Did you know hypertension is the number one risk factor for death globally? Prevalent in 1 billion people, this silent killer reportedly has genetic roots and can run in families.
In our bodies, blood flows through pipes called blood vessels, during which they exert a certain force on the inner walls of the vessels.
This force is called blood pressure.
Due to certain factors, blood can sometimes exert additional stress on the blood vessels and heart muscles, increasing the risk for stroke, kidney failure, and heart disease.
Genetics does play a role in high blood pressure.
In fact, studies have identified over 100 genetic changes associated with high blood pressure.
This means that carrying a certain set of genetic variants can increase your risk for this condition.
Family history also plays a role in influencing this risk.
If either or both of your parents (or other first-degree family members) have high blood pressure, you are more likely to develop the condition.
This risk further increases if the age of onset in your parents is before 55 years.
Other than genetics, certain lifestyle and environmental factors can influence the risk of high blood pressure.
Some of them are:
There are simple yet effective tips that can be followed to lower blood pressure.
High blood pressure is more common among African Americans than most other ethnicities.
Curious about your high blood pressure genes? Here’s how you can learn about it in 3 simple steps:
Do your cheeks turn red like an apple whenever you drink? You may be experiencing what is called an “alcohol flush reaction.” Due to specific genes, some people cannot process alcohol normally, leading to a red face.
Whenever you drink, the alcohol is converted to a compound called acetaldehyde, which is toxic.
Acetaldehyde is also what causes the dreaded hangover symptoms.
Usually, acetaldehyde is broken down into a non-toxic compound called acetic acid, which is excreted through urine.
But some people have difficulty breaking down the acetaldehyde, which leads to the alcohol flush reaction.
The ALDH2 gene produces aldehyde dehydrogenase 2, the enzyme responsible for converting acetaldehyde to acetic acid.
Some people have a change in the ALDH2 gene, leading to a deficiency in this enzyme. This leads to a slower conversion of acetaldehyde to acetic acid.
This can lead to unpleasant side effects like hangovers, flushing, and heart palpitations.
The alcohol flush variant is the most common in the East-Asian population, with nearly 45% of people experiencing it.
Curious about your alcohol-flush genes? Here’s how you can learn about it in 3 simple steps:
With the COVID-19 pandemic a bit under control as we began 2022, the world still saw the Omicron wave looming.
The first half of the year was rough, with the COVID raging in waves across different parts of the world.
However, as the year progressed, biology and medicine saw some exciting innovations and advances in diverse fields- immunology, transplants, vaccines for malaria and respiratory syncytial virus to human evolution, and artificial intelligence.
Let’s look at ten of the biggest health and biology breakthroughs of 2022.
In January 2022, doctors at the University of Maryland Medical Centre replaced the heart of Mr. David Benett (57) with one from a pig.
The pig had gene editing done and was raised and bred to transplant its heart.
Though the process went well, Mr. Bennett passed away two months later.
Doctors suspect he got the cytomegalovirus infection from the pig.
This process of transplanting from an animal to a human is called xenotransplantation.
While this procedure has hope for people waiting for organ transplants, scientists still need to work on several aspects to make this process safe.
Though COVID wreaked havoc all through 2020-21, 2022 brought some development in COVID vaccines.
The world had access to some effective vaccines, including the two most effective mRNA vaccines.
However, the virus continued to evolve and bypass the vaccine defenses.
Fortunately, vaccine manufacturers had their eyes on this growing trend and developed newer shots for the Omicron variant and the original strain.
The bivalent (containing two strains of the virus) vaccines boosted protection against the virus.
With the COVID-19 vaccines, there has been an acceleration in innovation in immune research.
With a drastic increase in immunology knowledge, we can now innovate and create vaccines on a war footing.
Immunology is the branch of biology that studies the immune systems in humans and other organisms.
One example of this is the autumn COVID-19 boosters.
These bivalent vaccines target the original strain of the SARS-CoV-2 alongside the Omicron variant.
Bivalent vaccines are advantages over the original vaccine as they have broader coverage and offer better protection against the virus.
To further enhance immunity, the COVID-19 vaccines have been coupled with multiple strains of the flu virus to create a multivalent vaccine for COVID-19 and the flu.
Mucosal vaccines are sniffable or inhalable vaccines that have already been launched in countries like China.
These vaccines promise to offer long-term protection against respiratory infections.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been transforming the world before our eyes, including molecular biology.
In 2022, AI contributed to developing several drugs to help deal with resistance by microbes.
The overuse and misuse of antimicrobials have resulted in a phenomenon called antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
Yue Ma and colleagues from the Chinese Academy of Sciences used machine-learning techniques to identify antimicrobial peptides (smaller proteins) in the human gut.
AI was able to identify 181 of 216 peptides that showed antimicrobial activity.
More than half the peptides discovered by AI were found to be new, without any similarities to existing antimicrobials.
This increases the chances of overriding existing resistance mechanisms contributing to AMR. With this knowledge, it is possible to develop more effective medications against harmful microbes.
Type 1 diabetes or juvenile diabetes usually develops in adolescence.
In November 2022, the FDA approved a monoclonal antibody drug called teplizumab that could delay the onset of type 1 diabetes for several years.
This drug has been prescribed as a 14-day treatment, a 30-minute infusion for adults and children eight years and older with stage 2 type 1 diabetes.
Stage 2 type 1 diabetes is one step before a clinical diagnosis.
Research states that teplizumab delays the onset of stage 3 of type 1 diabetes for two years, compared with the placebo group.
The only current concern with this drug is its high cost.
Researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel created a mouse embryo inside a bioreactor without sperm and egg cells.
This was possible as the embryos were created from stem cell cultures in a Petri dish.
The resultant embryos were normal and began elongating on day three, developing a heart by day eight.
This was the first time scientists could grow a synthetic mouse embryo outside the womb.
This experiment is significant as it gives scientists the power to create various organs for transplanting and understand how genetic changes develop.
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2022 was awarded to Svante Paabo for his discovery showing genetic relationships among hominin ancestors.
He developed methods of reconstructing ancient DNA.
Paabo and his colleague sequenced the genome of the Neanderthals and discovered a new hominin species called the Denisovans.
This discovery revealed that early humans interbred with this now-extinct species.
These interbreeding trysts gave us traits like the ability to survive at higher altitudes and the vulnerability to infections like COVID-19.
Before the pandemic, most people did not bother or give a thought about the air they breathed when indoors.
However, today, people are more aware and concerned about their indoor air quality.
With greater awareness about how droplet infections and airborne particles can spread infections in indoor spaces, people are more willing to reduce the risk.
People understand the importance of improved indoor air quality, from ventilating buildings to using indoor air purifiers.
The ability of cells to sense and respond to their mechanical environment has been known for several decades.
Early signs of diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s are often associated with changes in cell stiffness.
Since determining cell stiffness inside the body is difficult and invasive, this test is not performed inside animals or humans.
However, in 2022, two research groups, one from Germany and one from the USA, published separate studies demonstrating improvements in the measurement of cell stiffness using Brillouin microscopy.
Brillouin microscopy is a non-damaging, non-invasive technique that allows one to ‘see’ cell stiffness without touching them.
This tool can be widely applied to observe changes in the mechanical properties of cells in living organisms.
It increased the potential for early diagnosis of several diseases.
Scientists detected viruses like those that cause polio in sewage systems in the UK and New York.
They were also able to spot COVID cases and new types of SARS in these regions before they developed into surges or caused a rise in cases.
These secrets were unearthed from our poop!
Though it sounds gross, the human waste contains a large amount of information on infectious diseases that are very important to scientists.
With an exciting 2022 that went by, 2023 is beaming with more potential. Here’s what’s in store for 2023:
This may be the last year without adequate tools to fight this virus.
A new study showed that the drug tripeptide, approved for treating type 2 diabetes, effectively reduces obesity.
2.4 mg of semaglutide provides an average of up to 15% weight loss.
You had purchased a DNA test kit from 23andMe a long time back and then forgot all about it.
Now, you want to do an at-home DNA test and suddenly remember the kit gathering dust in your cabinet.
You take it out and notice that the kit is well past the expiry date.
What do you do? Do you use it or throw it away and purchase a new one?
23andMe kits can be quite expensive, and throwing them away may not be a good idea.
Don’t worry. We are here with information that might save you some money.
Read on to find out what to do with an expired DNA testing kit and whether 23andMe will provide a free replacement.
23andMe is a genetic testing company based in the United States.
It was founded in 2006 and has since gained much popularity as a Direct-to-Consumer genetic testing company.
23andMe also uses the data that they collect from their users for research.
They are using genetic test data to determine which groups of people are more vulnerable to the coronavirus and need immediate vaccination.
The company provides top-quality genetic DNA testing kits.
23andMe kits do expire.
Ideally, a DNA ancestral test kit is viable for one year.
Customers can see the “collect saliva by” date mentioned on the side of the collection tube.
Some customers have reported purchasing kits with expiry dates within a few days.
So it is always advisable to buy these kits from the official website of 23andMe.
Image source: 23andMe website
Some customers have reported using kits fifteen or eighteen months past their expiry dates.
Some customers have also used kits as old as two years.
The kit comes with a plastic collection bag, a saliva-collecting tube, and a sealed tube of stabilizing liquid.
Now the question is, does the stabilizing liquid expire?
23andMe’s DNA test kits are manufactured by a company called DNA Genotek.
This company mentions that the stabilizing liquid can last up to five years.
Of course, you can always try using the old kit and see if it works.
You can always send it back and ask for a replacement if it does not.
In case of an expired kit, the company replaces the old equipment free of cost.
However, according to their replacement policy, a new kit can only be shipped to the country from where the original order was placed.
Users can contact the customer care of 23andMe and provide information about their original order.
The company will then send a new DNA testing kit.
23andMe is a company that provides direct-to-consumer DNA testing kits.
They are prevalent among users.
However, their kits do expire over time.
While the company mentions that their kits can last for up to one year, their manufacturer tells something different.
They say the stabilizing liquid that comes with the kit can last up to five years.
You can always return expired DNA testing kits.
23andMe provides free replacement of expired DNA test kits.
Here’s how you can get the most out of your DNA raw data in 3 simple steps:
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diagnostics/23065-dna-test–genetic-testing
While the human lifespan has increased in the last few decades, the number of older adults living with coronary and circulatory conditions has increased too. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 21.7% of all Americans over 65 have been diagnosed with Coronary Heart Disease (CHD), stroke, or both. Thus, the topic of heart health in the elderly has earned a spotlight in the research field.
CHD is the most common type of heart problem affecting older adults. According to CDC, about 20.1 million people worldwide have this condition.
In the United States, one person gets a heart attack every 40 seconds, making this a prevalent heart problem too.
Heart failure happens when the person’s heart cannot pump enough blood, which can turn fatal if not treated early on. About 6.2 million in the United States are diagnosed with heart failure yearly.
A stroke happens when the blood supply to the brain is cut off. One in every six cardiovascular deaths is due to stroke. Even if not fatal, stroke can lead to permanent disabilities and reduced mobility.
The following factors can interfere with your heart health and increase your risk for heart problems.
Recently, everyone has been talking about increasing the daily steps people take to stay healthy. There are many fitness monitors and applications to monitor this.
The person is more active when the step count/day is higher—being physically active benefits multiple ways, including reducing the risk of heart disease and other lifestyle disorders.
Recently, scientists from the Department of Kinesiology conducted a study at the School of Public Health and Health Sciences. Kinesiology is the study of body movements.
According to this study, older adults who walked at least 6000-9000 steps a day had a 40-50% lower chance of developing cardiovascular problems than people who only walked 2000 steps a day.
This study was a meta-analysis, combining eight prospective studies. 20,152 adults aged 18 and above were part of the analysis.
The mean age of the study participants was 63.2±12.4 years. Of these, 52% were women, and the rest were men.
The individuals’ daily step count was measured, and the follow-up happened after 6.2 years.
The study reported about 1523 cardiovascular disease incidents in these participants in this time.
This adds to about 12.4 incidents per 1000 participants.
The researchers considered the following cardiovascular incidents.
According to the results, older adults who took 6,000-9,000 steps every day had a 40-50% lowered risk of developing heart conditions compared to those who only took 2,000 steps per day.
This study found this relationship between steps and cardiovascular disease risk applicable only in older adults. In younger adults, other co-factors like weight and diet could also influence cardiovascular risk, apart from the step count.
The study recommends that older adults focus on increasing their step count, whatever the present number is. People walking 2K steps a day would benefit by increasing it to 3,000 to 4,000 steps.
Those already in the 6K range can still decrease their risk of developing heart conditions by increasing the step count slightly more every day.
According to the study, average step count could be an easy metric for doctors to analyze the potential risk for developing cardiovascular diseases in older adult patients.
It is wiser to get at least 2-3K steps done first thing in the morning, so it is easy to complete the goal by the end of the day.
If possible, you could wake up and take a brisk walk inside the community. If not, you could walk in your garden or patio.
Find a walking buddy in the neighborhood. If you have a friend to walk with, you may do it more regularly. Having company while walking makes the process stress-free and enjoyable.
Many older adults talk to their family or friends on the phone at least once a day. Try walking around the room while talking on the phone to increase the step count.
This can help increase the step count gradually throughout the day.
You can schedule an alarm to remind you to take a walk. This way, you will remember, and even if you are feeling sluggish, the alarm may encourage you to get up and step outside the house.
This is an effortless way to increase step count. Walk to the neighborhood stores to buy groceries or vegetables daily instead of ordering in or taking the car. Using the four-wheeler lesser would help increase step count over the day.
Older adults who cannot independently walk outside the house can try spot walking. Spot walking is imitating walking while standing in the same spot. This gives the same benefit as actual walking and is safer for adults at risk for falls.
Do you struggle to wake up early, no matter when you go to bed? Turns out it may not be due to laziness, but because of something called the chronotype. You may be genetically wired to wake up at a certain time. This is highly influenced by your genetic makeup.
The internal sleep-wake cycle, also known as the circadian rhythm, is the natural pattern of physiological processes that occur in the body over 24 hours.
These processes include the sleep-wake cycle, body temperature, hormone production, and metabolism.
The circadian rhythm is regulated by an internal “biological clock” located in the hypothalamus of the brain, which is influenced by external cues such as light and temperature.
Disruptions to the internal sleep-wake cycle, such as those caused by shift work or jet lag, can negatively affect health and well-being.
Genetics plays a significant role in determining an individual’s natural wake-up time, also known as their chronotype.
Studies have identified several specific genes that influence the circadian rhythm, including those that regulate the production of melatonin and the sensitivity of the body’s internal clock to light.
One of the key genes identified in this regard is the RGS16 gene, which regulates the period of the circadian rhythm.
Variations of this gene have been linked to differences in sleep timing.
Other genes, such as RASA4B, HCRTR2, CA14, EXD3, CLN5, NOL4, and PLCL1, also regulate the internal clock.
It’s worth noting that while genetics play a big role in determining an individual’s chronotype, environmental factors such as exposure to light, work schedule, and lifestyle habits can also have an impact.
Resetting your wake-up time can be done by making changes to your daily routine and environment. Here are a few tips that may help:
Keep in mind that adjusting to a new sleep schedule can take a few days to a couple of weeks, so be patient and consistent in making these changes.
Curious about your sleep genes? Here’s how you can learn about it in 3 simple steps:
