Social Media

I have recently completed a full time Msc program and due to graduate in January 2012. After about 8 years of employment and studying I suddenly found myself sitting at home twiddling my fingers in search of something to do. My routine of setting alarms to be at the work place on time or make it to 9am lectures had been filled by a void. What I found however was that there still never seem to be enough time in the day to accomplish a day’s task. So why was this?

The reason I concluded is the evolution of social media. I remember the days in my last employment where facebook was limited to lunch time and at one point there were threats of disciplinary action for employees going on social networking sites during working hours. There was also a lot of media frenzy about facebook at the time. From facebook came linkedin aimed primarily at the professional community and even using company time to update linkedin contacts and profiles was an issue. With time, the use of social media in the work place begun to fade away. As no one wanted to be made the scape goat, it was best to stay clear of all social networking sites even during lunch time. But after a hard day’s work when all you want to do is relax (on the nights you can afford the luxury of not taking work home), starring at a computer screen is the last thing you want to do.

This scenario repeated itself whiles I was on my masters program. With the pressure of assignment deadlines, preparing for exams and catching up on lectures, time spent on social networking sites is a luxury one cannot afford. Throughout this time however, I did have accounts set up on facebook, linkedin and twitter and I think a few of the fading away sites like my space. My space is pretty much dormant now, linkedin and facebook I occasionally made time for and twitter was inactive. I must confess twitter was the one site I never quite seemed to get the hang of at the time.

With the introduction of the smart phones meant you no longer needed to be behind a pc to access the internet nor social networking sites.  But then again the use of personal mobiles is an abomination in the work place and in the lecture halls. Half the time the buildings have no signal anyway. And if you are like me where you drive as supposed to use public transport (not environmentally friendly, I know but needs must) you miss out on the mobile browsing time during train and bus rides. It is no surprise then that my exposure to social media was limited.

Why then do I have all this free time on my hands and still feel there’s never enough time in the day. Well it is because I now have all the time for social media. My linkedin is up and running, I am back into facebook, I cannot get enough of twitter, I am discovering goggle+ and I even have time to publish blogs. If I am off my pc, I am tweeting on my phone and the cycle seems never ending. Since I had time on my hands for this however, I am more updated with current affairs and other issues of interest now more than ever especially through twitter. I feel I am constantly improving my general knowledge and abreast with useful events. The social media experience has proven invaluable and should not be taken lightly.

It was no surprise then, when during my job applications I came across a variety of employers advertising positions for social media officers/assistants/developers. There was even a recent job advertisement in the guardian for a blogger relationship executive. The scope is endless.  From experience, I can say any role involving social media can definitely be a full time position. The use of social media is now a vital role every company / organisation has to embrace. Gone are the days when the use of social media in the work place was banned. Yes some employers still insist on this due to lack of productivity from some employees but you will find that all large companies / organisations now have an active facebook, twitter, linkedin and now goggle+ page. I will not be taken aback if I hear of universities offering courses on social media as I am sure this already forms a core of some modules in courses such as IT.

The technology revolution spirals on and you do not want to be left out in the cold. Get on board and discover the world as never seen before. Social media is here to stay. 

TEDxEuston 2011

This weekend (26^th November) saw some of Africa’s inspirations take the stage at TEDxEuston 2011. For those of you who do not know about TED follow the link to learn more. http://www.ted.com/pages/about. Briefly it is a conference which creates a platform for participants to share ideas worth spreading.

The theme for this year’s TEDxEuston event was “Africa: Redefine; Reimagine,” and the organising team selected 14 speakers with roots from all over Africa to share their ideas on re-defining Africa. (Find out about the speakers here http://tedxeuston.com/tedxeuston/index.php/tedeuston-2011).

The speakers covered vast subjects on re-defining Africa from sexual violence to politics to agriculture and technology. There were interlude of performances from renowned guitarist and jazz musician Femi Temowo, musician Kadialy Kouyate and an eco-friendly themed fashion show by Josė Hendo .There was a lot of humour from all speakers and a buzzing atmosphere from all members of the crowd.

The first speaker to take the stage was Lola Shoneyin of Nigeria talking about the increase in sexual violence in our continent. She highlighted incidences of gang rape, Swaziland’s king, corrective rape cases in south and east Africa, Men rapping children and the stories of some of the women recruits of the late Gadhafi. Her message being: What is the government doing about it? What message are we sending to our young boys?

Lola was followed by Kwame Kwei Armah, an actor, play wright and director of Jamaican decent based in the USA. He talked about turning points in his life and using the arts to celebrate African and Diaspora culture. He talks about life as an immigrant, the bizarre feeling of being foreign and always having to play catch up. However he learnt not to complain and encouraged immigrants in Britain have to build the UK too. Kwame got a lot of people in the room thinking with his thought provoking statements. He mentioned how he was filled with tears of anger and rage whenever he read that the community he came from was being blamed for the riots in London. He ended with question, how do we construct the 21st century role model?

After a beautiful performance by Kadialy Kouyate – a musician of Senegal decent, Paula Akugizibwe, a writer and activist of Nigerian decent took the stage with her thoughts on commercialisation of healthcare and its impact on human survival with focus on HIV and TB in Africa.

Labour Politician Hon Paul Boateng (Retired) graced the stage with his presence next. He begun by giving gratitude to his grandfather, a nobel rural cocoa farmer from Achim without whom he would not be where he is today. According to Mr Boateng, to redefine and reimagine Africa we need to recognise where we come from."  You constantly have to fight because there are others who constantly wish to destroy. His focus was on the Importance of agriculture, Science and technology and highlighted the need to focus less about governance. To him improvement in agriculture in Africa will reduce poverty as agriculture linked with science and technology leads to employment opportunities. He ended on the note that African needs do more about agriculture, science and technology and move from sentiment to strategy.

Moky Makura ended the first session on a subject I personally relate to. The need to share our stories.  African's are very secretive about what they do and why they do it. She quoted Martin Luther king – “Our lives begin to end when we stay silent about the things that matter.” Share your story to inspire the next person.  She left us with a line from writer Achebe - Until lions learn to write, hunters will tell their story. It is our job as Africans to put our best foot forward.

Kola Karim, the Chief Executive of Shoreline Energy International spoke about entrepreneurship being the key to re-defining Africa. He said you can't separate development and culture nor can we keep looking outside Africa for salvation. There is the need to mobilise the African Diaspora and build sustainable businesses. Africa has the biggest cocoa plantations and the biggest gold mines, yet how many chocolate or jewellery factories do we have located there? Africa spends too long worrying about what people think of us. Instead, we should spend time creating the image we want people to have of us.

After such powerful and thought provoking topics from the morning it was perfect to have Jerome Okolo from Nigeria take the stage next. He was full of humour and got the crowd laughing without missing the focus of his talk. His opening line was this: first of all, I'm a Nigerian I have never sent an email or fax to anyone saying I have 5bn dollars in an account.  He moved on to share his story about life during the civil war with tales of his days as a Nigerian in Russia. To him the Nigerian civil war did not end in the 1970’s because it is still going on today.  He posed the question '’How Many Nigerian's does it take to change a light bulb?” It boils down to trust. To quote him, "The Nigerian story cannot be told until all Nigerians feel comfortable under the Nigerian roof.” Re- phrasing president Obama’s famous lines, he said Africans cannot stop at Yes We can, it's time to move on to Yes We Will. Jerome Okolo ended with the day's 1st standing ovation. He hit the nail right on head.

There was a musical performance by Femi Temowo accompanied by Ayan and a fashion show by the eco-friendly designer Josė Hendo.

Next to take the stage was Africa’s own bill gates Herman Chinery-Hesseco- cofounder of the SOFTtribe Limited with thoughts on technology as being a part of the way forward. He was followed by Hadeel Ibrahim with the message to African leaders: do your job and leave on time.

Mr Arnold Ekpe CEO of ecobank shared the message on the need for Africa to integrate and break down the barriers we have created to allow for free movement of business. We need to stop looking for solutions abroad. Our future is in our hands. Helen Lieberman followed by talking about how she started in 1963 in apartheid South Africa and how ordinary people change lives at great personal risk.

The sharing of inspiring ideas about Africa ended with Toyin Saraki, Founder of The Wellbeing Foundation telling harrowing stories of healthcare in Nigeria through her own experience. http://www.wellbeingfoundationnig.org/media-center-press-releases/speeches

By the end of the event everyone was left feeling inspired and proudly African. Congratulations to the TEDxEuston team for such great work. Personally Looking forward to TEDxEUston 2012. It can only get better. Africa’s future lies in the hands of Africans. From Jerome Okolo, it is time to move on from "yes we" can to "Yes We Will". 

Save the pharmaceutical industry

Ever wonder how paracetamol ended up on the shelves of every chemist, super market or off license. It’s so readily available and in abundance no one would think it cost years of research and investment to have it flood the market today.

The reality is it takes a minimum of 10 years from identifying a new chemical entity that could have a therapeutic potential to developing it into a licensed marketable drug. It is no surprise then that this process can cost millions of pounds/ dollars.  Admittedly in the 1960’s it probably took under 5 years to reach this same end goal. But with several incidences of flaws in the safety and efficacy of drugs it was only right that more stringent laws and regulations be put in place for the protection of mankind. After all, no one wants to see a repeat of the thalidomide disaster. (Read about the thalidomide disaster here: http://www.thalidomideuk.com/smithellsnewman.htm).

The downfall of this however is the increasing cost and lengthy time invested in getting a drug onto the market. As such the drug development process has now become more of an economic concern as supposed to medicinal satisfaction. Many small start-ups and medium sized companies have been put out of business as they cannot afford the resources to compete with the bigger pharmas. Others have had to merge to increase capital and decrease cost of operation. But why should an industry which focuses on health care be turned into a competitive market place?

Securing a patent has become the life blood of any pharmaceutical company. The company income and job security is guaranteed for about 20 years by which time they are sure to have made a return on investment and exclusivity can be lost. Don’t be surprised then by the very hush hush nature of many researchers. Usually once a lead compound is identified the patent is filed even before work on formulations begins. Out of every 10,000 compounds identified only 1 makes it to the market place. You simply have to get in first before someone else does or you lose years of investment.

It is for this reason that the initial cost of new drugs on the market is almost absurd. How else would you play it if you run a pharmaceutical company focussed on developing new drugs? It’s a business and not a charity. Yes there are patients who could benefit from affordable drugs and it is for their sake that these products are made in the first place but the cost of medicines is an issue for government not industry and it needs to be addressed.

Cancer patients have to fight for the right to be prescribed what seems to be overly priced medication and HIV sufferers are dying of AIDS due to unaffordability of anti-viral medication. The national institute for health and clinical excellence (NICE) ruled that the cancer drug Avastin used so effectively in other developed countries for the treatment of bowel cancer be banned simply because of high cost. Ok so Avastin costs £20,800 for a ten-month course and is taken intravenously but surely this cannot be right because people’s lives are at stake. However, if the pharmaceutical industry started putting emotions into pricing, they will be out of business before the close of day.

Truth is with changing times comes new ailments of concern and the need for new drugs will forever be in demand. These past few years have seen incidences of the SARS virus outbreak in Asia and swine flu in the west. Malaria continues to be a problem due to mutations as is the hospital infection MRSA and clostridium difficile bug. Drug development has to continue however long it takes from the bench to the shelf. On the contrary however a recent report by Deloitte raised concerns over the 25% increase in cost of developing a new drug and the drop in the number of drugs at the last developmental stages from 23 to 18.  http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/nov/21/pharmaceuticals-drug-research-costs-rise?CMP=twt_fd

Drug development should be a matter of international concern and governments have to come together to address the challenges facing the pharmaceutical industry before the world is wiped clean by a deadly pandemic with no cure.  

Intellectual Property

Who owns intellectual property rights? The person from whom an idea is conceived or the person who develops that idea? A classic example is seen with this generation’s most popular social networking site facebook. Founder Mark Zuckerberg was sued by the Winklevos brothers, claiming that Facebook was developed from an idea they initially pitched to Mark. The brothers were compensated with $140million. As Mark interestingly stated during the trial, he developed an idea and turned it into something that no one in that court room could do, including the Winklevos brothers. That is the unquestionable advantage doers have over thinkers.  

During the 7^th series of the UK TV program, “the apprentice” (a reality show where a group of aspiring businessmen and women compete for the chance to land a £100,000-a-year job with British business magnate Lord Sugar) where this time around the winning candidate was being offered a partnership as suppose to a job opportunity, Lord sugar made the obvious smart decision of partnering with Tom, an inventor of the curved nail file. Tom won only three of the twelve tasks set during the series in comparison to his opponent Helen who won 11 out of the 12 tasks yet Tom triumphed over Helen. Many were taken by surprise, as Helen was the favourite to win but I was not. Yes Tom’s business plan of selling ergonomic chairs to companies to reduce back injury by employers with the hope of combating absenteeism due to back injury was flawed but you can’t take away the creative mind and skilful hands of an inventor. Give him a blank sheet of paper and a pencil and you’ll have your next invention drawn up in no time. This was the advantage Tom had over Helen.

Why then does this not transcribe to ownership of intellectual property. A student makes a discovery in a university lab and the patent is a property of that lab. Fair enough without the facilities provided in the lab and the training and guidance given by supervisors that discovery would probably not be made. Some would argue that the benefits of that discovery be equal. However you can’t credit all the maths teachers who have ever taught Archimedes for his principle nor can you credit Newton’s physics teachers for Newton’s law. After all if they had not laid the basic educative foundation these scientists would probably not have grown to make those discoveries. But you don’t hear of Archimedes’ tutor suing him for developing the basic maths principles he first taught him? Why then should the work of students be credited to the labs? Or the work of employees be credited to the employer simply because those discoveries were made on their payroll.  

This brings me to a recent case where a company is suing one of its former employees for missing lab notebooks. Judy Mikovits a researcher was recently arrested and jailed after her former employers brought a law suit against her for absconding with lab notebooks and proprietary information. (Read full story here- http://blogs.nature.com/news/2011/11/researcher_arrested_over_missi.html).  It a basic rule of science, lab books is the property of the lab. So if you make chance discovery on another person’s payroll, what do you do? Scribble it down on a note pad and slip it into your bag and hope to have an independent opportunity to develop your chance discovery or do the right thing and record all occurrences in the golden lab book? Rules are rules and lab books stay in the lab.

Very few entrepreneurs out there never worked for anyone. Many developed ideas they had gained in previous employment and others are spring offs of larger companies or institutions. By this point the network has been established and you have a spring board to boost your efforts. But are the contacts established during your time on another’s pay roll not their property? After all if not for them you would probably never have come across those contacts. I know from reading Sir Richard Branson’s autobiography that he played a sneaky smart move on a colleague who had hinted him on a potential music artiste during conversation. He then took the opportunity to get in first and reap the benefits. Guess you’ve got to be shrewd in business. He simply developed an idea.

These are a few examples of many instances where one mans’ idea is lost in another’s development.

All researches surely know how this play out. Keep your cards close to your chest until you have credible data to publish. Once it gets out there, it is only a matter of time before the inventors’ runs off to develop your idea. More often than not in these instances, money dominates.  But should this really be the case. As the saying goes two heads are better than one. Business men and women, researchers and like-minded thinkers should be able to freely and openly share and brainstorm ideas, opportunities and discoveries without the insecurity of being robbed.  At the end of the day, you may rob my idea today but you can never have my brain. 

That is the power of intellectual property. 

Here today, gone tomorrow.

For a minute nothing made sense and when it did denial set in. This can’t be true. He was here today. She stays up all night waiting to hear the voice on the other line but the phone never rings. She keeps hearing the door open but she turns and it’s still shut. The sound of the engine roars so near yet the drive is empty. She stands and stares out the window but all is bleak. Here today, gone tomorrow.

The knock on the door that dreadful morning had changed it all. All their plans were cancelled and all their dreams were shattered. He was gone with one wrong turn. One life was taken, another was ruined. Two families in disarray from one road crash.  A moments’ impatience and a reckless decision. The damage was done. No one could turn back time.  

She can’t even remember the last words that were uttered. She can’t picture the face she last set sight on, the smell in the corner he last stood was now odourless.  Panic sets in, all sanity is lost, tears roll down her eyes and she’s lost all feeling. She’s ached to numbness, numbness all over.  She can’t think, she can’t speak, she can’t move.  She remains in a trance all night staring and waiting for a shadow to appear, but all is dark. Here today, gone tomorrow.

The sun rises once again and with that a smile on her face. The memory is back, the last kiss on the lips, the smell of his perfume, and the voice in her ears saying “I’ll always be here”. She feels a tap on her shoulder and snaps out of the trance. She turns around but no one is there, just her reflection staring back at her. The tears remain marked down her face but only this time the smile remains. She feels his presence. He’s still near and yet so far. With that she drops off to sleep. The void remains but she is at peace knowing he is watching over here. At peace for one night until the morning light when reality kicks in again.

Here today gone tomorrow. 

In memory of road traffic victims

Thousands of lives are lost yearly due to reckless driving, bad weather and poor driving conditions. One life lost changes the lives of many. It takes less than a second to change someone’s life. Make a positive impact by driving safely. You cannot turn back time. Had I known is always at last. Think! Drive safely. 

http://www.worlddayofremembrance.org/

Fine Thin Line

This is a deviation from my usual scientific material. But in honor of writers month, thought I would diverse into poetry. Enjoy!.

They were happy once. All was perfect as they walked down the street hand in hand. He would whisper in her ears, she would smile back at him. All day long the grin remained on her face, extending from one cheek to the other. She could not stop thinking about him, about the many sweet whispers. He kissed her goodbye and longed for the sunrise after the sunset so he could see her again. The perfect couple.

He could not wait to have her forever. Eventually she got the diamond and the band followed. They said “I do” and with that the bond was sealed. She was his and he was hers. He loved to call her mine. Call her mine until the morning after.

She got complacent, he lost the will. The smiles and laughter disappeared. Their days were filled with rows and silence. The jokes replaced with moans, happiness replaced with sorrow, and laughter with cry. All night she lay alone wallowing in her sorrows. All night he was out, out anywhere but home. So what had changed since the sweet whispers?

The kids came along. They got settled in their routines. Running around all day, shattered at night. Only the night wasn’t over. He would be home after a long day’s work to silence. The kiss at the door had faded, diner alone with the television and snores from the bedroom. The love gradually eroding. The sweet whispers fading.

Frustration sets in, he was losing his diamond, and she was losing her sunshine. Anger followed the frustration. They stopped making an effort.  The loving home was now a house. A Structure with no life. The line was drawn. That thin line between love and hate. They were no longer on the same side. So who crossed over? 

HIV free Generation

HIV is one of the killer diseases of our time. I recently engaged in conversation with a lady whose husband had lost almost all of his family to AIDS and to them the news of losing a loved one no longer put a cloud over the day. It is almost as if it had become a part of life. Her worry however was for the many babies and children who had been left motherless. Most of them never knew who the fathers were or they themselves had crossed over from the disease. Not only is there an increasing number of newly born with HIV but also babies and children orphaned from this disease.

Reported cases of HIV have continued to rise since the 1990’s until present when numbers have started to stabilise. There is an obvious burden of this disease today most predominantly in Africa. As at the end of 2009, UNAIDS estimated that 68% of HIV carriers were in sub Saharan Africa. The burden of the disease in Asia has remained relatively stable among the high risk groups of women whereas the incidence in Eastern Europe and southern Asia has almost tripled since 2000. Of the estimated 33.3million cases in the world as at the end of 2009, women accounted for just over half the number of adults living with the disease.

One would think that with the constant public awareness on HIV, the figures would be declining today. The reality is many people around the world take the topic of HIV with a pinch of salt. Otherwise why would an epidemic like this which takes the lives of many and cost the world economy millions a year still be on increase? Let’s face it; the highest prevalence of the disease is in Africa. A developing continent where poverty be it in the form of unavailable clean water, lack of food / a healthy balanced diet, improper housing, lack of funds for medical care, poor education, child labour and limited opportunities is the prime concern of many. HIV is probably the least of their worries.  It is however a burden which should be addressed. Although the transmission of HIV from mothers to children is preventable and the occurrence is fairly rare in the western world, thousands of children in Africa are still being born with the disease due to lack of treatment and education. In 2009, 370 000 children were born with HIV. Together, with the right awareness and intervention the dream of an HIV free generation can become a reality.

It is no secret that the commonest form of HIV transmission is via sexual intercourse with an infected person. Why then are more women infected than men? It may sound biased to say that the men usually end up having sex for the fun of it or usually have more than one partner at a time. So hypothetically, you have one infected man pass on the disease to 5 women in a year before he even realises that he has HIV. Not many couples undertake an STD test prior to getting intimate. And in the west where many young ladies are on birth control pills, barrier protection is not usually the first choice. What is needed is positive behaviour change amongst all. No one walks around with an HIV label. You never think it would be you but it could happen to anyone.

Having an HIV free generation is a major challenge which would realistically take over a decade to achieve. There is a cycle which needs to be broken to make way for the hope of this HIV free generation.  Unprotected sex leads to a possible HIV infection and pregnancy which subsequently leads to the birth of an HIV child who will probably never get to know the father and be orphaned by the death of the mother a few years down the line. Without the right care this child grows up vulnerable with no bright future and finds solace in the partner who makes them smile. Only this fairy tale come true may turn out to be the nightmare they never wake up from.  But there is a silver lining round the cloud. Children born with HIV without treatment do not usually live past their 2^nd birthday. With treatment, they could live on for another 10 – 20 years. If this generation of infected babies grow to be educated and cautious in their sexual quest, then the disease has a chance of being contained. In the meantime, adults and the current up and coming youth need a constant reminder of the reality of HIV and the importance of taking that extra precaution to be safe.

Join in the fight for an HIV free generation. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Miv_OPyKFbg

Epilepsy - Sympathise not Stigmatise

The world’s largest neurological conference is taking place from the 12^th to the 17^th on November in Marrakesh-Morocco. http://www2.kenes.com/wcn/Pages/Home.aspx. 

In support of this I have taken the opportunity raise awareness on epilepsy.

Ever witnessed a person having a seizure or an epileptic fit as some call it?  It can be quite alarming and uncomfortable to watch. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRZY2a2jnuw.

It is no surprise then that people tend to shy away from the subject and often those suffering with this neurological disorder are excluded from society in one way or another. Some religious institutions have labelled them as being possessed by the devil and up until the 1960’s people with epilepsy were subjected to mental institutions.  A person has a seizure in public and passers-by look on or crossover to the other side. Others can’t wait to capture the incidence on their phones. How would you feel if you found a video of your loved one having a seizure on you tube or Facebook?

Yes the educated few would do the right thing and protect them from the harshness received from the rest of the world. Perhaps if there was more awareness, sufferers of epilepsy would not have to shy away from the public so much.

How many of us rely on our cars to go about our daily routines. A high percentage of those reading this drive to work and back daily. So imagine what life would be for you if you woke up one morning going about your usual routine and by the end of the day you find yourself in a hospital bed and told you can no longer drive? Imagine a school teacher/ university lecturer who drops down in shakes half way through a lesson/lecture in front of the pupils/students. What if every time you were out with your mates you had an epileptic episode or knocked your head on the conference table in the middle of a meeting? How would a parent feel if he/she could not hold the child in his/her arms for fear of losing control? And what about sports? Could you play alongside your team if you constantly had seizures before the end of a game?

Most adults diagnosed with epilepsy had a perfectly normal healthy life style prior to the diagnosis. Gradually they start losing this life style they’ve lived for so long. Teachers could probably no longer teach for the safety of the pupils, the pilot can no longer fly a plane for the safety of the passengers, the medic can no longer practise for the safety of the patients nor can the driver continue to drive for the safety of the passengers. Friends start to shy away out of embarrassment, relationships fall apart from the strain of uncertainty, your own kids think twice about hugging you out of fear of the unknown.  Anyone who had to experience any of these and more would inevitably start to lose their confidence and to shy away from society with time. A few have the courage to fight on and to stand up to the ignorant. But would you get in a car or flight if you knew the driver or pilot suffered from epilepsy, probably not.

Epilepsy is the most common serious neurological condition in the UK and it could affect anyone at any age at any time. 87 people in the UK are diagnosed with epilepsy daily. 1 in every 103 people suffers from epilepsy and 1 in 20 people will experience a seizure at some point in their life time. Thankfully with the help of medical interventions most people with epilepsy now have their seizures under control and can have an almost normal life. The recent introduction of a vagal nerve implant has brought hope to many severe sufferers. Find out about vagal nerve stimulation here http://www.epilepsy.org.uk/info/treatment/vagus-nerve-stimulation#about-therapy.

It is easy to raise your nose up to a condition until it’s on your door step. Epilepsy, just like diabetes or cancer deserves recognition and the victims deserve your support. It’s not contagious so share the love next time you come in contact with a person having a seizure.  

Visit http://www.epilepsy.org.uk/ for more information on epilepsy. 

Stem cells – Friend or Foe?

Stem cells are basically human cells with the ability to divide, replicate and differentiate into other cell types. Find out more here http://stemcells.nih.gov/info/basics/basics1.asp .

Dream time film recently produced a video in collaboration with Welcome trust and the University of East Anglia about the future of artificial sperms. The films tells a story of a young scientist who takes cells from her own bone marrow and develops them into sperm cells which she subsequently fuses with her eggs. The result being the birth of her daughter.

This is not a review of the short film (which I find very interesting by the way and I’m sure you would too), but to share my thoughts on what came to mind after watching the video.  Click on the link to watch this video http://www.invitrofilm.com/resources/ .

Stem cell research has made the news quite a few times. Some focussing on the scientific advancement made to date, others on the potential for medical applications.  Mostly stem cell research and their applications have made a lot of headlines primarily about the ethical concerns raised from the use of embryonic stem cells as supposed to adult stem cells. (Information about ethical legislations and discussions on stem cell research can be found here http://stemcells.nih.gov/info/ethics.asp).

Although there is now the possibility to manipulate adult stem cells to behave like embryonic stem cells (a process known as induced pluoripotent transduction) most scientists would agree with me that this is not quite the same as studying the potential of embryonic stem cells.  A basic difference being research into early development and the diseases associated with these early developmental stages. (Find out more about induced pluoripotent transduction at http://stemcells.nih.gov/info/basics/basics10.asp). 

The use of embryonic stem cells therefore still remains the preferred choice. This really should not be much of an issue as these embryonic stem cells are obtained from the left - overs of in vitro fertilization which would otherwise be discarded anyway.    

As if the concerns over the use of embryonic stem cells were not chaotic enough though, imagine how much hostility would be born from allowing women to create their own sperm cells and men to create their own eggs.

As portrayed in the video, the child born from the fusion of an artificial sperm with a natural egg from the same donor passed away at 35. Her body was then subjected to further medical research. This young lady as it turns out had lived a perfectly normal life until her last days and had borne a child of her own from natural means. The scientist from whom it all begun upon the death of her daughter sought to seek solace for herself and mainly to protect her granddaughter from the lime light by fleeing elsewhere. This short film portrays a minute image of what the world would be for offspring’s conceived from such circumstances. 

In 1978 when the first test tube baby was born, I can only imagine how much media frenzy took place (I was not conceived then) and what Louise Brown and her family must have gone through. Despite how over joyed her parents were from her birth I’m sure there were moments when they wished to be left alone. As it turns out Louise Brown, the 1^st test tube baby may have a permanent place in history but now has a perfectly normal life. IVF has since changed the lives of many for good.

Not a human case, but the same can be said about the world’s most famous sheep – dolly – who was cloned from an adult stem cell. Dolly lived for 6 years before passing on from lung disease.   

Scientists have already reported the birth of mice from a natural egg and an artificial sperm from the same donor and it is estimated that both eggs and sperms could be developed within 5 years. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/more-news/woman-may-one-day-make-their-own-sperm-from-skin-cells/story-fn7x8me2-1226186635220.

The thought of developing artificial sperms from cells of an individual and fusing it with a natural egg from that same individual straight away spells out incest to me. This is naturally frowned upon because aside the moral issues surrounding incest there is an increased susceptibility to diseases such as haemophilia. One could argue that the zygote formed would be screened for genetic disorders. If that is the case how many zygotes would have to be discarded before finding the perfect match? A child conceived from this means cannot be shielded from the lime light. What life would they have growing up? Would they be subject to bullying at the school playground or deemed as cool? There is enough damage done to morality in society today to start encouraging young ladies and young men that it is ok to conceive with one’s self.

I’m sure my fellow scientists have every good intention regarding the way forward for this exciting new venture. The issue is not the development of artificial sperms or potential artificial eggs, because there is genuine room for this in cases of infertility. The issue is the thought of one mating with themselves for a child. I’m looking forward to the development of an artificial womb after this so men can go on to carry their own babies.  I guess a few hormone therapies and delivery by c-section should do the trick.  

 

Yes the creation of artificial gametes may be beneficial in situations of infertility but as one writer subtly asked “why are we creating artificial gametes (eggs and sperm) and aborting 200,000 babies a year when there are many, many couples willing to adopt?”

This leads me back to the question “Stem cells – Friend or Foe?” you decide…….

Hanat_akordor

9^th November 2011

Graduation

I was at a gathering yesterday in the mist of other scientist and after exhausting conversation topics about backgrounds, interests, travel, the importance of networking etc… we got to the topic of university experience, qualifications and graduations. A young lady who had recently completed a PhD  including her viva from one of the Oxford University colleges  said, “I don’t graduate till 2013”. Suddenly! the room went quiet - I presume the others like myself took a second  to ponder over the statement wondering “did I hear you right?” and so the question followed; “did you say 2013?” and she answered in the affirmative. 
From this point on, the questions started pouring in all aiming at the same endpoint, WHY???

Ok, so it turns out she had completed her program of study in 2011 and will graduates in 2 years’  not because perhaps her thesis is questionable (after all she has successfully passed her viva) but simply because as per the Oxford University tradition graduation ceremonies take place according to colleges and not by your faculty / program of study.  So for this young lady her colleges’ turn was due in 2013.

Oxford University has 38 independent and self-governing colleges. If graduation ceremonies took place according to colleges and the university held a ceremony a month (I don’t know how the system works) I suppose it makes sense as every college would have to wait at least three years to have its turn.

After we all took turns debating what the rationale behind this system was one of the ladies at this gathering had everyone giggling with the simplest reason, “Time is money”. At such a prestigious institution as Oxford University with the elite and experts in their field of study making up the academic staff, international demand for collaborations, talks at conferences, paper publications, research etc. must be pretty high. As such, most of the delegates required to attend these ceremonies have to take it in turn and I guess be booked 3 years in advance because after all time is money.

This article is not to criticize this system by the way, I’m sure there must be a perfectly logical explanation for it (perhaps someone can shed more light). The conversation moved on to discuss what percentage of students would attend their graduation ceremonies 2 years later. Chances are they are all pretty booked up as well with their new found routines, international students would probably have returned home, other home students would have migrated and working abroad, some would have families with other commitments etc. so I ask myself would I miss my graduation if it was only a few months away, highly unlikely if I had the choice. If it was 2 years away however, then probably yes.  Saying that however, I know at least three people who never attended their graduation ceremonies. One at degree level, the other at masters’ level and a third at PhD level. Not because of anything beyond their control but just as a matter of choice.

But then what exactly is the point of graduation ceremonies – to celebrate achievements, network, have memoralia etc. two years later would that be something I would be looking forward to do, probably not. You could argue that there would be the greater networking advantage 2years later as most if not all graduates would be in positions one could benefit from. Either way as I said before I’m sure there is a perfectly logical explanation and the system does work.

Hanat Akordor. 8^th November 2011