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Saturday, December 31, 2011
Friday, December 30, 2011
smallbizcreativ: Facebook Photo of Stolen Ring Leads to Man?s Arrest (VIDEO) http://t.co/QBz5hn7n via @Mashable
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Thursday, December 29, 2011
Preventive care: It's free, except when it's not
In this photo taken Dec. 2, 2011, Bill Dunphy poses for a photo in Phoenix. Dunphy, a 61-year-old small business owner, thought his colonoscopy would be free under the nation's year-old health care law. But when the doctor removed two non-cancerous polyps, turning a preventive screening into a diagnostic procedure, it allowed his insurance company to bill him $1,100. "That's bait and switch," Dunphy said. "If it isn't fraud, it's immoral." (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
In this photo taken Dec. 2, 2011, Bill Dunphy poses for a photo in Phoenix. Dunphy, a 61-year-old small business owner, thought his colonoscopy would be free under the nation's year-old health care law. But when the doctor removed two non-cancerous polyps, turning a preventive screening into a diagnostic procedure, it allowed his insurance company to bill him $1,100. "That's bait and switch," Dunphy said. "If it isn't fraud, it's immoral." (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
In this photo taken Dec. 2, 2011, Bill Dunphy poses for a photo in Phoenix. Dunphy, a 61-year-old small business owner, thought his colonoscopy would be free under the nation's year-old health care law. But when the doctor removed two non-cancerous polyps, turning a preventive screening into a diagnostic procedure, it allowed his insurance company to bill him $1,100. "That's bait and switch," Dunphy said. "If it isn't fraud, it's immoral." (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
In this photo taken Dec. 2, 2011, Bill Dunphy poses for a photo in Phoenix. Dunphy, a 61-year-old small business owner, thought his colonoscopy would be free under the nation's year-old health care law. But when the doctor removed two non-cancerous polyps, turning a preventive screening into a diagnostic procedure, it allowed his insurance company to bill him $1,100. "That's bait and switch," Dunphy said. "If it isn't fraud, it's immoral." (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
In this photo taken Dec. 2, 2011, Bill Dunphy poses for a photo in Phoenix. Dunphy, a 61-year-old small business owner, thought his colonoscopy would be free under the nation's year-old health care law. But when the doctor removed two non-cancerous polyps, turning a preventive screening into a diagnostic procedure, it allowed his insurance company to bill him $1,100. "That's bait and switch," Dunphy said. "If it isn't fraud, it's immoral." (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
CHICAGO (AP) ? Bill Dunphy thought his colonoscopy would be free.
His insurance company told him it would be covered 100 percent, with no copayment from him and no charge against his deductible. The nation's 1-year-old health law requires most insurance plans to cover all costs for preventive care including colon cancer screening. So Dunphy had the procedure in April.
Then the bill arrived: $1,100.
Dunphy, a 61-year-old Phoenix small business owner, angrily paid it out of his own pocket because of what some prevention advocates call a loophole. His doctor removed two noncancerous polyps during the colonoscopy. So while Dunphy was sedated, his preventive screening turned into a diagnostic procedure. That allowed his insurance company to bill him.
Like many Americans, Dunphy has a high-deductible insurance plan. He hadn't spent his deductible yet. So, on top of his $400 monthly premium, he had to pay the bill.
"That's bait and switch," Dunphy said. "If it isn't fraud, it's immoral."
President Barack Obama's health overhaul encourages prevention by requiring most insurance plans to pay for preventive care. On the plus side, more than 22 million Medicare patients and many more Americans with private insurance have received one or more free covered preventive services this year. From cancer screenings to flu shots, many services no longer cost patients money.
But there are confusing exceptions. As Dunphy found out, colonoscopies can go from free to pricey while the patient is under anesthesia.
Breast cancer screenings can cause confusion too. In Florida, Tampa Bay-area small business owner Dawn Thomas, 50, went for a screening mammogram. But she was told by hospital staff that her mammogram would be a diagnostic test ? not preventive screening ? because a previous mammogram had found something suspicious. (It turned out to be nothing.)
Knowing that would cost her $700, and knowing her doctor had ordered a screening mammogram, Thomas stood her ground.
"Either I get a screening today or I'm putting my clothes back on and I'm leaving," she remembers telling the hospital staff. It worked. Her mammogram was counted as preventive and she got it for free.
"A lot of women ... are getting labeled with that diagnostic code and having to pay year after year for that," Thomas said. "It's a loophole so insurance companies don't have to pay for it."
For parents with several children, costs can pile up with unexpected copays for kids needing shots. Even when copays are inexpensive, they can blemish a patient-doctor relationship. Robin Brassner of Jersey City, N.J., expected her doctor visit to be free. All she wanted was a flu shot. But the doctor charged her a $20 copay.
"He said no one really comes in for just a flu shot. They inevitably mention another ailment, so he charges," Brassner said. As a new patient, she didn't want to start the relationship by complaining, but she left feeling irritated. "Next time, I'll be a little more assertive about it," she said.
How confused are doctors?
"Extremely," said Cheryl Gregg Fahrenholz, an Ohio consultant who works with physicians. It's common for doctors to deal with 200 different insurance plans. And some older plans are exempt.
Should insurance now pay for aspirin? Aspirin to prevent heart disease and stroke is one of the covered services for older patients. But it's unclear whether insurers are supposed to pay only for doctors to tell older patients about aspirin ? or whether they're supposed to pay for the aspirin itself, said Dr. Jason Spangler, chief medical officer for the nonpartisan Partnership for Prevention.
Stop-smoking interventions are also supposed to be free. "But what does that mean?" Spangler asked. "Does it mean counseling? Nicotine replacement therapy? What about drugs (that can help smokers quit) like Wellbutrin or Chantix? That hasn't been clearly laid out."
But the greatest source of confusion is colonoscopies, a test for the nation's second leading cancer killer. Doctors use a thin, flexible tube to scan the colon and they can remove precancerous growths called polyps at the same time. The test gets credit for lowering colorectal cancer rates. It's one of several colon cancer screening methods highly recommended for adults ages 50 to 75.
But when a doctor screens and treats at the same time, the patient could get a surprise bill.
"It erodes a trust relationship the patients may have had with their doctors," said Dr. Joel Brill of the American Gastroenterological Association. "We get blamed. And it's not our fault,"
Cindy Holtzman, an insurance agent in Marietta, Ga., is telling clients to check with their insurance plans before a colonoscopy so they know what to expect.
"You could wake up with a $2,000 bill because they find that little bitty polyp," Holtzman said.
Doctors and prevention advocates are asking Congress to revise the law to waive patient costs ? including Medicare copays, which can run up to $230 ? for a screening colonoscopy where polyps are removed. The American Gastroenterological Association and the American Cancer Society are pushing Congress fix the problem because of the confusion it's causing for patients and doctors.
At least one state is taking action. After complaints piled up in Oregon, insurance regulators now are working with doctors and insurers to make sure patients aren't getting surprise charges when polyps are removed.
Florida's consumer services office also reports complaints about colonoscopies and other preventive care. California insurance broker Bonnie Milani said she's lost count of the complaints she's had about bills clients have received for preventive services.
"'Confusion' is not the word I'd apply to the medical offices producing the bills," Milani said. "The word that comes to mind for me ain't nearly so nice."
When it's working as intended, the new health law encourages more patients to get preventive care. Dr. Yul Ejnes, a Rhode Island physician, said he's personally told patients with high deductible plans about the benefit. They weren't planning to schedule a colonoscopy until they heard it would be free, Ejnes said.
If too many patients get surprise bills, however, that advantage could be lost, said Stephen Finan of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. He said it will take federal or state legislation to fix the colonoscopy loophole.
Dunphy, the Phoenix businessman, recalled how he felt when he got his colonoscopy bill, like something "underhanded" was going on.
"It's the intent of the law is to cover this stuff," Dunphy said. "It really made me angry."
___
AP Medical Writer Carla K. Johnson can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/CarlaKJohnson
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Robot videojournalist uses cuteness to get vox pops
Imagine a cardboard version of Pixar's Wall-e character, but with added ?ber-cute human voice, and you've got a fair picture of Boxie, Alexander Reben's documentary-video-making robot.
Designed to wander the streets shooting video, the diminutive droid trundles up to people and asks them to tell it an interesting story.
Sounds crazy? Surprisingly, not entirely: a good few people did actually cooperate with Boxie ? enough to make a short movie ? though one malcontent dumped the robot in a trash can and a child tried to kidnap it.
"The idea was to create a robot that was interesting enough for people to engage with it and offer to help it, carrying it around and up and down stairs to show it things," says Reben, a researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Media Lab.
To win cooperation from the person in the street, cuteness is Boxie's stock-in-trade. In addition to being a squat, doe-eyed creature, it is also made of cardboard, a material Reben says people perceive as non-threatening, even friendly. When his team tried to build Boxie from white plastic, it looked scarily skull-like.
Nice doggie
Based on an off-the-shelf caterpillar-tracked chassis, the robot ? presented at the ACM Multimedia Conference in Scottsdale, Arizona, in late November ? uses ultrasound sonar to detect walls. That keeps it straight and true while it trundles along sidewalks and corridors, and a body-heat sensor tells it when it's found a person ? though a large dog could fool it, Reben concedes.
It then sets to work with its not-very-hard-nosed interview technique. "Boxie has a script in which it asks people questions and asks them to pick it up and show it around an area like a lab or mall. To move on to the next series of questions, people are asked to press buttons on either side of it," says Reben.
Boxie would set off on its own at the beginning of the day and it would generally spend 6?hours or so collecting video ? limited more by the video recording time available than battery power. It would report its condition to the research team regularly, via whatever open Wi-Fi it could find, but not its position: location-sensing tech was dropped to save development time.
"That meant I'd have to go out and search for Boxie at the end of the day. Once I found it in the trash and another time an intern spotted a child trying to put it in its parents' car," he says.
Over a few days Boxie collected about 50 interviews, which the MIT team has edited down to a 5-minute documentary. Overall, Reben and colleague Joe Paradiso reckon robot-mediated story acquisition works: "A coherent movie was easily produced from the video clips captured, proving that their content and organisation were viable for story-making," they say in their conference paper.
Don't be annoying
Chris Melhuish, director of the Bristol Robotics Laboratory in the UK, says MIT was right to focus on perfecting Boxie's social acceptability. "As robots become everyday objects in our environment, the way they behave will become increasingly important. Future smart machines will need such social intelligence to interact naturally ? utilising appropriate gestures, body pose and non-verbal communication, for instance."
However, as any journalist on a vox-pop assignment soon finds out, people can be cranky ? and Boxie took its share of abuse from the public. Force sensors in the robot recorded that it had suffered violent shaking ? or been thrown to the ground ? a number of times. So the researchers have some advice for future builders of robotic reporters: "Try not to be annoying."
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Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Panthers QB Newton not upset about Pro Bowl snub
Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton smiles as he sits on the bench during the third quarter of the Panthers' 48-16 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in an NFL football game in Charlotte, N.C., Saturday, Dec. 24, 2011. (AP Photo/Bob Leverone)
Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton smiles as he sits on the bench during the third quarter of the Panthers' 48-16 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in an NFL football game in Charlotte, N.C., Saturday, Dec. 24, 2011. (AP Photo/Bob Leverone)
Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton smiles as he watches the Charlotte Bobcats play the Milwaukee Bucks during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Charlotte, N.C., Monday, Dec. 26, 2011. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)
El quarterback de los Panthers de Carolina, Cam Newton, festeja un touchdown contra Tampa Bay el s?bado, 24 de diciembre de 2011, en Charlotte, Carolina del Norte.(AP Photo/Bob Leverone)
Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton (1) runs for a touchdown against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the third quarter of an NFL football game in Charlotte, N.C., Saturday, Dec. 24, 2011. The Panthers won 48-16. (AP Photo/Bob Leverone)
Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton (1) and running back Jonathan Stewart (28) celebrate Stewart's touchdown run against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the third quarter of an NFL football game in Charlotte, N.C., Saturday, Dec. 24, 2011. (AP Photo/Bob Leverone)
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) ? Despite a record-setting rookie season, Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton was not selected to the Pro Bowl.
He certainly isn't pouting over it.
"Who am I to be mad at the fact that I'm the first alternate?" Newton said with a wide smile Wednesday.
Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees and Eli Manning were selected over Newton, even though Manning has seven fewer total touchdowns.
Newton says he was "honored" to be selected as a first alternate and knows there's a good chance he might wind up replacing one of the guys ahead of him if he pulls out of the game or if the Packers, Saints or Giants wind up in the Super Bowl, which is now played one week after the Pro Bowl.
"Those three guys are at the peak of their game," Newton said.
Still, Panthers coach Ron Rivera believes Newton deserved to go, citing the rookie's ability to make plays with his feet. Newton has thrown for 20 touchdowns and run for 14, the most ever by a quarterback.
By comparison, Manning has 27 total touchdowns ? 26 passing and one rushing.
Manning, however, has more yards passing (4,587) than Newton (3,893) and has a slightly higher quarterback rating.
Both have 16 interceptions.
"I'm disappointed," Rivera said. "He's first alternate, but still. People talk about the numbers weren't as good as some of the other guys. But I disagree because of the combined numbers ? not just throwing the ball, but running the ball."
The Panthers have led in 14 of 15 games this season, but are just 6-9 because they've struggled to close out games in the fourth quarter.
Manning's Giants will face the Cowboys this Sunday for the NFC East division title.
All things considered, Newton has had a remarkable season for the Panthers and is one of the top candidates for NFL Rookie of the Year.
He's already broken Peyton Manning's rookie record for yards passing in a season and has shattered Steve Grogan's 35-year-old record for most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback.
This week against the Saints he needs 107 yards to become the first quarterback to throw for 4,000 yards and run for 500 in the same season.
Saints coach Sean Payton wouldn't divulge who he voted for in the Pro Bowl, but said Newton has been impressive. He also believes Newton will end up playing in the game one way or the other.
"He's going to have a ton of opportunities to play in the Pro Bowl," Payton said of Newton. "To be a rookie with no offseason and literally no minicamp and to report to training camp and do what he's done is amazing. ... He's a guy that I see in that game. Unfortunately he's also in our division."
Payton said he was impressed with Newton the first time he saw him in a uniform.
"I remember being out at midfield the last time we played and seeing his stature and size and arm strength," Payton said. "He's got that warm smile that's contagious to playing quarterback in this league and I think that (confidence) exudes over to his team."
When asked if he's exceeded his own expectations this year, Newton said, "I'm all about how team success plays out and our record is not where we want to be. My goal before this year was to make it to the playoffs. We had ample opportunities to make that happen and I think we dropped the ball on that."
Center Ryan Kalil, who will represent the Panthers at the Pro Bowl along with receiver Steve Smith, said he expects Newton will be making plenty of trips to Hawaii in the future.
"I think he has the respect of a lot of guys around the league and let's face it, there's nothing wrong with being a first alternate either, especially against the quarterbacks he has to compete against," Kalil said. "But he's had a heck of a season, especially as a rookie who didn't have an offseason that a guy normally would have because of the lockout."
Kalil said he's seen Newton mature as a leader both on and off the field.
"We can't be more excited about having him for the future," Kalil said.
Newton is excited, too.
"The one thing we have made a big stride in is creating that hope and a buzz in the community of Charlotte," Newton said. "You can see the fan support everywhere and to some degree we've succeeded in that level."
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isilayerol: Makanyane Safari Lodge South Africa http://t.co/WKjqZonK
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Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Memo From Jerusalem: Struggle of Israel?s Channel 10 Tied to Political Wars
[unable to retrieve full-text content]
Source: www.nytimes.com --- Monday, December 26, 2011
Channel 10?s defenders see the agenda of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at work, but those around him deny any motive of revenge for negative coverage. ...
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Sadrists call for new elections in Iraq (AP)
BAGHDAD ? The leader of a powerful anti-American political party in Iraqi parliament is calling for new elections as the country's worst political crisis in years escalates.
Bahaa al-Aaraji, the head of the Sadrists' bloc in parliament, said Monday new elections are needed because of instability in the country.
The Sadrists are loyal to anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and are partners in a Shiite-dominated government coalition with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
The prime minister is currently in a political showdown with the top Sunni political figure, Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi, after the government issued an arrest warrant for al-Hashemi.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
BAGHDAD (AP) ? A suicide bomber set off a car bomb Monday at a checkpoint leading to the Iraqi Interior Ministry, killing seven people and injuring 32 others, officials said.
The attack followed a series of bombings last week that killed up to 70 people in a single day, increasing fears about Iraq's future after U.S. troops withdrew this month.
Two police officers said the bomber struck during morning rush hour, hitting one of many security barriers set up around the ministry's building. Five policemen were among the dead, they said.
Two doctors at nearby hospitals confirmed the causality figures.
"We first heard a thunderous explosion and then saw a ball of fire," said Mustafa Mohammed, 42, an employee at the nearby Ministry of Oil who was with other employees in a bus when the bomb went off.
"The car pulled over and we left it immediately to see all the area engulfed with smoke and the bodies of the injured or killed people were lying on the ground," Mohammed said.
Also Monday, a roadside bomb hit a passing army patrol in the Abu Ghraib area west of Baghdad, killing two soldiers and injuring two others, a police officer and a doctor said.
All spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release information.
No one has claimed responsibility for either attack, but suicide attacks and attacks targeting Iraqi security officials are usually carried out by the al-Qaida in Iraq terror group.
U.S. and some Iraqi officials have warned of a resurgence of Sunni and Shiite militants and an increase in violence after the full U.S. troop withdrawal.
Adding to Iraq's troubles is an increase in political tension stemming from a showdown between the Shiite prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, and the top Sunni political leader in the country.
Al-Maliki's government has issued an arrest warrant for Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi on charges that he ran hit squads against government officials.
Al-Hashemi has denied the charges and said they are politically motivated.
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Monday, December 26, 2011
Fox Sports Wins Court Ruling; Dodgers Can't Sell TV Rights -- Yet
This time around Fox Sports beat the Los Angles Dodgers in court.?
U.S. District Court judge Leonard Stark ruled on Friday to grant Fox a stay of a previous ruling in U.S. Bankruptcy Court that permitted the Dodgers to auction off their TV rights.
Stark said the court was likely to conclude that there was at least one "erroneous" finding in the previous ruling.?
The Dodgers had sought to auction the rights to maximize the value of the team, which owner Frank McCourt has promised to sell by April 30.
Fox immediately rejected that decision, claiming it violated it's contract with the team. The existing contract gives Fox exclusive negotiating rights through Nov. 30, 2012.
Also Read:?L.A. Dodgers Score Big Win in Court
The bankruptcy court permitted the Dodgers to sell the rights given the impending sale of the team, saying the exclusivity of the rights did not apply with the team in bankruptcy.
Stark dismissed that notion, ruling that the auctioning of the rights would not determine whether the team emerges from bankruptcy or the sale.
He will hear Fox's appeal Jan. 12.
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Cancer Survivors Should Take Steps to Keep Healthy During ...
FRIDAY Dec. 23, 2011 -- The holiday season can be especially meaningful for cancer survivors, but they need to take steps to ensure they stay healthy through this often hectic and stressful time.
One in 20 U.S. adults is a cancer survivor and their ranks are growing. Many of these folks have long-term health needs due to the disease and its treatment, experts at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center pointed out in a center news release.
Karen Syrjala, co-director of the center's Survivorship Program, offers holiday health tips for cancer survivors, including the following:
- Be prepared for your holiday stress points. Take steps to deal with family conflicts or trying to do too much. For example, if you have to see a difficult relative, plan something fun afterward so you can look forward to doing something enjoyable.
- Take control of your time and eliminate holiday events or traditions you feel you can do without. Also, try to postpone non-holiday events until the new year.
- Make sure to schedule time with people who mean the most to you. Spending time with those closest to you has a beneficial effect on both the body and brain.
- Keep physically active during the holidays and all through the year. It's good for your overall health and may even reduce your cancer-related risks.
- Eat a healthy diet. Focus more on giving your body what it needs (such as fruits and vegetables) and less on trying not to eat certain foods. Eating healthy foods before going to a party will make it easier to resist sweets and other unhealthy foods. Consult a nutritionist if you're not sure what is healthy for you or if you have digestion problems.
- Avoid alcohol or drink in moderation. Alcohol has been linked with an increased risk of cancer.
- Find time to relax your body and mind, and tend to your body's needs. If you're having physical problems, make a list and schedule an appointment with your doctor in the new year. Knowing you have a plan for dealing with these problems can ease your mind during the holidays.
More information
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more about cancer survivors.
Posted: December 2011
Source: http://www.drugs.com/news/cancer-survivors-should-steps-keep-healthy-during-holidays-35568.html
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Sunday, December 25, 2011
Santa Claus still flying high in new poll
FILE - In this Dec. 13, 2011, file photo, Grace Young, 5, of Costa Mesa, Calif. asks Santa Claus for a pair of skates at the lighting of the "Snoopy House" display that Jim Jordan created 44 years ago, on the lawn outside City Hall in Costa Mesa, Calif. Why do kids believe a chubby guy in a flying sleigh can deliver joy across America? Because their parents do. A whopping 84 percent of grown-ups were once children who trusted in Santa?s magic, and lots cling to it still. Things are changing fast these days, with toddlers wishing for iPads, grade schoolers emailing their Christmas lists and moms wrestling over bargain toys at midnight sales. Despite all the pressures on the rituals of the season, an AP-GfK poll confirms that families are sticking by old St. Nick. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)
FILE - In this Dec. 13, 2011, file photo, Grace Young, 5, of Costa Mesa, Calif. asks Santa Claus for a pair of skates at the lighting of the "Snoopy House" display that Jim Jordan created 44 years ago, on the lawn outside City Hall in Costa Mesa, Calif. Why do kids believe a chubby guy in a flying sleigh can deliver joy across America? Because their parents do. A whopping 84 percent of grown-ups were once children who trusted in Santa?s magic, and lots cling to it still. Things are changing fast these days, with toddlers wishing for iPads, grade schoolers emailing their Christmas lists and moms wrestling over bargain toys at midnight sales. Despite all the pressures on the rituals of the season, an AP-GfK poll confirms that families are sticking by old St. Nick. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)
FILE - In this Dec. 12, 2011, file photo, Santa Claus gestures toward first lady Michelle Obama, at Children's National Medical Center in Washington. Why do kids believe a chubby guy in a flying sleigh can deliver joy across America? Because their parents do. A whopping 84 percent of grown-ups were once children who trusted in Santa?s magic, and lots cling to it still. Things are changing fast these days, with toddlers wishing for iPads, grade schoolers emailing their Christmas lists and moms wrestling over bargain toys at midnight sales. Despite all the pressures on the rituals of the season, an AP-GfK poll confirms that families are sticking by old St. Nick. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Why do kids believe a chubby guy in a flying sleigh can deliver joy across America? Because their parents do. A whopping 84 percent of grown-ups were once children who trusted in Santa's magic, and lots cling to it still.
Things are changing fast these days, with toddlers wishing for iPads, grade schoolers emailing their Christmas lists and moms wrestling over bargain toys at midnight sales. Despite all the pressures on the rituals of the season, an AP-GfK poll confirms that families are sticking by old St. Nick.
"It's important for kids to have something to believe in," says great-grandmother Wanda Smith of Norman, Okla.
And so they do. Year after year, Santa Claus survives the scoffers and the Scrooges and the 6-year-old playground skeptics. He endures belittling commercials that portray him shopping at Target or taking directions from an iPhone. He shrugs off scolds who say his bagful of toys overshadows the reason for the season.
Two-thirds of parents with kids under 18 say Santa's an important part of their celebrations this year. Moms, especially, have a soft spot for the man in red ? 71 percent of them say he's important, and that's a big jump from 58 percent just five years ago.
His overall popularity is up slightly from an AP-AOL poll in 2006, before the recession hit. In these bleaker times of homes lost to foreclosure and parents sweating out their next paychecks, the poll shows Santa riding high with families both wealthy and poor.
Maybe that's because the big guy's always known how to stretch a dollar to make a kid smile.
Smith, whose childhood gifts were mostly handmade by her mother ? things like cookies and knit scarves ? remembers that every year Santa Claus managed to put one present under the tree for her to share with her two brothers (four more siblings came later).
"One year it was a bicycle, one year we had a sled. One year we got a puppy ? his name was Jack and he was a border collie," recalls Smith, now 70.
"We didn't have a lot," she said, "but we didn't know it. Our mother and daddy made it a wonderful time for us."
In multicultural America, Father Christmas isn't just for Christians any more. Three-fourths of non-Christian adults say they believed in Santa when they were children. And half feel he's important to their holiday celebrations now.
Developmental psychologist Cyndy Scheibe, who's been interviewing kids about Santa since 1986, said lots of Jewish children told her that Santa Claus was real, even though he didn't stop at their houses on Christmas Eve.
And many non-Christian parents embrace Santa because they see Christmas serving as a secular as well as religious holiday in the U.S., she said.
"Santa Claus is more than someone who just comes and gives you a present, it's this whole spirit of giving and magic that you get to be a part of and celebrate," said Scheibe, an associate professor at Ithaca College in New York.
That's what keeps Santa going over the decades and across cultures, she said. "That, and there's almost nothing as much fun as getting to see your kid's face so completely excited."
Scheibe knows firsthand. She used to climb a ladder to the roof every Christmas, her daughter watching, to leave a key tied to a big red bow, because they didn't have a fireplace.
It's not all snowflakes and mistletoe in Santaland, however. Even among Christians, there's tension about how big a role, if any, a jolly old elf deserves in the celebration of Christ's birth.
Almost half of Americans polled said Santa detracts from the religious significance of Christmas more than he enhances it.
When she was growing up, Naomi Stenberg's fundamentalist Baptist parents didn't want her mixed up with Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny or Halloween trick-or-treating.
"I didn't understand why everybody else got to believe in Santa, and me and my brother didn't," says Stenberg, 32, now a stay-at-home mom in Baxter, Minn. "I felt left out."
Her own three children have gotten the full Kris Kringle experience, but sometimes she feels ill-equipped to handle the tough queries from her youngest, 6-year-old Rylen.
"She's been asking questions like how does Santa fit through the chimney," she said. "I don't know how to answer things like that."
Matt Hoyt vividly remembers seeing Santa's black boots peeking out from behind his bedroom curtains when he was a boy. He froze. "I was just trying to pretend to be asleep," Hoyt said, "so I'd get my presents."
Only much later did he realize those were probably the black shoes of his dad, hanging his new "Star Wars" drapes. Now Hoyt, a 35-year-old computer engineer from Houston, is awaiting the birth of his first child in April, and wondering how long that child will believe.
In the poll, the median age when adults said they outgrew Santa was 8. Hoyt suspects his child's generation will turn away even earlier. After all, "They've got Google at their fingertips."
But Santa needn't worry. They'll come back someday ... when they're parents.
The Associated Press-GfK Poll was conducted Dec. 8-12 by GfK Roper Public Affairs and Corporate Communications. It involved landline and cellphone interviews with 1,000 adults nationwide and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
___
AP Deputy Director of Polling Jennifer Agiesta and News Survey Specialist Dennis Junius contributed to this report.
___
Online: http://www.ap-gfkpoll.com
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Saturday, December 24, 2011
WATCH: Kris Humphries Gets Booed During First Nets Game!
Kris Humphries might be "excited to be back" to the NBA, but apparently some fans don't share his enthusiasm.
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India's old hands warm to Boxing Day task
MELBOURNE |
MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Australia's callow bowling attack has tantalised with the promise of a brave new era, but faces its stiffest examination against India's veteran batsmen in the first test in Melbourne starting Monday.
Sachin Tendulkar, Vangipurappu Laxman and Rahul Dravid will almost certainly face Michael Clarke's team for the last time Down Under in the four-test series, having come agonisingly close in the past to pulling off India's first series win on Australian soil.
Unlike many chastened visitors, the prolific run-scoring trio have delighted in Australia's quick and bouncy decks and relish the idea of continuing the harvest at the batsman-friendly MCG with unfinished business on their minds.
"Winning against Australia is the dream of all cricketers, not only from India but anywhere in the world, because when you play Australia in Australia it's probably one of the toughest cricket (contests) a player can play," Laxman told reporters on Friday in the bowels of the famed stadium.
"Australian surfaces are best for batting. Personally, I always relish batting on such conditions than the subcontinent conditions because once you see the new ball, there's true bounce on the wicket and you can play a lot of your shots and you get value for your shots.
"I think the key would be to get a big score in the first innings and I firmly believe that at the MCG if you can get a big total in the first innings you can put the opposition under pressure straight away."
India, second in test rankings, have arguably their best shot of breaking their duck Down Under in decades, coming against a fourth-ranked Australian side in flux following their humbling Ashes defeat on home soil last year.
With Mitchell Johnson ruled out for the series and Shane Watson sidelined, Australia's bowling hopes rest largely on the shoulders of a talented 21-year-old quick who has played only two tests and an offspinner who has contested seven five-day matches.
Paceman James Pattinson impressed with two five-wicket hauls in his first two tests against New Zealand but enjoyed the benefit of devilish pitches in Brisbane and Hobart.
Nathan Lyon has given rise to hopes that Australia has found a quality spinner to fill the gaping hole left by Shane Warne, but faces an acid test against India's accomplished players of spin.
BATTING COLLAPSES
More concerning for Australia has been the form of their batsmen, however, who have perfected the art of suffering batting collapses when pressing for victory.
Their 47 against South Africa in Cape Town and their dismal buckling to lose the Hobart test against New Zealand prompted Australia's cricket honchos to convene a batting boot camp to get them to sharpen up before the Boxing Day test.
It also led to the dumping of youngsters Phil Hughes and Usman Khawaja, who squandered their chances to cement their places at the top of the order.
Shaun Marsh has been rushed back into the side to give the batting line-up some spine, ironically after suffering a debilitating back injury, while Ed Cowan, the form player in the Sheffield Shield, will debut at the top of the order after scoring a century during the tour match in Canberra this week.
Australia's transition remains stuck in the middle to some extent, however, with former captain Ricky Ponting and his fellow greybeard Mike Hussey seemingly determined to hang on like party guests ignoring their hosts' hints to leave.
Cut down repeatedly by New Zealand's honest, if workmanlike, bowlers, the pair will hope to make amends against India's depleted attack at the MCG, where the tourists have lost their last four tests and have not won since 1981.
India's bowling lacks the quality of its batting, a fact former Australian players have queued up to point out this week, with Zaheer Khan coming back after a long lay-off with injury and Ishant Sharma rested earlier this week with a sore ankle.
They will not be wanting for crowd support, however, with Melbourne's large Indian population likely to turn out in force to see Tendulkar's bid for his 100th international century, a feat many local fans would also delight in.
The 38-year-old "little master" has come tantalisingly close in recent test matches, each attempt monitored slavishly by his home nation of a billion people. The growing pressure to reach the mark would hardly register on him, though, Hussey told reporters in Melbourne Friday.
"Just seeing how the public deals with Sachin in India, he's under enormous pressure no matter where he plays no matter what the situation, so I'm sure he'll be able to handle it no problems," he said.
(Editing by Pritha Sarkar)
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Friday, December 23, 2011
Israel sees Hezbollah responsible for security incidents in Lebanon
BEIRUT: Israeli defense officials say Hezbollah is responsible for recent security incidents in south Lebanon, hinting at a possible change in the party?s policy toward the Jewish state since 2006.
Haaretz newspaper released a report Thursday saying that?Israeli experts believe there is a "connection" between Hezbollah and recent security incidents in south Lebanon, including the attack earlier this month against members belonging to the French convoy of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon that left five French peacekeepers wounded.
It was the third roadside bomb targeting a UNIFIL convoy this year, with six Italian peacekeepers being wounded in May, while in July five French soldiers were wounded in another blast. Both occurred in the southern city of Sidon and no group has claimed responsibility for either attack.
According to the paper, ?Israeli defense officials are worried about an increase in violent activity by Hezbollah in southern Lebanon,? particularly ones involving rocket attacks aimed at Israel.
In late November, one rocket was fired from southern Lebanon and landed into Israel overnight, prompting Israeli troops to retaliate by firing six artillery shells. No group has claimed responsibility. In another incident, one woman was wounded in the south when a Katyusha rocket, apparently aimed at Israel, hit her home.
France?s Foreign Minister Alain Juppe has accused Syria of ordering the attack against the French soldiers and that Hezbollah was involved in it. However, the French official said he had no proof to back his claims.
Hezbollah denies any involvement in the attacks against U.N. peacekeepers in the south.
Lebanon?s Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn has hinted that Israel was behind the mysterious rocket attacks from south Lebanon into the Jewish State in an attempt to undermine security and stability in the area.
"Israeli defense officials believe that Juppe is right. They say Hezbollah is trying to intimidate UNIFIL, particularly the French troops ? considered especially assertive ? so that they won?t monitor Hezbollah?s activities in southern Lebanon too closely,? the Haaretz report said.
?The attacks are apparently carried out by proxies, smaller organizations, so that they cannot be linked directly to Hezbollah,? it added
The report said that such incidents indicate that Hezbollah has changed its strategy against Israel, since the resistance group had adopted a non-confrontational policy against its enemy on the border since the July-August war of 2006.
"The recent incidents could be important as a whole, indicating that Hezbollah is shedding its policy since the 2006 war. If this is so, the change stems from the worsening crisis in Syria, motivating Hezbollah?s leaders to take action, however constrained,? the report said.
Hezbollah?s chief Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah has warned that any attack against Syria or Iran would engulf the entire region, hinting that his group would interfere if one of its allies was attacked.?
?Hezbollah is in a turbulent state,? an Israeli defense official was quoted by Haaretz as saying. ?On the one hand, Assad?s regime faces collapse; on the other, Iran has been forced to cut back its financial aid to the organization due to the international sanctions that Tehran faces.
?Under such circumstances, Hezbollah is liable to make a mistake and pursue courses of action that would further complicate its situation," the official added.
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Japan: decommission of Fukushima to take 30-40 years (Reuters)
TOKYO (Reuters) ? Japan said on Wednesday it aims to decommission the tsunami-stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant over 30-40 years, as it unveiled the next phase in its cleanup plan for the complex.
After months of efforts Japan said last week that the Fukushima reactors were in a state of cold shutdown, when water cooling them is stable below boiling point, and that radiation at the plant's boundaries could now be kept at low levels.
Removal of spent fuel from the facility will begin within the next two years, the government said on Wednesday, with removal of fuel debris from the damaged reactors starting within 10 years.
The Fukushima Daiichi plant, 240 km (150 miles) northeast of Tokyo, was wrecked on March 11 by a huge earthquake and a towering tsunami which knocked out its cooling systems, triggering meltdowns, radiation leaks and mass evacuations.
The Japanese government plans to take a stake of more than two-thirds in Tepco in a de facto nationalization of the utility, the Yomiuri newspaper said on Wednesday.
Trade Minister Yukio Edano said the total cost of the long-running cleanup was unclear but that plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co Inc should shoulder in the financial burden.
"It is difficult to estimate the cost of the plant clean up at this stage. That is why cost estimates were not included in the medium to long-term roadmap," Edano told a news conference.
"We may at some point draw a clearer cost estimate but it would be difficult to make estimates of something four decades down the line in just one or two years from now."
(Reporting by Shinichi Saoshiro; Editing by Joseph Radford)
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Thursday, December 22, 2011
Monday, December 19, 2011
Gingrich, Romney begin final pitches (AP)
WASHINGTON ? Republican president hopeful Newt Gingrich doubled down on his criticism of federal judges and the Supreme Court on Sunday as chief rival Mitt Romney defended his record against likely Democratic attacks. With close to two weeks before GOP voters start choosing their nominee, Gingrich is courting the conservative primary voters he will need to win in Iowa and sustain his campaign against Romney, whose superior organization and pile of cash has him seeming ever more confident as he looks ahead to the general election.
"There is steady encroachment of secularism through the courts to redefine America as a nonreligious country and the encroachment of the courts on the president's commander-in-chief powers, which is enormously dangerous," Gingrich said on CBS's Face the Nation.
Polls in Iowa and nationally show Gingrich ahead of Romney in the race for the GOP nomination. Gingrich has acknowledged that Romney's repeated attacks have taken a toll on his campaign and is looking to stay at the top.
To do that, Gingrich is focusing on ideology as he courts the Iowa conservatives he needs to win the caucuses and challenge Romney's well-organized campaign in what could become a drawn-out primary. He has mounted a broad attack on federal judges and the Supreme Court, arguing that they are legislating from the bench and have more control over the country than they should. It's an argument that drew sustained applause during a debate last week in Sioux City, Iowa ? and one that could have particular resonance in a state where Republicans fought a protracted battle with state Supreme Court judges over gay marriage.
"The Manchester Union Leader which is a reliably conservative newspaper endorsed me and the Des Moines Register, which is a solidly liberal newspaper did not endorse me," Gingrich said Sunday. "I think that indicates who the conservative in this race is."
The Register, which typically has a left-leaning editorial board, endorsed Romney Saturday night.
The two Republican front-runners for the nomination focused on President Barack Obama and defending their own records in separate TV interviews. It was a shift from recent weeks where the two have attacked each other, trading accusations about each other's' records and the money each has made.
In a rare appearance on a Sunday news program, meanwhile, Romney portrayed himself as the GOP candidate who is best able to defeat Obama next year. Romney defended his years making millions in private business, claiming he'll be able to handle attacks from Democrats who are already trying to paint him as wealthy and out-of-touch. And he argued that his tax proposal is kinder to the middle class and less generous to the rich than the flat tax proposals his rivals ? including Gingrich ? are backing.
"The president's going to go after me," Romney said on Fox News Sunday. "I'll go after him."
Taken together, the pair has set up a choice for Republican primary voters between a candidate who has struggled to excite the conservative base but emphasizes his appeal to the independents the party will need to win the White House ? or the candidate who sounds more conservative.
While Romney and Gingrich were on the East Coast on Sunday, their other rivals were campaigning across Iowa. Texas Gov. Rick Perry continued his bus tour across the state, as did Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum planned two town hall meetings in the conservative western portion of the state.
All were making last-ditch appeals to voters as the campaign for the caucuses enters its final weeks. As candidates met with caucusgoers, their campaigns ? and their SuperPAC allies ? were planning major ad offensives on TV. Gingrich's campaign is so far planning to spend about $14,000 on ads next week ? while his rivals and their allies planned to spend more than $1.3 million promoting themselves or attacking him.
Campaigning will continue into next week, with Gingrich also planning to spend the early part of the week in Iowa. He'll head to New Hampshire Wednesday, where Romney will already be part way through a four-day bus tour. Romney won't return to Iowa until after Christmas.
His confidence increasing, Romney has stepped away from his aggressive attacks on Gingrich in recent days, instead shifting his focus back to Obama ? and working to humanize himself on the campaign trail. That focus was on display in Sunday's interview, when Romney spoke emotionally about his wife's struggle with multiple sclerosis.
He said the "toughest time" in his life was standing in the doctor's office waiting for her diagnosis. He said he feared she had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease, a fatal degenerative nerve condition.
The doctor "did these neurological tests, and then he ? and we could see that she had real balance problems and she didn't have feeling in places she should have feeling," Romney said. "And he stepped out of the room, and we stood up and hugged each other, and I said to her, `As long as it's not something fatal, I'm just fine. Look, I'm happy in life as long as I've got my soul mate with me.'"
After her diagnosis, Ann Romney was concerned that she wouldn't be able to do things that she had in the past. "And I said, `Look, I don't care what the meals are like, you know, I like cold cereal and peanut butter sandwiches,'" Romney said. "We could do fine with that as long as we have each other. And if you think about what makes a difference to you in your life, it's people. Life is all about the people you love."
Gingrich, meanwhile, was relaxed and jovial in his CBS interview with Bob Schieffer. He acknowledged his comeback has exceeded even his own expectations. Earlier this year top campaign aides and consultants resigned en masse and his White House bid was burdened with deep debt.
"As we were sliding down. I thought I could fight my way back up to being in the top three or four," said Gingrich, now a front-runner for the nomination. "But I think positive ideas and positive solutions... have attracted people. I think they like the idea of someone who's determined to be positive."
__
McCaffrey reported from Atlanta.
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Sunday, December 18, 2011
First comprehensive DNA study of mast cell leukemia uncovers clues that could improve therapy
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Public release date: 16-Dec-2011[ | E-mail |
Share ] Contact: Hema Bashyam
bashyam@cshl.edu
516-367-6822
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Sequencing a cancer patient's 'exome' reveals mutations critical for improving diagnostic power and targeted therapy
Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y. Cancer researchers at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) have carried out the first comprehensive study of the changes seen in the DNA of a patient with mast cell leukemia (MCL), an extremely aggressive subtype of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with a very poor prognosis.
Their genomic survey has helped identify two previously unknown mutations that could directly influence patient response to currently available therapeutic drugs.
The details uncovered by the study not only suggest a diagnostic improvement and an alternative treatment strategy for MCL, but could also serve as a springboard for novel diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for other cancers such as lymphoma.
"This is incredibly exciting because we've gone from knowing very little about the genetics of MCL to uncovering information that could directly benefit patients diagnosed with MCL," says Research Investigator Mona Spector, Ph.D., who led the team's efforts.
The study, which appears online in the journal Leukemia on December 16, is a collaboration between cancer researchers at CSHL and clinicians led by Steven L. Allen, MD, FACP, associate chief of hematology at North Shore-LIJ's Monter Cancer Center and associate investigator at The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research. "This collaboration between the North Shore-LIJ Health System and CSHL allows us to increase medical knowledge and make innovative discoveries that may lead to new treatments for patients who are living with AML," says Allen.
Made possible in large part by funding from the Don Monti Memorial Research Foundation, "the goal of this collaboration was to sequence patient DNA to find information about individual cancers that could be used to improve or design patient-specific treatment strategies," explains CSHL Adjunct Professor and HHMI Investigator Scott Lowe, Ph.D.
In this study, the CSHL scientists used two approaches to identify genetic changes seen in an MCL patient who succumbed to the disease about three months after diagnosis. MCL is characterized by out-of-control proliferation of transformed mast cells the same immune system cells that are notorious for their release of histamine during an allergic response.
In one approach, the CSHL team used a method called array comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH) to identify copy number variationsgenomic alterations that result in an abnormal number of copies of one or more sections of DNAin the leukemic mast cells. In a second approach, the team sequenced the majority of the "exome," the "exons" which are the DNA sequences that encode for protein (only about 2% of the genome).
This enabled them to identify mutations that result in the difference of a single nucleotide, or chemical "rung" in the DNA "ladder," between the patient's normal and tumor cells. These mutations often result in the production of aberrant proteins and can cause a cell to grow uncontrollably.
Bioinformatic analysis of the gigabytes of sequencing data by CSHL Fellow Ivan Iossifov, Ph.D., revealed the differences between the two genomes. Although several of the mutations occur within genes that have been previously linked to cancer, Spector immediately zeroed in on the mutations in two genes, KIT and MS4A2.
"MCL patients are screened for a mutation in the KIT gene that occurs at a specific amino acid referred to as D816V. This mutation not only spurs uncontrolled mast cell proliferation but also causes resistance to imatinib, a drug that works against some forms of leukemia; so patients with this mutation would normally not be treated with this drug," explains Spector.
"Our analysis showed that this patient, who lacked D816V and therefore received the drug, actually had a different KIT mutation called V654A, which may also cause resistance to the drug. Had this information been known before, the patient might have been treated differently and been spared the drug's side-effects." Spector hopes that this information might now encourage physicians to screen MCL patients for both KIT mutations.
The second mutation of interest occurs within the MS4A2 gene, which encodes for a protein that is part of a receptor that sits on a mast cell's surface and is required for its survival. The mutation identified by Spector occurs within the region of the protein that is essential both for its presence on the cell's surface, and more importantly, for triggering intracellular signaling by the enzyme Syk kinase. So Spector suspects that the MS4A2 mutation might be an "activating" mutation that may constantly keep the Syk signal in an "on" state, thereby prolonging the mast cell's life and eventually leading to cancer.
"If we prove this to be the case, then our finding could be therapeutically exploited because there already is a drug that blocks Syk signaling that has shown efficacy in a clinical trial for lymphoma," says Spector. She also observes that their findings might have implications beyond MCL. "For example, Syk signaling is also important in another type of immune cell called B cells, so researchers studying B cell cancers might also want to now look for mutations in genes within this pathway to identify patients who might respond to the Syk inhibitor drug," she says.
###
The study was supported by funding from the Don Monti Memorial Research Foundation and The Ryan Gibson Foundation.
"Mast-cell leukemia exome sequencing reveals a mutation in the IgE mast-cell receptor b chain and KIT V654A," appears online ahead of print in Leukemia on December 16. The full citation is: MS Spector, I Iossifov, A Kritharis, C He, JE Kolitz, SW Lowe and SL Allen. The paper can be downloaded at: http://www.nature.com/leu/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/leu2011354a.html
About Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Founded in 1890, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) has shaped contemporary biomedical research and education with programs in cancer, neuroscience, plant biology and quantitative biology. CSHL is ranked number one in the world by Thomson Reuters for impact of its research in molecular biology and genetics. The Laboratory has been home to eight Nobel Prize winners. Today, CSHL's multidisciplinary scientific community is more than 350 scientists strong and its Meetings & Courses program hosts more than 11,000 scientists from around the world each year. Tens of thousands more benefit from the research, reviews, and ideas published in journals and books distributed internationally by CSHL Press. The Laboratory's education arm also includes a graduate school and programs for undergraduates as well as middle and high school students and teachers. CSHL is a private, not-for-profit institution on the north shore of Long Island. For more information, visit http://www.cshl.edu.
[ | E-mail | Share ] ?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Public release date: 16-Dec-2011[ | E-mail |
Share ] Contact: Hema Bashyam
bashyam@cshl.edu
516-367-6822
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Sequencing a cancer patient's 'exome' reveals mutations critical for improving diagnostic power and targeted therapy
Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y. Cancer researchers at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) have carried out the first comprehensive study of the changes seen in the DNA of a patient with mast cell leukemia (MCL), an extremely aggressive subtype of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with a very poor prognosis.
Their genomic survey has helped identify two previously unknown mutations that could directly influence patient response to currently available therapeutic drugs.
The details uncovered by the study not only suggest a diagnostic improvement and an alternative treatment strategy for MCL, but could also serve as a springboard for novel diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for other cancers such as lymphoma.
"This is incredibly exciting because we've gone from knowing very little about the genetics of MCL to uncovering information that could directly benefit patients diagnosed with MCL," says Research Investigator Mona Spector, Ph.D., who led the team's efforts.
The study, which appears online in the journal Leukemia on December 16, is a collaboration between cancer researchers at CSHL and clinicians led by Steven L. Allen, MD, FACP, associate chief of hematology at North Shore-LIJ's Monter Cancer Center and associate investigator at The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research. "This collaboration between the North Shore-LIJ Health System and CSHL allows us to increase medical knowledge and make innovative discoveries that may lead to new treatments for patients who are living with AML," says Allen.
Made possible in large part by funding from the Don Monti Memorial Research Foundation, "the goal of this collaboration was to sequence patient DNA to find information about individual cancers that could be used to improve or design patient-specific treatment strategies," explains CSHL Adjunct Professor and HHMI Investigator Scott Lowe, Ph.D.
In this study, the CSHL scientists used two approaches to identify genetic changes seen in an MCL patient who succumbed to the disease about three months after diagnosis. MCL is characterized by out-of-control proliferation of transformed mast cells the same immune system cells that are notorious for their release of histamine during an allergic response.
In one approach, the CSHL team used a method called array comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH) to identify copy number variationsgenomic alterations that result in an abnormal number of copies of one or more sections of DNAin the leukemic mast cells. In a second approach, the team sequenced the majority of the "exome," the "exons" which are the DNA sequences that encode for protein (only about 2% of the genome).
This enabled them to identify mutations that result in the difference of a single nucleotide, or chemical "rung" in the DNA "ladder," between the patient's normal and tumor cells. These mutations often result in the production of aberrant proteins and can cause a cell to grow uncontrollably.
Bioinformatic analysis of the gigabytes of sequencing data by CSHL Fellow Ivan Iossifov, Ph.D., revealed the differences between the two genomes. Although several of the mutations occur within genes that have been previously linked to cancer, Spector immediately zeroed in on the mutations in two genes, KIT and MS4A2.
"MCL patients are screened for a mutation in the KIT gene that occurs at a specific amino acid referred to as D816V. This mutation not only spurs uncontrolled mast cell proliferation but also causes resistance to imatinib, a drug that works against some forms of leukemia; so patients with this mutation would normally not be treated with this drug," explains Spector.
"Our analysis showed that this patient, who lacked D816V and therefore received the drug, actually had a different KIT mutation called V654A, which may also cause resistance to the drug. Had this information been known before, the patient might have been treated differently and been spared the drug's side-effects." Spector hopes that this information might now encourage physicians to screen MCL patients for both KIT mutations.
The second mutation of interest occurs within the MS4A2 gene, which encodes for a protein that is part of a receptor that sits on a mast cell's surface and is required for its survival. The mutation identified by Spector occurs within the region of the protein that is essential both for its presence on the cell's surface, and more importantly, for triggering intracellular signaling by the enzyme Syk kinase. So Spector suspects that the MS4A2 mutation might be an "activating" mutation that may constantly keep the Syk signal in an "on" state, thereby prolonging the mast cell's life and eventually leading to cancer.
"If we prove this to be the case, then our finding could be therapeutically exploited because there already is a drug that blocks Syk signaling that has shown efficacy in a clinical trial for lymphoma," says Spector. She also observes that their findings might have implications beyond MCL. "For example, Syk signaling is also important in another type of immune cell called B cells, so researchers studying B cell cancers might also want to now look for mutations in genes within this pathway to identify patients who might respond to the Syk inhibitor drug," she says.
###
The study was supported by funding from the Don Monti Memorial Research Foundation and The Ryan Gibson Foundation.
"Mast-cell leukemia exome sequencing reveals a mutation in the IgE mast-cell receptor b chain and KIT V654A," appears online ahead of print in Leukemia on December 16. The full citation is: MS Spector, I Iossifov, A Kritharis, C He, JE Kolitz, SW Lowe and SL Allen. The paper can be downloaded at: http://www.nature.com/leu/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/leu2011354a.html
About Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Founded in 1890, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) has shaped contemporary biomedical research and education with programs in cancer, neuroscience, plant biology and quantitative biology. CSHL is ranked number one in the world by Thomson Reuters for impact of its research in molecular biology and genetics. The Laboratory has been home to eight Nobel Prize winners. Today, CSHL's multidisciplinary scientific community is more than 350 scientists strong and its Meetings & Courses program hosts more than 11,000 scientists from around the world each year. Tens of thousands more benefit from the research, reviews, and ideas published in journals and books distributed internationally by CSHL Press. The Laboratory's education arm also includes a graduate school and programs for undergraduates as well as middle and high school students and teachers. CSHL is a private, not-for-profit institution on the north shore of Long Island. For more information, visit http://www.cshl.edu.
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-12/cshl-fcd121611.php
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