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Tag: University of Leeds

  • Medical Marijuana May Help With Brain Cancer

    Medical Marijuana May Help With Brain Cancer

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    Brain cancer has been in the news – it is a devastating diagnosis, but there is hope cannabis could help.

    Michael Strahan has gone public with one of his daughters has brain cancer. Since then, she is having a slow recovery she is sharing to bring awareness brain cancer is an all age disease. Over 100,000 people are diagnosed with a primary brain tumor annually. Brain and other CNS tumors are the fifth most common cancer. Over 30,000 children are currently diagnosed with a brain tumor. Over 1 million people are living with a diagnosis of a primary brain tumor and it can be a rough road. Early research suggest medical marijuana may help with brain cancer.

    RELATED: Science Says Medical Marijuana Improves Quality Of Life

    It is proven cannabis has medical benefits, but more research needs to be done to better define how it can have an impact and help patients. Currently, the evidence that cannabis-based products can treat brain tumours or brain cancer is limited. Preliminary studies from the lab suggest that cannabinoid chemicals THC and CBD can stop glioblastoma (GBM) cells from growing, causing them to die and disrupting the blood supply to the tumour cells.

    Photo by pilli/Getty Images

    There has been some data and research around glioma which looks promising. Glioma is a growth of cells that starts in the brain or spinal cord. The cells in a glioma look similar to healthy brain cells called glial cells. Glial cells surround nerve cells and help them function. As a glioma grows it forms a tumor.

    Preliminary studies from the lab suggest that cannabinoid chemicals THC and CBD can stop glioblastoma (GBM) cells from growing, causing them to die and disrupting the blood supply to the tumour cells.

    In 2021, an early-stage trial led by Professor Susan Short suggested that adding a specific blend of these chemicals – in the form of a drug called Sativex – to chemotherapy could potentially help treat recurrent GBMs more effectively.

    RELATED: The Most Popular Marijuana Flavors

    CXannabis-based drug Sativex approved as a prescription medicine. The drug, used in treating multiple sclerosis, was also found to be tolerable in combination with chemotherapy, with the potential to extend survival, in a phase I trial in glioblastomas.

    A phase II trial, led by the University of Leeds, is assessing whether adding Sativex – an oral spray containing cannabinoids THC and CBD – to chemotherapy, could extend life for thousands diagnosed with a recurrent glioblastoma. Currently, it has an average survival of less than 10 months.

    Scientific research indicates medical cannabis and cannabinoids could become key therapy in modern neuro-oncology; however, further studies are needed to establish outcomes and  dosage.

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    Sarah Johns

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  • Half as many AF patients dying of heart attacks and strokes in the UK

    Half as many AF patients dying of heart attacks and strokes in the UK

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    Newswise — Patients living with one of the UK’s most common heart rhythm conditions are 50% less likely to die from a heart attack or stroke than they were at the start of the millennium, new research has found. 

    Analysis of the health records of more than 70,000 patients newly diagnosed with atrial fibrillation (AF) showed that mortality from related cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases more than halved over the 16-year study period. 

    AF is associated with an increased risk of stroke. 

    The research showed that dementia now accounts for more deaths within one year of an AF diagnosis than acute stroke, heart attack and heart failure combined, demonstrating the need for more research into the link between dementia and AF. 

    The study team believe the lower mortality rate can be attributed to better detection and treatment for AF, which, according to the British Heart Foundation, affects more than 1.5 million people in the UK. 

    But the findings reveal significant health inequalities, showing that the most socioeconomically deprived patients were 22% more likely to die from AF-related conditions than people from the most affluent group. 

    Additionally, patients are now more likely to be diagnosed with coexisting health conditions such as diabetes, cancer and chronic kidney disease, which have greater health implications for them than AF. 

    Senior author Chris Gale, Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, Honorary Consultant Cardiologist, and Co-Director of the Leeds Institute for Data Analytics at the University of Leeds said: “Atrial fibrillation is a common and often undetected heart rhythm disorder that increases the risk of stroke. Advances in health care have now reduced the chance of having a stroke related to AF, and from dying as result of it, if AF is detected and treated. 

    “However, our study also reveals important disparities in care associated with deprivation and the co-existence of other illnesses. Proactively diagnosing and treating AF in these groups will likely further reduce death and disability from cardiovascular disease. Equally, for many people, AF is a marker of co-existent disease – identifying and treating these additional disease states could further improve outcome for people with AF.” 

    The team is now calling for randomised clinical trials to determine whether the earlier identification and treatment of AF and associated co-morbidities could effectively improve cardiovascular health. 

    Data analysis 

    The research examined data from electronic health records of 72,412 patients from a representative sample of the UK population, who had been diagnosed with AF between 2001 and 2017. The team assessed the health outcomes in patients in the first year after their AF diagnosis, and analysed changes in cause-specific mortality and hospitalisation over time and by sex, age, socioeconomic status and diagnostic care setting. 

    The average patient was aged 75.6. Some 48.2% of patients were women, and 61.8% had three or more comorbidities. 

    Over the study period, coexisting health concerns became more common, with almost 70% of newly diagnosed AF patients also having at least three comorbidities. 

    Mortality rates at one year post diagnosis were investigated, as well as the number of hospital admissions with an overnight stay within 1 year of diagnosis. 

    Over the study period, 20% of patients died from any cause within a year of being diagnosed with AF – but this declined over time. 

    However the researchers found that deaths due to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (strokes) more than halved over the study period. Cardiovascular deaths declined from 7.3% in 2001/02 to 3% in 2016/2017, while cerebrovascular deaths declined from 2.6% to 1.1%. 

    The researchers say that the lower rates of cardiovascular deaths among AF patients in the study may be partly explained by improvements in strategies to prevent heart disease, and by changes in clinical practice that could lead to people being diagnosed earlier. 

    By contrast, there was an increase in mortality rates from mental and neurological disorders, from 2.5% in 2001/02 to 10.1% in 2016/17. Of these deaths, 87.2% were caused by dementia, Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. The research team say that while this could be partly due to greater awareness 

    of dementia, it also strengthens the evidence that the relationship between AF and dementia is a pressing research priority. 

    Other findings include: 

    • Hospitalisation is common within a year of AF diagnosis, with almost two further admissions experienced by patients 

    • Hospitalisation rates have increased by 17% due to increasing admissions from non-cardio/cerebrovascular causes, especially in older patients 

    • Hospitalisation for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular causes have decreased by 38% and 28%, respectively, but for non-cardio/cerebrovascular causes hospitalisation has increased by 42% 

    • Older people have experienced the greatest rise in hospitalisation, with those aged 80 years or more experiencing a 39% rise in hospitalisation within a year of AF diagnosis 

    Health inequalities 

    Professor Gale said: “Patients diagnosed in hospital or from the most deprived group had worse outcomes compared with those diagnosed in the community or from the most affluent group. 

    “Although increased burden of comorbidities might partly explain the increased frequency of death in these groups, the persisting difference after full adjustment for these factors suggests other social and health-care factors might also contribute. 

    “Our previous research showed that the most deprived individuals in the UK experience an AF diagnosis at a younger age than the most affluent individuals. This discrepancy in outcomes warrants targeted strategies and healthcare resource planning.” 

    Lead author Jianhua Wu, Professor of Biostatistics and Health Data Science in the Queen Mary University of London’s Wolfson Institute of Population Health said: “AF is one of the most prevalent heart conditions in the UK and as such it is crucial that we understand whether or not the current management of the condition is successful. Our findings provide vital evidence about the effectiveness of treatments for this condition, while also showing that other conditions are becoming more prevalent among AF patients – potentially providing avenues for exploration of more targeted treatments.” 

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    University of Leeds

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  • Brontë literary treasures on public display together for first time

    Brontë literary treasures on public display together for first time

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    Newswise — ‘Becoming the Brontës’ offers visitors the unique opportunity to gain a rich insight into the origins of Yorkshire’s most famous literary family. The exhibition follows Charlotte, Branwell, Emily and Anne Brontë on a chronological journey from childhood to the beginning of their literary careers and finally their lasting legacy as genre-defining authors. 

    Opening on Friday 30 June at the Treasures of the Brotherton Gallery, the exhibition features an array of fascinating manuscripts, handwritten letters, personal sketches and more, together on public display for the first time. 

    ‘Becoming the Brontës’ is co-curated by the British Library, the Brontë Parsonage Museum and the University of Leeds’ Brotherton Library. Many of the items on display come from the Blavatnik Honresfield Library – a unique literary collection that was saved for the nation in a campaign led by the Friends of the National Libraries and a consortium of libraries and writers’ houses including the organisations involved in this exhibition.  

    What’s on display 

    The exhibition features incredible items on display together for the first time including:  

    ·        A rare, surviving notebook filled with over 30 of Emily’s poems, with annotations by Charlotte, including the handwritten line: “Never was better stuff penned”  

    ·        First editions of ‘Jane Eyre’, ‘Wuthering Heights’, ‘Agnes Grey’ and ‘Shirley’, previously owned by the family’s faithful servant Martha Brown  

    ·        Emily’s own annotated copy of the first Brontë book, ‘Poems by Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell’, published under the sisters’ pen names to hide their gender 

    ·        Eight miniature books, handwritten and crafted by Charlotte during childhood and adolescence, including two that are bound in packaging originally used for Epsom salts 

    ·        A pencil sketch by ten-year-old Emily that shows a small hand reaching through a broken window, evoking the image of Cathy grasping Lockwood’s hand in ‘Wuthering Heights’ 

    ·        Letters from the sisters that reveal their frustration at errors in first editions of ‘Wuthering Heights’ and ‘Agnes Grey’ and the challenges they faced together to get their work seen by publishers. 

    Sarah Prescott, Literary Archivist at the University of Leeds, said: “It’s such a privilege to host this exhibition here in Leeds, and to work closely with experts in the field at the British Library and the Brontë Parsonage Museum. The display features some of the most significant Brontë items to come to light, and it’s unlikely that they will be on public display together again in our lifetimes. These items give us intimate insight into the lives, hopes and ambitions of some of the most famous and well-loved writers in English literature.” 

    Ann Dinsdale, Principal Curator at the Brontë Parsonage Museum, said: “The Brontë Parsonage Museum is proud to have been part of the consortium that fought to save the Blavatnik Honresfield Library for the nation. Now, these wonderful manuscripts will be brought together again, offering unique insight into the intense collaboration and creativity that bound the Brontë children together, making clear their long apprenticeship as writers.”   

    Scot McKendrick, Head of Western Heritage Collection at the British Library, said: “The British Library is thrilled to have been part of the remarkable and unprecedented collaboration that led to these extraordinary works being preserved for the nation. Now visitors will have the unique opportunity to see these incredible items from the Blavatnik Honresfield Library on display together for the first time and gain an unprecedented insight into the Brontës’ evolution as writers.” 

    Masud Khokhar, University Librarian and Keeper of the Brotherton Collection at the University of Leeds, said: “It’s a pleasure to share this once-in-a-lifetime collection of literary treasures with the public in this free exhibition. Making collections accessible for the public good is at the heart of the University of Leeds Libraries vision. This unprecedented collaboration has brought together the collections and curatorial expertise of the Brotherton Library, the British Library and the Brontë Parsonage Museum to celebrate the literary lives and legacy of the Brontës and the saving of the Blavatnik Honresfield Library for the nation.  

    “This is an extraordinary collection of objects, beautifully displayed, and not to be missed.” 

    Becoming the Brontës is open to the public from Friday 30 June to Saturday 28 October 

    Tickets: Free, no booking required 

    Opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday, 10.00am-5.00pm 

    Location: Treasures of the Brotherton Gallery, Parkinson Building of the University of Leeds, Woodhouse Lane, Leeds, LS2 9JT 

    Exhibition webpage 

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    University of Leeds

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  • Record-high greenhouse emissions fuel unprecedented global warming

    Record-high greenhouse emissions fuel unprecedented global warming

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    • Human-induced warming averaged 1.14°C over the last decade  

    • A record level of greenhouse gases is being emitted each year, equivalent to 54 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide 

    • The remaining carbon budget – how much carbon dioxide can be emitted to have a better than 50% chance of holding global warming to 1.5°C – has halved over three years  

    • Leading scientists have today launched a project to update key climate indicators every year, so people can be kept informed about critical aspects of global warming  

    Newswise — Human-caused global warming has continued to increase at an “unprecedented rate” since the last major assessment of the climate system published two years ago, say 50 leading scientists.   

    One of the researchers said the analysis was a “timely wake-up call” that the pace and scale of climate action has been insufficient, and it comes as climate experts meet in Bonn to prepare the ground for the major COP28 climate conference in the UAE in December, which will include a stocktake of progress towards keeping global warming to 1.5°C by 2050.   

    Given the speed at which the global climate system is changing, the scientists argue that policymakers, climate negotiators and civil society groups need to have access to up-to-date and robust scientific evidence on which to base decisions.   

    The authoritative source of scientific information on the state of the climate is the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) but the turnaround time for its major assessments is five or ten years, and that creates an “information gap”, particularly when climate indicators are changing rapidly.  

    In an initiative being led by the University of Leeds, the scientists have developed an open data, open science platform – the Indicators of Global Climate Change and website (https://igcc.earth/. It will update information on key climate indicators every year.  

    Critical decade for climate change 

    The Indicators of Global Climate Change Project is being co-ordinated by Professor Piers Forster, Director of the Priestley Centre for Climate Futures at Leeds. He said: “This is the critical decade for climate change.   

     “Decisions made now will have an impact on how much temperatures will rise and the degree and severity of impacts we will see as a result.   

    “Long-term warming rates are currently at a long-term high, caused by highest-ever levels of greenhouse gas emissions. But there is evidence that the rate of increase in greenhouse gas emissions has slowed. 

    “We need to be nimble footed in the face of climate change. We need to change policy and approaches in the light of the latest evidence about the state of the climate system. Time is no longer on our side. Access to up-to-date information is vitally important.” 

    Writing in the journal Earth System Science Data, the scientists have revealed how key indicators have changed since the publication of the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Working Group 1 report in 2021- which produced the key data that fed into the subsequent IPCC Sixth Synthesis Report. 

    What the updated indicators show  

    Human-induced warming, largely caused by the burning of fossil fuels, reached an average of 1.14°C for the most recent decade (2013 to 2022) above pre-industrial levels. This is up from 1.07°C between 2010 and 2019.  

    Human-induced warming is now increasing at a pace of over 0.2°C per decade.  

    The analysis also found that greenhouse gas emissions were “at an all-time high”, with human activity resulting in the equivalent of 54 (+/-5.3) gigatonnes (or billion metric tonnes) of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere on average every year over the last decade (2012-2021).  

    There has been positive move away from burning coal, yet this has come at a short-term cost in that it has added to global warming by reducing particulate pollution in the air, which has a cooling effect.   

    ‘Indicators critical to address climate crisis’ 

    Professor Maisa Rojas Corradi, Minister of the Environment in Chile, IPCC author and a scientist involved in this study, said: “An annual update of key indicators of global change is critical in helping the international community and countries to keep the urgency of addressing the climate crisis at the top of the agenda and for evidence-based decision-making. 

    “In line with the “ratchet-mechanism” of increasing ambition envisioned by the Paris Agreement we need scientific information about emissions, concentration, and temperature as often as possible to keep international climate negotiations up to date and to be able to adjust and if necessary correct national policies.  

    “In the case of Chile, we have a climate change law that aims at aligning government-wide policies with climate action.” 

    Remaining carbon budget  

    One of the major findings of the analysis is the rate of decline in what is known as the remaining carbon budget, an estimate of how much carbon that can be released into the atmosphere to give a 50% chance of keeping global temperature rise within 1.5°C.   

    In 2020, the IPCC calculated the remaining carbon budget was around 500 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide. By the start of 2023, the figure was roughly half that at around 250 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide.   

    The reduction in the estimated remaining carbon budget is due to a combination of continued emissions since 2020 and updated estimates of human-induced warming.   

    Professor Forster said: “Even though we are not yet at 1.5°C warming, the carbon budget will likely be exhausted in only a few years as we have a triple whammy of heating from very high CO2 emissions, heating from increases in other GHG emissions and heating from reductions in pollution.  

    “If we don’t want to see the 1.5°C goal disappearing in our rearview mirror, the world must work much harder and urgently at bringing emissions down. 

    “Our aim is for this project to help the key players urgently make that important work happen with up-to-date and timely data at their fingertips.”   

    Dr Valérie Masson-Delmotte, from the Université Paris Saclay who co-chaired Working Group 1 of the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment report and was involved in the climate indicators project, said: “This robust update shows intensifying heating of our climate driven by human activities. It is a timely wake up call for the 2023 global stocktake of the Paris Agreement – the pace and scale of climate action is not sufficient to limit the escalation of climate-related risks.” 

    As recent IPCC reports have conclusively shown, with every further increment of global warming, the frequency and intensity of climate extremes, including hot extremes, heavy rainfall and agricultural droughts, increases.  

    The Indicators of Global Climate Change (https://igcc.earth/) will have annually updated information on greenhouse gas emissions, human-induced global warming and the remaining carbon budget.   

    The website extends a successful climate dashboard called the Climate Change Tracker which was created by software developers who took ideas from the finance industry on how to present complex information to the public.   

    What the analysis revealed 

    Climate Indicator  

    Sixth Assessment Report (AR6)  

    Latest value  

    Greenhouse gas emissions (decadal average)  

    53 GtCO2e (2010-2019)  

    54 Gt CO2e (2012-2021)  

    Human-induced warming since preindustrial times  

    1.07°C  

    1.14°C  

    Remaining carbon budget (1.5C, 50% chance)  

    500 GtCO2  

    About 250 GtCO2 and very uncertain  

    Headline results from the paper Indicators of Global Climate Change 2022: Annual update of large-scale indicators of the state of the climate system and the human influence.  “AR6” refers to approximately 2019 and “Now” refers to 2022.  The AR6 period decadal average greenhouse gas emissions are our re-evaluated assessment for 2010-2019. 

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    University of Leeds

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  • How fluctuating oxygen levels may have accelerated animal evolution

    How fluctuating oxygen levels may have accelerated animal evolution

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    Newswise — Oxygen levels in the Earth’s atmosphere are likely to have “fluctuated wildly” one billion years ago, creating conditions that could have accelerated the development of early animal life, according to new research.  

    Scientists believe atmospheric oxygen developed in three stages, starting with what is known as the Great Oxidation Event around two billion years ago, when oxygen first appeared in the atmosphere. The third stage, around 400 million years ago, saw atmospheric oxygen rise to levels that exist today.  

     
    What is uncertain is what happened during the second stage, in a time known as the Neoproterozoic Era, which started about one billion years ago and lasted for around 500 million years, during which time early forms of animal life emerged.   

     
    The question scientists have tried to answer is - was there anything extraordinary about the changes to oxygen levels in the Neoproterozoic Era that may have played a pivotal role in the early evolution of animals – did oxygen levels suddenly rise or was there a gradual increase?  

     
    Fossilised traces of early animals - known as Ediacaran biota, multi-celled organisms that required oxygen - have been found in sedimentary rocks that are 541 to 635 million years old.  

      

    To try and answer the question, a research team at the University of Leeds supported by the Universities of Lyon, Exeter and UCL, used measurements of the different forms of carbon, or carbon isotopes, found in limestone rocks taken from shallow seas. Based on the isotope ratios of the different types of carbon found, the researchers were able to calculate photosynthesis levels that existed millions of years ago and infer atmospheric oxygen levels.  

     
    As a result of the calculations, they have been able to produce a record of oxygen levels in the atmosphere over the last 1.5 billion years, which tells us how much oxygen would have been diffusing into the ocean to support early marine life. 

     
    Dr Alex Krause, a biogeochemical modeller who completed his PhD in the School of Earth and Environment at Leeds and was the lead scientist on the project, said the findings give a new perspective on the way oxygen levels were changing on Earth.  

     
    He added: “The early Earth, for the first two billion years of its existence, was anoxic, devoid of atmospheric oxygen. Then oxygen levels started to rise, which is known as the Great Oxidation Event.   

     
    “Up until now, scientists had thought that after the Great Oxidation Event, oxygen levels were either low and then shot up just before we see the first animals evolve, or that oxygen levels were high for many millions of years before the animals came along. 

     
    “But our study shows oxygen levels were far more dynamic. There was an oscillation between high and low levels of oxygen for a long time before early forms of animal life emerged. We are seeing periods where the ocean environment, where early animals lived, would have had abundant oxygen – and then periods where it does not.  

    Dr Benjamin Mills, who leads the Earth Evolution Modelling Group at Leeds and supervised the project, said: “This periodic change in environmental conditions would have produced evolutionary pressures where some life forms may have become extinct and new ones could emerge.”  

     
    Dr Mills said the oxygenated periods expanded what are known as “habitable spaces” – parts of the ocean where oxygen levels would have been high enough to support early animal life forms.  

     
    He said: “It has been proposed in ecological theory that when you have a habitable space that is expanding and contracting, this can support rapid changes to the diversity of biological life.  

     
    “When oxygen levels decline, there is severe environmental pressure on some organisms which could drive extinctions. And when the oxygen-rich waters expand, the new space allows the survivors to rise to ecological dominance.  

     

    “These expanded habitable spaces would have lasted for millions of years, giving plenty of time for ecosystems to develop.”

    END

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    University of Leeds

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