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Medicine and Health

Your Chance Of Contracting This Rare Eye Infection More Than Triples If You Wear Reusable Contact Lenses

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If you wear soft reusable contact lenses instead of soft disposable ones, your chance of getting an uncommon eye infection rises by almost four times. These sobering conclusions come from study conducted by the University College London (UCL) Institute of Ophthalmology and Moorfields Eye Hospital, which looked at what variables could make someone more likely to get Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK).

“In recent years we have seen an increase of Acanthamoeba keratitis in the UK and Europe, and while the infection is still rare, it is preventable and warrants a public health response,” said lead researcher Professor John Dart in a statement.

“Contact lenses are generally very safe but are associated with a small risk of microbial keratitis, most commonly caused by bacteria, and which is the only sight threatening complication of their use. Given that an estimated 300 million people across the globe wear contact lenses, it is important that people know how to minimise their risks for developing keratitis.”

Over 200 patients were recruited by Dart and colleagues, 83 of them had AK and the remaining 122 were taken to the Moorfields Eye Hospital for various ailments. The second served as a control group so that the researchers could determine what risk factors made someone more likely to develop the corneal infection.

According to their findings, people who wear reusable soft contact lenses had a 3.8-times higher risk of acquiring AK than people who wear daily disposable lenses. Wearing lenses while sleeping and taking a shower raised risk by 3.9 and 3.3 times, respectively. According to the researchers’ calculations, switching to daily disposable lenses might avoid 30-62 percent of AK cases in the UK, and this may hold true for other nations as well.

“Previous studies have linked AK to wearing contact lenses in hot tubs, swimming pools or lakes, and here we have added showers to that list, underlining that exposure to any water when wearing lenses should be avoided,” said first author, Associate Professor Nicole Carnt of the University of New South Wales, Sydney, and UCL Institute of Ophthalmology and Moorfields Eye Hospital. “Public pools and coastal authorities could help reduce this risk by advising against swimming in contact lenses.”

Even though sight loss from AK is uncommon, it can occur in extreme cases, which is why the researchers decided to further explore potential risk factors. The team is working to find ways to reduce the annual incidence of AK, which is estimated to affect 1 in 20,000 contact lens wearers in the UK.

Opthalmology published the paper.

As part of the editorial team here at Geekreply, John spends a lot of his time making sure each article is up to snuff. That said, he also occasionally pens articles on the latest in Geek culture. From Gaming to Science, expect the latest news fast from John and team.

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Medicine and Health

A Potential Simple Method to Eliminate Microplastics from Your Drinking Water

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Microplastics have become a significant global concern. Humans have disseminated plastic to such an extent that it is affecting every facet of the natural environment. They are also entering our bodies by breathing and consuming, and the lasting effects of this are still uncertain. What actions can we take to address this issue?

Microplastics and nanoplastics, which are plastic shards measuring 100 nanometers or less, are widespread. As our knowledge of microplastics increases, they are being discovered in various unexpected locations, ranging from the ocean’s depths to mountain summits. They have also been discovered in Antarctic ice and are continuously circulating in the atmosphere.

The widespread existence of these particles could potentially endanger human health, as they have been found in our diet, internal organs, and placenta. Recently, they have been discovered in the fatty deposits that accumulate in certain individuals’ arteries, potentially leading to heart attacks, strokes, and fatalities.

Plastic will rule the future, which is a cause for concern. New research has provided a cost-effective and straightforward approach to minimizing one of the ways they can enter our bodies. Boil the tap water.

Eddy Zeng and colleagues from Jinan University, China, discovered that boiling tap water for five minutes may eliminate more than 80 percent of plastic pollutants.

Zeng and his team highlight in their recent study that many people worldwide drink tap and/or bottled water without realizing the potential risks of exposure to nano- and microplastics.

In contrast to numerous Asian countries, including China, Vietnam, and Indonesia, drinking boiling water is more prevalent. Nevertheless, the team clarifies that this practice is commonly seen as a regional custom and is only widespread in a limited number of areas.

Plastic-contaminated water poses a global problem, prompting experts to investigate methods for its removal.

The researchers assessed tap water samples for nano- and microplastic (NMP) content and determined an average value of 1 milligram per liter. After boiling the samples for 5 minutes and allowing them to cool, almost 80 percent of the NMPs were eliminated.

Zeng informed New Scientist that the intake of NMPs through heated water consumption was predicted to be two to five times lower than that through tap water on a regular basis. The straightforward boiling-water method can remove NMPs from residential tap water, reducing human exposure to NMPs through drinking water.

Boiling the water caused the NMPs to adhere to the limescale derived from the calcium present in the water. Therefore, boiling was more effective in eliminating plastics from “hard” water, which contains a larger concentration of calcium.

The study demonstrated that boiling 300 milligrams of calcium carbonate in hard water resulted in a 90% reduction in plastic content in the final product.

Boiling water can reduce the plastic content, which is crucial for residents in nations where tap water is commonly used, regardless of its calcium levels.

The team’s discovery provides a promising alternative for eliminating plastic from polluted water. However, some advise less aggressive approaches, like developing sustainable methods to control the dispersion of micro- and nanoplastics. According to Caroline Gauchotte-Lindsay, an environmental engineer at the University of Glasgow, one initial step could be adjusting drinking water treatment facilities to stop the distribution of polluted water.

The research is featured in Environmental Science & Technology Letters.

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Biology

Skin cell DNA could potentially be utilized to create eggs for in vitro fertilization in the future

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Researchers are exploring a new process that has the potential to transform fertility treatment by transferring DNA from skin cells into a donor egg. In the future, this technology could allow women without viable eggs and men in same-sex relationships to have children who are genetically linked to them, although it is not yet ready for clinical usage.

Egg cells that are damaged or deteriorated due to disease, medical procedures, or aging frequently lead to infertility. This treatment involves exchanging the nucleus of a donor egg with the nucleus of a skin cell from the parent to address the issue. After the process, you get an operational egg that only contains genetic material from the intended parent and not from the donor.

The process is known as somatic cell nuclear transfer, and despite its name, it is complex and intricate.

There is a precedent from almost 20 years ago, when the first-ever cloning of an animal, Dolly the sheep, generated interest in adapting this method to people.

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Dolly was produced using genetic material from a lone adult sheep. The experts from Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) explained the novel procedure, which enables the creation of embryos with DNA from both parents.

We are specifically excluding the topic of human cloning.

In January 2022, the researchers initially confirmed the feasibility of their experimental approach. The recent study has advanced this by showing how to attain an accurate chromosome count in the egg cell from the start.

Human sex cells, known as gametes, are haploid, containing half the number of chromosomes compared to other cells in the body. When a haploid egg cell and a haploid sperm cell fertilize one another, the resulting embryo becomes diploid and has a full complement of chromosomes.

OHSU’s team extracted egg cells from mice and removed their nuclei, then substituted them with nuclei from mouse skin cells. “But wait!” you exclaimed. Are skin cells diploid? They are indeed, but the team has a clever answer. They can prompt the implanted nucleus to release half of its chromosomes, creating a haploid cell that closely resembles a normal egg cell.

The eggs can undergo in vitro fertilization (IVF) with sperm, a common process utilized in fertility clinics worldwide. When successful, it leads to the creation of an embryo with chromosomes from both parents.

The approach has an advantage in the rapid production of eggs. Alternative approaches now being studied involve converting skin cells into induced pluripotent stem cells and then guiding these cells to develop into eggs or sperm.

Dr. Paula Amato, the study author, clarified that they are bypassing the process of cell reprogramming. Our technique’s advantage lies in its ability to circumvent the lengthy culture time required for cell reprogramming. Over the course of several months, numerous detrimental genetic and epigenetic alterations might occur.

The ultimate goal, as outlined by senior author Dr. Shoukhrat Mitalipov, is to create eggs for those who do not possess their own, but achieving this objective is still some years in the future. Aleksei Mikhalchenko, the primary author, emphasized the importance of doing a comprehensive assessment of safety, efficacy, and ethical considerations before considering the technique for clinical application.

The Supreme Court of Alabama’s declaration that embryos should be considered as children has brought IVF back into the public spotlight, with many predicting it would be a significant topic in the upcoming US presidential election. The implications of advancements in assisted reproduction will have a global impact, as approximately 1 in 6 people globally are impacted by infertility.

Using a donor egg without integrating DNA from the donor would be a significant and innovative development in reproductive treatment. This work has advanced science’s comprehension of how this concept could perhaps be realized in the future.

The research is featured in Science Advances.

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Medicine and Health

Are “Plastic Attacks” on the Horizon?

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Researchers have discovered microplastics in the fatty deposits that accumulate in certain individuals’ arteries, adding to the number of locations where these particles have been detected in the human body. Do these minuscule plastic fragments present any further danger to us? While not conclusive, this recent study indicates that they may.

Researchers initially enrolled individuals undergoing surgery for carotid artery disease, a condition characterized by the accumulation of plaque, consisting of fatty substances such as cholesterol, calcium, and various cells, in the arteries supplying blood to the brain.

The plaques were extracted during surgery and examined for microplastic and nanoplastic (MNP) presence. Among the 257 individuals examined, 150 of them had plaques that contained plastic polyethylene, a substance commonly used in the production of plastic bags and bottles.

However, in addition to that sort of plastic, 31 patients’ plaques contained polyvinyl chloride (PVC), commonly used in sewage pipes and imitation leather trousers.

Subsequently, the researchers examined plaque samples using a microscope to determine the size of the plastic shards. The pictures showed irregular fragments of foreign particles in the plaques, most of which were estimated to be less than one micrometer in size, which is smaller than one-50th of the diameter of an average human hair.

The discovery of MNPs in plaque is noteworthy, but what are the potential effects on the body? The researchers conducted a follow-up study on patients for almost three years. At the conclusion of that timeframe, it was discovered that patients with plaque containing MNPs had a 2.1 times higher likelihood of experiencing a heart attack, stroke, or death from any cause compared to those without plastic pieces.

However, the researchers emphasize that their data do not conclusively prove that microplastics were responsible for these health problems; as the saying goes, correlation does not imply causality. Various aspects in the patients’ health and habits, such as nutrition, exercise, and smoking, may have increased their likelihood of experiencing a stroke.

However, an editorial by epidemiologist Dr. Philip J. Landrigan accompanying the article indicates that the research prompts some pressing questions.

Is exposure to microplastics and nanoplastics a cardiovascular risk factor? Which other organs outside the heart are susceptible to risk? How can we minimize exposure? Landrigan writes.

We must await future studies to address those inquiries.

The research is featured in the New England Journal of Medicine.

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