it to display animals for peoples' amusement? Is it to foster the rescue of endangered species? This leads to the idea that more conservatories should exist in the U.S. to help preserve species. One man, Dr. Monfort, argues that zoos should harbor reproduction facilities that are large enough to support whole herds of animals. He also says that zoos should raise money for wild animal conservation, and that zoos should display animals that are truly on the verge of dying out (as opposed to those that are flourishing in the wild).**


 * The St. Louis Zoo, for example, is adapting to this new effort and demand of action. The institution now intends to protect endangered species through its breeding programs that have brought dozens of animals, like the Golden Lion Tamarin of Brazil, back from the edge of extinction. However, the fight still continues for this zoo, which decided to spend $18 million for a new pool, home to its sea otters-- one of its main attractions. Although these otters are currently doing fine in the wild, the question persists of what zoos' main purpose should be.**

__**Fact:**__ **There are currently 214 zoos in the US that have a budget near $200 million.**


 * Another issue is the rising cost of care for animals. While zoos would theoretically like to be home for many species of animals, they are forced to decide which animals they can care for due to the large expense associated with the care.**

__**More Facts**__
 * 1) **There are only 64 polars bears in captivity in American zoos. The optimal number to support their continued survival is 200.**
 * 2) **The partula snail (native to Tahiti) have experienced population decimation in their native habitat due to an invasive species-- a pest that was used to kill crops, which began killing off the snails. Not many are left, and many zoos choose not to exhibit them.**
 * 3) **The International Union for Conservation of Nature estimates that 25% of mammals are at risk of becoming extinct.**


 * Video: I couldn't embed it onto this website, but there is a video found with the link of the article that I posted above. If you have time, I suggest you check it out! It raises awareness about the changing roles of zoos.**

// Week 3-- All About Water //


 * [|My Article for Week 3]**

Note this picture before reading the article Over 70% of Earth's surface is covered by water. This may seem like a rather large percentage, but how much of this water can be used? The above image was produced by the U.S. Geological Survey, and divides the Earth's water into 3 mini orbs. The largest and most visible orb represents all of the water found on the planet. This includes oceans, underground water, fresh water, ponds, etc. The middle sphere represents a "subset" of the big sphere. It depicts the freshwater found in the ground, lakes, swamps, and rivers; however, it excludes permanent ice. Permanent ice, which includes snow in the polar caps, is inaccessible to humans currently, even though it contains most of the world's fresh water. The tiny blue dot directly beneath the middle orb is an even smaller subset of water. This tiny speck is illustrative of the freshwater found only in lakes and rivers.

Scientists were interested in determining how much water was "contained" in each orb. Although an exact measurement of the Earth's water is indeterminable, the U.S.G.S. researchers used their best estimates and produced spheres to represent their guesses. Here is the breakdown of their findings:**


 * **Oceans, seas and bays all hold 96% of the world's water (salt)**
 * **1.74% of world's water supply is ice caps, glaciers and permanent snow at the ice poles**
 * **1.69% is in groundwater (fresh and salty)**


 * Humans consume large quantities of both surface and ground water daily. In fact, numbers from 2005 indicate that humans used 1.24 trillion liters of surface water, as compared to 312.7 billion liters of ground water.**


 * __My question/thoughts about the numbers:__ This article ends talking about how such small percentages of water sustains the current population. Yet, how will the Earth's water supply continue to sustain the ever-growing population? Will fresh/clean water become as expensive as gas is in the future?**


 * In addition, here is an interesting Ted Talk Video (~15 minutes) that deals with the world's water issue. I thought that since we have been watching Ted Talk videos in class lately about environmental concerns/population, that this article would pique peoples' interest!**

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Week 2: Do Blind People "See" With Their Ears?

[|Read about exciting new neuropsychology research!]

Researchers from the University of Montreal's Saint-Justine Hospital Research Center conducted a study in which they compared the brain activity of people with normal vision to those that are blind. Their results indicated that the part of the brain that usually works to process vision was more active in processing sound information. This new information also supports other studies in the past that have shown that the blind tend to process sound as part of their spacial perception. This research is proof that some parts of the right occipital stream does not need visual information to process spatial information. The occipital lobe contains the visual cortex, which processes visual information. The scientists tested 22 people: 11 born blind, and 11 with normal vision. While the subjects listened to different tones, researchers studied their brains through MRI. Even though blind people were unable to process visual images, the brain interestingly used "neuronal niche," meaning that it used other senses to process spatial information. This study also led to other questions, specifically about brain development in babies. Since the brain shapes itself in early childhood, 40% of the visual cortex synapses are removed by 8 months, based on the baby's experiences/needs. This article details yet another function of the mysterious, complex brain!

//"Such research demonstrates that the brain should be more considered as a function-oriented machine rather than a pure sensory machine.” //
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= Week 1: Drugs Shrinks Melanoma Brain Metastases = = = [|Click here to read the article]

After the Temple Pharmacology students talked to our class this week about the different phases of drug approval, I became interested in researching about new experimental drugs. I stumbled upon an interesting article regarding a treatment that has been shown to shrink melanoma brain metastases.

== //"Nine out of 10 responses among patients with brain metastases is really exciting. No other systemic therapy has ever demonstrated this much activity against melanoma // //brain metastases." // == //--Gerald Falchook, M.D. & Study Co-Lead Author //


 * What's This Study About?**

This article is about an experimental drug (in phase 1 clinical trial) that successfully shrank tumors in 9:10 of patients in this study. Specifically, this drug, dabrafenib, targets a mutation in melanoma called "Val600 BRAF," which is active in more than half of melanoma cases. During the study, dabrafenib also showed activity in other cancer types with the BRAF mutation.

Usually, patients who have melanoma that already spread to the brain had an average survival time of about 4-5 months. Previously used, ineffective treatments-- drugs and surgery-- had a response rate of 10% or lower. This drug shrunk tumors in the range 20-100% in the 9 responders. Excitingly, the melanoma disappeared in 4 cases.

Although this study's findings will need to be validated with a larger quantity of tests, they still alter our perception of melanoma. Prior to the study, scientists believed that drugs could not cross the blood-brain barrier in patients with metastatic cancer. While dabrafenib was not initially manufactured to cross this barrier, scientists discovered its success in PET scans that showed decreased activity in brain metastasis.


 * Side Note:**

In another study (mentioned in this article), 184 patients in the United States and Australia participated in this experimental drug trial. Of the 36 patients with melanoma with the Val600 BRAF mutation without brain metastases:
 * 25 (69 percent) had a partial or complete response, which is shrinkage of at least 30 percent as determined by measuring tumor shrinkage with radiographic imaging,
 * 18 (50 percent) had a confirmed response, meaning the reduction in size was observed in a second imaging scan at least one month later,
 * 17 (47 percent) stayed on the trial for more than six months, and. Responses were seen in the less common Val600Lys BRAF mutation.

These findings suggested new dosages for the future phase 2 and 3 tests with the drug.


 * My Opinion:**

This is an intriguing study that really re-shapes the view scientists had of metastatic melanoma. The most important part was the fact that this clinical drug crossed the brain-barrier, which researchers initially believed to be impenetrable. Not only is this an important finding to treat melanoma patients, it can also treat other patients that have cancer with the BRAF gene mutation. These findings are an exciting advancement in cancer treatment!

The sad truth about cancer.