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Pigs might fly! ~ Can Porcine Bladder Powder Aid the Forces’ War-wounds?
On the 24th February 2007, thousands of British anti-war protestors joined in peace rallies1 to march on and demonstrate in London, England, and in Glasgow, Scotland. They converged on Trafalgar Square from London’s Hyde Park, and George Square, Glasgow respectively, to demand from the British Government the departure of UK troops from Iraq and the scrapping of Trident2 the UK’s nuclear weaponry. With so much international unrest, ‘wars and rumours of wars’3 and with many of the country’s flowers of our youth serving in the forces deployed around the world,4 we may hear of our losses and their deaths in combat, but far less of the wounded in action. Medics down the centuries have dreamed of a way to replace and/or mend limbs lost in battle, pig’s bladder powder might not be able to replace limbs, but hopefully prove to be an estimable aid and advance in this direction. In the past, often a scientific breakthrough in the military field discovered during conflicts subsequently found its way into Civvy Street5 medical practice, but perhaps nothing with quite such exciting potential as pig’s bladder powder has happened since the works of the 16th-century admirable French military surgeon Ambroise Paré,6 the “Father of modern surgery”. He was distressed by losses of men through post-operative amputation shock that was further exacerbated by cauterization of the wounds. Cautery, 7 an ancient Arabic technique usually executed with hot oil, was practiced by European doctors for over 500 years. Paré, then a surgeon in the French army, used this method too, until so many French soldiers were shot by the Savoyard defenders of besieged Turin (1536) he ran out of oil.8A Continuously experimenting and looking for new ways to improve medicine, he wrapped the newer wounds of the fallen in bandages soaked with egg yolk, rose oil and turpentine. The following day Paré discovered that the bandaged wounds were healing better than the cauterized ones – he never cauterized again! 8 History is said to repeat itself. There are shades of modern medicinal aromatherapy in Paré’s findings. Rose oil ‘Rosa Mosqueta’ (R. rubiginosa) continues to heal wounds, scars and ulcerations in the 21st -century.9 The use of macerated and essential oils, as well as herbs, can be found in earlier recordings of treatments for wounds from the ancient Egyptians onwards. However, the discovery of porcine bladder powder’s properties is very much an up-to-the-minute innovation, which it is hoped has come at the right time to help those who are currently being wounded and live on. If this promising discovery can aid the wounded, including airmen who may be returned to battle and active combat, then indeed metaphorically speaking ‘Pigs Might fly!’ or at least a miniscule trace of them. In the Year of the ‘Golden’ Pig The timing of this announcement of porcine bladder powder’s potential is also very apt, as the 18th February’s arrival ushered in the Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations to welcome in the ‘Year of the Pig’. What ere may befall, this year is special and a very auspicious time for good fortune and prosperity. 2007, is the year the ‘Golden pig’ or ‘Fire pig’, which occurs only once in every six decades. Pigs symbolize good luck, but also turbulence according to some soothsayers - we already have disorder in the form of wars around the world and weather-related climatic turmoil that engenders natural disasters - but it also heralds ‘change’. The wild boar is no bore! Call the pig a ‘hog’, ‘swine’ or a 'feral boar’, they have been living with us for a very long time. Many archaeologists once assumed ‘the pig’ (Sus), native to Eurasia and a member of the genus Suidae family, whose nearest relatives are the peccaries10 and hippopotamuses,11 was first domesticated 9,000 years ago in Eastern Turkey, and in China at about the same time.12 More recently (2005) a study, using mitochondrial DNA sequences from 686 wild and domestic pig specimens, places the origin of wild boar in Island Southeast Asia (ISEA) where they dispersed across Eurasia.13 It was suggested that the pig was not only domesticated in the Near and Far East, but that domestication occurred independently in Central Europe, Italy, Northern India and South East Asia. A further study last summer by Swedish researchers, using 1536 samples representing 45 European and 21 Chinese breeds, confirmed this finding. The pig was not only featured in the 12-year cycle of animals that appear in the Chinese zodiac, which associates each animal with certain personality traits, it also had its place in religions. In ancient Egypt pigs were associated with Set,14 rival to the sun god Horus.15 Only when Set fell into disfavour with the Egyptians were swineherds forbidden to enter temples. In Hinduism the god Vishnu took the form of a boar in order to save the earth from a demon. In the West, in ancient Greece the pig was the favourite animal of Demeter and initiates at the Eleusinian Mysteries16 began by sacrificing a pig; a sow was an appropriate sacrifice to Demeter the Great ‘Mother Earth’ Goddess of life, agriculture and fertility. In Christianity pigs are associated with Saint Anthony,17 the patron saint of swineherds. The dietary laws of Judaism (Kashrut, kosher) 18 and Islam (Halal) 19 forbid the eating of the flesh of swine or pork in any form. There can be a variety of reasons why the shunning of the pig as unclean came about within the religions of the countries concerned which have ‘hotter’ than temperate climates. Part of the aversion towards eating pork may be because their meat is said to taste similar to human flesh. Nonetheless, in a practical sense it is a sad judgement on pigs, because anybody who keeps or has kept them knows that except for their natural scavenging eating habits how clean in behaviour they are. Where and how pigs are kept in domesticity is not their choice or responsibility. Pigs like all animals deserve respect. We already owe them, not just as a good food supply, but because pigs are so biologically similar some features of a pig’s physiology have long been thought compatible with Homo sapiens, including their organs. Faulty heart valves are routinely replaced with ones taken from pigs, and people with insulin-dependent diabetes usually inject themselves with pig insulin. Apart from specific religious dictats on human diet, one major practical reason for pork-meat avoidance, principally in hot countries or in seasonally hot climatic conditions in temperate zones, is feasibly because more than other meat it does not keep in the heat. Certainly before the advent of refrigeration and before formal religions were created, avoidance of consumption in hot weather was best practice. Pig derived foodstuffs, if not thoroughly cooked or cured may not be sufficiently well preserved, especially in the case of some rustic raw spiced ‘home-made’ unsmoked sausages that are just hung up to dry, and for that reason can become purveyors of internal worms.20 Be that as it may, only those in direct contact with pigs such as farmers and veterinarians are likely to contract ‘swine flu’, which is extremely rare.21 In fact, according to new research sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAD), one of the US National Institutes of Health, only workers routinely in contact with pigs are more likely than the general populace to be infected with viruses that originate in swine and other animals.21A The Story so far The incident of how pig’s bladder powder came to be used to help a human re-grow his finger-tip is an encouraging account to date. In 2005, American Lou Spievack, a model plane enthusiast, lost his fingertip in an accident. He had been helping a customer with an engine on a model airplane behind his hobby store in Cincinatti, Ohio, USA, when he stuck his finger in the spinning plastic propeller and sliced off the tip, leaving just a bit of the nail-bed. The missing piece, three-eights of an inch long, was never found, but he saw it grow back after it was treated with extract of pig’s bladder!22 At the time of the accident an emergency doctor dressed his finger and referred him to a hand surgeon, who recommended a skin graft to cover what was left of the damaged digit. The official view for the then 66-year-old was ‘what was gone, was gone and lost forever’. Usually, up to the age of about 2 years old people can regrow fingertips, but it’s rare in adults. Lou Spievack opted for the bizarre treatment after taking advice from his brother Alan, a businessman and former Harvard surgeon who previously set up a company called “ACell Inc.”23A that had produced the powder to regenerate damaged ligaments in horses.23 The bladder extract contains collagen, the most abundant protein in mammals, together with a variety of substances that form microscopic scaffolding for the fingertip to build around. The powder also sends out chemical signals to promote the regeneration. When Lou Spievack used the powder, applying it every two days for four weeks, within that time his finger grew back to its original size. It was the first time the treatment had been tried on a human body part.24 After four months, the finger seems a little hard, as if calloused, and there’s a scar on the end, but the nail continues to grow at twice the speed of his other nails. Recently, Lou Spievack remarked: ‘I’m impressed. All my fingers in this weather have cracked except that one; I’m amazed.’25 The further exciting ‘good news’ is that Lou Spievack’s and similar outcomes have helped to inspire the effort to try the powder this summer at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. The US military is launching studies on the pig cells in the hope they can be used to treat injured soldiers.26 Mr Stephen Badylak, from the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, who is involved in the US Army research, said the treatment would be tried on up to 10 patients whose fingers have been badly burned in combat. The soldiers will have the end of a stub reopened surgically, with the powder applied three times a week. The hope is to grow enough of a finger, about two-and-a-half centimetres, to be able to perform a ‘pincer’ action. 27 Tough, not mincing his words, Badylak said: “This is just a shot in the dark. There is literally nothing else these individuals have to try. They have nothing to lose. We are not smart enough to figure out how to regrow a finger. Maybe what we can do is bring all the pieces of the puzzle to the right place and let Mother Nature take its course.”28 This sounds to be pragmatically smart thinking, if it works and there are no contra-indications or adverse effects, then why not use it. The implications for re-growing fingers go beyond the cosmetic. People who are missing all or most of their fingers, from an explosion or a fire, often can’t pick things up, brush their teeth or do up a button. If they could grow even a small stub, it could make a huge difference to their lives.29 Luckily it will not take years and years before results and some indication of whether the efficacy of pig’s bladder powder fulfils its potential promise. Doctor’s anticipate they will know within six to ten weeks whether the trails are successful.30 The Pentagon was so intrigued by Lou Spievack’s story, it has also launched a large federally funded project that is attempting to unlock the secrets of how some animals regrow body parts so well, with hopes of applying the lessons to humans.31 Badylack is also involved in this project to uncover and harness the secrets of the salamander, which out in the wild automatically regrows a severed arm in a matter of weeks. University of California scientist David Gardiner has been studying the salamander, which form regeneration cells rather than scar tissue around a wound. It may sound a bit ‘Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and cauldron bubble’32A or as Gardiner remarked: “It sounds like you put it in a cauldron under a full moon.”32 The lessons learned from studying the regrowth could also aid the wider field of regenerative medicine, with a view to helping people replace damaged parts of their hearts and spinal cords, and heal wounds and burns with a new skin instead of scar tissue.34 Let us all ‘keep our fingers X’d’ that the pig’s bladder powder treatment proves to be a resounding success both for the military and back in Civvy Street. Secrets of the Salamander Scientists have a long way to go before the secrets of the salamander’s ability to regrow limbs are unravelled and understood. In the meantime, it is admitted that they are much uninformed about how it all works, Badylak said: “There’s a lot more that we don’t know than we do know.”35 However, in the case of the salamander, star of the regeneration field, they do know that when a limb is amputated, rather than making a scar to heal quickly as human and most other animals do, it forms a mound of cells called a ‘blastema’36 which is a basic regeneration factory. Research has demonstrated that if a salamander’s hand is amputated and the resultant blastema is transplanted to the creature’s back, it will grow a ‘hand’ there. Research has shown that an extra arm can be induced to grow by making a shallow wound on the upper arm and re-routeing a nerve to the site so it will pump out critical chemical signals that promote the creation of blastema cells. A sliver of skin from the other side of the limb just wounded is inserted to provide a ‘blueprint’ for what needs to be done.37 & 38 Research also shows that beyond establishing a blueprint for a new arm, this mix of cells sends out a chemical S.O.S. to attract other kinds of cells from the salamander’s body to help construct a new appendage. Just how many chemical signals are involved, and what they are, remains to be discovered. COMMENT How does Mother Nature take her Course? We don’t know is the short answer! Although the easy option is to venture that a sliver of skin of a wounded limb transferred to another site is just a matter of relocating DNA,39 it is obvious from the scientist’s other comments made that there is more to forming a blueprint foundation for a new limb to grow than the obvious. To hypothesize, the insertion of the sliver of skin containing DNA is like the hardware to regenerate growth, but there may be other forms of the blueprint’s ‘software’ that is established by the very absence of the limb which may assist in helping to cause regrowth in a precise and correct manner, as the process also involves calling up other required cells from the salamander’s body. It gives rise to ponder on the possibility of a ‘silicon memory’ (silicon is contained in the blood, bone, liver and muscle of the body) 40 activated by the body’s own electro-magnetic fields (EMFs), which together with the body’s silicon transceiver capability, 41 is like broadcasting to and from the site the ‘energy blueprint’ of the limb’s requirements to the body that are missing through amputation. The importance of our electro-magnetic body is evident in some forms of Cloning/IVF, which require an electric current to be passed through the ‘matter’ [ovum and sperm] in order to ‘jump start’ life itself.42 Therefore, if we imagine an electro-magnetic matrix (pattern) present where a limb was recently attached, a possible explanation begins to emerge. It is not such a ‘far-out’ thing to contemplate when consideration is given to the unresolved questions posed by amputees’ experiences of ‘phantom limbs’.43 True, if something cannot be measured [yet], some will immediately say it doesn’t exist, but tell that to an amputee with an itchy foot that’s no longer there he or she can scratch. Something is broadcasting messages to the brain via the nervous system, which electro-chemical messaging service operates on and is both a chemistry and physics process; the physics of the body, the electro-‘energy’ and its interactions broadcasting through to the chemistry i.e. biological ‘matter’ of the body and brain. In the past, Soviet bioenergetics research already stated that there exist unknown communication channels in living cells for the transfer of information – “a language of waves and radiation”, (Shchurin). 44 Therefore, if there is an underlying energy ‘matrix’ foundation upon which ‘solid’ matter such as a limb is modelled, and if the ‘solid’ is suddenly cut away that does not necessarily immediately destroy the underlying ethereal energy matrix – only the ‘solid’ has been removed, not the life-long established energy pattern. None of this seems so strange if we accept that we are more than the sum of our individual parts. For example, we have memory, but you can’t see it! You can look at a scan and see the brain working, but it cannot be plugged into and do a play-back or select like some audio-visual video attached to a VDU for others to see and hear - we are not into ‘Cold Lazarus’45 fantasy time yet! Einstein’s46 theory of relativity makes clear that nothing is lost, what is matter is interchangeable with energy. So, again, if you cut part of a body’s solid substance away that does not mean that you have taken all its energy with it, i.e. its foundation energy matrix may still be attached to and part of the ‘whole’ and therefore form e.g. an electro-magnetic scaffold that, given the right conditions and material, for example whatever is in pig’s bladder powder may well encourage some regrowth, or in the case of the salamander’s blastema the regeneration of a replacement limb. What about the transference of DNA with the ‘blastema’ growing extra limbs or limbs in inappropriate places? It is part of what makes the salamander so unique and very interesting, for it might also be hypothesized that the blastema acts like a nucleus which can carry the limb’s entire energy matrix scaffolding. To put things in perspective, many unexplained things are a matter of measurement or the ability to see and actually measure them for any form of hypothesis to gain credibility. The concept of an energy matrix is purely hypothetical in terms of the world of medicine, although in a different form, meridians etc., it is the basis of Chinese acupuncture. Whatever, it may perhaps provoke some constructive and ‘open’ scientific thoughts! Although the concept may not appeal to the ideologically ‘fixed’ chemist, it may ring bells with the more ‘blue sky thinking’47 physicist or forward-thinking scientist who might at least ‘push the envelope’ i.e. exceed the existing limits in a certain field. This could result, hopefully in the not too distant future, in the development of a way to measure more subtle forms of energy networks that this hypothesis proposes which is also acceptable to the medical fraternity. Things that may seem considered to be Sci-Fi one day can become a practical and useful reality the next, e.g. MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) is a classic example. Whilst there is some controversy concerning attributions for the ‘discovery’ of MRI with reference to Raymond Damadian M.D., 48 it didn’t happen overnight. By 1970 MR, then called nuclear magnetic resonance, had been a tool for physicists and chemists and had an honoured history: The 1937 discovery of nuclear magnetic resonance won the 1944 Nobel Prize for Physics49 and the 1952 Nobel Prize50 for recognized advances in the field. Yet, not so long ago, the very idea of MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) would have seemed ‘off the planet’ to the ordinary layman and patients in hospitals, who now experience the use of MRI scans and other innovations to aid their diagnoses and professionals’ greater understanding of the workings of the human body. Anything is possible. When it comes to scientific innovation, the ‘sky [really] is the limit’, there is always room for progress. When it comes to knowing what’s going on in the background, wait and see, for: “There’s a lot more that we don’t know than we do know”! References: 1. ‘Peace Rallies held in two cities’ – BBC News Online 24th February 2007: “Organisers form Stop the War coalition said 60,000 people turned out in London’s Trafalgar Square, but police put the figure at 10,000. In Glasgow, around 2,000 demonstrators gathered in George Square for the ‘Bin the Bomb’ anti-Trident rally. … The demo, jointly organized with CND and the British Muslim Initiative, was also opposed to any military action against Iran. ” “… the British Muslim Initiative, said the central message of many of the campaigners was the importance of “freedom for the Palestinian people.” “… Relatives of soldiers killed or serving in Iraq set up a camp outside Downing Street on Friday to coincide with the protest. They handed in a letter to Mr Blair calling for all British troops to be withdrawn immediately and demanding a meeting with him.” 2. Trident: is the UK’s nuclear weapons system, consisting of submarine-launched ballistic missiles armed with multiple warheads and four Trident submarines: Vanguard, Victorious, Vigilant and Vengeance. Each submarine can carry up to sixteen Trident missiles. ON each missile are a number of 100 kiloton atomic bombs. Trident II missiles had a range of more than 4,000 miles and carried 10-15 warheads each. 3. Bible Quote: “And you will hear of wars and rumours of wars. …” (Matthew: 24:6-7) 4. Where are British Troops and Why? BBC News Online, 23rd February 2007. (See Map: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4094818.stm ) Major British Troop Deployments: Operational: Afghanistan: 6,000, Bosnia and Kosovo: 820, Iraq: 7,100, UN missions: 290, Northern Ireland: 8,050. Non-Operational: Germany: 22,500*, Cyprus: 2,700, South Atlantic Islands: 1,200, Gibraltar: 560, Diego Garcia: 40. Mod figures as of 23.1.2007. *-Figure includes troops deployed in Iraq. According to the MoD, operational deployments are those announced by the defence secretary in parliament involving commitment to a specific theatre. Non-operational deployments do not involve a fighting role. 5. Civvy Street: In the UK, a colloquial term used by military personnel to refer to civilian life. 6. Ambroise Paré (1510-1590): The French military surgeon restored and reformed the surgical art through his practice, writings, and personal leadership to earn the sobriquet “Father of modern surgery”. He was the official royal surgeon for kings Henry II, Francis II, Charles IX and Henry III. A leader in surgical techniques, especially the treatment of wounds, he invented or introduced many surgical instruments and popularized the use of trusses, ligatures, artificial limbs, and dental implantations. Paré experimented with various substances to soak the bandages and presented his results in his major work, La méthode de traicter les plaves faictes par hacquebutes et aultres bastons à feu, et de celles qui sont faictes par flèches, dardz, et semblables (The method of treating wounds made by harquebuses and other firearms, and those made with arrows, darts, and the like), published in 1545. He was at first disbelieved because he did not know Latin. He wrote in the vernacular at a time when all learned treatises were supposed to be written in Latin. His Oeuvres were first published in 1575 and had gone into five editions by 1598. http://www.bookrags.com/Ambroise_Par%C3%A9 7. Cautery: the act of coagulating blood and destroying tissue with a hot iron or caustic agent or by freezing. Cauterization is the burning of the body to remove or close part of it. It is sometimes done for medical reasons e.g. the use of heat to destroy abnormal cells. 8. Ambroise Paré (1510-1590): http://www.bookrags.com/Ambroise_Par%C3%A9 8A. In 1536 King François I (1494-1547) king of France, called the Father and Restorer of Letters (Le Père et Restaurateur des Lettres), considered to be France’s first Renaissance monarch and contemporary of his great rivals Henry VIII of England and of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, made war on the Duke of Savoy and besieged Turin, Italy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_I_of_France 9. [Treatment of skin ulcer using oil of mosqueta rose] Moreno Gimenez JC, Beuno J, Navas J, Camacho F. Dept. de Dermatologia Medico-Quirurgica y Venereologia, Facultad de Medicine, Uv. de Sevilla. Med Cutan Ibero Lat Am. 1990; 18(1):63-6. “Oil rose of mosqueta (Rosa aff. Rubiginosa L.) … that offers benefit therapeutic effects in wound healing. 10 patients affected of leg ulcers and post-surgical wounds were treated by 26% oil concentrated rose of mosqueta with very notable improvement on its healing compared with the control group. Due to the lack of side effects, we believe rose of mosqueta oil is very useful to these conditions. …” [Effect of Rosa rubiginosa oil on the healing of open wounds] [Article in Portuguese) Marchini FB, Martins DM, de Teves DC, Simoes Mde J. Rev Paul Med. 1988 Nov-Dec; 106(6):356. 10. Peccaries (also known by its Spanish name, javelina or percari): are medium-sized pig-like looking mammals of the family Tayassuidae. They are members of the Artiodactyls (even-toed ungulates) as are swine Suidae and hippopotami Hippopotamidae. They are found in south-western North America and throughout Central and South America. 11. Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibious) : Greek meaning: ‘River Horse’: is a large, mostly plant-eating African mammal, one of only two extant, and three or four recently extinct, species in the family Hippopotamidae. Three species of hippos became extinct within the Holocene on Madagascar, one of them as recently as c.1000 years ago. Holocene; The epoch is a geological period that extends from the present day back to about 10,000 radiocarbon years, (between 9,560 and 9,300 BC). 12. Pigs domesticated ‘many times’ BBC News Online 11th March 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4337435.stm 13. ‘Worldwide phylogeography of wild boar reveals multiple centres of pig domestication.’ Larson G, Dobney K, Albarella U, et al. Henry Wellcome Ancient Biomolecules Centre, Uv. of Oxford, Dept. of Zoology, Oxford, UK. Science 2005 Mar 11; 307(5715):1618-21. [Science. 2005 Jul 15; 309(5733):381; author reply 381.] ‘Mitochondrial diversity in European and Chinese pigs is consistent with population expansions that occurred prior to domestication.’ Fang M, Andersson L. Dept. of Animal Breeding and Genetics, Swedish Uv of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden. Proc Biol Sci. 2006 Jul 22; 273(1595:1803-10. 14. Set: In Egyptian mythology, Set (also spelt Sutekh, Setesh, Seteh, is an ancient god, who was originally the god of the desert. Worshipped for over 3,000 years, the exact translation of Set is unknown, but is usually considered to be either [one who] dazzles or pillar of stability, one connected to the dessert and the other more to the institution of monarchy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Set_%28mythology%29 15. Horus: is an ancient god of the Ancient Egyptian religion, whose cult survived so long that he evolved dramatically over time and gained many names. The best known name is Greek ‘Horus’. He had a man’s body and a falcon’s head. He was so important that the Eye of Horus became an important Egyptian symbol of power. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horus 16. Eleusinian Mysteries: held to be one of the greatest importances were initiation ceremonies performed every 5 years for the cult of Demeter and Persephone, based at Eleusis, an agricultural town producing wheat and barley, in ancient Greece. Eleusis is now modern-day Elefsin, a small town located about 30km NW of Athens. The myths and mysteries began c.1500BC and later spread to Rome. The rites, cultic worships and beliefs were kept secret; the rites united the worshipper with god and included promises of divine power and rewards in life after death. In the Gregorian Calendar, the date of the celebration of the Eleusinian Mysteries had been estimated to begin on 14th September. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eleusinian_Mysteries 17. Saint Anthony the Great (251-356), also known as Saint Anthony Abbot, Saint Anthony of Egypt, Saint Anthony of the Desert, Saint Anthony the Anchorite, and The Father of All Monks, was an Egyptian Christian saint and the outstanding leader among the Desert Fathers, who were Christian monks in the Egyptian desert in the 3rd and 4th centuries. He was located at Alexandria, Egypt for some of his life. His feast day is celebrated on 17th January or on ‘Tobi 22 30th January in the Coptic Orthodox and Coptic Catholic Churches. He is supplicated to against infectious diseases, in particular herpes zoster, hence ‘shingles’ are known as Satin Anthony’s fire in Italy and Malta. 18. Kosher: is a large subject (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosher#Principles ), but e.g. Kosher slaughter of animals and birds requires them all to be slaughtered by a trained individual (a Shochet) using a shechita. Shechita slaughter severs the jugular vein, carotid artery, oesophagus and trachea in a single cut with a smooth, sharp knife. Blood must be thoroughly removed from all meat, using one of several methods such as soaking and salting, or broiling. 19. Halal: is an Arabic term meaning ‘permissible’. In English is most frequently refers to food that is permissible according to Islamic law. In Arabic it refers to anything that is permissible under Islam. For further information on Halal, See: - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halal#Halal_and_Kosher 20. The Pig: Pigs can be infected with a parasitic roundworm called Trichinella spiralis causing ‘Thrichinosis (trichiniasis), which larvae live in pigs and other wild carnivores, such as bears, but humans can become infected when they eat such meat (particularly pork) that is undercooked. The larvae mature in the small intestines and migrate to muscle cells where they can live for months or years (in the meat). It does not appear to be a problem to the pig. Thorough cooking of pork will kill the worm, but if humans eat undercooked pig meat from an animal infected with the parasite they become infected too. http://www.fao.org/docrep/T0690E/t0690e06.htm If pigs are left to wander and eat plants contaminated with human faeces, it can become infected with human tapeworm; if the meat of that infected pig is not properly cooked, in turn people who eat it can become infected with pork tapeworm. http://www.umm.edu/altmed/ConsConditions/Roundwormscc.html#Cause Tapeworm, Taenia solium, normally found in pork is the cause of Cystricercosis, or neurocysticercosis, the most common parasitic infection of the central nervous system worldwide. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cysticercosis 21. Key Facts about Swine Influenza (Swine Flu): from CDC Centres for Disease Control and Prevention; Dept. of Health and Human Services. The classical swine flu virus (an influenza type A H1N1 virus) was first isolated from a pig in 1930. Human infections with swine flu H1N1 viruses are rare. Vaccines are available to be given to pigs to prevent swine influenza. There is no vaccine to protect humans from swine flu. The seasonal influenza vaccine will likely help provide partial protection against swine H3N2, but not swine H1N1. http://www.cdc.gov/flu/swine/ 21A. ‘Flu Threat to Farm, Animal Workers Might Be Increasing’ USINFO.STATE.GOV: 28th November 2005. http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2005&m=November&x=20051128132520cmretrop0.3899652 22. ‘A Pigs bladder saved my finger’ London Metro 19th February - http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=38017&in_page_id=34 ‘Lost a finger? Try pig bladder powder – Evidence shows that remedies straight from the witches’ cauldron may be keys to regrowing severed digits.’ By Malcolm Ritter, Associated Press, Medicine. 20th February 2007 - http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/living/health/16737101.htm?source=rss&channel=miamiherald_health ‘Scientists use pig bladder to help man regrow his fingertip’ Daily Mail 19th February 2007 - http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/pages/live/articles/technology/technology.html?in_article_id=437215&in_page_id=1965 23. Ibid. 23A. ACell Inc. – Medical Solutions - http://www.acell.com/med.html 24. ‘A Pigs bladder saved my finger’ London Metro 19th February - http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=38017&in_page_id=34 ‘Lost a finger? Try pig bladder powder – Evidence shows that remedies straight from the witches’ cauldron may be keys to regrowing severed digits.’ By Malcolm Ritter, Associated Press, Medicine. 20th February 2007 - http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/living/health/16737101.htm?source=rss&channel=miamiherald_health ‘Scientists use pig bladder to help man regrow his fingertip’ Daily Mail 19th February 2007 - http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/pages/live/articles/technology/technology.html?in_article_id=437215&in_page_id=1965 25. Ibid. 26. ‘Production and characterization of ECM powder: implications for tissue engineering applications.’ Gilbert TW, Stolz DB, Biancaniello F, Simons-Byrd A, Badylak SF. Dept. of Surgery, McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Uv. of Pittsburth, PA, USA. Biomaterials. 2005 Apr; 26(12):1431-5. 27. ‘A Pigs bladder saved my finger’ London Metro 19th February - http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=38017&in_page_id=34 28. Ibid. 29. ‘Scientists use pig bladder to help man regrow his fingertip’ Daily Mail 19th February 2007 - http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/pages/live/articles/technology/technology.html?in_article_id=437215&in_page_id=1965 ‘Lost a finger? Try pig bladder powder – Evidence shows that remedies straight from the witches’ cauldron may be keys to regrowing severed digits.’ By Malcolm Ritter, Associated Press, Medicine. 20th February 2007 - http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/living/health/16737101.htm?source=rss&channel=miamiherald_health 30. Ibid. ‘Ontogenetic decline of regenerative ability and the stimulation of human regeneration.‘ Gardiner DM. Dept. of Developmental and Cell Biology and the Developmental Biology Centre, Uv. of California, Irvine, California, USA. Rejuvenation Res. 2003 Fall; 8(3):141-53. 31. ‘Scientists use pig bladder to help man regrow his fingertip’ Daily Mail 19th February 2007 - http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/pages/live/articles/technology/technology.html?in_article_id=437215&in_page_id=1965 ‘Lost a finger? Try pig bladder powder – Evidence shows that remedies straight from the witches’ cauldron may be keys to regrowing severed digits.’ By Malcolm Ritter, Associated Press, Medicine. 20th February 2007 - http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/living/health/16737101.htm?source=rss&channel=miamiherald_health 32. Ibid. 32A. Ibid. Quote: The witches speech from Shakespeare’s play MacBeth, Act IV, Scene I. 33. ‘Could pig bladders or mutant mice hold key to regrowing fingers? By Malcolm Ritter, Associated Press, 16th February, 2007 http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbs.dll/article?AID=/20070216NEWS/70216007 34. Blastema: a mass of undifferentiated cells from which an organ or body part develops. 35. ‘Could pig bladders or mutant mice hold key to regrowing fingers? By Malcolm Ritter, Associated Press, 16th February, 2007 http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbs.dll/article?AID=/20070216NEWS/70216007 36. ‘A stepwise model system for limb regeneration.’ Endo T, Bryant SV, Gardiner DM. Dept. of Developmental and Cell Biology and the Developmental Biology Centre, Uv. of California-Irvine, Irvine, California, USA. Dev Biol. 2004 Jun 1; 270(1):135-45. ‘Ontogenetic decline of regenerative ability and the stimulation of human regeneration.‘ Gardiner DM. Dept. of Developmental and Cell Biology and the Developmental Biology Centre, Uv. of California, Irvine, California, USA. Rejuvenation Res. 2003 Fall; 8(3):141-53. 37. Ibid. 38. Ibid. 39. DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid): The building blocks of the genetic code. The double-stranded, helical molecular chain, material of living organisms found inside the nucleus of each cell that carries the hereditary genetic information that encodes proteins and enables cells to reproduce and perform their functions and DNA. 40. Element Silicon – Si. ‘Periodic Table of Elements’ NB: This data represents naturally occurring levels of elements in the typical human; it DOES NOT represent recommended daily allowances. Bloods/mg dm: 3.9, Bone/p.p.m.: 17, Liver/p.p.m.: 12-120, Muscle/p.p.m.: 100-200, Daily Dietary Intake: 18-1200mg – Total Mass in Average 70kg human: 1g. http://environmentalchemistry.com/yogi/periodic/Si.html 41. An Answer to Something? (See ‘Herbsphere’ Articles of Interest–) 42. Aromatherapy … Quo Vadis? by Helen Knowles BRCP, an adviser to the ICM (Institute of Complementary Medicine) The author’s hypothesis on how the energy transference actually works … pub. Spring Issue ICM Journal 2002. 43. Phantom limb: is the term for abnormal sensations perceived from a previously amputated limb. Phantom limb syndrome: The perception of sensations, usually including pain, in an arm or leg after the limb has been amputated. The brain still gets messages from the nerves that originally carried impulses from the missing limb. Phantom limb syndrome is relatively common in amputees, especially in the early months and years after limb loss. 44. Aromatherapy … Quo Vadis? by Helen Knowles BRCP, an adviser to the ICM (Institute of Complementary Medicine) The author’s hypothesis on how the energy transference actually works … pub. Spring Issue ICM Journal 2002. 45. ‘Cold Lazarus’ Television Screenplay by Dennis Potter, where a cryogenically preserved head is being commercially exploited, insurpassably portrayed by the renowned English actor Albert Finney 1996. 46. Albert Einstein’s Theory of Relativity: E=mc2: Energy and mass are equivalent and interchangeable. 47. ‘Blue sky thinking’: is not well defined in meaning as yet, but one description of the ‘expression’ means coming up with a host of ideas without being restricted to what is practical; in particular, an optimistic assumption is made that there will be no obstacles or opposition to implementation of the ideas. – If only!!! 48. Raymond Damadian M.D.: “a medical doctor who, in June, 1970, used the technique of nuclear magnetic resonance - now called magnetic resonance or MR – to distinguish healthy tissue from cancer in mouse specimens. In March, 1971, Damdaian established - for the first time – a medical application for Mr (See “Tumour Detection …” in the bibliography - http://whyfiles.org/188nobel_mri/ ). The experiment showed that cancer gave off different signals than healthy tissue under magnetic resonance, and Damadian concluded that MRI would become valuable in diagnosis: ‘The results suggest that this technique may prove useful in the detection of malignant tumours.’ 49. The Nobel Prize for Physics 1944: Won by Isidor Isaac Rabi of Columbia University, New York, NY, USA: “for his resonance method for recording the magnetic properties of atomic nuclei”. 50. The Nobel Prize for Physics 1952: Won by Felix Bloch of Stanford University, Stanford , CA. USDA & Edward Mills Purcell of Harvard University Cambridge, MA, USA: “for their development of new methods for nuclear magnetic precision measurements and discoveries in connection therewith.” |
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