| 'Tis The Season For Allergic Reactions
With the holiday season just around the corner, millions of Americans are preparing to decorate their homes, gather for feasts and travel to visit relatives. However, for allergy and asthma sufferers, the holiday season presents several potential triggers, according to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI).
"Whether it's feasting on holiday meals, setting up your Christmas tree, or visiting your pet-owning relatives, allergy triggers may be lurking inside of our warm, cozy homes this time of year," said Alisa M. Smith, PhD, FAAAAI, vice-chair of the AAAAI's Indoor Allergen Committee. "Unfortunately, with busy schedules, travel time and the stress of the holidays, it is easy to forget to take the proper care when dealing with allergies and asthma. However, avoiding potential triggers and taking the proper precautions is necessary to keep symptoms under control," Smith added.
Chef's Night In: At home, Maggie Pond's special is chicken
If an enlightened administration at Tamalpais High School in Mill Valley hadn't ditched the stodgy, traditional home economics courses, Maggie Pond might have never become the top-notch chef she is now. Cooking had not been on the front burner for Pond as a teenager, but when the boring home economics curriculum was sent to the dustbin, to be replaced by a program called Feast in which students were taught real cooking, her interest was suddenly awakened. Several times a week, the students prepared meals for faculty and for themselves. Young Maggie soon decided that cooking and feeding people appealed to her on many levels. It still does. As executive chef of Cesar wine bar and restaurant on Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley's Gourmet Ghetto and its sister restaurant, which opened in 2006 on Piedmont Avenue in Oakland, she fills her days with planning, experimenting and preparing small plates that fit one of the preferred contemporary dining styles without ever shouting "trendy." But at home, Pond often opts for comfort food like a fragrant chicken fricassee (see recipe): "It's delicious, it keeps well and you can make it with stuff you have on hand anyway," she explains.
The Placenta Really Does Act Like A Parasite
The placenta uses a cloaking device similar to that used by parasites to avoid detection by the mother's immune system. MRC funded scientists looking to develop a diagnostic test for pre-eclampsia, a major and potentially fatal cause of fetal and maternal illness, made the amazing discovery which could have far reaching implications.
The team, based at the University of Reading, believe their findings will revolutionise our understanding of the placenta and research into recurrent miscarriages and pre-eclampsia. It is also hoped this method of avoiding immune rejection could be mimicked and used in other areas such as arthritis or even stem cell therapy.
At the turn of 21st century Professor Lowry and his team discovered that the small protein neurokinin B (NKB), which is secreted by the placenta, is raised significantly in mothers when pre-eclampsia develops.
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