Natural Dog Toothpaste Ingredients

As mentioned above, there’s a very important reason why all the ingredients in a dog toothpaste should be natural. Anything you put in your dog’s mouth will end up in your dog’s stomach. It’s essential to make sure those ingredients are doing good for your dog’s overall health, rather than simply cleaning the teeth but creating even bigger internal problems.

There are several chemicals that are commonly used as ingredients in oral care products. Although many of these compounds have been used for years their long term use can be considered rather harsh on the body compared to organic substances used in all natural dog oral care products. For example grain alcohol and glycerin are fairly harsh substance that should be avoided. Dog oral care products including Plaque Attack and PetzLife are popular dog oral care products with very different formulations. Dog owners should read the ingredients carefully to determine the formulation they believe is the safest for their dog’s health.

Research has discovered particular ingredients that do several positive jobs: they clean the teeth, freshen the dog’s breath and promote overall immunity and health. Bad dog breath is easily treated utilizing new advanced formulations containing the proper substances.
One of these is grape seed extract, one of the super nutrients of dog nutrition. This nutrient works as a powerful antibacterial which kills off bad bacteria (the cause of bad breath) in a dog’s mouth while preserving good bacteria. It’s also a strong antioxidant which helps slow the breakdown of cells in the dog’s body.

Neem oil and thyme oil are two more ingredients you should keep an eye out for when looking for a good dog toothpaste. Like grapes seed extract, they help kill off particular types of bad bacteria which contribute to bad smells in your dog’s mouth.

You should also look for a dog toothpaste or mouth spray that contains a few freshening ingredients. Peppermint oil and rosemary oil are two healthy, natural ingredients which help freshen your dog’s breath.

More Tips for Cleaning Dogs’ Teeth Naturally

The standard method of cleaning dog teeth to treat bad breath in dogs is similar to cleaning your own: with a toothbrush. However, some dogs are resistant to having a brush poked into their mouth. If you own one of these dogs, don’t worry – we’ll explain some of the alternatives as well.

To brush your dog’s teeth, hold the toothbrush in your right hand (or whichever hand your prefer) and put that arm around your dog to hold his body in place. With the left hand, cup under his jaw to hold his head still and get in the right position to peel his gums back. Don’t expect this to go smoothly the first time you try it, but keep attempting this method until the dog plays along.

If he doesn’t get used to the toothbrush, you have a couple of alternatives. One is dog dental wipes. These help remove plaque and food stuck between the teeth, but they’re more gentle than brushing. However, you may find these don’t deal with the problem of bad dog breath.

In that case, there are sprays available which contain all the natural ingredients listed above. These sprays will effectively do the job of killing bacteria and freshening breath.

genome-initial studies

A Brief Overview

Though surprising to many, the Human Genome Project (HGP) traces its roots to an initiative in the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Since 1947, DOE and its predecessor agencies have been charged by Congress with developing new energy resources and technologies and pursuing a deeper understanding of potential health and environmental risks posed by their production and use. Such studies, for example, have provided the scientific basis for individual risk assessments of nuclear medicine technologies.

In 1986, DOE took a bold step in announcing the Human Genome Initiative, convinced that its missions would be well served by a reference human genome sequence. Shortly thereafter, DOE joined with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop a plan for a joint HGP that officially began in 1990. During the early years of the HGP, the Wellcome Trust, a private charitable institution in the United Kingdom, joined the effort as a major partner. Important contributions also came from other collaborators around the world, including Japan, France, Germany, and China.

Ambitious Goals

The HGP’s ultimate goal was to generate a high-quality reference DNA sequence for the human genome‘s 3 billion base pairs and to identify all human genes. Other important goals included sequencing the genomes of model organisms to interpret human DNA, enhancing computational resources to support future research and commercial applications, exploring gene function through mouse-human comparisons, studying human variation, and training future scientists in genomics.

The powerful analytic technology and data arising from the HGP raise complex ethical and policy issues for individuals and society. These challenges include privacy, fairness in use and access of genomic information, reproductive and clinical issues, and commercialization (see p. 8). Programs that identify and address these implications have been an integral part of the HGP and have become a model for bioethics programs worldwide.

A Lasting Legacy

In June 2000, to much excitement and fanfare, scientists announced the completion of the first working draft of the entire human genome. First analysis of the details appeared in the February 2001 issues of the journals Nature and Science. The high-quality reference sequence was completed in April 2003, marking the end of the Human Genome Project—2 years ahead of the original schedule. Coincidentally, this was also the 50th anniversary of Watson and Crick’s publication of DNA structure that launched the era of molecular biology.

Available to researchers worldwide, the human genome reference sequence provides a magnificent and unprecedented biological resource that will serve throughout the century as a basis for research and discovery and, ultimately, myriad practical applications. The sequence already is having an impact on finding genes associated with human disease (see p. 3). Hundreds of other genome sequence projects—on microbes, plants, and animals—have been completed since the inception of the HGP, and these data now enable detailed comparisons among organisms, including humans.

Many more sequencing projects are under way or planned because of the research value of DNA sequence, the tremendous sequencing capacity now available, and continued improvements in technologies. Sequencing projects on the genomes of many microbes, as well as the honeybee, cow, and chicken are in progress.

Beyond sequencing, growing areas of research focus on identifying important elements in the DNA sequence responsible for regulating cellular functions and providing the basis of human variation. Perhaps the most daunting challenge is to begin to understand how all the “parts” of cells—genes, proteins, and many other molecules—work together to create complex living organisms. Future analyses on this treasury of data will provide a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of the molecular processes underlying life and will have an enduring and profound impact on how we view our own place in it.

DNA from all organisms is made up of the same chemical and physical components. The DNA sequence is the particular side-by-side arrangement of bases along the DNA strand (e.g., ATTCCGGA). This order spells out the exact instructions required to create a particular organism with its own unique traits.

The genome is an organism’s complete set of DNA. Genomes vary widely in size: the smallest known genome for a free-living organism (a bacterium) contains about 600,000 DNA base pairs, while human and mouse genomes have some 3 billion .Except for mature red blood cells, all human cells contain a complete genome.

DNA in the human genome is arranged into 24 distinct chromosomes–physically separate molecules that range in length from about 50 million to 250 million base pairs. A few types of major chromosomal abnormalities, including missing or extra copies or gross breaks and rejoinings (translocations), can be detected by microscopic examination. Most changes in DNA, however, are more subtle and require a closer analysis of the DNA molecule to find perhaps single-base differences.

Each chromosome contains many genes, the basic physical and functional units of heredity. Genes are specific sequences of bases that encode instructions on how to make proteins. Genes comprise only about 2% of the human genome; the remainder consists of non-coding regions, whose functions may include providing chromosomal structural integrity and regulating where, when, and in what quantity proteins are made. The human genome is estimated to contain 20,000-25,000 genes.

Although genes get a lot of attention, it’s the proteins that perform most life functions and even make up the majority of cellular structures. Proteins are large, complex molecules made up of smaller subunits called amino acids. Chemical properties that distinguish the 20 different amino acids cause the protein chains to fold up into specific three-dimensional structures that define their particular functions in the cell.

The constellation of all proteins in a cell is called its proteome. Unlike the relatively unchanging genome, the dynamic proteome changes from minute to minute in response to tens of thousands of intra- and extracellular environmental signals. A protein’s chemistry and behavior are specified by the gene sequence and by the number and identities of other proteins made in the same cell at the same time and with which it associates and reacts. Studies to explore protein structure and activities, known as proteomics, will be the focus of much research for decades to come and will help elucidate the molecular basis of health and disease.

“It’s hard to exaggerate the importance of this announcement,” says Dr. Michael Hayden, Director and Senior Scientist at the Centre for Molecular Medicine and a professor of medical genetics at the University of British Columbia. “This is going to be the heralding of medicine that is predictive and will allow us to understand more about the environment we live in.”

Though the direct benefits from this knowledge will be noticed further down the road, it’s tantalizing now to think about what it could make possible.

So what does this mean for the average person? “The immediate benefit is having a complete map of all the genes in a human being,” says Dr. Michael Smith, Nobel Laureate and Director of the BC Cancer Agency’s Genome Sequence Centre in Vancouver. “Until you knew all the bones in your skeleton, you’d never hope to understand how a human being fits together. So until you understand all the genes, you don’t have a listing of all the information that can be used to make a brain or a kidney or a liver. The big excitement now is really about the prospects for advancements that this new information will make possible.”

Essentially, the possible benefits from the announced information break down into four areas: the ability to perform genetic diagnostic tests, personalized drug manufacturing, gene therapy and highly controversial genetic engineering.

Diagnostic tests or genetic screening may be one of the first practical uses for this new information. A single drop of blood would be all that is necessary to screen for elements that may make a person susceptible to heart disease or certain kinds of cancer – widely believed to be influenced by genetic factors. With the more detailed tests the new genome information may soon make possible, high-risk patients could be identified earlier in time to make lifestyle changes that could prevent future illness.

Another exciting prospect is the introduction of tailor-made drugs that would be more effective for more patients and contain fewer side effects for each individual. More than two million people in the U.S. are hospitalized each year due to reactions to medication – more than 100,000 of those die. The new genome data could help identify groups of people more prone to reaction. Perhaps most important, the human genome data has the ability to help identify new targets on which drugs can act on disease for individuals. Even if a drug is just ineffective for a certain group, the cost savings benefit alone would be impressive.

Using genes themselves as medicine is the most direct way the new information may benefit you. Though it carries significant risks to patients, gene therapy could still be invaluable for fighting single-gene disorders, such as cystic fibrosis. In that case, the new information could be used to identify the abnormal cystic fibrosis gene and replace it with the healthy one that should be there.

Finally, the new genome information could make various forms of genetic engineering faster and easier. It could even make controversial techniques like germ-line engineering – the editing of DNA inheritance passed down from one generation to the next – more of a possibility. Such a technique would involve identifying an abnormal gene and then correcting that gene in eggs and sperm. Though this is by far the most debated of the uses for the human genome map, it would mean that no further generations would be affected by any genetic defects from their ancestors.

Despite the universe of ethical questions that some uses for the new genome information will undoubtedly raise, there is little doubt that the findings of human genome research efforts will soon begin to change our lives.

“We’re going to be able to look at biology on a much more molecular level,” says Smith. “We’ll be able to recognize much earlier when things aren’t working properly. It’s hard to say it’s going to cure cancer next year. That wouldn’t be true. But I think it will certainly accelerate progress that’s already taking place.”

]]> http://scienceniche.com/type/research/necessity-understanding-of-human-genome.html/feed 0 http://scienceniche.com/life-science/genetics/sperm-selection-procedure-for-fertilization.html http://scienceniche.com/life-science/genetics/sperm-selection-procedure-for-fertilization.html#comments Wed, 28 Apr 2010 20:49:20 +0000 ScienceMan http://scienceniche.com/?p=5305

It is evident that, a physiological mechanism allows the targeting and elimination of a sub-population of abnormal sperm- among mice, during fertilization.This mechanism, established by the sperm themselves, increases the chances of fertilization and reduces the risk of fertilization with a sperm defect. These results were published April 26, 2010 in the Journal of Clinical Investigation by researchers at the CNRS (National Centre for Scientific Research, better known by its initials, CNRS, ) and the Inserm, belonging to the Institute of Neuroscience (Neuroscience include all the sciences needed to study the anatomy and functioning of the system.) in Grenoble, in collaboration with Japanese researchers. Transposed to humans, they would select the best sperm for assisted reproductive technologies (LDCs) and increase the chances of having a child for infertile couples.

Approximately 15% of couples have infertility problems, half of which is due to deficiencies of man. Over the last thirty years, various techniques have been developed to meet the needs of infertile couples, and now in the industrialized nations, almost 2% of children born through assisted procreation (PMA). Despite this undeniable progress, many infertile couples unable to have children. Moreover, the risk to the world  a child with a rare genetic disease, although very low, is significantly higher in children born using the techniques of LDCs . Several reasons have been cited including a higher risk of selection defective sperm in the techniques of LDCs in relation to natural selection process. In this context , the choice gametes used is of particular importance: on what criteria should they be selected?

Team containing- Christophe Arnoult, CNRS researcher in the Institute of Neurosciences, Grenoble (Inserm Unit 836, University Joseph Fourier, Grenoble), Gerard Lambeau, CNRS researcher at the Institute of Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology (CNRS / University of Nice) and the team of Makoto Murakami (The Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, Japan) have recently shown, mice, the existence of a physiological mechanism that can target and eliminate a sub-population of sperm with abnormalities on their lipid component plasma membrane. Indeed, after their entry into the female genital tract, some sperm are released during maturation enzyme called phospholipase A2 group X secreted This destroys the acrosome (2) of abnormal spermatozoa, which makes them unable to fuse with the oocyte. They are thus rendered infertile and excluded from the ” race (Race: This word has several meanings, all related to the movement.) at fertilization.

The researchers conducted experiments to show that the absence of secreted phospholipase A2 group X (genetically modified animals or inhibition by specific antagonists) decreases the rate of fertilization and embryonic development alters. Conversely, if we add a high concentration of enzyme in a synthetic population of spermatozoa, we observed an increase in fertilization rate of 30% in a very fertile animal model (normal mice) and 100% in a model infertile animals (inbred mice in which the reproduction rate is very low). The enzyme can therefore effectively eliminate much of defective sperm.

These works reveal the “cooperative work” of sperm sorting themselves mutually to reduce defective sperm during fertilization. They also highlight the importance of the lipid membrane of the sperm into the mechanisms of sperm maturation and fertilization.

Researchers will now study the efficacy and safety of treatment of sperm by phospholipase A2 group X secreted in a primate model. Applications for the use of such molecules (phospholipase A2) in the context of assisted reproduction and contraception have been patented.

If their work is validated, then this discovery could allow humans to improve the techniques of medically assisted procreation (PMA). The quality of sperm membrane lipids could indeed be a new criterion used by practitioners who select sperm for these techniques. They could thus increase their efficiency, and therefore the chances of success, and help reduce the risk of birth defects among children born through the PMA.

Hopes are now turning to the 10th Conference of the CBD to be held in October 2010 in Nagoya, Japan.



Institute Research:

The United Nations has designated 2010 as the International Year of Biodiversity. The goal is to increase public awareness of the topic of biodiversity with its many facets. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Environment Minister Norbert Röttgen along with other high-ranking guests will launch the International Year of Biodiversity at an opening ceremony in Berlin on 11 January.



Around the world, a number of events with this theme are slated to take place throughout the year on the international, national as well as local level. Germany is hosting the opening ceremony in the capacity of the current chair of the Convention on Biological Biodiversity (CBD), whereas the closing ceremony will be hosted by the then chair Japan in December 2010.



German Environment Minister Dr. Norbert Röttgen released a statement saying “The loss of biological diversity stands alongside climate change as one of the most pressing areas of global policy, and is thus one of the crucial challenges of our time. But even though we are aware of this loss and are committed to combating it at national, regional and international level, biodiversity – the wealth of our planet – continues to disappear at a dramatic rate worldwide.”



In addition to the expert discussions within the CBD, biodiversity will be addressed by environment ministers at the special session of the UNEP Governing Council, and later by heads of state and government in the special session of the UN General Assembly.

The booklet on green biotechnology in the DFG covers many elements of the broad spectrum of applications in plant genetics: plant breeding, the potential of this technique for stress tolerance of plants grown from or to their needs limited to pesticides, improved food quality, preparation of therapeutic substances for the production of drugs, cultivation of biofuels, etc.. The environmental risks of genetically modified organisms and their possible impacts on consumer health are also addressed in the document published by the DFG. The last chapter of the booklet is dedicated to economic, social, political and legal green biotechnologies.

The document pronounces strongly in favor of the cultivation of genetically modified organisms. Its authors lament the “negative” position qu’adoptent Germany and the EU towards this practice, agricultural, is a vision that they believe a handicap for global competitiveness and in the future.

Led by researcher Arthur Shapiro, Department of Entomology at the University of California Davis, these works illustrate how large populations may react to global warming. Using the result of 35 years of research, spent out twice a month to ten sites located in northern California, A. Shapiro presents statistics on more than 150 species living in diverse habitats, at different altitudes (between the sea level and the limit of tree flora).

Overall, these data show a decrease in biodiversity of the insect order on all sites around the level of the sea butterflies living in areas of higher elevations are less affected. At the edge of the tree flora, A. Shapiro has even recorded a population increase, these regions welcome the butterflies usually live at lower elevations and seeking to escape the warming climate.

According to statistical analysis made by the team of scientists, climate change can not be held solely responsible for this decline. The data show that the decline of butterflies is more important when the rural settlements have been converted to urban or suburban areas. Species unique to urban areas, has shown a resilience more important than species living only in specific habitats (rural type), records a greater decline. According to Professor Shapiro, the latter result is surprising and shows the importance of taking into account all the environmental variables.

The name “eel” in French refers to several species of fish body elongated in the genus Anguilla. Fish are catadromous, meaning they spend most of their lives in freshwater, but to travel thousands of miles to reach their spawning (breeding ground), which is located in the Ocean. Until now, the reason for this behavior is still very mysterious.

Researchers have obtained sequences of mitochondrial genomes [1] of 56 species belonging to the order Anguilliformes, which includes eels, but also Congress, the eels … They then compared these sequences with each other to establish a phylogenetic tree representing the genetic proximity of different species studied. They found that species of the genus Anguilla are part of a monophyletic group (ie, a group of species consisting of a common ancestor and all its descendants) with 47 other species, which have in common live in subtropical or tropical sea, at depths between 200 m and 3000 m. The researchers conclude that the group’s common ancestor probably lived in this type of environment. The freshwater eels have adapted to a different environment, but would then still retains the reproductive behavior of this ancestor.

It is useful to understand the life cycle of eels because many species have some economic importance (in Japan under the name of unagi, it is a very active ingredient in the kitchen) and now see their population decline is worrying.

Ian Maze, of Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York and his colleagues have studied the certain mouse molecular interaction occurring in the chromosomes of neurons in the brain and have an effect on the expression of various genes. They found that chronic exposure to cocaine led to the reduction of some form of lysine methylation of histones, a biochemical modification of parts of chromosomes in the nucleus accumbens. This reduction of methylation increases the plasticity of certain neurons, which facilitates their connection to others and increases the preference of mice for cocaine.



The researchers say that a better understanding of genes regulated by these processes could help develop more effective treatments for addiction disorders.



Definition of Dennis S. Charney, M.D.:

Drug abuse is a disease characterized by continued misuse of drugs even when faced with drug-related job, legal, health, or family difficulties. Problems associated with drug abuse must have existed a minimum of 12 months to meet the diagnosis.

Drug dependence refers to long-term, compulsive drug use, perhaps with attempts to stop but repeatedly returns to drug use. Drug dependence also means that your body has begun to require the drug in higher doses to avoid withdrawal symptoms.



Drug abuse and drug dependence are not terms that should be used to describe people who are taking appropriate dosages of prescribed drugs (pain medication, for example) and who have become physically dependent on them. Diagnosis of both drug abuse and drug dependence requires the presence of specific behavioral symptoms.