Monthly Archives: May 2021

Early lineages of mammals, like this large Gobiconodon from Mongolia, outcompeted the ancestors of modern mammals in the time of dinosaurs. Credit: Art by Corbin Rainbolt

A new study led by researchers from the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, University of Oxford, and the University of Birmingham for Current Biology has used new methods to analyze the variability of mammal fossils, revealing extraordinary results: it was not dinosaurs, but possibly other mammals, that were the main competitors of modern mammals before and after the mass extinction of dinosaurs.

The study challenges old assumptions about why mammals only seemed to diversify, becoming larger and exploring new diets, locomotion, and ways of life, after the extinction of the non-bird dinosaurs. It points to a more complex story of competition between distinct mammal groups. The new research also highlights the importance of testing old and established ideas about evolution using the latest statistical tools.

There were lots of exciting types of mammals in the time of dinosaurs that included gliding, swimming, and burrowing species, but none of these mammals belonged to modern groups, they all come from earlier branches in the mammal tree, said Dr. Elsa Panciroli, a researcher from the Oxford University Museum of Natural History and a co-author of the study. These other kinds of mammals mostly became extinct at the same time as the non-avian dinosaurs, at which point modern mammals start to become larger, explore new diets and ways of life. From our research it looks like before the extinction it was the earlier radiations of mammals that kept the modern mammals out of these exciting ecological roles by outcompeting them.

Most of the mammal species alive today trace their origins to groups that expanded explosively 66 million years ago, when a mass extinction killed all non-bird dinosaurs. It was traditionally thought that, before the extinction, mammals lived in the shadow of the dinosaurs. They were supposedly prevented from occupying the niches that were already occupied by the giant reptiles, keeping the mammals relatively small and unspecialized in terms of diet and lifestyle. It appeared that they were only able to flourish after the dinosaurs disappearance left these niches vacant.

However, new statistical methods were used to analyze how constrained different groups of mammals were in their evolution before and after the mass extinction. These methods identified the point where evolution stopped producing new traits and started producing features that had already evolved in other lineages. This allowed the researchers to identify the evolutionary limits placed on different groups of mammals, showing where they were being excluded from different niches by competition with other animals. The results suggest that it may not have been the dinosaurs that were placing the biggest constraints on the ancestors of modern mammals, but their closest relatives.

The study looked at the anatomy of all the different kinds of mammals living alongside dinosaurs, including the ancestors of modern groups, also known as therians. By measuring how frequently new features appeared, such as changes in the size and shape of their teeth and bones, and the pattern and timing of their appearance before and after the mass extinction, the researchers determined that the modern mammals were more constrained during the time of the dinosaurs than their close relatives. This meant that while their relatives were exploring larger body sizes, different diets, and novel ways of life such as climbing and gliding, they were excluding modern mammals from these lifestyles, keeping them small and generalist in their habits.

This result makes very little sense if you assume that it was the dinosaurs constraining the therians, said Dr. Neil Brocklehurst of the University of Oxford, who led the research. There is no reason why the dinosaurs would be selectively competing with just these mammals and allowing others to prosper. It instead appears that the therians were being held back by these other groups of mammals.

The researchers suggest the extinction of other mammal groups was more important in paving the way for modern mammal success. As further evidence for this, the researchers looked at body size in different mammal groups. They discovered that both the smallest and largest mammals showed the same release from constraints following the dinosaur extinction, suggesting that size made little difference to their success.

Co-author Dr. Gemma Benevento of the University of Birmingham said, Most of the mammals that lived alongside the dinosaurs were less than 100g in body mass thats smaller than any non-bird dinosaur. Therefore, these smallest mammals would probably not have been directly competing with dinosaurs. Despite this, small mammals show diversity increases after the extinction which are just as profound as those seen in larger mammals.

Dr. Brocklehurst added, Paleontology is undergoing a revolution. We have greatly expanded the toolkit available to analyze large datasets and directly test our ideas about evolution. Most studies of the mammal radiation have focused on how fast they evolved, but analyzing what limits there were on the evolution provides new perspectives. We have had to rethink many of our theories using these state-of-the-art approaches.

Reference: Mammaliaform extinctions as a driver of the morphological radiation of Cenozoic mammals by Neil Brocklehurst, Elsa Panciroli, Gemma Louise Benevento and Roger B.J. Benson, 17 May 2021, Current Biology.DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.04.044

Funding: European Union Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, Palaeontological Association Research Grant

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Extraordinary Evolution Research Reveals Mammals in the Time of Dinosaurs Held Each Other Back - SciTechDaily

Coronaviruses infect many animals. Bats are often singled out as culprits in spillover events, but they are not unique. In fact, humans have transmitted Sars-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes Covid-19, to animals like cats, minks, and gorillas.

Viruses dont always respect species boundaries. They recognise receptors to attach to and cells to infect. There are currently around 220 viruses known to infect humans, of which seven are coronaviruses.

Coronaviruses have been responsible for two epidemics and one pandemic in the last two decades. In recent months, scientists have discovered two more novel coronaviruses that infect humans. There are certainly many more. The simple fact is the more we search in the virosphere, the more viruses we will find.

Before Sars, there was limited interested in coronaviruses. A perspective in Science in 2003 called coronavirology one of the backwaters of virology. After Sars, when scientists searched intensively for new coronaviruses, they found two that cause common cold-like infections.

Also Read | A tale of two infections

There are many reasons we will find more viruses.

First, the molecular tools of virology are relatively new, and sampling of animals has traditionally been limited to species and classes of viruses with greatest pandemic potential. Second, some spillover events from animals may be relatively recent. Third, some of viruses may be infecting people but escaping detection because they are not causing disease. Others may cause disease, but may be self-limited to non-specific symptoms of pneumonia or gastrointestinal problems that get better within a few days.

In COVID-19: Separating Fact from Fiction, I mention the various interactions between viruses and humans. There are millions of viruses that dont infect human cells at all. There are a few viruses that infect people in spillover events, but dont spread further. There are others can infect people but do not cause recognisable disease. Yet others that result in disease may not have outward transmission to other people. Viruses that transmit from one person to another might stop spreading if they dont transmit well.

Of course, of greatest concern are viruses like Sars-CoV-2 that transmit well and cause disease. These viruses cause significant disease and death and they threaten to remain in human populations.

A preprint on MedRxiv describes a pig coronavirus found in blood samples of children in Haiti who had acute fever of unknown cause a few years ago. By sampling the genome and comparing with other known viruses, researchers found that these infections were the result of at least two past spillover events. The causative coronavirus belongs to a family that was not thought to typically infect humans. It is currently unknown whether the virus caused the fever in the children or whether it was simply coincidentally present. We also dont know how prevalent this coronavirus is in broader populations.

Another description of a novel coronavirus is in an article in Clinical Infectious Diseases. Eight samples collected from children hospitalised in rural Malaysia with pneumonia many years ago turned up a canine coronavirus. This virus seems to have sequences that are similar to dog coronaviruses but also to coronaviruses found in cats and pigs.

Sars-CoV-2 is also a virus that seem to have different genetic sequences that are similar to coronaviruses from different animals. What the discovery of the hybrid canine coronavirus in Malaysia reinforces is that recombination events, which result in new viruses that are made up of parts of other viruses, are common in nature.

The newly identified virus is the first canine coronavirus found to infect people, a trait that may have taken years of evolution to acquire. Like the other novel coronavirus which spilled over from pigs, it hasnt yet been shown to cause disease; it might even result in dead-end infections.

Both studies underscore a fact. We do not know how many coronaviruses infect humans. Better surveillance for coronaviruses is needed especially when humans and animals are in close proximity and there are outbreaks of pneumonia of unknown causes. The virus identified in Malaysia was found because of a highly sensitive RT-PCR test that checked for many different coronavirus types.

Neither of these two new coronaviruses are capable of causing a pandemic right now. They were found because scientists were looking for them. But there is a need to search for viruses that infect people, because a virus might lurk undetected and be just a few years away from causing the next pandemic.

We can speculate what might happen when viruses remain undetected and cause infections in people. Over years, in the test tube of human cells, they might acquire additional mutations that allow them to become more capable of replicating and transmitting to others. In the process of using up the cells resources, they might cause severe disease. These scenarios are catastrophic for us, but there is nothing nefarious here, only evolution at work.

Anirban Mahapatra, a microbiologist by training, is the author of COVID-19: Separating Fact From Fiction

The views expressed are personal

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Scientifically Speaking | Decoding the evolution of coronaviruses - Hindustan Times

RTLS solutions have changed a lot throughout the years, and the journey has been a fascinating one.

May 26, 2021When you think of asset and staff tracking in real time, what comes to mind? Perhaps duress buttons, locators, GPSwhat about cow bells?Seriously, cow bells were one of the original asset-tracking systems. Cow runs away, you're looking for it, cow gives away its location by the ring of the bell. Simple.

Needless to say, things have changed in the Information Age. Real-time locating systems (RTLS) are vital tools for improving staff safety, business efficiency and logistics. And, yes, some high-tech RTLS solutions still track cows. RTLS solutions have changed a lot throughout the years, and the journey is pretty fascinating. What's on the bleeding edge of asset and staff tracking could propel new growth of industries from healthcare to corrections.

Early Technology and Ancient TimesThe earliest uses for RTLS solutions were livestock tracking, and for good reason. For about the first 10,000 years of human history, once cattle were domesticated from their ancient wild ancestors, cattle symbolized wealth, offered protein-rich food sources, and were used for plowing and other agricultural purposes too. Suffice it to say, it was important to keep track of this very literal representation of financial stability.

There's evidence of pottery cowbells in use as early as 4,000 years ago, then a gradual shift to iron and other metal devices. While bells are still in use, adorning animals in many cultures, RTLS solutions using GPS or other positioning technologies are now widely used in agriculture, allowing farmers and ranchers clearer and more immediate visibility into their herds' movements, behaviors and more.

RTLS Goes Global: Military MightThe U.S. military started using radarshort for "radio detection and ranging"during World War II as an RTLS method for tracking enemy planes and ships. Radar works by emitting short electromagnetic waves, which then bounce back to the radar receiver and can be used to determine how close or far away an object is.

After Japan's 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, Scottish-born Robert Watson-Watt, who's heralded as the developer of modern radar, advised the U.S. military on a much-needed air strategy. For obvious reasons, having the power to scan the skies and anticipate an airborne attack was top-of-mind for the United States. Great Britain used the same technology to help detect Germany's Luftwaffe aircraft as they flew and dropped bombs over London and the surrounding areas.

Like many major technological advances throughout the course of human history, radar and similar methodologies were being developed by numerous nations simultaneously, including Germany, the Soviet Union, Japan and Italy. Watson-Watt's technology, dubbed "radar" by the U.S. Navy in 1940, was the most technologically advancedand it helped turn the tide of the war.

Product Tracking and the Rise of Massive WarehousingWith the advent of modern big-box storesthink Walmart, Costco and Ikeaand multinational logistics channels, RTLS technology became an incredibly important tool for asset tracking, efficient shipping and more.Let's zoom in on Walmart and its pioneering asset-tracking techniques.

After humble beginnings in Arkansas in 1962, Walmart grew to become the largest retailer in the United State by 1990. By 1999, it was the largest employer in the world. And while Amazon and similar companies have now taken top spots for total company value, Walmart paved the way in offering a massive selection of goods in its stores across the world. But how did the company do it? Supply chain managementaided by innovative asset-tracking technology.

Walmart pioneered new types of cross-docking and supply chain management, but arguably its most groundbreaking RTLS innovation was in combining radio frequency identification (RFID) tracking technology with universal product codes (UPCs). This allowed the retail giant to quickly turn over its inventory, reduce costs associated with lost, stolen or misplaced goods, and locate a product on any shelf across its vast network of warehouses and stores.

Staff Duress and Facility SafetyBut enough about productslet's talk people. Specifically in hospitals, corrections facilities and mental health facilities, RTLS technology can be used to prioritize the safety of staff members, as well as that of those in their charge. It can get pretty complicated in a sprawling facility, but basically, indoor RTLS technology can be used to track a person or an asset, such as an expensive piece of medical equipment, down to the room they're in. Facility-based RTLS works through an interaction between signals sent out from transmitter tags on people or physical assets and strategically placed locators that convey the data to the staff tasked with tracking movement within the facility.

Usually, RTLS for staff safety or efficiency uses radio frequency beacons such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or custom signals for locating, sometimes triangulating over multiple receivers. These solutions should all be crafted for the environments they're set to operate in to maximize signal propagation and speedwhen seconds matter for personal safety, no delay is acceptable.Uusing hospitals as examples, those that upgrade to an effective RTLS solution report huge increases in workplace safety, as well as big cost savings.

On the Horizon: Staff Efficiency, Advanced TechnologiesAt this point, it seems clear that staff duress and tracking should be a standard operating procedure in environments that call for itespecially in high-intensity, fast-moving environments such as corrections facilities, mental health facilities or healthcare facilities. The technology is such a powerful tool for safety that it feels like an operational necessity.

That's why I believe the next evolution of RTLS is its role as an efficiency tool.We're already seeing this in healthcare. By tagging high-value, high-demand assets like fluoroscopes, wheelchairs, ventilators and portable ultrasound devices, nurses and other employees can efficiently and accurately find them when they need them, thereby improving patient care.

The industry is discussing how to use this tracking technology to track patients' journey through a health facility, to improve how quickly they receive care. Nurses and other care providers will have greater control over the care environment, and overall satisfaction with health services should increase provided we tackle the privacy issues.Today's technology is primed for this kind of evolutionespecially tech that solves for challenges posed by complex physical environments. With all the advances happening in the RTLS space, we are sure to see solutions that go beyond just providing "more cowbell."

Isaac Davenport, Ph.D., is Actall's chief technology officer. In this role, he supports Actall in recruiting, project management, technology strategy, system design, debugging, employee development, vendor management and occasionally connector specification. Isaac has a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from CU and has worked on dozens of product-development programs. He has run small companies and has worked as a hardware, firmware, and software design engineer and technical management consultant for large businesses.

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The Evolution of Real-Time Location-Tracking Technology | RFID JOURNAL - RFID Journal

Owl Insights is a cloud-based platform created to help organisations administer mental health treatment. Through a digital, data-driven, automated system, it enables clinicians to screen and monitor patients, whether they're adults, teenagers or children..

The platform has been used across the US, by Texas Childrens Hospital, Virginia Tech, Californias San Mateo County Office of Education, and more recently by Main Line Health, a not-for-profit health system serving the greater Philadelphia region. Here CEO Eric Meier tells us how it works and how technology can help to address the mental health crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

When and why Owl Insights was founded?Owl was conceived at the University of Washington in their clinical psychology department. The focus was implementing and training psychologists on evidence-based care. In 2016, I was brought in as CEO to bring this innovative product to market.

How is Owl improving behavioural healthcare through technology?Owl represents the evolution of behavioural health. Leveraging a data-driven, clinical decision support platform, Owl matches patients with the right level of care, personalises treatment pathways, and enables clinicians to measure treatment response to ensure and improve effectiveness.

You've recently partnered with Main Line Health, what capabilities will you be providing them?Main Line Health was looking to enhance and differentiate their behavioural health service and partnering with a technology platform leader that would help them improve clinical workflows, deliver evidence-based care, improve the patient experience and improve clinical outcomes.

Does Owl's platform integrate with healthcare providers' electronic health records (EHRs)?Owl has an automated, bi-directional integration with EHR systems. This enables automated workflows, reduces clinician burden and ensures high patient engagement.

Owls cloud-based platform will seamlessly integrate with Main Line Healths EHR system to screen, stratify and monitor patient progress. The data generated will provide critical insights and advanced reporting to effectively treat patients with a wide variety of behavioural health conditions.

What role can technology play in addressing the mental health crisis caused by the pandemic?With the accelerated use of telehealth, Owl better supports care management in a virtual environment, allowing a more consistent experience, quality measurement and patient engagement.The data and insights driven by use of Owl allows real-time progress monitoring of patients from wherever the patient is located. Using technology to improve workflow and reduce clinician burden allows greater clinical decision support to ensure that patients are getting the right treatment at the right time.

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Owl Insights: the evolution of behavioural health | Digital Healthcare - Healthcare Global - Healthcare News, Magazine and Website

In ancient times, humans did not at first regard death and disease as natural phenomena; they were regarded as supernatural in origin.

They might be the result of a spell cast upon the victim by some enemy or the work of an offended god.

Drilling holes 2.5 to 5cm across in the skull known as trephination was one method practised to provide the evil spirit a means of escape.

Hypnosis, magic and religion also played a large part in the medicine practised by prehistoric human society.

This was accompanied by incantations, dancing, grimaces etc, hence practitioners were also called witch doctors or sorcerers.

The transition from magic to science was a gradual process that lasted over centuries.

There are illustrations of the usage of opium, mandrake plants or alcohol to decrease pain and for surgical procedures like the amputation of a limb.

Making a patient unconscious by hitting them on the head (and giving them a concussion) was another method that sometimes had lethal consequences.

Moving forward, plant products were widely used in folk medicine, and indeed, are still used in many parts of the world today.

As a matter of fact, some modern drugs have their origins in plants, e.g. aspirin from willow bark, digoxin from foxgloves, morphine from opium poppies and quinine from Chicona bark.

Beginnings of a science

The works of the Greek Father of Medicine Hippocrates (460-375 BCE) mark the beginning of diseases being considered a natural, rather than a supernatural, phenomenon.

The first vaccination occurred in the late 18th century, when English physician Edward Jenner (1749-1823) discovered that a person became protected from smallpox when they were inoculated with pus from a cowpox lesion.

Perhaps the most spectacular advancement of the 19th century was the discovery that diseases were caused by minute living organisms.

The usage of antiseptics by French chemist and microbiologist Louis Pasteur (1822-95) and British surgeon Joseph Lister (1827-1912) dramatically reduced infections and deaths after surgical procedures.

At the beginning of the 20th century, German physician Paul Ehrlich (1854-1915) discovered the lethal effects of arsenic on the microorganism responsible for syphilis.

This success inaugurated the antibiotics era, and was followed by the accidental discovery of sulphonamides and penicillin.

Gene-based therapy is the latest advancement in modern-day medicine. AFP

Lock and key

At this point, all these discoveries were made via observations of the patients; the doctors and scientists then did not know how exactly any of these medicines acted inside the human body.

With technological advancements in the field of microscopy, it was discovered that medicines specifically bind to a particular protein on the bodys cells and cause their effect.

These proteins are known as receptors and are potential targets for drugs.

Each receptor binds to one unique ligand (chemical compounds present in our body), just like a lock and key.

Only the correct key (ligand) can fit into the keyhole of the lock (receptor).

Upon the binding of the ligand to the receptor, a chain of signalling reactions will trigger the cells response.

This response can vary depending on the organ and the type of cell.

For example, in the stomach, it could be gastric secretion from the parietal cells to digest food, while in blood vessels, it could be constriction of the smooth muscle cells to increase blood pressure, and so on.

That is also how medicines act on our cells.

The chemical structure of a medicine is designed to selectively bind to a receptor, producing a desirable effect to cure or control a disease.

In type 2 diabetes, for example, there is insufficient insulin produced by the pancreas, resulting in an unhealthily high glucose level in the blood.

Anti-diabetic medicine (e.g. gliclazide) acts on the beta cells of the pancreas and increases its insulin release.

This increased amount of insulin elevates the use of glucose by peripheral tissues and reduces blood glucose levels.

Gene effect

We also came to know about biological units we inherit from both our parents known as genes, which are made up of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) that reside in the nucleus of our cells.

Genes are responsible for our looks, height, skin colour and body functions, as well as our resistance to or predisposition for certain diseases.

It is now a reality that each one of us can have our genetic makeup analysed if we so wish.

This can provide information to doctors on how our bodies respond to certain medications, allowing them to see which medications are effective and which ones should be avoided to decrease adverse effects.

Genetic differences between humans (caused by natural mutations) can result in slightly altered proteins, which may in turn be more or less active.

If the altered protein is involved in metabolising a particular medicine, this may affect the levels of the medicine in the body, and thus influence how the patient responds to the medicine.

This understanding has helped doctors realise why some people react differently to certain medicines.

In personalised medicine, doctors modify the dosage of the medicine or substitute it with a different one, according to the genetic makeup of the patient for optimal treatment effects.

It is now also possible to treat or cure genetic disorders diseases caused by genetic abnormalities that affect the normal functioning of the body by replacing the defective gene with a healthy copy, or knocking out the defective gene.

Known as gene therapy, this method of treatment is advancing rapidly and may become the primary form of treatment, rather than drugs or surgery, in the not-so-far-away future.

Associate Professor Dr Kumaraswamy Kademane and Dr Irma Izani Mohamad Isa are with Perdana University Graduate School of Medicines Pharmacology Unit. This article is courtesy of Perdana University, which is celebrating their 10th anniversary this year. For more information, email starhealth@thestar.com.my. The information provided is for educational and communication purposes only and it should not be construed as personal medical advice. Information published in this article is not intended to replace, supplant or augment a consultation with a health professional regarding the readers own medical care. The Star disclaims all responsibility for any losses, damage to property or personal injury suffered directly or indirectly from reliance on such information.

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The evolution of medicine from sorcery to gene therapy - The Star Online