A pair of scientists at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco has found that a compound derived from marijuana could stop metastasis in many kinds of aggressive cancer, potentially altering the fatality of the disease forever. Desprez, a molecular biologist, spent decades studying ID-1, the gene that causes cancer to spread. Meanwhile, fellow researcher Sean McAllister was studying the effects of Cannabidiol, or CBD, a non-toxic, non-psychoactive chemical compound found in the cannabis plant. Finally, the pair collaborated, combining CBD and cells containing high levels of ID-1 in a petri dish. What they found is that Cannabidiol could essentially ‘turn off’ the ID-1. Desprez hopes that clinical trials will begin immediately, and so do we!
Russian opposition leader, Alexey Navalny, faces new, freshly made up charges. He has now been charged with fraud and money laundering – and this is the second criminal case against Russia’s prominent opposition leader. He and his brother Oleg are accused of embezzling 55m roubles (£1.1m; $1.8m) in 2008-11 while working in a mail transporting business. The charges were announced right before an opposition rally in Moscow, which has been banned by the authorities, and are described as “complete nonsense”, by Navalny. In the first criminal charges against him, he had been accused of stealing timber from mother Russia. Basically Navalny believes these charges against him are made up to discredit him, and I hate to say it, but I believe that’s exactly what is happening indeed.
After weeks of anticipation bordering on media frenzy, Pope Benedict put his finger to a computer tablet device (aka iPad) on Wednesday, and tried to send his first tweet – but of course something went wrong – divine intervention? Images on Vatican television appeared to show the first try didn’t work. The pope, who still writes his speeches by hand, seems to have pressed too hard and the tweet was not sent right away. So,
Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli of the Vatican’s communications department, came to the rescue and showed the pontiff how to do it, but the pope hesitated. Celli touched the screen lightly himself and off went the papal tweet. “Dear friends, I am pleased to get in touch with you through Twitter. Thank you for your generous response. I bless all of you from my heart,” he said in his introduction to his impatient Twitter audience. And in case any of you were wondering, the tweets will be going out in Spanish, English, Italian, Portuguese, German, Polish, Arabic and French. Other languages will be added in the future.
A pair of scientists at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco has found that a compound derived from marijuana could stop metastasis in many kinds of aggressive cancer, potentially altering the fatality of the disease forever. Desprez, a molecular biologist, spent decades studying ID-1, the gene that causes cancer to spread. Meanwhile, fellow researcher Sean McAllister was studying the effects of Cannabidiol, or CBD, a non-toxic, non-psychoactive chemical compound found in the cannabis plant. Finally, the pair collaborated, combining CBD and cells containing high levels of ID-1 in a petri dish. What they found is that Cannabidiol could essentially ‘turn off’ the ID-1. Desprez hopes that clinical trials will begin immediately, and so do we!
Russian opposition leader, Alexey Navalny, faces new, freshly made up charges. He has now been charged with fraud and money laundering – and this is the second criminal case against Russia’s prominent opposition leader. He and his brother Oleg are accused of embezzling 55m roubles (£1.1m; $1.8m) in 2008-11 while working in a mail transporting business. The charges were announced right before an opposition rally in Moscow, which has been banned by the authorities, and are described as “complete nonsense”, by Navalny. In the first criminal charges against him, he had been accused of stealing timber from mother Russia. Basically Navalny believes these charges against him are made up to discredit him, and I hate to say it, but I believe that’s exactly what is happening indeed.
After weeks of anticipation bordering on media frenzy, Pope Benedict put his finger to a computer tablet device (aka iPad) on Wednesday, and tried to send his first tweet – but of course something went wrong – divine intervention? Images on Vatican television appeared to show the first try didn’t work. The pope, who still writes his speeches by hand, seems to have pressed too hard and the tweet was not sent right away. So,
Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli of the Vatican’s communications department, came to the rescue and showed the pontiff how to do it, but the pope hesitated. Celli touched the screen lightly himself and off went the papal tweet. “Dear friends, I am pleased to get in touch with you through Twitter. Thank you for your generous response. I bless all of you from my heart,” he said in his introduction to his impatient Twitter audience. And in case any of you were wondering, the tweets will be going out in Spanish, English, Italian, Portuguese, German, Polish, Arabic and French. Other languages will be added in the future.