IL-6: a cytokine at the crossroads of autoimmunity
I am linking to this as background for a writing project. Il-6 is mentioned quite a bit as part of the acupuncture cascade, so I want to learn more. I’m also trying to get up to date on Immunology, which basically barely existed when I was in med school. Highlights • IL-6 promotes development…
Read MoreFirst Do No Harm: Harrowing Tale of A’s Player Micah Bowie
This is a horribly sad story of medical interventions going awry. Back pain which continued after retirement in 2008. Treatments were ineffective, and in 2016 he ended up getting a spinal cord stimulator. Unfortunately the battery migrated somehow into his liver, diaphragm and then lung. He’s had horrible breathing trouble since, and it’s a…
Read MoreBay Area Crushing the Curve: San Francisco Chronicle
One picture worth 1000 words
Read MoreGut Microbiota Regulates Depression-Like Behavior in Rats Through the Neuroendocrine-Immune-Mitochondrial Pathway.
Though this journal article isn’t directly related to acupuncture per se, the neurendocrine-immune-mitochondrial pathway is quite similar. The depression model in rats is pretty awful. Making them swim. yeeks. Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2020 Mar 31;16:859-869. doi: 10.2147/NDT.S243551. eCollection 2020. Gut Microbiota Regulates Depression-Like Behavior in Rats Through the Neuroendocrine-Immune-Mitochondrial Pathway. Liu S1, Guo R2, Liu…
Read MoreCovid Cases by State Cases per 100,000
I finally found a graphic that tells a bit more nuanced story from NPR. This graphic shows how well California is doing at 77 per 100K considering what a huge state it is. Obviously, we need our case load to stop increasing and start to decrease if we’re ever going to get back to work…
Read MorePain modulation in patients with fibromyalgia undergoing acupuncture treatment is associated with fluctuations in serum neuropeptide Y levels.
This is not a particularly new paper. I’ve somehow missed the data on Neuropeptide Y and its possible connection to acupuncture pain relief. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28598785 Clin Exp Rheumatol. 2017 May-Jun;35 Suppl 105(3):81-85. Epub 2017 May 31. Pain modulation in patients with fibromyalgia undergoing acupuncture treatment is associated with fluctuations in serum neuropeptide Y levels. Iannuccelli C1,…
Read MoreCurves County by County California
Not at all happy that the total number of cases in San Francisco is now over 1,000. But glad that we’ve made it into the light blue curve. We’re doubling now every 12.6 days. Still increasing but slowing down.
Read MoreVagus Nerve Stimulation and Neurotrophins: a biological psychiatric perspective
Ok. A whole new area of brain chemistry I wasn’t aware of. I’m not even sure where Neurotrophins are found. Will report once I know. I’m tempted to buy this article, but don’t want to get carried away. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0149763419310516 Review article Vagus Nerve Stimulation and Neurotrophins: a biological psychiatric perspective Author links open overlay panelPamelaRossoa1AngelaIannitellib1FrancescaPacittibcAdeleQuartinibElenaFicoaMarcoFioreaAntonioGrecodMassimoRallidPaolaTirassaa…
Read MoreCorona Virus Cases per Day 4.14.2020
Definitely don’t like that uptick. It could just be variation, as we saw fewer cases over the weekend. So there may be reporting discrepancies. Stay safe…
Read MoreCorona Virus Cases Per Day California
Notice that deaths do not look to be decreasing as fast. From what I understand, they lag cases, so we may still have cause for some optimism. This graph shows the Bay Area in relation to the rest of the state, which is informative.
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