Cardiovascular Disease

WewelcomeyoutolearnaboutCardiovascularHealth.Here,youcanseetheartworkinspired bywhatwehavelearned,readhealthplansforthosefacingcardiovasculardiseaseandlistento firstpersonaccountsoflivingwithcaringforotherswithcardiovascularconditions.

Biologically speaking, What happens when you have a cardiovascular condition?

Cardiovasculardiseaseshavealargevarietyofcauses,lifestylefactorssuchasdiet,stress, outsideinfections,andhereditaryfactors.WhenonehasCardiovasculardisease,theheart, arteries,veinsandcapillariesarenegativelyaffected. Therearemanygeneticvariantsthatcontributetodiseaseandmostdealwithcomplexfactors suchasinflammation,lipidmetabolismandbloodpressure.Inmostcases,heartdisease includescarotidcalcification,plaque,increasedlevelsoflipoproteinsandinflammationfrom Creactiveproteins.

What research is being done into cardiovascular health?

Researchisbeingconductedinsomanywaysasseeninourresearcherinterviews.This includesworkingwithstemcells,whichcanbecomeanycellinthebody,inflammation response,geneticsandgenomicsandclinicalstudies. Otherresearchersarestudyingdrugtherapiessuchasuseofbetablockers,whichtargetbeta receptorsinheartcells.Thebetareceptorsleadtostressontheorgan,whichisstimulatedby adrenaline.Thebetablockerspreventthebindingoftheadrenalineandthebetareceptors.

WhatcanIdorightnowtolimitmydangerofgettinga cardiovasculardisease?
D.A.S.H.diet(DietaryApproachestoStopHypertension)isintendedtobealifelonglifestyle changespeciallyformulatedforpeoplewhoareatahighriskforcardiovascularproblemsor hypertension.Thedietincludesspecificdailysodiumintakerequirementsdependingonthe individualsage,height,activity,andgeneticbackground.Lowfatandlowsodiumdietsaregood formostpeople.Anotherthingyouwanttomakesureyoudoisget30minutesofmoderate exerciseadayandstayawayfromdrinkingandsmoking.Stayingactivewillkeepyourheart pumpingandyourbloodflowing,helpingthearteriesstayunclogged.

Diabetes
WewelcomeyoutolearnaboutDiabetes.Here,youcanseetheartworkinspiredbywhatwe havelearned,readaboutcurrentresearch,seepreventionplansandlistentofirstperson accountsoflivingwithdiabetes,orwatchingotherpeoplelivewithit.

Biologicallyspeaking,whathappenswhenyouhavediabetes?
Yourpancreasproduceshormonescalledinsulin.Insulinhormonesregulateyourbloodsugar andhelpsyourcellsconvertglucosemoleculesintocellenergy.Diabetescausescellstoresist theinsulinproducingcells,sothatglucosebuildsupinyourblood.Thiscancauselongterm problems,includingnerveandkidneydamage. TheSulfonylureaReceptor(ABCC8)isagenefoundinthebetacellsofthepancreasthat increasesthereleaseofinsulinwheninteractingwithaclassofdrugsnamedSulfonylurea. WhenABCC8becomesmutated,thebetacellscannotreleaseinsulin.ABCC8isanimportant partofATPSensitivepotassiumchannels,orKATP,whicharefoundinthepancreasandare responsibleforsecretionofinsulinbyasignalofglucosemetabolism,orATP.WhenABCC8is mutated,theresultcanbeanincreasedsecretionofinsulin.Thesameholdstrueforamutation intheKCNJ11genethiscanresultinchangesinsecretionofinsulin.

Whatresearchiscurrentlybeingdoneintodiabetes?
DiabetesresearchishighlyvariablewithsomepeopletargetingType1andotherstargeting Type2.ResearchersatJohnsHopkinsUniversityarecurrentlyworkingonthepreventionor delayofpeopleatriskforType1Diabetes.Theyhavecreatedasystemthatscreensrelativesof peoplewithtype1Diabetestodetermineiftheyareatrisk.Relativesofpeoplewhocarrythe diseasehavea5%chanceoftestingpositiveforautoantibodiesthatareassociatedwithType1 Diabetes.Thescreeningistestedthroughablooddrawandwhichisthenscreenedforforthree specificautoantibodies:AD65A,IA2AandmIAA.Theseautoantibodiescanshowresultsten yearsbeforetheDiabetesactuallydevelops.Iftheresultsarefoundpositiveforanyofthethree autoantibodies,thepatientisofferedadditionalscreening.

WhatcanIdorightnowtolimitmydangerofgettingdiabetes?
Topreventahigherriskofbeingdiagnosedwithdiabetes,youshouldmakesuretomaintaina healthydietthatincludesenoughproteins,lipids,andcomplexcarbohydrates,andkeepyour weightundercontrol.Unhealthyeatingandasedentarylifestyleincreaseyourriskofacquiring Type2Diabetes.

NeurologicalDiseases
WewelcomeyoutolearnaboutNeurologicalHealth.Here,youcanseetheartworkinspiredby whatwehavelearnedaboutNeurology,readaboutcurrentresearchandlistentofirstperson accountsofeitherlivingwithaneurologicaldisease,orwatchingotherpeoplelivewithit.

Biologically speaking, what happens when you have a neurological disease?

Thenervoussystemismadeupbythebrain,spinalcord,andnerves.Thenervoussystem controlsalltheworkingsofthebody,includingmoving,speaking,breathing,etc.Itcanalso causeyoutohaveproblemswithyourmemory,senses,ormood.Eachindividualsystemrelies upontheharmoniousinterplayoftheotherstoensurethebodyfunctionsnormally.Thereare11 systemsinthehumanbody.Thebrainistheconnectionbetweenallofthesesystems,sowhen somethinggoeswronginthebrain,everythingcanfallapart. ThegeneAPOEe4isassociatedwithincreasedriskforneurologicaldiseases,specifically Alzheimer'sdisease,whileAPOEe2hasbeenassociatedwithdecreasedriskforneurological diseases.Thisgeneisresponsibleforprovidinginformationformakingaproteincalled apolipoproteinE,wherethetermAPOEisderivedfrom.TheAPOEe4genehasbeenknownto resultinproteinclumpscalledamyloidplaquesthatcanhavenegativeeffectsonthebrain.

What research is currently being done into neurology?

Thereareseveralstudiesthatarecurrentlyintheprocessofunderstandingselectneurological diseases.Anunderstandingoffundamentalneurologicalprocessesisveryimportantinlearning aboutthedevelopmentandisalsobetterwayofrestoringfunctionsthatwerelostdueto neurologicaldiseases.Theseeffortscanincludeusingmodelstounderstandpossibletherapies forneurologicaldiseasesbytestingdevicesthatcansupplementorcircumventimpaired neurons.Scientistsusecellularbiologyand3Dcellandtissueanalysistooptimizefunctionof brainimplantsthattreatneurologicaldiseases.

WhatcanIdorightnowtolimitmydangerofgetting a neurological disease?

Oneofthebestwaystolimityourriskofgettinganeurologicaldiseaseistoworkoutyourbrain. Anysmalltaskslikepainting,cleaning,reading,orplayingcardgamescanalsohelpyouprevent gettinganeurologicaldisease.Exerciseandkeepingabalanceddietaregreatwaystokeepthe brainhealthyanddiseasefree.

Cancer
WewelcomeyoutolearnaboutCancer!Here,youcanseetheartworkinspiredbywhatwe havelearnedaboutcancer,readaboutcurrentresearchandlistentofirstpersonaccountsof thoselivingwithcancer,orwatchingotherpeoplelivewithit.

Biologically speaking, what happens when you have cancer?

Normalcellsgrow,divide,and,beforetoolong,die.Thiskeepsthebodyworkingcorrectly.Ifthe DNAofacellismutatedorchanged,theabnormalcellscanoccupyothertissues.Newcellsare madewhenthebodydoesnotneedthemoroldcellsdon'tdiewhentheyshould.Thesemutated cancercellscanspreadthroughthebloodandlymphsystemstootherorgans.Theextracells formagroupoftissuecalledagrowthortumor.

What research is currently being done into cancer?

ResearchersallaroundtheworldarelookingatCancerinmanydifferentways.Lookingat CancerusingGenomicshasledtoanewandbetterunderstandingofthedisease.AtSidney KimmelComprehensiveCancerCenterareinvestigatingthemutationsinthep53gene,where thatmutationhasbeenfoundinseventypercentofalllungcancerpatients.Thep53gene createsaprotein,p53,whichregulatesDNAdamageinthecelldivisioncycle. AMarylandteenagerdevelopedasystemfordetectingcancer.Hemadewasasmallpieceof papercoatedwithantibodiesspecificallydesignedtorecognizedifferentproteinsintheblood causedbypancreaticcancer.Hisnewmethodis28timescheaperand90%effective. Howevermanymoreyearsofresearcharestillneededbeforethisnewandeffectiveearly detectionsysteminpublic.

What can I do right now to limit my danger of getting cancer?

Restrictinghowcarcinogenscontactthebodyisessential.Radiation,certainchemicalssuchas fromcigarettesandcertainvirusescontributetocancer.Inadditionfattissuescausethebodyto createlevelsofestrogenandinsulinthatarehigherthannormal.Estrogenfeedscancerouscells andfacilitatescancergrowth,whileinsulincausescancercellstogrowmorequickly.Dietshigh invegetablesandfoodswithlotsoffiberandantioxidantsmayhelptocombattheeffectsof carcinogensmetonadailybasis.