#health care

[reasonsforhope]

"Engineers at the University of Pennsylvania have made a critical breakthrough that promises better outcomes for pregnancies threatened with pre-eclampsia, a condition that arises due to insufficient blood flow to the placenta, resulting in high maternal blood pressure and restricted blood flow to the fetus.

Pre-eclampsia is one of the leading causes of stillbirths and prematurity worldwide, and it occurs in 3 to 5% of pregnancies. Without a cure, options for these patients only treat symptoms, such as taking blood pressure medication, being on bed rest, or delivering prematurely—regardless of the viability of their baby.

Making a decision to treat pre-eclampsia in any manner can be a moral conundrum, to balance many personal health decisions with long-standing impacts—and for Kelsey Swingle, a doctoral student in the UPenn bioengineering lab, these options are not enough.

In previous research, she conducted a successful proof-of-concept study that examined a library of lipid nanoparticles (LNPs)—which are the delivery molecules that helped get the mRNA of the COVID vaccine into cells—and their ability to reach the placenta in pregnant mice.

In her latest study, published in Nature, Swingle examined 98 different LNPs and their ability to get to the placenta and decrease high blood pressure and increase vasodilation in pre-eclamptic pregnant mice.

Her work shows that the best LNP for the job was one that resulted in more than 100-fold greater mRNA delivery to the placenta in pregnant mice than an FDA-approved LNP formulation.

The drug worked.

“Our LNP was able to deliver an mRNA therapeutic that reduced maternal blood pressure through the end of gestation and improved fetal health and blood circulation in the placenta,” says Swingle.

“Additionally, at birth we saw an increase in litter weight of the pups, which indicates a healthy mom and healthy babies. I am very excited about this work and its current stage because it could offer a real treatment for pre-eclampsia in human patients in the very near future.”

While further developing this cure for pre-eclampsia and getting it to the market for human use is on the horizon for the research team, Swingle had to start from scratch to make this work possible. She first had to lay the groundwork to run experiments using pregnant mice and determine how to induce pre-eclampsia in this animal model, processes that are not as well studied.

But, by laying this groundwork, Swingle’s work has not only identified an avenue for curing pre-eclampsia, it also opens doors for research on LNP-mRNA therapeutics addressing other reproductive health challenges...

As Swingle thinks ahead for next steps in her research, which was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation, she will also collaborate to further optimize the LNP to deliver the mRNA even more efficiently, as well as understanding the mechanisms of how it gets to the placenta, a question still not fully answered.

They are already in talks about creating a spin-off company and want to work on bringing this LNP-mRNA therapeutic to clinical trials and the market.

Swingle, who is currently finishing up her Ph.D. research, has not only successfully led this new series of studies advancing pre-eclampsia treatment at Penn, she has also inspired other early career researchers in the field as she continues to thrive while bringing women’s health into the spotlight."

-via Good News Network, December 15, 2024

[typhlonectes]

[houseofbrat]

By Mark Bederow Mr. Bederow is a criminal defense lawyer and a former Manhattan assistant district attorney. The murder of the health care executive Brian Thompson on a Midtown sidewalk was shocking, brazen and seemingly methodical, but it wasn’t all that sophisticated. It didn’t take long for the authorities to identify Luigi Mangione as the likely murderer and arrest him. They had surveillance videos and various sightings. They are said to have forensic evidence linking him to the crime. A gun he had when he was arrested in Pennsylvania is said to be the same type of gun as the murder weapon. A notebook attributed to Mr. Mangione is said to have mentioned Mr. Thompson’s company, UnitedHealthcare, and that he planned to shoot a C.E.O. “These parasites had it coming,” he wrote, condemning health care companies for callous greed. In other words, Manhattan prosecutors have what looks to be a pretty straightforward case of second-degree murder, the charge that is almost always filed in New York State in cases of intentional murder.

But the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, instead has charged Mr. Mangione with first-degree and second-degree murder in furtherance of terrorism (among other charges), which requires lifetime imprisonment in the event of a conviction. (The maximum sentence for second-degree murder without the terrorism charge would be 25 years to life.) By complicating a simple case, Mr. Bragg has increased the risk of acquittal on the most serious charge and a hung jury on any charge. Since Mr. Mangione is already being celebrated by some as a folk hero because of his rage against the American health care system, the terrorism charge, which alleges that Mr. Mangione “intended to intimidate or coerce a civilian population, influence the policies of a unit of government” and “affect the conduct of a unit of government,” almost certainly will turn the case into political theater. By charging Mr. Mangione as a terrorist, prosecutors are taking on a higher burden to support a dubious theory. In trying to prove that Mr. Mangione killed Mr. Thompson to “intimidate or coerce a civilian population,” prosecutors will presumably argue that the civilian population comprises health care executives and employees. But New York appellate courts have taken a very limited and fairly traditional view of what constitutes a civilian community under the terrorism law that was enacted within days of the Sept. 11 attacks.

The evidence appears to suggest that Mr. Mangione was bent on assassinating Mr. Thompson rather than intending “to sow terror,” as Mr. Bragg alleged in his news conference unsealing Mr. Mangione’s indictment. Mr. Mangione’s notebook reportedly says that he planned a targeted assassination because he did not want to “risk innocents.” So while this statement incriminates Mr. Mangione as a murderer, it appears to undermine the terrorism charge. By taking on the burden of trying to prove Mr. Mangione’s essentially political intent, prosecutors could amplify the criticisms of the American health care system that have made Mr. Mangione so alarmingly popular. The district attorney would provide Mr. Mangione a soapbox upon which he will be allowed to rail against the American health care system while trying to garner sympathy. Given the national debate over the role of insurance companies like Mr. Thompson’s, prosecutors will have a hard time, in any case, weeding out jurors who have some sympathy for the defendant. By turning Mr. Mangione’s supposed intent into a central element of the trial they invite juror nullification, in which jurors ignore their instructions to focus on the facts and instead let their points of view influence their verdict, leading to a hung jury, if not a full acquittal. At a standard second-degree murder trial, the jury would be instructed that the prosecution need only prove that Mr. Mangione committed the crime. Motive does not need to be considered. Perhaps Mr. Mangione’s most feasible defense would be a psychiatric one, alleging that he is not criminally responsible “by reason of mental disease or defect.” Unless there is persuasive evidence that has yet to be revealed, such a defense would be fairly easily undermined by evidence of Mr. Mangione’s detailed planning, concealment and flight. But the terrorism charge could slightly enhance such a defense if a jury is subjected to Mr. Mangione testifying about his grievances against the health care system and how it led a seemingly intelligent and grounded young man to assassinate an individual he didn’t know simply because he was a top executive at the nation’s largest insurance company.

And if the threat of life without parole is simply being used as a cudgel to leverage a plea to second-degree murder, how would Mr. Bragg justify wiping away the terrorism charge? It brings to mind the Daniel Penny case, in which Mr. Bragg brought a manslaughter charge, then dismissed it when jurors deadlocked, leading to an outright acquittal on even the lesser charge. The bottom line is that by choosing to make an open-and-shut murder case into a complicated debate on the health care industry, the district attorney risks highlighting the most troubling aspects of the case and making a conviction more difficult.

[flipocrite]

Remember that there’s a good chance they don’t even have the right guy. The ruling class is lashing out in desperation for control of the narrative, a narrative that depends on swift retribution more than justice.

When you kill a healthcare ceo, it’s terrorism. When someone shoots your kid in elementary school, it’s thoughts and prayers for like a week and then they move on. It truly shows the fact that terrorism is whatever the american government wants it to mean.

[crew-yah]

"hOw cAN YoU MoCk a DEaD mAn??"

Well, unfortunately, he was reckless and didn't prepare ahead of time, so he failed to meet the requirements that prove he actually NEEDS access to quality grief and mourning.

His limited plan only covered brief consideration as a passing thought, so unfortunately, he had to pay for his own consequences out of pocket. 🤷🏽‍♀️🫤🤷🏽‍♀️

[creature-wizard]

Since folks are exhausted from hearing about Project 2025 and Agenda 47, here are some reasons to feel hopeful about Harris

(It would be wonderful if folks could reblog this, a lot of people are feeling very discouraged right now and could use the morale boost!)

[flipocrite]

Remember too that profit is not the same as revenue. That’s why you’ll sometimes hear that profit is theft.

[davidaugust]

Scares the Dickens out them. 😳

[animentality]

[astrafiammante]

I hope the CEO of united healthcare gets stuck in queue at the pearly gates indefinitely while terrible Muzak plays and an angel’s voice very occasionally calls out “Your afterlife is very important to us. Please stay in the line” and then his entrance is denied.

[flipocrite]

Who is the law meant to protect?

Insurance company mission statements are a criminal threat, got it. #DelayDenyDepose

[liberalsarecool]

We need to end lobbyism as we know it. Corporate bribery is the worst way to provide a human right like health care.

Sad that $800 million/year in bribes costs us $650 billion/year in savings.

[typhlonectes]

[politijohn]

Source

This entire article is worth the read. Fuck Gilead