Russian scientists create ‘bio-cement’ for human bones

Russian scientists have created a new biological material they called “bone cement”, which after 3D printing into a fracture or a crack, completely dissolves over time, while in its place the human body regenerates the missing part of the bone tissue.

The new substance based on biological hydroxyapatite was created by scientists of the Russian National Research Nuclear University’s affiliate in the Siberian city of Seversk, Tomsk region.

“We have created material that the organism takes as original,” professor Vitaly Guzeev said in the statement. The material is soft and flexible but hardens after application. The material is not rejected by the body and has huge broad potential in surgery, ranging from dentistry and cosmetology.

“On the basis of hydroxyapatite, we prepared a liquid material that we can fill a 3D-printer with,”professor has explained. Scientists hope to use tomography images and 3D printer to recreate, fit and match the missing bone part using minute specification.

The new material, which authors themselves call “bone cement” was conceived almost by accident.

Initially, scientists were working on the composition, which when applied to titanium prostheses would accelerate recovery. Then they thought why not make this material as strong as titanium, but without iron impurities.

“The bone marrow contains mesenchymal cells that always migrate to the damaged tissue areas. They detect our matter as something that can take part in biochemical processes and start processing it to enable [cell] division. Regeneration is cell division itself. As a result, a new bone tissue is produced with its own blood vessels and nerve cells,” Guzeev explained.

All components of the material are of natural origin, as the substance is derived from animal bones. This enables the body to adopt to it and accelerate the healing process.

Applying the “cement” results in the regeneration of real bone tissue with blood vessels and even nerve fibers. Unlike with titanium, which is often used in surgery to hold bones together, removing the material from the body after the regeneration is complete, is no longer necessary.

After animal studies demonstrated that the “bone cement” could actually help heal fractures and cracks, scientists started preparing documents for clinical trials, after which they hope to set up production in St. Petersburg.

http://rt.com/news/246885-bone-tissue-regeneration-cement/

Russian Man Will Become Subject Of First Human Head Transplant Ever Performed

 by Janet Fang

Earlier this year, an Italian surgeon announced that he’ll be attempting the world’s first human head transplant, that despite the hurdles, a human head may actually be attached onto another person’s body in two years. This week, a donor was introduced, but according to at least one expert, this man might be facing something that’s “worse than death.”

It started in 2013, when Sergio Canavero of the Turin Advanced Neuromodulation Group proposed the idea of using surgery to extend the lives of people with degenerated muscles and nerves or cancer-permeated organs, New Scientist reports. Canavero summarized the36-hour procedure he plans to follow in Surgical Neurology International in February of this year. He also plans to launch the project at the annual American Academy of Neurological and Orthopaedic Surgeons meeting in Maryland this June. He’ll need a staff of 150 doctors and nurses. 

Is it actually possible to fuse two spinal cords and stop the recipient’s body from rejecting the new head? Last century attempts with dogs and monkeys resulted in animals who survived for a few days, though a more recent mouse head transplant showed that it was basically possible. "I think we are now at a point when the technical aspects are all feasible," Canavero says.

After cooling the donor’s body and the recipient’s head, neck tissue is dissected, blood vessels are linked with tubes, and the spinal cords are cleanly severed, New Scientist explains. With the new head on the body, the ends of the spinal cords are fused together using a chemical that prompts fat in cell membranes to connect. Muscles and blood vessels will be sutured, and the patient will be kept comatose as electrodes stimulate the spinal cord. He calls it HEAVEN, for head anastomosis venture (anastomosis is the surgical connection of two parts).

This week, a volunteer was announced: 30-year-old Valery Spiridonov of Vladimir, Russia, who suffers from a rare genetic disorder called Werdnig-Hoffman muscle wasting disease. He wants the chance at a new body before he dies. “Am I afraid? Yes, of course I am. But it is not just very scary, but also very interesting,” Spiridonov tells Daily Mail. “You have to understand that I don't really have many choices... If I don't try this chance my fate will be very sad. With every year my state is getting worse.”

But according to Hunt Batjer of the American Association for Neurological Surgeons, even if the airway, spine, and major veins and arteries are put together, the spinal cord will be the real problem. "I would not wish this on anyone,” Batjer tells CNN. “I would not allow anyone to do it to me, there are a lot of things worse than death." For starters, the patient might not be able to move or breathe. And Arthur Caplan of New York University thinks Canavero is nuts. "Their bodies would end up being overwhelmed with different pathways and chemistry than they are used to and they'd go crazy,” he tells CNN. Also, the high levels of anti-rejection meds will poison the body, and who knows if the recipients will fully gain the function of their new parts. "It's not like you can unscrew your head and put it on someone else," Caplan adds.

Still, Canavero insists, “we can already do this.”

http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/head-transplant-volunteer-might-face-fate-more-terrifying-death

Fatty diets lead to £300m surgery

THE nation’s love of fatty foods has sparked a huge increase in people having their gallbladder removed, landing the NHS with a bill for more than £300million.

By: Matthew Davis and Lucy Johnston


Diets high in fat and cholesterol can trigger painful gallstones, where the cure is normally the removal of the gallbladder.

NHS figures show that the number of people seen by a hospital consultant about this has soared 41 per cent in nine years.

Almost 70,000 people who need the procedure currently have hospital appointments and nearly 200 people a day actually have the operation.

Most gallbladder operations are by keyhole surgery, enabling quicker recovery and a shorter hospital stay.

However, the bill for such treatment is still not cheap and private operations can cost more than £6,000.

The average age of a patient undergoing a cholecystectomy has also fallen in recent years to 51, as the problem now more frequently affects those in middle age.

Figures from the Health and Social Care Information Centre show there were 69,728 hospital appointments last year linked to gallbladder removal operations.

Nine years ago that number was 49,288.

It is crucial that young people are alerted to the outcomes triggered by eating too much fatty food
Tam Fry, spokesman for the National Obesity Forum
The gallbladder stores bile that is pushed into the stomach to help it break down food.

Experts believe that a high fat diet can trigger the production of gallstones, which can be incredibly painful.

In most cases the easiest treatment is to remove the gallbladder as most people can function without it and not notice any difference, although some patients have to move to a lower fat diet.

Tam Fry, spokesman for the National Obesity Forum, said: “There are more and more things coming through, which end up putting a strain on the NHS, that are linked to obesity.

“I’m not surprised at these figures but the tragedy is they will continue to rise unless something is done to tackle the problem of obesity.

“More people are becoming obese and those people who are already obese are becoming more obese.



“Teenagers who are overweight or obese are particularly at risk.

"Those who are even moderately obese are four times more likely to have gallstones than those with a normal body mass index.

“It is yet another indication that obesity related conditions are being seen at increasingly younger ages, with the acknowledged possibility of premature death.

"With this in mind, it is crucial that young people are alerted to the outcomes triggered by eating too much fatty food.”

Leading nutritionist Gillian Hamer blamed Britons’ love of processed foods and fats.

She said: “Butter, full fat yogurt and cream are not the cause.

"The problem is the bad processed fats found in cakes and overeating processed fats.

“Faddy diets are not the answer either.

"Cutting out any group of foods is not good for you and may lead to problems like gallstones,” she added.

Anton Emmanuel, medical director at Core, a charity that funds research into all diseases of the gut, liver and pancreas, said:

“The increase in cholecystectomy relates in part to the increase in obesity and in part due to the advances in technology permitting safer gallbladder removal compared to the older days of more complex, potentially adverse effect-causing open surgery.”

He said sudden weight changes, such as crash diets, could also lead to the risk of gallstones.

“This may explain some of the increased incidence in younger patients,” he said.
http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/524412/EXCLUSIVE-Bill-fatty-diets-galling-300m