Doc's Talk: Top 10 Israeli strides against Parkinson's

Wednesday, April 03, 2013

Top 10 Israeli strides against Parkinson's

April is Parkinson’s Awareness Month. Find out about the most promising research in Israel to find preventions, treatments and cures.

By Abigail Klein Leichman

As many as 10 million people worldwide (one million in the United States alone) suffer the tremors, impaired balance and rigidity associated with Parkinson’s disease (PD), a chronic and progressive disorder caused by the death of nerve cells in the brain’s muscle-movement control areas. The cause is unknown and there is no cure, only medication to manage symptoms.
Against that bleak landscape, Israeli researchers are working hard to better understand, prevent and treat the brain disorder. Here are 10 exciting examples of Israeli ingenuity that could revolutionize options for PD patients.
1. A pill for PD
Azilect, a popular drug to treat PD symptoms, was innovated by Technion-Israel Institute of Technology professors John Finberg and Moussa Youdim and commercialized by Israel’s Teva Pharmaceuticals. The drug is prescribed for patients in 56 countries.
Youdim, 72, is now co-director of the Technion’s Eve Topf and US National Parkinson Foundation Centers of Excellence for Neurodegenerative Diseases Research. He is one of the Israeli formulators of a next-generation drug, Ladostigil, which is still in clinical trials for both PD and Alzheimer’s patients.

: Technion Prof. Moussa Youdim with Azilect, the drug he helped develop for Parkinson’s symptoms.

2. InSightec’s ExAblate Neuro
TIME magazine designated Israeli company InSightec’s magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound as one of the 50 best inventions of 2011.
Neurosurgeons and physicists at leading research hospitals in Switzerland, Korea, Tokyo, Canada and the United States are currently using InSightec’s ExAblate Neuro experimentally to treat essential tremor, a common movement disorder, through MR-guided focused ultrasound.
The first Parkinson’s patients in a Phase III study are being enrolled this year, with the hope of devising a full treatment protocol to receive FDA approval for InSightec’s non-invasive treatment of tremors related to PD.

: Patients undergoing InSightec’s non-invasive MRI-guided ultrasound procedure for tremor symptoms.

3. Brainsway
A clinical trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of Brainsway, a specialized deep TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation) therapy, for PD patients concluded last November with promising preliminary results.
After the 27 PD patients received 12 non-invasive treatment sessions over the course of 30 days, they showed significant improvement in mobility. Their tremor and rigidity symptoms improved after just the first treatment. In addition to positive studies completed in Israel and in Italy, another trial is still under way.

: The Brainsway device.

4. ElMindA
The Israeli company ElMindA could revolutionize the diagnosis and management of PD and other brain-related disorders with its trademarked, non-invasive procedure for mapping network activation points in the brain.
This 15- to 30-minute procedure would be a major advance because blood tests and imaging are of limited value for diagnosing brain diseases and documenting the effects of treatment.
The ElMindA technology is currently being used for drug development research with leading pharmaceutical companies and in research with academic research centers throughout the United States and Europe. Last year, the company began the process of applying for FDA clearance for clinical use.

: ElMindA’s device for diagnosing and monitoring brain disorders.

5. Guided imagery
In 2010, neurologist Dr. Ilana Schlesinger did a successful experiment at Rambam Healthcare Campus in Haifa using guided imagery to tame the tremors of PD patients. It was, she said, the first time anyone ever succeeded in completely stopping tremors without medication. The effects lasted for a short while after each session, as reported in the International Journal of Movement Disorders. Schlesinger received inquiries about the technique from the United States, South America and even Afghanistan.
6. NurOwn
Researchers at Jerusalem’s Hadassah University Medical Center are studying the ability of enhanced autologous stem cells (taken from the patients’ own bone marrow) to stop the progression of PD and other neurodegenerative diseases.
The specially modified stems cells, called NurOwn, are produced by Petah Tikvah-based BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics. Former American prizefighter Muhammad Ali’s daughter, Rasheda, sits on BrainStorm’s advisory board. She’s following NurOwn clinical trials closely to see how it might help people with PD, like her dad.
7. Understanding cell death
The protein ARTS, central to the natural process of programmed cell death (apoptosis), is the subject of scrutiny by Dr. Sarit Larisch, head of the Cell Death and Cancer Research Laboratory at the University of Haifa. She leads breakthrough research into why the brain cells that produce the neurotransmitter dopamine become damaged in PD.
She explains that when apoptosis is too sluggish it can result in cancer, while if it goes into overdrive it can result in diseases such as Parkinson’s.
“By inhibiting the expression of ARTS in stem cells, we can increase their numbers,” Larisch tells ISRAEL21c. “In terms of Parkinson’s, we are looking into small molecules that can cross the blood-brain barrier and prevent death of neurons by preventing or blocking the expression of ARTS. This is still at a very preliminary stage.”
8. Green tea?
The main antioxidant in green tea could be a potent way to prevent PD and other neurodegenerative diseases, according to research done by Prof. Moussa Youdim (see No. 1, above) and Dr. Silvia Mandel, co-director of the Parkinson Foundation Centers at the Technion.
The substance, EGCG, can enter brain cells and keep neurons from dying. Mandel found that even after many neurons have already been damaged, the green tea antioxidant is capable of rescuing the remaining healthy ones. If taken in moderation, she suggests, green tea may be part of both a prevention and anti-progression strategy.
9. Protecting brain cells
Last July, neurologists at Beilinson Hospital (Petah Tikva) and at Tel Aviv University’s School of Medicine announced the identification of a protein that protects dopamine-producing brain cells from PD. Mutations of this protein are associated with an increased risk of PD and other brain disorders.
The hope is that a drug could be synthesized to mimic the action of this natural protein, and prescribed for people in the early stages of the disease. There are three years of research behind this breakthrough and likely many more years of studies and trials ahead.
10. A phone call for diagnosis
Innovative new voice analysis software developed at Israel’s eXaudios Technology can decipher your emotional and physical state in real-time — and eventually could help diagnose and evaluate the severity of conditions such as PD and autism through analysis of a phone call.
PD is one of several diseases that affect intonation. In fact, voice disturbances may be one of the first or early indicators of the disease. Close to 90 percent of people with PD are at risk of communication difficulties such as reduced vocal volume, inconsistent voice production, hoarseness, reduced clarity or articulation of syllables and decreased breath support for speech.

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About Abigail Klein Leichman

Abigail Klein Leichman is a writer and associate editor at ISRAEL21c. Prior to moving to Israel in 2007, she was a specialty writer and copy editor at a daily newspaper in New Jersey and has freelanced for a variety of newspapers and periodicals since 1984.

View all stories by Abigail Klein Leichman →

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The IDF’s Minorities in Numbers and Pictures

In honor of IDF Diversity Week, we present diversity through numbers and pictures. Each year, more and more Muslims, Christians, Druze, Bedouin and immigrants from around the world take on the responsibility of defending Israel.

MUSLIMS:

Muslim Arab Israelis are not required to draft in the IDF, but there are many who volunteer. In 2013, there were over 200 Muslims serving in the IDF and over 300 in the reserves.

Bedouins:

Bedouins are nomadic Muslims who were in Israel when modern borders were set in place and are now considered Israeli citizens. They are not required to draft but a growing number choose to enlist. In 2012, there were over 1,400 Bedouin Muslim soldiers doing regular IDF service and almost 1,500 in the reserves.

Read more:http://www.idfblog.com/2014/02/27/truth-idf-numbers-pictures/#more-34027

Are you aware that in 2013, Middle class taxes go up-significantly?

In January of next year, the federal income tax rate for middle-class taxpayers is scheduled to rise from 25 percent to 28 percent, and the payroll tax is scheduled to rise from 13.3 percent to 15.3 percent… This drives the marginal tax rate based on the aforementioned three taxes to 48.12 percent. Add in state and local property, corporate, excise, and other state and local taxes, and the percentage of each additional dollar that is taxed hovers around 50 percent… When half of each additional dollar earned is taxed away, taxpayers experience a disincentive to start businesses or expand existing ones. This leads to fewer jobs being created.

Why is HAMAS Inside Tampa Schools?

Clare Lopez

Kelly Miliziano, who teaches history classes at Steinbrenner High School in the Tampa, Florida area apparently thinks it’s perfectly OK to invite a senior official of a HAMAS-affiliated organization into her classroom to discuss Islam with her students. According to local media reports, not only has this been going on for years, but in spite of the civil and criminal proceedings that could result from such reckless negligence, the Hillsborough County school superintendent, Mary Ellen Elia, and the chairman of the school board, Candy Olson, also expressed approval for students under their responsibility to be exposed repeatedly to guest speaker, Hassan Shibly, who is the Executive Director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in the Tampa area.
More...

Did You Know... Ignoring the Call to Islam will Bring Jihad

‘Conquest through Da’wa [proselytizing] that is what we hope for. We will conquer Europe, we will conquer America! Not through sword but through Da’wa.’
-- Yousef al-Qaradawi , Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader The Arabic word ‘Da’wa’ means the “call to Islam.” But do not think that Da’wa is the same thing as an invitation to an optional holiday event. The classical Islamic doctrine of jihad mandates that enemies must be given the opportunity to convert to Islam or pay the jizya tax before it is permissible to attack them.
Clare M. Lopez

Who is being discriminated-facts tell the truth

Religious bias

Hate crimes motivated by religious bias accounted for 1,409 offenses reported by law enforcement. A breakdown of the bias motivation of religious-bias offenses showed:

65.4 percent were anti-Jewish.
13.2 percent were anti-Islamic.
9.5 percent were anti-other religion, i.e., those not specified.
4.3 percent were anti-Catholic.
3.8 percent were anti-multiple religions, group.
3.3 percent were anti-Protestant.
0.5 percent were anti-Atheism/Agnosticism/etc.

http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/hate-crime/2010/narratives/hate-crime-2010-incidents-and-offenses.

On March 31, 1977, the Dutch newspaper Trouw published an interview

with PLO executive committee member Zahir Muhsein. Here's what he said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct "Palestinian people" to oppose Zionism.

For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

In March 1977, Zahir Muhsein, a PLO executive, said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct Palestinian people to oppose Zionism."

"For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

The Arab Apartheid

Ben-Dror Yemini
In 1948, the Arab countries refused to accept the UN partition proposal and they launched a war of annihilation against the State of Israel which had barely been established. All precedents in this matter showed that the party that starts the war - and with a declaration of annihilation, yet - pays a price for it. Between 550,000 and 710,000 Arabs fled because of the war and a larger number of 850,000 Jews were expelled or fled from Arab countries (the "Jewish nakba").
Population exchanges and expulsions were the norm at that time, occurring in dozens of other conflict points and affecting about 52 million people. In all the population exchange precedents that occurred during or at the end of an armed conflict, there was no return of refugees to the previous region, which had turned into a new national state.
Only the Arab states acted completely differently from the rest of the world. Instead of assimilating the refugees, they crushed them despite the fact that they were their coreligionists and members of the Arab nation - instituting a regime of apartheid. So the "nakba" was not caused by the actual dispossession, which had also been experienced by tens of millions of others. The "nakba" is the story of the apartheid, oppression, abuse and denial of rights suffered by the Arab refugees at the hands of the Arab countries. (Maariv)

International Law and Military Operations in Practice - Col. Richard Kemp

"Islamist fighting groups study the international laws of armed conflict carefully and they understand it well. They know that a British or Israeli commander and his men are bound by international law and the rules of engagement that flow from it. They then do their utmost to exploit what they view as one of their enemy's main weaknesses. Their very modus operandi is built on the correct assumption that Western armies will normally abide by the rules, while these insurgents employ a deliberate policy of operating consistently outside international law. "

Lost Historical Moments

What Rabin’s last Knesset speech really said:repudiation of a Palestinian state

Rabin ruled out a fully sovereign Palestinian state :

“We view the permanent solution in the framework of State of Israel which will include most of the area of the Land of Israel as it was under the rule of the British Mandate, and alongside it a Palestinian entity which will be a home to most of the Palestinian residents living in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. We would like this to be an entity which is less than a state, and which will independently run the lives of the Palestinians under its authority.”

Rabin ruled out a total withdrawal from Judea and Samaria and thus a return to the pre-June 1967 borders :

“The borders of the State of Israel, during the permanent solution, will be beyond the lines which existed before the Six Day War. We will not return to the 4 June 1967 lines.”

Rabin ruled out withdrawing form the Jordan Valley:

“The security border of the State of Israel will be located in the Jordan Valley, in the broadest meaning of that term.”

Rabin ruled out uprooting settlement blocs, like the Gush Katif bloc in Gaza (which was subsequently uprooted by former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon):

“The establishment of blocs of settlements in Judea and Samaria, like the one in Gush Katif.

AND

Rabin ruled out removing any settlement before coming to a full peace agreement with the Palestinians:

“I want to remind you: we committed ourselves, that is, we came to an agreement, and committed ourselves before the Knesset, not to uproot a single settlement in the framework of the interim agreement, and not to hinder building for natural growth.”

Rabin insisted on Israel retaining full security control of the borders with Egypt and Jordan, contrary to Israel’s relinquishment of the Philadelphia Corridor on the border with Egypt:

“The responsibility for external security along the borders with Egypt and Jordan, as well as control over the airspace above all of the territories and Gaza Strip maritime zone, remains in our hands.”

Correcting Oslo Myths-Part 2

3) Kuttab laments that the post-1993 Oslo process resulted in a Palestinian Authority "whose ministers and legislators are not guaranteed passage between Gaza and the West Bank ...."

Before free passage or other perquisites, PA leaders were obligated, among other things, to eliminate the terrorist infrastructure in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, end anti-Israeli, antisemitic incitement in schools, mosques, and communications media, and resolve all outstanding issues through peaceful negotiations. They met none of these commitments, sometimes bolstering terrorism and greatly increasing incitement.

4) Kuttab complains that under Oslo the PA got "lightly armed police ---- but no real sovereignty over the land or contiguity between our communities in Gaza and the West Bank."

Oslo agreements repeatedly were revised, regardless of Palestinian non-compliance, until the authorized number of police grew from 8,000 to 40,000. Though they were to be the only armed forces in the territories, Israeli estimates early in the second intifada put the number of gunmen - police, "security services," terrorists, and armed gangs - at 85,000. Their armament reportedly included not only heavy machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, but also anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles.

Sovereignty was to be negotiated in the envisioned 1998 "final status" talks - after a five-year period of confidence-building. Palestinian leadership chronically undermined the process. Palestinian terrorism made the 1993 - 1998 Oslo period more deadly for Israelis than the 15 years preceding it.

The United States doesn't have contiguity between the lower 48 states and Alaska and Hawaii; territorial contiguity between the West Bank and Gaza Strip - that is, through the 20 miles of Israeli territory between them - was never promised and would destroy Israeli contiguity.

5) "Palestinians have been made to endure hundreds of checkpoints in the West Bank, an eight-foot wall deep in our territories, and tight Israeli control over borders."

The security barrier is not "deep in Palestinian territories," but rather encompasses less than 8 percent of Judea and Samaria, and is mostly a fence, rarely a wall; the land in question is not "our [Palestinian] territories" but disputed territory to which, according to the authors of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, Jews as well as Arabs have claims; and there are no international borders, only the 1949 armistice lines with Jordan. Under 242, borders remain to be negotiated. As for checkpoints - like the security barrier and "tight Israeli control" - Palestinian Arabs precipitated these measures themselves. No terrorism and there would be no fence or tight Israeli control and few checkpoints - like before the first intifada.

Correcting Some Oslo Myths

1) In Oslo "Israeli, Palestinian and other world leaders promised that ... Palestinian sovereignty would be solidified."

No, they didn't. The 1993 Declaration of Principles and subsequent Oslo agreements outlined a process by which final status negotiations about the West Bank and Gaza Strip would be reached. The process required an end to anti-Israel terrorism and incitement and a commitment to peaceful negotiations. The PA, Fatah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and other terrorist groups, sabotaged the process from the start.

2) "The reality is that, in defiance of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, which states that it is inadmissible to occupy land by force, Palestinian territories are still under foreign military occupation."
Wrong again. Resolution 242 (1967) does note "the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war." It also affirms the right of every state in the area "to live in peace with secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force." There were no "Palestinian territories." Jordan occupied the West Bank, Egypt controlled Gaza. Israel did not have "secure and recognized boundaries," so retention of some of those territories was possible under 242. Israel is not a "foreign" military occupier in the West Bank but, pending final negotiations, the lawful military administrator as a result of a successful war of self-defense.

Doc's Talk

Wednesday, April 03, 2013

Top 10 Israeli strides against Parkinson's

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About Abigail Klein Leichman

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Lost Historical Moments

WHAT Golda Meir actually said...

What Rabin’s last Knesset speech really said:repudiation of a Palestinian state

Correcting Oslo Myths-Part 2

Correcting Some Oslo Myths

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God Bless the USA- Lee Greenwood remembers 9-11