The Oak Ridge Boys & other: 2008

Thursday, 28 August 2008

Researchers Demonstrate Activity Of Mebendazole In Metastatic Melanoma

�Researchers at the NYU Cancer Institute and the Ronald O. Perelman Department of Dermatology have identified mebendazole, a drug used globally to treat bloodsucking infections, as a novel investigational agentive role for the treatment of chemotherapy-resistant malignant melanoma.

Because most patients with metastatic melanoma fail to respond to available therapies, the discovery of a viable investigational treatment with an established safety profile could address a dangerous unmet indigence in oncology. Effectively sidestepping the prohibitive costs and long lead times typically required to discover new cancer medicines, the NYU team screened a library of already approved drugs for activity against the most deadly form of skin cancer.

Their report, which was selected for upgrade online publication by Molecular Cancer Research, is published in the August issue of the journal. Since submitting the article for publication, the authors possess conducted additional pre-clinical studies of mebendazole in an in vivo model of chemotherapy-resistant malignant melanoma and are now preparing a phase I clinical trial, expected to commence next class at NYU Cancer Institute.

"While rational drug design stiff a perfectly valid way to develop cancer therapies, we likewise need approaches that are less dear and more productive of new in effect treatments," aforesaid lead generator Seth J. Orlow, M.D. Ph.D., Chair of the Ronald O. Perelman Department of Dermatology at New York University School of Medicine. "You could aver this is more of a guerilla approach. Instead of screening millions of untested compounds for an agent that inhibits or stimulates a particular molecular target, we chose to screen a large library of already approved drugs for novel activity against melanoma cells, and then advance the most promising candidate apace to clinical practice."

First, the NYU researchers screened a library of 2,000 well-known drugs [Spectrum Collection (Microsource Discovery Systems)] and identified members of the benzimidazole category for their ability to inhibit malignant melanoma growth and induce programmed cell death (apoptosis) of malignant malignant melanoma cells without affecting normal melanocytes (pigment-producing cells). Of the identified benzimidazoles, the team selected mebendazole for further report because it was known to be a well-tolerated, orally usable drug with anti-cancer properties.

In a surprising discovery, the team establish that mebendazole takes vantage of a special difference of opinion between a melanoma cell and normal melanocytes. Melanomas produce high levels of a protein called Bcl-2, which is known to protect certain cancer cells from caspase-mediated cell death. The team saw that when a melanoma genus Cancer cell was exposed to mebendazole, it resulted in inactivation of Bcl-2, allowing apoptosis to occur.

Mebendazole, sold as a generic do drugs in the United States, has been used since the seventies to handle roundworm, hookworm, pinworm, whipworm, and other worm-based parasitical infections. Previous research has shown it to have some antitumor activity in lung and adrenocortical cancer.

"Our ability to identify novel treatments for melanoma and advance them rapidly into the clinic very much depends on NYU's multidisciplinary approach to melanoma charge and research," Dr. Orlow said. "To be effective, translational medicine cannot be unidirectional. Discovery moves endlessly back and forth between the clinic and the bench. We are now focused on determining the range of doses to be tested in the clinic, whether specific types of melanomas will respond better than others, and whether combine mebendazole with other agents will be of further benefit"

The authors of this study are NYU Cancer Institute researchers Nicole Doudican, Adrianna Rodriguez, Iman Osman, and Seth J. Orlow. The work was supported by private philanthropic grants.

New York University Langone Medical Center

1 Park Ave.

New York, NY 10016

United States
http://www.med.nyu.edu

More info

Monday, 18 August 2008

Male Circumcision - A Dangerous Distraction In The HIV Battle

�The human rights group,
International Coalition for Genital Integrity, is continuing to raise
concerns about the harms and costs of male circumcision at their booth in
the AIDS 2008 league in Mexico City this week, stating that january 1
programs will be a dangerous distraction in the HIV struggle.

"Mass feast of the Circumcision campaigns volition result in hundreds of thousands of
complications, and could make the HIV crisis worsened," cautions voice
John Travis, MD, MPH, "There are already legion reports of males lining up
to get circumcised so they no longer will motive to purpose condoms."

Recent studies depict that male circumcision is not associated with lour HIV
rates in the general population. One showed that the likelihood of
circumcision being effective is nil. Another showed that condom programs are
95 times more cost-effective than circumcision. The ratio of physicians to
patients in sub-Saharan Africa is much lower than in more than developed
countries. In Africa, there ar 20,000 patients for every dr.,
compared to 400 patients in developed countries.

Dr. Travis farther warns, "Male circumcision is a severe distraction in
the HIV battle. Even if circumcision does offer some degree of reduced risk
per sexual incident, individuals engaged in high risk behavior are motionless at
risk for HIV. And, circumcision does non protect women. Giving circumcised
males and their partners the false impression that they are protected testament
make the situation worse by increasing risk-taking behaviour. Further, spate
circumcision campaigns will likely overwhelm the already overburdened
African health care infrastructure and divert resources away from other
needed and more effective HIV prevention strategies."

The published results of three African randomized clinical trials, conducted
in optimum conditions with free condoms and extensive counseling, render that
male circumcision was associated with lower rates of straight person HIV
transmission during the 21 month to 24 month report periods. All three
studies were hack short, and there give birth been no follow-ups.

International Coalition for Genital Integrity

More information

Friday, 8 August 2008

Sneaking their way to the top

SNEAKY Sound System is going going places thanks to a hot new album, writes Nui Te Koha.

Kylie�Minogue knows quality pop. Early last year, as she prepped her X album, Kylie collaborator Jake Shears, of Scissor Sisters, revealed the one song sparking their creative fire.

It was the Sneaky Sound System hit, Pictures.

"They were trying to replicate Pictures in the studio,'' says Sneaky's Angus McDonald.

"Jake said he'd introduced the song to Kylie and they ended up playing it 20 times a day. It became the inspiration for the new record.''

�

More info

Tuesday, 1 July 2008

Photos: Kia Soul Goes Undercover at the 2008 Vans Warped Tour(R)

Sneak Peek of Unreleased Preproduction Kia at all 46 Tour Stops

IRVINE, Calif., June 19 -- The eagerly awaited Kia Soul
will tease concertgoers this summer with a sneak-peek appearance during the
2008 Vans Warped Tour(R). As part of Kia Motors' exclusive vehicle
sponsorship of the tour, a specially-designed lightly camouflaged
preproduction Soul will be on display at the Kia Soul Lounge at every Vans
Warped Tour stop. This will be the public's first opportunity to see the
Soul up close before the production vehicle makes its world debut later
this year at the Paris Motor Show. The Soul will go on sale in the United
States spring 2009.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080619/NYTH111 )

To view the Multimedia News Release, go to:
http://www.prnewswire.com/mnr/kia/33746/
The Kia Soul is not ready to bare all just quite yet. While much of the
car will be on display for all to see, its dress leaves much to the
imagination. The Soul will feature a "pair of Vans" in the form of partial
front and rear masks bearing Vans' signature checkerboard pattern. Red
wheel spokes and side mirrors tease out its fun and naughty side, while
darkened windows help Soul maintain its mysterious allure until its
Parisian debut. Kia and Vans Warped Tour badges on the front and rear with
Vans logos running down each side scream that this vehicle is ready for
action.

Prior to the tour launch, Kia is offering fans the opportunity to enter
the "Experience Warped" online sweepstakes to win a "Fly Away" trip to the
grand finale tour stop in Los Angeles on August 17. During each stop,
concertgoers will have the opportunity to visit the Kia "Soul Lounge," an
interactive, air conditioned tent featuring information displays about the
new Kia Soul and other Kia vehicles, a DJ, an airbrush tattoo artist and
the chance to enter to win either a new Kia Sportage or Kia Spectra SX in
the "Keys to the Ride" sweepstakes. The Soul Lounge offers concertgoers
photo opportunities and a poster to be signed during Kia's exclusive artist
autograph sessions. Each tour venue will have a Kia VIP section, a raised
area near the main stage accessible only to those wearing customized Kia
VIP wristbands. Online, fans can view Kia Vans Warped Tour content at
http://fuse.tv/kiawarped, including the Warped Word of Steve concert blog,
which will give fans an insider's look at each tour stop including photos
and specially created, first-hand video.

In addition, Kia will be on stage as the presenting sponsor of the
popular Kevin Says Stage, a forum for local bands to rock out at each tour
stop. A part of the Warped Eco-Initiatives, this solar powered stage is
just one of the eco-friendly actions Kia will be part of during the tour.
Kia Motors also is proud to be part of the post-concert clean up and
recycling efforts.

About Kia Motors America

Kia Motors America (KMA) is the sales, marketing and distribution arm
of Kia Motors Corporation based in Seoul, South Korea. KMA offers a
complete line of vehicles through more than 640 dealers throughout the
United States. For 2007, KMA recorded its 14th consecutive year of record
U.S. sales. Kia Motors subscribes to a philosophy of building high value,
high quality, safe and dynamic vehicles. Kia Motors prides itself on
producing vehicles that are exciting and enabling and evoke the Kia tagline
"The Power to Surprise."

Kia Motors America is the "Official Automotive Partner of the NBA."
Information about Kia Motors America and its full vehicle line-up is
available at its Web site -- http://www.kia.com. For media information,
including photography, visit http://www.kiamedia.com.

See Also

Thursday, 19 June 2008

Bridge and Tunnel

Artist: Bridge and Tunnel

   Genre(s):
Ambient

Discography:

Bridge and Tunnel

Year: 2000
Tracks: 11

Wednesday, 11 June 2008

Brazzaville

Artist: Brazzaville

   Genre(s):
Latin: Dance
   Indie
   Rock: Pop-Rock
   Jazz

Discography:

East LA Breeze

Year: 2006
Tracks: 12

East L.A. Breeze

Year: 2006
Tracks: 12

Welcome To...Brazzaville

Year: 2005
Tracks: 16

Hastings Street

Year: 2004
Tracks: 15

Rouge On Pockmarked Cheeks

Year: 2002
Tracks: 11

Somnabulista

Year: 2001
Tracks: 11

Brazzaville

Year: 1998
Tracks: 11

Led by Beck saxophonist David Brown, Brazzaville's alien, globally minded indie pop was as much a product of Brown's extensive travels as it was the Los Angeles coffee shop scene from whence most of its members came. Born in L.A., Brown had been a teenage fugitive and diacetylmorphine addict in front cleaning up and finding a new take on sprightliness from his sexual love of traveling the earthly concern on the cheap. He crisscross Europe, South America, and Asia, picking up melodious influences from the Far East, Brazil (bossa nova and Tropicalia), Africa, and France (night club pop), among others. Eventually, he returned to California, where he studied the saxophone at L.A. City College. There he first met Beck, and was introduced to a community of artists and musicians centered some the Los Feliz/Silver Lake area of L.A. When Beck tally the big time, he tapped Brown as the saxophonist in his touring band, and invited him to play on the Odelay album.In 1997, during the human race tour encouraging Odelay, Brown conceived the mind for Brazzaville, pickings the name from the working capital of the Congo, which in a recent work had been branded with the worst timber of liveliness of whatsoever major urban center in the world. Brown added guitar to his implemental repertoire (which grew to let in pianissimo, trombone, and percussion as good), and when he returned to Los Angeles in 1998, he cast together a diverse lineup of musicians -- scenesters and sitting manpower -- that reflected his own wide-ranging tastes. Trombonist/saxophonist David Ralicke worked with numerous acts, including Natalie Merchant, Ozomatli, Ben Harper, Macy Gray, and Ziggy Marley, and later coupled the L.A.-based Cambodian rock candy band Dengue Fever. Guitarist/bassist Kenny Lyon, who'd full-grown up in Zaire and Spain, had performed with alternative bands like the Lemonheads and the Divinyls, as well as singer/songwriters like Mark Curry, Jann Arden, and David Baerwald. Guitarist Smokey Hormel was another Beck regular wHO besides performed and recorded with Cibo Matto, Sam Phillips, John Doe, and Tom Waits, among others. Percussionist Danny Frankel had played with musicians from Victoria Williams to Luscious Jackson to bluesman Ted Hawkins. Pianist Mike Boito was another Beck cohort who'd besides played with Ralicke in the ska isthmus Jump With Joey.Together with turntablist DJ Swamp and several other players, this version of Brazzaville recorded a self-titled debut record album and released it on Brown's possess South China Sea imprint in 1999. It standard favourable reviews of its crossbreed of indie pop, sofa jazz, world medicine, and noir-ish air, and was most ofttimes likened to Tom Waits or Morphine. Later that yr, the Engine mark picked up the record's distribution rights and reissued it under the title 2002. The reexamination Somnambulista, released in 2001 on South China Sea, welcomed several new members, including Guadalupe-born/Paris-raised percussionist Joel Virgel Vierset (who'd worked with Nina Hagen), bassist Joe Zimmerman, and Latin-influenced trumpeter/accordionist Mick Bolger. Brazzaville's third uncut, Paint on Pockmarked Cheeks, appeared in 2002 with much the same frame of characters. Afterwards, Brown relocated to Barcelona and assembled an alternate European lineup of Brazzaville, which included guitar player Paco Jordi, keyboardist Richie Alvarez, bassist Brady Arthur Lynch, and drummer Ivan Knight.

Friday, 6 June 2008

New Deutsche Grammophon 'La Boheme' CD showcases Netrebko, Villazon

"La Boheme"

Giacomo Puccini (Deutsche Grammophon)

With at least a dozen recordings of Puccini's "La Boheme" readily available from Amazon.com, why another?

The answer lies in the commercial opportunities suggested by the pairing of Russian soprano Anna Netrebko and Mexican tenor Rolando Villazon, two of the more glamorous young singers on today's opera scene. In numerous joint appearances at major houses they have demonstrated a palpable on-stage chemistry (though in real life they are not romantically linked).

The new two-CD set was recorded during live concert performances in Munich in April 2007. That was just about the time Villazon encountered a vocal crisis that caused him to crack on some high notes and display other signs of fatigue. (He returned to performing early this year after a break of five months.) But you'd never suspect the problems from the evidence here. He sounds relaxed and lyrical as the young poet. His high notes in the climaxes are vibrant and attacked cleanly, though he omits the high C at the end of Act 1.

Netrebko, too, is in excellent voice, her gleaming soprano filling out Mimi's wistful phrases with grace and sensitivity. But the qualities that make her so special as an artist have to do with more than her voice - it's the way she throws herself into her roles on stage and that visual element is, unavoidably, missing here. What's left is a more-than-passable vocal performance but it's not likely to eclipse memories of Renata Tebaldi, Victoria de los Angeles or Mirella Freni, to name just a few of her recorded competitors.

Heading the supporting cast that surrounds the bohemian lovers is the young American soprano Nicole Cabell, an emerging star in her own right. She makes a strong impression as the flirtatious Musetta, the soft grain of her voice contrasting well with Netrebko's slightly metallic sound. Boaz Daniel, an Israeli-born baritone, proves a sturdy Marcello.

Bertrand de Billy conducts the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra in a brisk performance of the tuneful score.

All in all, this "Boheme" will appeal most to fans of the two principals. For those seeking a definitive interpretation of Puccini's masterpiece, there are worthier choices, starting with the classic EMI recording with de los Angeles and tenor Jussi Bjoerling, and Thomas Beecham conducting.

See Also

Friday, 30 May 2008

Phenomena

Artist: Phenomena

   Genre(s):
Rock

Discography:

Psycho Fantasy

Year: 2006
Tracks: 9

Mumba voted out of Dancing on Ice

Tuesday, 27 May 2008

Lani

Artist: Lani

   Genre(s):
Trance: Psychedelic

Discography:

Our Way To The Sun

Year: 2004
Tracks: 1

Putumayo

Artist: Putumayo

   Genre(s):
Other
   Latin
   Folk
   Ethnic
   New Age
   Blues
   Instrumental
   Dance
   Vocal
   Reggae
   Latin: Dance
   Rock
   Country
   folk: latin

Discography: