[Aluminum toxicity]

Activated Metals to Generate Heat for Biomedical Applications

Delivering heat in vivo could enhance a wide range of biomedical therapeutic and diagnostic technologies, including long-term drug delivery devices and cancer treatments. To date, providing thermal energy is highly power-intensive, rendering it oftentimes inaccessible outside of clinical settings. We developed an in vivo heating method based on the exothermic reaction between liquid-metal-activated aluminum and water. After establishing a method for consistent activation, we characterized the heat generation capabilities with thermal imaging and heat flux measurements. We then demonstrated one application of this reaction: to thermally actuate a gastric resident device made from a shape-memory alloy called Nitinol. Finally, we highlight the advantages and future directions for leveraging this novel in situ heat generation method beyond the showcased example.

Role of metals in Alzheimer's disease

Metal homeostasis in the central nervous system (CNS) is a crucial component of healthy brain function, because metals serve as enzymatic cofactors and are key components of intra- and inter-neuronal signaling. Metal dysregulation wreaks havoc on neural networks via induction and proliferation of pathological pathways that cause oxidative stress, synaptic impairment, and ultimately, cognitive deficits. Thus, exploration of metal biology in relation to neurodegenerative pathology is essential in pursuing novel therapies for Alzheimer's Disease and other neurodegenerative disorders. This review covers mechanisms of action of aluminum, iron, copper, and zinc ions with respect to the progressive, toxic accumulation of extracellular β-amyloid plaques and intracellular hyperphosphorylated neurofibrillary tau tangles that characterizes Alzheimer's Disease, with the goal of evaluating the therapeutic potential of metal ion interference in neurodegenerative disease prevention and treatment. As neuroscientific interest in the role of metals in neurodegeneration escalates-in large part due to emerging evidence substantiating the interplay between metal imbalances and neuropathology-it becomes clear that the use of metal chelating agents may be a viable method for ameliorating Alzheimer's Disease pathology, as its etiology remains obscure. We conclude that, although metal therapies can potentially deter neurodegenerative processes, the most promising treatments will remain elusive until further understanding of neurodegenerative etiology is achieved. New research directions may best be guided by animal models of neurodegeneration, which reveal specific insights into biological mechanisms underlying dementia.

[Vaccine safety]

Vaccinations rank among the most effective preventive measures for protection against infectious diseases. Advances in development, production, and control of vaccines facilitate the increasing standards of vaccine safety and tolerance. Comprehensive pre-clinical and clinical tests as well as modern manufacturing and testing methods ensure that vaccines marketed nowadays are safe. As a rule, clinical trials performed before granting the marketing authorisation identify the most frequent adverse events and these results are used to evaluate the safety of the product. Such trials can identify relatively rare adverse events, which occur with a frequency of 1:1,000 to 1:10,000 of all vaccinated individuals. These adverse events will then be included in the summary of product characteristics (SPC) for the vaccine. Even after comprehensive clinical trials of vaccines, it is possible that very rare adverse events may be observed for the first time during general use of a vaccine. In recent years concern over real and alleged risks of vaccines relative to their benefit has grown in many countries including Germany. One reason for this is the fact that most infections that were previously feared have now faded from memory. This situation can be ascribed in part to the success of vaccination. In recent years an increased awareness of substantiated and assumed risks following immunization has been reported in Germany as well as many other countries. In part this may be due to the absence of infectious disease-related mortality and morbidity and to the fact that the severity of vaccine-preventable diseases is no longer observable. Consequently, rare and hypothetical adverse events attain undue public attention. As vaccination willingness diminishes, a resulting lower vaccination rate renders the population susceptible to the natural wild type infection with concomitant increases in mortality and morbidity of vaccine-preventable diseases. Thus, very rare or even unproven adverse events have attracted public attention. Declining vaccination rates resulting from these fears may result in a renewed increase of vaccine-preventable diseases. Adverse events following immunization (AEFI) need to be recognized and adequately assessed. This review presents the scientific knowledge concerning causality and frequency of several AEFI and hypothetical risks.