Foods That Weaken Immune System

लंदन- हवा में आने के पहले पांच मिनट के भीतर ही कोरोनावायरस के संक्रमण फैलाने की क्षमता में काफी कमी आ जाती है और 20 मिनट के अंदर कोरोनावायरस 90 प्रतिशत तक बेदम हो जाता है। एक नए अध्ययन (स्टडी) में यह खुलासा हुआ है। अंग्रेजी अखबार गार्जियन में छपी खबर में स्टडी के बारे में बताया गया है। कोविड-19 के बढ़ते प्रकोप के बीच इसे लेकर जारी शोध एवं विमशरें में नई जानकारियां सामने आ रही हैं। अब एक नए शोध में सामने आया है कि यह खतरनाक वायरस हवा के संपर्क में आने के 20 मिनट बाद संक्रमण करने की अपनी क्षमता को काफी हद तक खो देता है। शोध के निष्कर्ष में यह भी सामने आया कि इस वायरस से बचने का सबसे आसान और प्रभावी तरीका मास्क पहनना और सामाजिक दूरी (सोशल डिस्टेंसिंग) नियमों का पालन करना है। स्टडी के अनुसार, इस वायरस के प्रभाव को कम करने के लिए वेटिंलेशन (हवादार जगह) एक सार्थक उपाय है। ब्रिस्टल यूनिवर्सिटी के एरोसोल रिसर्च सेंटर के डायरेक्टर और इस रिसर्च के प्रमुख लेखक जोनाथन रीड के मुताबिक, लोग खराब वेटिंलेशन वाले इलाके में रहकर सोचते हैं कि एयरबोर्न संक्रमण से दूर रहेंगे। उन्होंने कहा कि मैं यह नहीं कहता कि ऐसा नहीं है, मगर यह भी तय है कि एक दूसरे के करीब रहने से ही कोरोना संक्रमण फैलता है। उन्होंने कहा कि जब एक शख्स से दूसरे शख्स के बीच कुछ दूरी होती है तो वायरस अपनी संक्रामकता खो देता है क्योंकि ऐसे में उसका एरोसोल पतला होता जाता है। ऐसी स्थिति में वायरस कम संक्रामक होता है। शोधकर्ताओं ने हवा में वायरस के फैलने को लेकर रिसर्च किया है, जिसमें वायरस को दो इलेक्ट्रिक रिंगों के बीच हवा में तैरने दिया गया है। शोधकतार्ओं ने वायरस युक्त कण उत्पन्न करने के लिए एक उपकरण विकसित किया और उन्हें कड़े नियंत्रित वातावरण में पांच सेकंड और 20 मिनट के बीच कहीं भी दो इलेक्ट्रिक रिंगों के बीच तैरने की इजाजत दी गई। रिसर्च में वैज्ञानिकों ने देखा कि एक इंसान के फेफड़े से निकलने के बाद कोरोना के वायरस का पानी काफी तेजी से खत्म हो जाता है और वातावरण में मौजूद कार्बन डाइऑक्साइड के लोअर लेवल के संपर्क में आने के बाद वायरस की क्षमता प्रभावित होती है। रिपोर्ट के अनुसार, हवा में आने के कुछ देर बाद कार्बन डाइऑक्साइड मानव कोशिकाओं को संक्रमित करने की वायरस की क्षमता को प्रभावित करता है। रिसर्चर्स ने पाया कि, किसी ऑफिस के एक ऐसे वातावरण में, जहां आसपास के क्षेत्र की आद्र्रता आमतौर पर 50 प्रतिशत से कम होती है, वायरस पांच सेकंड के भीतर अपनी संक्रमण फैलाने की 50 प्रतिशत क्षमता खो देता है और धीरे धीरे वायरस बेअसर होने लगता है। इसके साथ ही, ज्यादा आद्र्र वातावरण में, उदाहरण के लिए, स्टीम रूम या शॉवर रूम में वायरस की रफ्तार काफी धीमी हो जाती है। हालांकि, शोधकर्ताओं ने पाया कि तापमान ने वायरल संक्रामकता पर थोड़ा अंतर डाला है और गर्म वातावरण में इस वायरस की रफ्तार ज्यादा तेज होती है। ऐसी परिस्थितियों को देखते हुए जोनाथन रीड ने मास्क पहनने के महत्व पर प्रकाश डाला और इसे पहनने की अपील की। शोधकर्ताओं को सभी तीन सार्स-सीओवी-2 वैरिएंट में ऐसा ही समान प्रभाव देखने को मिला, जिसमें अल्फा भी शामिल है। रिपोर्ट में कहा गया है कि शोधकर्ता आने वाले हफ्तों में ओमिक्रॉन वैरिएंट के साथ भी प्रयोग शुरू करने की उम्मीद कर रहे हैं। (एजेंसी) यह भी पढ़े► कोविड से उबर चुके लोगों में ओमिक्रॉन वेरिएंट से दोबारा संक्रमित होने की संभावना 3 से

India's Ayush industry is expanding globally and its market size has grown significantly during the last two years of the Covid pandemic as the domestic trends re-established the traditional system of medicine, nearer mainstream medicines. But can it, and especially, its major constituent ayurveda, capture a bigger share in the global wellness market? Ayush, which combines ayurveda, yoga, unani, siddha - all indigenous to India and among the world's oldest healthcare systems - and homeopathy, touts a holistic approach to health, Ayurveda, central to the Ayush, is among the world's oldest traditional medical practice, but is beyond it, stressing the requirement of healthy and natural lifestyle, and an organic interconnectedness among body, mind, and spirit. The approach of Ayush systems which aims at immunity promoting interventions as an effective, safer, accessible, and affordable way is the reason for their increased use globally during the pandemic. India's AYUSH has reported tremendous growth in the last few years because of growing global and domestic demand, enabled by research and development in the sector. According to a report from Ayush Ministry, with a turnover of $18.1 billion, the market size of the Indian AYUSH industry, as a whole, has grown by 17 per cent during 2014-2020. Among its different product segments, plant derivatives experienced 21 per cent growth in the same period, followed by nutraceuticals (20.5 per cent), pharmaceuticals (15.8 per cent), plant extracts 14.7 per cent and herbal plants (14.3 per cent) as per the report. The Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS) report titled 'AYUSH Sector in India: Prospects and Challenges', says that in terms of the global share, India has grown faster in the AYUSH market as compared to the world and accounts for about 2.8 per cent of the market, which is likely to hold even though disruptions in production are not ruled out. "According to the RIS report, the market size of AYUSH in India has registered a growth of 17 per cent between 2014 and 2020. Despite the global slowdown in economic activity in 2020, the market for AYUSH is estimated to reach $23.3 billion in 2022. Research and research in the Ayush sector is also being promoted with more comprehensive results to be revealed soon," said the ministry's media advisor, Sanjay Dev. The Indian Medicines Pharmaceutical Corporation Ltd (IMPCL), the public sector manufacturing unit of the Ayush Ministry, has recorded a turnover of Rs 164.33 crore (tentative) for financial year 2020-21. This is the highest in the company's history and an all-time high profit of approximately Rs 12 crore is reported for the year. In 2019-20, the company's revenue was Rs 97 crore, as per the ministry. Ayurveda sector in India has registered 17 per cent growth which is consistent with the growth trajectory of the global ayurveda Industry. As estimated by the International Market Analysis Research and Consulting Group, the ayurveda market is expected to grow by around 15 per cent during 2020-2025. The study has estimated the global market size of the herbal sector which was estimated at $657.5 billion in 2020 and is likely to touch $746.9 billion by 2022. According to the Data Bridge Market Research study, the global herbal medicinal market is expected to reach $426.43 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 5.34 per cent during 2021-2028. Available market research on herbal and ayurveda medicine sector says that ayurveda constitutes a small portion of the total herbal market, but its growth potential is much higher. The global traditional and complementary medicine market has been valued at around $360 billion. However, only a minor share of that market gos to ayurveda, between $7.2 billion-$9.6 billion. The rising interest in ayurveda showcases potential of Indian medicine systems to be a global leader with a proper strategic vision and operational efficiency in the sector. (By Avinash Prabhakar) Read More► Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences Launches Office

Toronto- Even as the newly reported Omicron variant is poised to replace Delta as the dominant variant across the world, a study led by an Indian-origin researcher shows that many mutations in the variant allow it to bond with human cells far more efficiently than previous strains. The Omicron variant was first identified in South Africa in late November, and has since spread rapidly to 106 countries. The variant is now the dominant strain in many countries including the US, the UK, Denmark among others. Of all the variants of coronaviruses so far, Omicron is the most heavily mutated with more than 30 mutations on its spike protein, which the virus uses to enter human cells. The variant also harbours a high number of mutations in regions of the spike protein that antibodies recognise, potentially dampening their potency. Researchers from the University of British Columbia, Canada, studied Omicron using cryo-electron microscopy - a technique that provides images of the virus at incredibly high resolution. The results, published pre-print and not peer-reviewed yet, showed that "Omicron has far greater binding affinity than the original SARS-CoV-2 virus" due to new bonds created between the virus and human cell receptors, Dr Sriram Subramaniam, lead scientist, was quoted as saying to the Daily Mail. In addition, the researchers tested Omicron against human and monoclonal antibodies, finding that the variant is more resistant to these immune system particles than other variants. "The Omicron variant is unprecedented for having 37 spike protein mutations - that's three to five times more mutations than any other variant," Subramaniam, a biochemistry professor at the University, was quoted as saying in a statement. According to Subramaniam, the increased mutations on the spike protein are important for two reasons: "Firstly, because the spike protein is how the virus attaches to and infects human cells. Secondly, because antibodies attach to the spike protein in order to neutralise the virus." The team probed Omicron's mutations through microscopic imaging, and found that some of the mutations create additional bonds between the virus and ACE2 receptors - a human cell receptor located throughout the body, the report said. These new mutations appear to "increase binding affinity", Subramaniam said, indicating that Omicron can attach more strongly to human cells. The researchers compared Omicron's binding affinity to that of the Delta variant and the original strain of the coronavirus. "Overall, the findings show that Omicron has far greater binding affinity than the original SARS-CoV-2 virus, with levels more comparable to what we see with the Delta variant," Subramaniam said. Subramaniam's team also examined the Omicron spike protein's ability to evade both human antibodies and antibodies from monoclonal antibody treatments. This analysis confirmed real-world data, showing that Omicron is more capable of evading antibodies than previous variants - meaning that treatments are less successful, the report said. "Notably, Omicron was less evasive of the immunity created by vaccines, compared to immunity stemming from natural infection in unvaccinated Covid patients," Subramaniam said, adding "this suggests that vaccination remains our best defence against the Omicron variant." Both the Omicron variant's increased binding affinity and its capacity to evade antibodies are "likely contributing factors to its increased transmissibility," Subramaniam said. (Agency) Read More► Even Triple Vaccination Cannot Limit Omicron Spread: BioNTech CEO

Jerusalem- Israeli researchers have found that SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, harms the human immune system, Ben-Gurion University (BGU) in southern Israel said on Monday. In a genetic study published in the journal iScience, BGU researchers tried to find out what causes the "stormy" nature of Covid-19, which is also manifested in an extreme reaction of the immune system, Xinhua news agency reported. For this purpose, they analyzed for a year, using computational biology, gene expression in patients from around the world. The team examined whether mitochondria, cell organs that produce energy, are damaged during Covid-19 illness, resulting in dysfunction of the body. Surprisingly, the researchers identified damage to the mitochondria of immune system cells, rather than to lung cells' mitochondria. The mitochondrial damage in immune cells explains the "cytokine storm" phenomenon, which is a reaction of the immune system, appearing with symptoms such as fever, swelling and extreme fatigue, the researchers said. "Based on the results, it is possible to use existing treatments to target mitochondria and thus improve patients' condition," they concluded. Read More► A Runny Nose and Itchy Throat? It May Be Omicron, Says Study