VITAMIN C HALTS GROWTH OF AGGRESSIVE FORM OF COLORECTAL CANCER

High levels of vitamin C kill certain kinds of colorectal cancers in cell cultures and mice, according to a new study from Weill Cornell Medicine investigators. The findings suggest that scientists could one day harness vitamin C to develop targeted treatments.Colorectal cancer is the third most-common cancer diagnosed in the United States, with about 93,090 new cases each year. Around half of those cases harbor mutations in the KRAS and BRAF genes; these forms of the disease are more aggressive and don't respond well to current therapies or chemotherapy.

In a study, published Nov. 5 in Science, a team of researchers from Weill Cornell Medicine, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Tufts Medical Center, Harvard Medical School and The Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center found that high doses of vitamin C—roughly equivalent to the levels found in 300 oranges—impaired the growth of KRAS mutant and BRAF mutant colorectal tumors in cultured cells and mice. The findings could lead to the development of new treatments and provide critical insights into who would most benefit from them.

"Our findings provide a mechanistic rationale for exploring the therapeutic use of vitamin C to treat colorectal cancers that carry KRAS or BRAF mutations," said senior author Dr. Lewis Cantley, the Meyer Director of the Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center and the Margaret and Herman Sokol Professor in Oncology Research at Weill Cornell Medicine.

The conventional wisdom is that vitamin C improves health in part because it can act as an antioxidant, preventing or delaying some types of cell damage. However, Dr. Cantley and his colleagues discovered that the opposite was true in regards to high-dose vitamin C's therapeutic effects for the KRAS and BRAF forms of colorectal cancer—they occur as a result of inducing oxidation in these cancer cells.

In an oxygen-rich environment such as human arteries, a fraction of vitamin C, also called ascorbic acid, becomes oxidized and is transformed into a new compound called dehydroascorbic acid (DHA). Scientists have known for some time that a specific membrane protein, known as glucose transporter GLUT1, enables both glucose and DHA to enter cells—an activity not afforded to ascorbic acid. But it was less clear what DHA does once inside the cells.

In the study, investigators show that DHA acts like a Trojan horse. Once inside, natural antioxidants inside the cancer cell attempt to convert the DHA back to ascorbic acid; in the process, these antioxidants are depleted and the cell dies from oxidative stress.

"While many normal cells also express GLUT1, KRAS-mutant and BRAF-mutant cancer cells typically have much higher levels since they require a high rate of glucose uptake in order to survive and grow," Dr. Cantley said. "Also, KRAS and BRAF mutant cells produce more reactive oxygen species than normal cells and therefore need more antioxidants in order to survive. This combination of characteristics makes these cancer cells far more vulnerable to DHA than normal cells or other types of cancer cells."

Although Dr. Cantley cautioned that these results need to be evaluated in the setting of a human clinical trial, the pre-clinical findings may offer a promising new treatment strategy for the KRAS or BRAF forms of the disease, perhaps as part of a combination therapy. The investigators say their study could lead to the development of new biomarkers that could help physicians determine who would most benefit from treatment. These insights may also have implications for other hard-to-treat cancers that express high levels of GLUT1 transporter, such as renal cell carcinoma, bladder cancer and pancreatic cancer.

Vitamin C has multiple effects on cellular functions in addition to its anti- or pro-oxidant functions, so it will be important to study the effects of high-dose vitamin C on normal and immune cells, said lead author Dr. Jihye Yun, a postdoctoral fellow in Dr. Cantley's lab.

Further study is unquestionably expected to grow our comprehension of these procedures. Be that as it may, now that we know the instruments, we can use the information shrewdly to get the coveted impacts," she said. 

"This is not a treatment that you would need to meander into indiscriminately without information of what is happening in your tumor," Dr. Cantley included. 

Dosing proposals additionally should be resolved. Helpful advantage would likely require intravenous infusions, as oral measurements are not assimilated effectively in the digestive tract to accomplish the high serum centralization of vitamin C expected to make harmfulness these malignancy cells. Late stage I clinical trials led on people to test danger have demonstrated that intravenous implantation of vitamin C at measurements that changed over to comparable levels of serum as the Cantley mice trials had great security profiles. 

"Our trust is that our study will move mainstream researchers to investigate this sheltered and modest regular atom and fortify both fundamental and clinical examination seeing vitamin C as a disease treatment," Dr. Yun said.

LIGHTS TO STEER THE HEART

We rely on upon electrical waves to direct the musicality of our pulse. At the point when those signs go amiss, the outcome is a possibly deadly arrhythmia. Presently, a group of analysts from Oxford and Stony Stream colleges has figured out how to accurately control these waves - utilizing light. Both cardiovascular cells in the heart and neurons in the mind impart by electrical signs, and these messages of correspondence travel quick from cell to cell as 'excitation waves'. Interestingly, such waves are additionally found in a scope of different procedures in nature, from compound responses to yeast and single adaptable cells.

For heart patients there are at present two alternatives to hold these waves within proper limits: electrical gadgets (pacemakers or defibrillators) or medications (eg beta blockers). Then again, these techniques are moderately unrefined: they can stop or begin waves yet can't give fine control over the wave rate and bearing. This is similar to having the capacity to begin or stop a vessel yet without the capacity to direct it. In this way, the examination group set out to discover approaches to guide the excitation waves, getting instruments from the creating field of optogenetics, which so far has been utilized basically as a part of cerebrum science.

Dr Gil Bub, from Oxford University explained: 'When there is scar tissue in the heart or fibrosis, this can cause part of the wave to slow down. That can cause re-entrant waves which spiral back around the tissue, causing the heart to beat much too quickly, which can be fatal. If we can control these spirals, we could prevent that.

'Optogenetics uses genetic modification to alter cells so that they can be activated by light. Until now, it has mainly been used to activate individual cells or to trigger excitation waves in tissue. We wanted to use it to very precisely control the activity of millions of cells.'


A protein called channelrhodopsin was delivered to heart cells using gene therapy techniques so that they could be controlled by light. Then, using a computer-controlled light projector, the team was able to control the speed of the cardiac waves, their direction and even the orientation of spirals in real time - something that never been shown for waves in a living system before.

In the short term, the ability to provide fine control means that researchers are able to carry out experiments at a level of detail previously only available using computer models. They can now compare those models to experiments with real cells, potentially improving our understanding of how the heart works. The research can also be applied to the physics of such waves in other processes. In the long run, it might be possible to develop precise treatments for heart conditions.

Dr Emilia Entcheva, from Stony Brook University, said: 'The level of precision is reminiscent of what one can do in a computer model, except here it was done in real heart cells, in real time.

'Precise control of the direction, speed and shape of such excitation waves would mean unprecedented direct control of organ-level function, in the heart or brain, without having to focus on manipulating each cell individually. This ideal therapy has remained in the realm of science fiction until now.'

The team stresses that there are significant hurdles before this could offer new treatments - a key issue is being able to alter the heart to be light-sensitised and being able to get the light to desired locations. However, as gene therapy moves into the clinic and with miniaturization of optical devices, use of this all-optical technology may become possible. In the meantime, the research enables scientists to look into the physics behind many biological processes, including those in our own brains and hearts.

WiFi SYSTEM USES LED LIGHT TO BOOST BANDWIDTH 10 FOLD

Analysts at Oregon State University have imagined another innovation called WiFiFO (WiFi Free space Optic) that can build the data transmission of WiFi systems by 10 times, utilizing optical transmission by means of LED lights. 

The innovation could be coordinated with existing WiFi systems to decrease data transfer capacity issues in swarmed areas, for example, airplane terminal terminals or cafés, and in homes where a few individuals have different WiFi gadgets. 

Specialists say that late advances in LED innovation have made it conceivable to regulate the LED light all the more quickly, opening the likelihood of utilizing light for remote transmission as a part of a "free space" optical correspondence systems. 

"Notwithstanding enhancing the experience for clients, the two major points of interest of this framework are that it utilizes cheap parts, and it incorporates with existing WiFi systems," said Thinh Nguyen, an OSU partner teacher of electrical and PC building. Nguyen worked with Alan Wang, a partner teacher of electrical and PC designing, to manufacture the first prototype model

“I believe the WiFO system could be easily transformed into a marketable product, and we are currently looking for a company that is interested in further developing and licensing the technology,” Nguyen said.                                                                                                                                  The system can potentially send data at up to 100 megabits per second. Although some current WiFi systems have similar bandwidth, it has to be divided by the number of devices, so each user might be receiving just 5 to 10 megabits per second, whereas the hybrid system could deliver 50–100 megabits to each user.

In a home where telephones, tablets, computers, gaming systems, and televisions may all be connected to the Internet, increased bandwidth would eliminate problems like video streaming that stalls and buffers (think Netflix).

The receivers are small photodiodes that cost less than a dollar each and could be connected through a USB port for current systems, or incorporated into the next generation of laptops, tablets, and smartphones.

A provisional patent has been secured on the technology, and a paper was published in the 17th ACM International Conference on Modeling, Analysis and Simulation of Wireless and Mobile Systems. The research has been supported by the National Science Foundation.

                                                                                                                      Recent advances in free-space optical technology promise a complementary approach to increasing wireless capacity with minimal changes to the existing wireless technologies. This paper puts forth the hypothesis that it is possible to simultaneously achieve high capacity and high mobility by developing a communication system called WiFiFO (WiFi Free space Optic) that seamlessly integrates the recent free- space optics technologies and the current WiFi technologies. We quickly portray the WiFIFO building design then talk about the primary commitment of this paper that is enhancing the limit of the proposed WiFiFO framework. In particular, we consider the issue of force allotment for different FSO and WiFi transmitters with a specific end goal to accomplish most extreme system limit for given spending plan power. A numerical model of the joined limit of FSO and WiFi channel is inferred. We demonstrate that the force portion issue for WiFiFO can be approximated well as an arched enhancement issue. To that end, a calculation taking into account inclination not too bad strategy is created. Reenactment results show that the proposed calculation, together with system architecture can provide an order-of-magnitude increase in capacity over the existing WiFi systems.

ADIDAS APP LETS SNEAKERS FANS WAIT IN Virtual Lines for Limited Editions

ADIDAS APP,Sneakers still special when buyers can reserve them via an app, like a pizza or a pair of rock conert tickets? Adidas hopes so.

The German sportswear giant just launched Confirmed, a mobile platform that will let sneakerheads skip the long lines at Foot Locker, obscure shoe lotteries, and the occasional disturbance of the peace that come with the sale of a rare pair of shoes. “You hear a lot of chatter and frustration that the existing system is somehow rigged for friends of friends or VIP customers,” said Simon Atkins, the company’s vice president of brand activation. “We saw a real opportunity to change the paradigm with customers.”

Here’s how it works: Consumers who download the app, register with personal details, and allow push notifications from Adidas will get offers to reserve limited-edition shoes and apparel as they become available. Those who respond first are given the right to buy the products at a certain time and place, both in Adidas-owned stores and other retailers.

“The primary function for us it to create an equal and uniform experience for all consumers,” Atkins said. “We’re creating a virtual line.”

An app is also a great way to carefully parse who gets the sought-after shoes. If Adidas has 500 pairs of a particular model and wants them going only to urban tastemakers, it can confine its reservation blasts to such places as Antwerp, Belgium, and Brooklyn, N.Y.’s Bushwick neighborhood. This is a way to reward the most loyal customers.

Just wanting the shoes badly and beating everyone else to the store will no longer be enough. On the flip side, digital computer programs—so-called bots—won’t be able to scan the Web for reservations and lock up multiple pairs of shoes ahead of release dates. There are already plenty of apps for sneakerheads that indirectly link customers to coveted shoes. The “buy” button on the Sneaker Crush app, for example, takes browsers to secondary market listings at which sellers are auctioning shoes that have yet to be released.

Cultivating a class of super-customers, meanwhile, cannot come soon enough for Adidas, which posted a 19 percent slump in profit in the first nine months of 2014. Nike generally dominates the special sneaker market. But Adidas has recently been signing celebrities and star designers to bolster its credibility with collectors, including deals with Pharrell Williams and Kanye West.

When it comes to sneaker sales, West makes Michael Jordan look like a slow-footed rookie. In 2009, Nike quickly sold out of 3,000 pairs of Kanye-designed “Air Yeezy.” With a retail price of $215, a pair of the shoes quickly fetched more than $4,000 on EBay and other secondary markets. This week, a new pair of the Yeezys was listed on EBay for $6,000.

Atkins at Adidas wouldn’t say exactly when Kanye’s new sneakers will go on sale, but the app was designed in part to manage the wave of demand expected for them: “Unprecedented, I think, is probably the best word.”

NEEO SMART REMOTE WANTS TO CONTROL ALL YOUR DEVICES

The remote control has been a crucial part of most of our living rooms for decades. Yet as our home entertainment and automation devices have multiplied, we've been besieged by a diverse abundance of remotes. (I have a basket in my living room to store all of mine, and I know I'm hardly alone.) Universal remotes have attempted to consolidate all your remotes in one place, but they have had trouble keeping up with the breakneck rate of progress, often relying on older tech like infrared while many devices have moved on to newer wireless standards like Bluetooth. Even smartphones haven't proved to be an adequate replacement, with their clunky nature and lack of tactile feedback. Now, an ambitious Kickstarter project named NEEO is tackling this problem head on.

The key part of NEEO's plan is a hub device that can send signals to all of your other devices. This isn't the first time this approach has been taken—Logitech has a Harmony Home Hub that tries to do something similar—but one thing that sets NEEO's device apart is the breadth of its connectivity. In addition to controlling traditional devices via infrared, the most common remote control standard, the hub also packs in common standards like Bluetooth 4.0, Bluetooth BLE (low energy), Wi-Fi, 6LowPAN, ZigBee, Thread, and Z-Wave. That'll enable the hub to control not only devices connected to your TV, but your home automation devices, like Philips's Hue smart light bulbs.

The team behind NEEO aims for it to work as well with old peripherals as it does with the newest and greatest remotes. They want to make adding new devices as easy and pain-free as possible.

The hub, however, is just one part of the equation. While NEEO's offering a smartphone app that lets you control your devices, it also recognizes that apps are clunky to use as remotes: It takes time to unlock your phone, find the right app, wait for it to load, and so on. Plus phones lack the tactile feedback that let you use them without having to look at the screen. (And, if you've ever had your phone ring while you're watching TV, you'll know there's not exactly a convenient way to quickly mute the sound.) So NEEO's also offering a physical remote control—albeit with an embedded high-quality touchscreen—that builds in nifty features like hand recognition, which is designed to determine who in your household picked up the remote, and a locator feature that beeps when you trigger it with the smartphone app.

All of this sounds great in theory, but as is this case with so many crowdfunded projects, the proof will be in the ultimate execution. At least NEEO is seeking funding for its initial production run rather than the research and development, which has been done, and it's promising a relatively short timeline for delivery. While many crowdfunded campaigns are measured on a scale of a year or more, NEEO's targeting initial shipments this March.

Of course, Logitech Harmony remains the heavyweight in the universal remote market, and NEEO's a relatively small upstart in the field, so it has a big challenge ahead of it. But sometimes that's exactly what a stagnant market needs.