ONCONASE Effective Treatment for Mesothelioma,Tumors

A report recently published in Cell Cycle supports the preferential effectiveness of ONCONASE toward tumor cells, and underlines the effectiveness of the drug in treating malignant mesothelioma. Cell Cycle is a scientific journal that focuses on molecular aspects of cancer research, and which is dedicated to research on the cell cycle and cancer.
The report is the result of collaborative research conducted at the Brander Cancer Research Institute and the Department of Pathology at New York Medical College, in conjunction with the drug manufacturer, Alfacell.
The new study provides further evidence of the impact ONCONASE has on the RNAi mechanism, said Alfacell CEO Kuslima Shogen in a company news release. Shogen said it also provides evidence as to why ONCONASE helps sensitize cells to other antitumor agents.
According to the release, “The study demonstrated that silencing the glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) gene (an abundant and ubiquitously expressed housekeeping gene) in human lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells by siRNA was effectively prevented by ONCONASE. While transfection of cells with GAPDH siRNA reduced expression of this protein by nearly 70 percent, the expression was restored in the cells exposed to ONCONASE for 48 or 72 hours. The data thus provide evidence that one of the targets of ONCONASE (ranpirnase) is siRNA.”
Results of ONCONASE Phase III clinical trials, “demonstrate significant efficacy in patients with malignant mesothelioma that failed prior chemotherapy,” according to Alfacell information. The drug utilizes a proprietary ribonuclease (RNase) technology that targets cancer cells while sparing normal cells.

Scientists Study How Asbestos Fibers Trigger Cancer in Human Cells

The Strength of Disease: Molecular Bonds Between Asbestos and Human Cells”
Will be presented on Friday, December 19, 2008, at 1:40 p.m. (at the American Geophysical Union meeting in San Francisco
Ohio State University scientists believe they are the first in the world to study the molecular underpinnings of cancer by probing individual bonds between an asbestos fiber and human cells.
Though any clinical application is years away, the researchers hope their findings could aid in drug development efforts targeting illnesses caused by excessive exposure to asbestos, including the deadly cancer called mesothelioma.
The researchers use atomic force microscopy to observe how a single asbestos fiber binds with a specific receptor protein on cell surfaces. They suspect that at least one of the more lethal forms of asbestos triggers a cascade of events inside cells that eventually lead to illness, sometimes decades later.
The conditions most commonly associated with long-term exposure to airborne asbestos are lung cancer; asbestosis, a chronic respiratory disease; and mesothelioma, a cancer that forms in the membrane lining most internal organs of the body, including the lungs.
Eric Taylor, a doctoral candidate in earth sciences at Ohio State and a coauthor of the study, describes atomic force microscopy as “Braille on a molecular level,” meaning it allows scientists to feel and observe what’s happening on molecular surfaces.
“We’re looking at what molecules are involved in the chain of events when the fiber touches the cell. Does the binding occur over minutes, or hours? And what processes are triggered?” said Taylor, who presented the research at the American Geophysical Union meeting in San Francisco.
Asbestos comprises six different minerals that naturally occur in both fragment and fibrous forms. Because of its high durability and heat resistance, the fibrous form has been used in many manufacturing products since the late 1800s. Though its use is now highly regulated, asbestos is still present in many materials. The U.S. Department of Labor estimates that 1.3 million employees face significant asbestos exposure on the job. Environmental exposure is also possible because asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral in soils and exposed bedrock.
Crocidolite, or blue asbestos, is part of the amphibole group of asbestos minerals, which were banned in most of the Western world by the mid-1980s. Before that, they were used in such products as ceiling tiles and thermal insulation.
Ohio State researchers have focused so far on the crocidolite form of asbestos, but eventually hope to study how all six forms of asbestos interact with certain proteins on cell surfaces. Some forms of asbestos can dissolve in the lungs if they are inhaled, but others are believed to essentially “stick” to cells, especially at high concentrations, and eventually cause lung diseases.“For the first time, this will give us data on biological activity that should help policymakers determine which forms of asbestos are the most dangerous,” said Steven Lower, associate professor of earth sciences at Ohio State and a coauthor on the study.
“The hypothesis we’re testing is that binding of cell surface receptors to asbestos fibers triggers a signal event, which initiates the cancer,” said Lower, also a faculty member in the School of Environment and Natural Resources. “There seems to be something intrinsic about certain types of asbestos, blue asbestos in particular, that elicits a unique signal, and it triggers inflammation, the formation of pre-malignant cells and, ultimately, cancer.”
The first protein to be studied is epidermal growth factor receptor, which is present on the surface of every human cell. Understanding the intricacies of the binding process between the mineral and one or more proteins will provide an index of the biological activity of a particular type of asbestos, and might lead the researchers to figure out how to prevent or undo that interaction, Lower said.
Taylor said the driving motivation behind the research is the potential to find a way to intervene and prevent illness even after someone is exposed to asbestos. Mesothelioma symptoms don’t typically appear until 30 to 50 years after exposure. After diagnosis, however, the cancer is difficult to control, and there is no cure.
This work is supported by the National Science Foundation.

Eastbourne Man Fined For Asbestos Removal

Monday 29 September 2008 Health and Safety Executive (South East)

Eastbourne man fined £44,000 for unlicensed removal of asbestos
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is urging people to ensure that they use licensed companies to remove asbestos insulation board or asbestos lagging.
This follows the joint prosecution with the Environment Agency of Robert McCart today, a Director of two Eastbourne based companies, Sussex Asbestos Solutions (South East) Ltd and Sussex Asbestos Solutions Ltd. At Eastbourne Magistrates' Court, Mr McCart pleaded guilty and was fined £36,000 and £4,000 costs for breaching seven regulations under The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 (please see notes to editors). He was also ordered to pay £4,000 compensation to the shop owner.
The Court clearly accepted the gravity of the offence and also disqualified Mr McCart from being a Director for four years.
Mr McCart was charged with health and safety offences following work he carried out to a shop in Gore Park Road, Eastbourne between 17 and 19 November 2007. He was employed by a local businessman to remove asbestos insulation board from his shop. Mr McCart undertook the removal of asbestos insulation board without the required licence for work with asbestos, and without notifying the HSE.
Mr McCart failed to carry out the appropriate precautions and left a white sack containing broken pieces of asbestos insulation board outside the shop, and asbestos debris inside the property. Mr McCart's actions put members of the public at risk of exposure to potentially lethal asbestos fibres.
HSE inspector, Amanda Huff, said:
"Robert McCart deliberately ignored the law for financial gain. Mr McCart was aware of the dangers associated with asbestos and yet decided to risk not only his own life but also members of the public.
"The HSE won't hesitate to take action against people who breach Health and Safety Law and put others at risk.
"Asbestos related diseases kill more people than any other single work related illness. It is essential that when any work is carried out which might potentially expose people to asbestos fibres that only competent operatives are used and the appropriate precautions are taken."
Asbestos licences are only issued to companies that are able to demonstrate that they have the appropriate training and competence in place. A list of licensed contractors can be found on HSE's web site at http://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/licensing/index.htm

Health & Safety Asbestos Regualations

1. Regulation 9 of The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 states that: an employer shall not undertake any work with asbestos unless he has notified the appropriate office of the enforcing authority in writing of the particulars specified in Schedule 1 at least 14 days before commencing that work or such shorter time before as the enforcing authority may agree.
2. Regulation 8(1) of The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 states that: an employer shall not undertake any work with asbestos unless he holds a licence granted under paragraph (2) of this regulation.
3. Regulation 24(1) of The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 states that: Every employer who undertakes work with asbestos shall ensure that raw asbestos or waste which contains asbestos is not-(a) stored; (b) received into or despatched from any place of work; or (c) distributed within any place of work, except in a totally enclosed distribution system, unless it is in a sealed receptacle or, where more appropriate, sealed wrapping, clearly marked in accordance with paragraphs (2) and (3) showing that it contains asbestos.
4. Regulation 22(2) of The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 states that: every employer shall ensure that each of his employees who is exposed to asbestos is under adequate medical surveillance by a relevant doctor.
5. Regulation 18(2) of The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 states that: Asbestos areas and respirator zones shall be clearly and separately demarcated and identified by notices indicating-(a) that the area is an asbestos area or a respirator zone or both, as the case may be; and (b) in the case of a respirator zone, that the exposure of an employee who enters it is liable to exceed the control limit and that respiratory protective equipment must be worn.
6. Regulation 17 of The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 states that: Every employer who undertakes work which exposes or is liable to expose his employees to asbestos shall ensure that-(a) the premises, or those parts of the premises where that work is carried out, and the plant used in connection with that work are kept in a clean state; and (b) where such work has been completed, the premises, or those parts of the premises where the work was carried out, are thoroughly cleaned.
7. Regulation 16 of The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 states that: every employer shall prevent or, where this is not reasonably practicable, reduce to the lowest level reasonably practicable the spread of asbestos from any place where work under his control is carried out.
8. A breakdown of fines and costs against Mr McCart is as follows: - HSE offences - £18,000 and £3,000 costs - Environment Agency offences - £18,000 and £1,000 costs - £15 victim surcharge as a company and £15 victim surcharge as an individual - £4,000 compensation to the victim - TOTAL: £44,030
9. For more information on asbestos please go to the HSE website at http://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/index.htm

Mesothelioma Petition

Please could you all sign the petition on the link below I am doing as much as I can to raise awareness of this awfull disease and the fact that sufferers can't even get all treatment options here in their own country. Please please could you forward it onto friends and families and ask as many people as possible to sign it..

http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/Mesothelioma-/



If the link doesn't work just copy and paste