Snake Venom Raises Hope For Pain Management

Dubbed the "killer of killers", the long-glanded blue coral snake is known to prey on the likes of king cobras.
Venom from the 2m-long (6ft 6in) snake native to South East Asia and found almost everywhere in the world, acts "almost immediately" and causes prey to spasm.
A new research published in the journal Toxin found it targets receptors which are critical to pain in humans and could be used as a method of treatment.
"Most snakes have a slow-acting venom that works like a powerful sedative. You get sleepy, slow, before you die," said researcher Dr Bryan Fry from the University of Queensland."This snake's venom, however, works almost immediately because it usually preys on very dangerous animals that need to be quickly killed before they can retaliate. It's the killer of killers."
Cone snails and scorpions are some of a handful of invertebrates whose venom has been studied for its medical use. However, as a vertebrate, the snake is evolutionarily closer to humans, and so a medicine developed from its venom could potentially be more effective, says Dr Fry.
"The venom targets our sodium channels, which are central to our transmission of pain. We could potentially turn this into something that could help relieve pain, and which might work better on us.
The snake's venom glands extend to up to one-quarter of its body length.
It's got freaky venom glands, the longest of any in the world, but it's so beautiful. It's easily my favourite species of snake," said Dr Fry.
It is the first vertebrate in the world known to have venom acting this way, according to Dr Fry.But the snake is rare: more than 80% of its habitat has been destroyed.
"They're really rare. I've only ever seen two of them in the wild," he told newsmen.
"Much of their homes have been cleared to make way for things such as palm plantations in South East Asia. Who knows what else was in that forest that could've potentially saved lives?"
Dr Fry and his team, which comprises researchers from countries including China, the US and Singapore, is set to study relatives to the snake in Singapore.
"We're trying to see if there are any relatives of the long-glanded blue coral snake that would possess any different properties. Some people say the only good snake is a dead snake but we're trying to do the opposite here."

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Fake Wines, Gins Flood Nigerian Market - NAFDAC

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has issued a red alert to Nigerians to be wary of the consumption of gins and wines. NAFDAC’s Ports Head in Enugu State, Mr John Okwori, told newsmen in Enugu that the agency recently found out that beverage fakers were focusing on these drinks. NAFDAC recently seized 11 large cartoons of fake Chelsea Dry Gin labels which could be used to package gins worth N64.76 million. NAFDAC also tracked down and confiscated a large number of fake labels of Amarula drinks. Okwori, a deputy director in NAFDAC, said that the agency had commenced a nationwide massive mop-up of these products. “Apart from the tracking of fake labels imported into the country, the agency is currently doing a mop-up of substandard, expired and fake spirits, gins and wines in the market. But we need the co-operation of every Nigerian on this issue. Our people should be wary of spirits, gins and wines they buy; they should scrutinize them to see that NAFDAC numbers, production dates, manufacturers and countries of origin are well spelt out. There should be a closer look at the labels to see that they are the normal and regular labels. They should also watch out for the colour of the drink through its container, whether it conforms to the original colour. If there is anything wrong in all these I have mentioned, do not buy the drink. Your safety and that of your loved ones, who you are giving or sharing the drink with, should come first,’’ he said.
The director urged Nigerians to promptly report to the nearest NAFDAC office, about any drink they might suspect to be fake. “NAFDAC offices are open for public complaints, enquiries and advice every working day,’’ Okwori added.
Okwori warned that consuming adulterated drinks could damage vital organs in the body. “It can lead to kidney, liver or heart complications as well as diseases, especially when such injurious drinks are consumed in large quantities due to the euphoria of the yuletide season,’’ he said.

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Poisoned Amala: Woman, Three Chidren, Neighbours Die In Kogi State

Six people, including a mother, three of her children and two of their neighbours, on yesterday lost their lives in Ogaminana area of Okene in Kogi after eating a meal made from cassava flour.

The Public Relations Officer of the Adavi Local Government, Mr. Abdulhamid Salahudeen told newsmen on phone that three of the victims died on Tuesday at the Okene General Hospital while the woman and two of her children had earlier died on Monday in their house.

He said that the woman died along side three of her children, two sons and a daughter

He added that two male children of her neighbour that partook in the meal also died.

He put the ages of the dead five children at between 9 and 15 years.

Salaudeen said that the mother had in the evening of Sunday, October 30 brought the cassava flour (white Amala) from her farmland at Ohuepe village.

He said that the woman prepared a dinner from the cassava flour for the family and extended the food to her neighbour.

The officer said the victims later went to bed but developed severe stomach pain over the night which later resulted in the death of the woman and two of her children.

He said that neighbours who sensed that the sudden deaths might be due to the cassava flour dinner quickly rushed the remaining three children that partook in the eating to Okene General Hospital where they died on Tuesday.

Salaudeen said that the authority of the local government believed that the cassava flour was poisoned and had informed the police for appropriate action.

A senior nursing officer at the Okene General Hospital, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed the death of the three victims at the hospital on Tuesday.

The nurse said that the victims were brought in late Monday afternoon.

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Lack Of Vitamine D Linked To Asthma And Allergies

Australian researchers have found that children with Vitamin D deficiency are more likely to develop asthma and other allergies later in life. This is the findings of a study published in the ‘Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology’.
Similarly, the findings conducted by researchers from Western Australia’s Telethon Kids Institute, also showed that repeated bouts of Vitamin D deficiency in early childhood are linked to higher rates of asthma at age 10, as well as allergy and eczema.
Vitamin D are any of a group of vitamins found in liver and fish oils, essential for the absorption of calcium and the prevention of rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults. Asthma is a chronic disease involving the airways in the lungs.
These airways, or bronchial tubes, allow air to come in and out of the lungs. If you have asthma, your airways are always inflamed. They become even more swollen and the muscles around the airways can tighten when something triggers your symptoms.
Allergies, also known as allergic diseases, is another condition that could be caused by Vitamin D deficiency. Allergies are a number of conditions caused by hypersensitivity of the immune system to something in the environment that usually causes little or no problem in most people.
These diseases include hay fever, food allergies, atopic dermatitis, allergic asthma, and anaphylaxis. On its part, eczema is a group of diseases that results in inflammation of the skin, characterised by itchiness, red skin, and a rash.
NAN reported that the researchers tracked vitamin D levels from birth to age 10 in Perth in Australia and found that children were at high risk of developing asthma and allergies as they grew older if they lacked the nutrient at a young age.
The study’s lead author, Dr. Elysia Hollams, said the findings showed that Vitamin D played an important role in regulating the immune system as well as promoting a healthy lung development. “Our study is the first to track vitamin D levels from birth to asthma onset, and it has shown a clear link between prolonged Vitamin D deficiency in early childhood and the development of asthma.
“We have also shown for the first time that babies deficient in Vitamin D have higher levels of potentially harmful bacteria in their upper airways, and are more susceptible to severe respiratory infections,’’ Hollams said.
However, she cautioned against rushing out and purchasing Vitamin D supplements as more research needed to be done in the field. “We still do not know what the optimal level of vitamin D is for good lung health and immune function.”

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Why Some Woman Cannot Achieve Orgasm During Sexual Intercourse ( 2 )

( being the concluding part of yesterday's article on the factors inhibiting women's ability to reach orgasm during sexual intercourse)
 2. Perceiving sex as immoral or bad: Many women have acquired distorted views about sex early in life during the process of socialization. In general, parents’ negative attitudes toward nudity, masturbation and sex play have a powerful influence on both male and female children’s feelings about sexuality and the sex act. As a result, people typically grow up viewing some sex acts as acceptable and clean, and others as dirty and bad. In addition, some religions, especially rigid belief systems, perceive sex as an expression of the baser or sinful nature of human beings. When women take on these attitudes, they tend to see sex as forbidden, shameful and bad. They feel guilty about wanting, seeking or experiencing pleasure in lovemaking, and expect negative consequences or actual punishment.
3. Guilt about breaking the mother-daughter bond with a mother who is sexually repressed: As explained in Sex and Love in Intimate Relationships, “Girls learn by observation and imitation to be like the mother and feel strange or uncomfortable when they are different from their role model.” Therefore, when a mother is held back sexually, it is very difficult for her daughter to go beyond her in terms of enjoying sexual fulfillment in her adult relationship. A woman’s guilt and fear in relation to surpassing her mother in this area are often transferred to other women in her life. Because of these feelings, women are often afraid of standing out from their peers as mature, sexual women.
4. Fear of arousing repressed sadness: For many women, feelings of sadness related to emotional pain in childhood surface during a sexual experience, especially when sexuality is combined with emotional intimacy. For women who were mistreated or rejected early in life and feel unlovable, the contrast of being loved, pleasured, and sexually fulfilled brings out deep and painful emotional responses.  When women try to hold back their sad feelings, they become cut off from themselves, both emotionally and physically, and removed from the sexual interaction.
In Beyond Death Anxiety, I noted that “a close sexual experience can also cause individuals to become acutely conscious of their existence. They experience a heightened awareness of themselves and the value of their lives. Paradoxically, these uniquely positive feelings come with a price–the special appreciation of life makes them aware of deep and painful sadness that their lives are terminal.” For this reason, many women pull back after an especially intimate encounter.
5. Fear of being vulnerable:In my latest book, The Self Under Siege,I write, “Accepting love leads to a feeling of increased vulnerability and challenges aspects of the negative identity formed in the family of origin.”  A woman may enjoy casual sexual encounters, but “as a relationship becomes more meaningful and intimate, being loved and positively acknowledged can threaten to disrupt one’s psychological equilibrium by piercing core defenses.” Depending on another person to satisfy one’s wants and needs breaks into the defensive posture of being self-sufficient and pseudo-independent. Being open and receptive to another person threatens an inward, isolated, self-soothing way of protecting one’s self from emotional hurt. Combining sex and love leads to a sense of vulnerability and is anxiety provoking because many women and men are afraid of being completely committed to a significant other, especially if they have been previously hurt emotionally.
6. Fear of arousing repressed memories of abuse and trauma:Being close sexually to a partner and freely experiencing orgasm tend to trigger unwanted memories in women whose histories include sexual abuse or molestation.  Estimates are that one out of three to four women were abused sexually or experienced some type of inappropriate sexual contact with a relative or stranger before they were 18. In these cases, being sexual can be unconsciously associated with the abuser, particularly when the abuser is a family member, and sex becomes guilt provoking, tinged with emotional pain, and unacceptable in the woman’s mind. Any similarity between her partner and the family member increases the probability that these memories will emerge.
7. Fear of loss of control: Women who rely heavily upon maintaining control as a self-protective defense mechanism are prone to be resistive to a freely expressive sexual encounter. This can show up in an overall fear of losing control or in more specific fears, such as fears of making noise or moving, or even fears of urinating or defecating when letting go. Control is related to existential issues of life and death. Faced with issues of death anxiety, people tend to detach themselves from their animal nature and disconnect from a body that they know is mortal. This dissociation can inhibit feeling pleasurable responses in the here and now interaction during sex.

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How Soldiers, Police And Others Sexually Harrass Female IDPs In Nigeria

Nigerian soldiers and policemen have raped and sexually abused women and girls fleeing the Islamist militant group Boko Haram, Human Rights Watch said on Monday.
Forty-three cases of “sexual abuse, including rape and exploitation”, were documented in July, HRW said.
The women and girls were housed at seven camps in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, where Boko Haram’s seven-year insurgency began. That insurgency has displaced more than two million people and killed some 15,000 in Nigeria’s northeast.
An army spokesman declined to comment and referred the matter to the defence ministry. A spokesman for the department could not be reached by phone and did not respond to a text message. A spokesman for the Nigerian police could not be reached on his mobile phone.
The rights group said it was also told of abuse carried out by camp leaders and members of security groups set up to help the military fight the insurgents.
Four people told HRW they were drugged and raped. Thirty-seven said they had been coerced into sex through false marriage promises and material and financial assistance.
A 17-year-old girl said she was raped by a policeman who approached her in a camp.
“One day he demanded to have sex with me. I refused but he forced me,” she said, adding that it happened once. She said he threatened to shoot and kill her when she discovered that she was pregnant.
Another girl – a 16-year-old, who fled an attack on Baga, near Lake Chad, last year – said she was drugged and raped in May 2015 by a community security group member in charge of distributing aid in the camp.
Boko Haram, which controlled a swathe of land in the northeast around the size of Belgium early last year, has largely been pushed back to its base in the northeast’s vast Sambisa forest in the last few months.
Aid workers and soldiers have gained access to the group’s former northeastern strongholds, revealing famine-like conditions which UNICEF says could kill 75,000 children over the next year if they do not receive aid.
Nigerian lawmakers in early October said they would investigate the use of government funds intended to assist displaced people, amid claims that money had been diverted.

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