The Gary Null Show Notes – 03.17.23

Videos:

1.Tulsi Gabbard on Justin Trudeau (1:00)

2.Mayor Demands Entire schoolboard Resignation For Supporting P0rnography (1:00)
3. “I demand accountability for the Covid scam” – Marcel de Graaff MEP (6:21)

A closer look at Matcha tea powder’s antidepressant-like effects

Kumamoto University (Japan), March 16, 2023

Matcha, a traditional Japanese tea, has been touted for its health benefits—it can boost mood and mental performance in humans and mice alike—but more mechanistic research is required. Hence, researchers from Japan evaluated the anti-depressive effects of Matcha tea powder in mice. The powder activates dopaminergic neural circuits and improves depression in certain mice, depending on the animal’s prior mental state. More studies like this could help develop better antidepressants.

Depression is currently the most prevalent mental disorder in the world and the number of people affected by it continues to grow. Although the onset of depression varies among individuals, it is believed that the disease commonly stems from a reduction in dopamine in the brain. Dopamine, a neurotransmitter and hormone, plays an important role in elevating one’s mood and making a person feel happy, accomplished, and motivated.

Consumption of matcha has shown to improve anxiety-like behavior in mice by activating dopamine function via dopamine D1 receptor signaling. The resultant dopamine boost could improve the symptoms of depression as well. 

TOrally administering a Matcha tea suspension appeared to reduce levels of depression in the stress-susceptible mice. This was indicated by their performance in tail suspension tests (TST), which are commonly used to evaluate depression in mice.

Dr. Kurauchi clarifies, “Matcha tea reduced the immobility time only in stress-susceptible mice that experienced greater stress from social isolation

An immunohistochemical analysis of the mice brains revealed activation of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and nucleus accumbens (NAc) in the stress-susceptible mice after they had consumed the Matcha tea suspension. These regions form an important part of the dopaminergic circuit and are crucial for controlling dopamine levels in the brain.

This was further cemented by another finding—administering a dopamine D1 receptor blocker to stress-susceptible mice negated the antidepressant-like effects of Matcha tea suspension. Dr. Kurauchi ties it all together. “These results suggest that Matcha tea powder exerts an antidepressant-like effect by activating the dopaminergic system of the brain, and this is influenced by the mental state of the individual.”

Lycopene may ward off kidney cancer in older women

Wayne State University, March 12, 2023

A higher intake by postmenopausal women of the natural antioxidant lycopene, found in foods like tomatoes, watermelon and papaya, may lower the risk of renal cell carcinoma, a type of kidney cancer.

A team led by Cathryn Bock, Ph.D., M.P.H., associate professor of Oncology at Wayne State University’s School of Medicine, made the conclusion after analyzing data from 96,196 women nationwide and in Detroit who enrolled in the Women’s Health Initiative 

“We were surprised to observe a protective effect of lycopene, as several previous studies in other populations did not detect a similar relationship,” Bock said.

The investigators analyzed the risks for kidney cancer associated with intake of lycopene and other micronutrients that have antioxidant properties, including lutein and vitamins C and E. During follow-up, 240 women were diagnosed with kidney cancer. Compared with women who reported a lower intake of lycopene, those who ingested more had a 39 percent lower risk. No other micronutrient was significantly associated with the same risk.

“Kidney cancer is a relatively rare cancer, and so focusing only on reducing risk of this disease would be short-sighted,” Bock said. “Rather, a diet focused on one’s own personal risk factors, such as family history, would be more beneficial.”

A low-salt diet is recommended for women with a risk of hypertension, a major risk factor for kidney cancer. There are other steps women can take now for their health, including eating more foods and fruits with naturally-occurring lycopene.

“Lycopene from food sources has also been associated with decreased risk of breast and prostate cancers, and a diet high in vegetables and fruits are generally well-accepted for promoting good health,” she said.

Good sources of lycopene include tomatoes and tomato-based products, watermelon, pink grapefruit, guava and papaya. Dr. Bock suggests consulting a doctor before taking a lycopene supplement.

Understanding how exercise induces systemic metabolic benefits

Northwestern University, March 16, 2023

Northwestern Medicine scientists have uncovered a mechanism by which exercise activates metabolic benefits in the body, according to a new study published in Cell Metabolism.

During exercise, autophagy, the body’s cellular recycling system that allows old or damaged cellular structures to be broken down, is activated in both contracting muscles and various non-contracting organs, such as the liver.

In the study, investigators performed proteomic analyses on the blood of mice before and after exercise. They identified a protein secreted from contracting muscle, FN1, which significantly increased in the plasma and serum of mice after exercise.

The scientists then analyzed how FN1 communicates with the liver. They found that FN1 signals through a5b1 integrin, a membrane receptor on the liver, inducing autophagy and eliciting the metabolic benefits of exercise. Additionally, investigators found that mice lacking the FN1 gene in the muscle developed insulin resistance despite daily exercise, according to the study.

The findings aid in understanding exercise and how it benefits metabolism, said Congcong He, Ph.D., assistant professor of Cell and Developmental Biology and senior author of the study.

“Not only does this add to our understanding of the underlying mechanism of how exercise induces metabolic benefits systemically, but also how secretions from the muscle talk to the liver. We have now identified FN1 as a mediator of exercise-induced benefits via muscle-liver communication on autophagy.

“The protein is fairly large, so we hope to chop it up into smaller peptides to see which are bioactive,” He said. “Perhaps from that, we will be able to develop this as an injection for people who are unable to exercise to still get the metabolic benefits. For example, using this molecule as an insulin sensitization treatment.”

Rhythm Of Breathing Key To Controlling Fear And Emotional Behavior

Northwestern University, March 2, 2023

We live in a fearful world with exposure to a deluge of stressors every day. As much as fear is a result of reacting to the actual or perceived events in our lives, it is also a biological function of the human body, and when equipped with an understanding of how the body manages the emotional system, we can easily outsmart it, tricking ourselves into emotional balance.

This perspective is scientifically validated by new research from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, which discovered how the various rhythmic patterns of breath profoundly impact memory recall and the emotional body, specifically the fear response.

The brain creates electrical impulses which link physical functions to emotional reactions, and the electrical activity of the brain is deeply affected by our breathing patterns. The outcome of this balance is determined by whether or not we are inhaling or exhaling, as well as if we are  breathing through the nose or the mouth, as each variable creates a different electrical response within the brain.

In the Northwestern study, participants were shown images of human expressions, some frightful, while engaging in various patterns of breathing. Researchers observed that people more easily process fear, and more readily recall images, while inhaling through the nose.

One of the major findings in this study is that there is a dramatic difference in brain activity in the amygdala and hippocampus during inhalation compared with exhalation. When you breathe in, we discovered you are stimulating neurons in the olfactory cortex, amygdala and hippocampus, all across the limbic system.

The amygdala is decisively linked to the processing of emotions, especially those related to fear, while the hippocampus is strongly linked to memory recall, and the breath, which originates with the diaphragm, plays the critical role of regulating their function.

Breathing is modulated at the diaphragm, and it is also the location where many physical symptoms associated with fear and anxiety manifest. 

The differences in brain activity which occur during unique breathing rhythms were recognized by looking at brain activity during the introduction of fearful or surprising human faces, finding distinctively heightened activity during inhaling. Knowing this can be highly advantageous when you realize that your fear reaction is working overtime.

Furthermore, this further validates the importance of meditation, which commonly centers of developing control of the breath in order to quiet the mind and normalize physiological function in the body. The long-term results of a dedicated meditation practice include more stable and optimal emotional reactions to the world around us, indicating again that breathing is a critical component of living a fearless life.

Study finds loss of Menin helps drive the aging process, and dietary supplement (D-serine) can reverse it in mice

Xiamen University (China), March 16, 2023

Decline in the hypothalamic Menin may play a key role in aging, according to a new study publishing  in the open access journal PLOS Biology by Lige Leng of Xiamen University, Xiamen, China, and colleagues. The findings reveal a previously unknown driver of physiological aging, and suggest that supplementation with a simple amino acid may mitigate some age-related changes.

The hypothalamus has been recognized as a key mediator of physiological aging, through an increase in the process of neuroinflammatory signaling over time. In turn, inflammation promotes multiple age-related processes, both in the brain and the periphery.

Recently, Leng and colleagues showed that Menin, a hypothalamic protein, is a key inhibitor of hypothalamic neuroinflammation, leading them to ask what role Menin may play in aging. 

To explore this decline, they created conditional knockout mice, in which Menin activity could be inhibited. They found that reduction of Menin in younger mice led to an increase in hypothalamic neuroinflammation, aging-related phenotypes including reductions in bone mass and skin thickness, cognitive decline, and modestly reduced lifespan.

Another change induced by loss of Menin was a decline in levels of the amino acid D-serine, known to be a neurotransmitter and sometimes used as a dietary supplement found in soybeans, eggs, fish and nuts. The authors showed this decline was due to loss of activity of an enzyme involved in its synthesis (which was in turn regulated by Menin).

Could reversing age-related Menin loss reverse signs of physiological aging? To test that, the authors delivered the gene for Menin into the hypothalamus of elderly (20-month-old) mice. Thirty days later, they found improved skin thickness and bone mass, along with better learning, cognition, and balance, which correlated with an increase in D-serine within the hippocampus, a central brain region important for learning and memory.

Remarkably, similar benefits on cognition, though not on the peripheral signs of aging, could be induced by three weeks of dietary supplementation with D-serine.

Leng said, “We speculate that the decline of Menin expression in the hypothalamus with age may be one of the driving factors of aging, and Menin may be the key protein connecting the genetic, inflammatory, and metabolic factors of aging. D-serine is a potentially promising therapeutic for cognitive decline.” 

Common dry cleaning chemical linked to Parkinson’s

University of Rochester Medical Center, March 14, 2023

A common and widely used chemical may be fueling the rise of the world’s fastest growing brain condition—Parkinson’s disease. For the past 100 years, trichloroethylene (TCE) has been used to decaffeinate coffee, degrease metal, and dry clean clothes. It contaminates the Marine Corps base Camp Lejeune, 15 toxic Superfund sites in Silicon Valley, and up to one-third of groundwater in the U.S. TCE causes cancer, is linked to miscarriages and congenital heart disease, and is associated with a 500% increased risk of Parkinson’s disease.

In a hypothesis paper in the Journal of Parkinson’s Disease, an international team of researchers—including University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) neurologists Ray Dorsey, MD, Ruth Schneider, MD, and Karl Kieburtz, MD—postulate that TCE may be an invisible cause of Parkinson’s. In the paper they detail the widespread use of the chemical, the evidence linking the toxicant to Parkinson’s, and profile seven individuals, ranging from a former NBA basketball player to a Navy captain to a late U.S. Senator, who developed Parkinson’s disease either after likely working with the chemical or being exposed to it in the environment.

TCE was a widely used solvent employed in a number of industrial, consumer, military, and medical applications, including to remove paint, correct typewriting mistakes, clean engines, and anesthetize patients. Its use in the U.S. peaked in the 1970’s, when more than 600 million pounds of the chemical—or two pounds per American—were manufactured annually. Some 10 million Americans worked with the chemical or other similar industrial solvents. While domestic use has since fallen, TCE is still used for degreasing metal and spot dry cleaning in the U.S.

TCE contaminates countless sites across the country. Half of the most toxic Environmental Protection Agency’s Superfund sites contain TCE. Fifteen sites are in California’s Silicon Valley where the chemicals were used to clean electronics and computer chips. TCE is found in numerous military bases, including Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. From the 1950s to the 1980s a million Marines, their families, and civilians that worked or resided at the base were exposed to drinking water levels of TCE and perchloroethylene (PCE), a close chemical cousin, that were up to 280 times above what is considered safe levels.

The connection between TCE and Parkinson’s was first hinted at in case studies more than 50 years ago. In the intervening years, research in mice and rats have shown that TCE readily enters the brain and body tissue and at high doses damages the energy-producing parts of cells known as mitochondria. In animal studies, TCE causes selective loss of dopamine-producing nerve cells, a hallmark of Parkinson’s disease in humans.

Individuals who worked directly with TCE have an elevated risk of developing Parkinson’s. However, the authors warn that “millions more encounter the chemical unknowingly through outdoor air, contaminated groundwater, and indoor air pollution.”

The chemical can contaminate soil and groundwater leading to underground rivers, or plumes, that can extend over long distances and migrate over time. One such plume associated with an aerospace company on Long Island, New York, is over four miles long and two miles wide, and has contaminated the drinking water of thousands. Others are found everywhere from Shanghai, China, to Newport Beach, California.

Beyond their risks to water, the volatile TCE can readily evaporate and enter people’s homes, schools, and work places, often undetected. Today, this vapor intrusion is likely exposing millions who live, learn, and work near former dry cleaning, military, and industrial sites to toxic indoor air. Vapor intrusion was first reported in the 1980s when radon was found to evaporate from soil and enter homes and increase the risk of lung cancer. Today millions of homes are tested for radon, but few are for the cancer-causing TCE.

The authors note that “for more than a century, TCE has threatened workers, polluted the air we breathe—outside and inside—and contaminated the water we drink. Global use is waxing, not waning.”