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Evolutionary Medicine
Evolutionary medicine or Darwinian medicine is the application of modern evolutionary theory to understanding health and disease. Modern biomedical research and practice have focused on the molecular and physiological mechanisms underlying health and disease, while evolutionary medicine focuses on the question of why evolution has shaped these mechanisms in ways that may leave us susceptible to disease. The evolutionary approach has driven important advances in the understanding of cancer, autoimmune disease, and anatomy. Medical schools have been slower to integrate evolutionary approaches because of limitations on what can be added to existing medical curricula. The International Society for Evolution, Medicine and Public Health coordinates efforts to develop the field. It owns the Oxford University Press journal ''Evolution, Medicine and Public Health'' and ''The Evolution and Medicine Review''. Core principles Utilizing the Delphi method, 56 experts from a variety of d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
TB Culture
TB or Tb may refer to: Science and technology Computing * Terabyte (TB), a unit of information (often measuring storage capacity) * Terabit (Tb), a unit of information (often measuring data transfer) * Thunderbolt (interface) * Test bench Vehicles * T.B. (Thompson Brothers), a three-wheeled cyclecar manufactured by Thompson Brothers of Bilston, England, from 1919 until 1924 * Torpedo boat, a relatively small and fast naval vessel designed to carry torpedoes into battle * A US Navy hull classification symbol: Torpedo boat (TB) Places in the United States * Boeing TB, an American torpedo bomber biplane designed by the US Navy and built by Boeing in 1927 Other uses in science and technology * Terbium, symbol Tb, a chemical element * Terrific broth, a bacterial growth medium for ''E. coli'' * Tuberculosis (TB), a chronic infectious disease ** '' Tubercle bacillus'', another name for ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'', the pathogen causing tuberculosis. * Brightness temperature ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scurvy
Scurvy is a deficiency disease (state of malnutrition) resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Early symptoms of deficiency include weakness, fatigue, and sore arms and legs. Without treatment, anemia, decreased red blood cells, gum disease, changes to hair, and bleeding from the skin may occur. As scurvy worsens, there can be poor wound healing, personality changes, and finally death from infection or bleeding. It takes at least a month of little to no vitamin C in the diet before symptoms occur. In modern times, scurvy occurs most commonly in people with mental disorders, unusual eating habits, alcoholism, and older people who live alone. Other risk factors include intestinal malabsorption and Kidney dialysis, dialysis. While many animals produce their vitamin C, humans and a few others do not. Vitamin C, an antioxidant, is required to make the building blocks for collagen, carnitine, and catecholamines, and assists the intestines in the absorption of iron from foo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vitamin D
Vitamin D is a group of structurally related, fat-soluble compounds responsible for increasing intestinal absorption of calcium, magnesium, and phosphate, along with numerous other biological functions. In humans, the most important compounds within this group are vitamin D3 ( cholecalciferol) and vitamin D2 ( ergocalciferol). Unlike the other twelve vitamins, vitamin D is only conditionally essential, as with adequate skin exposure to the ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation component of sunlight there is synthesis of cholecalciferol in the lower layers of the skin's epidermis. For most people, skin synthesis contributes more than diet sources. Vitamin D can also be obtained through diet, food fortification and dietary supplements. In the U.S., cow's milk and plant-based milk substitutes are fortified with vitamin D3, as are many breakfast cereals. Government dietary recommendations typically assume that all of a person's vitamin D is taken by mouth, given the potential for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Melanin
Melanin (; ) is a family of biomolecules organized as oligomers or polymers, which among other functions provide the pigments of many organisms. Melanin pigments are produced in a specialized group of cells known as melanocytes. There are five basic types of melanin: eumelanin, pheomelanin, neuromelanin, allomelanin and pyomelanin. Melanin is produced through a multistage chemical process known as melanogenesis, where the oxidation of the amino acid tyrosine is followed by polymerization. Pheomelanin is a cysteinated form containing poly benzothiazine portions that are largely responsible for the red or yellow tint given to some skin or hair colors. Neuromelanin is found in the brain. Research has been undertaken to investigate its efficacy in treating neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's. Allomelanin and pyomelanin are two types of nitrogen-free melanin. The phenotypic color variation observed in the epidermis and hair of mammals is primarily determi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Human Skin Color
Human skin color ranges from the Dark skin, darkest brown to the Light skin, lightest hues. Differences in Human skin, skin color among individuals is caused by variation in pigmentation, which is largely the result of genetics (inherited from one's biological parents), and in adults in particular, due to Sun tanning, exposure to the sun, disorders, or some combination thereof. Differences across populations evolved through natural selection and sexual selection, because of social norms and differences in environment, as well as regulation of the biochemical effects of ultraviolet radiation penetrating the skin. Human skin color is influenced greatly by the amount of the pigment melanin present. Melanin is produced within the skin in cells called melanocytes; it is the main determinant of the skin color of darker-skin humans. The skin color of people with light skin is determined mainly by the bluish-white connective tissue under the dermis and by the hemoglobin circulating in th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Encephalization
Encephalization quotient (EQ), encephalization level (EL), or just encephalization is a relative brain size measure that is defined as the ratio between observed and predicted brain mass for an animal of a given size, based on nonlinear regression on a range of reference species. It has been used as a proxy for intelligence and thus as a possible way of comparing the intelligence levels of different species. For this purpose, it is a more refined measurement than the raw brain-to-body mass ratio, as it takes into account allometric effects. Expressed as a formula, the relationship has been developed for mammals and may not yield relevant results when applied outside this group. Perspective on intelligence measures Encephalization quotient was developed in an attempt to provide a way of correlating an animal's physical characteristics with perceived intelligence. It improved on the previous attempt, brain-to-body mass ratio, so it has persisted. Subsequent work, notably Roth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Birth Canal
In mammals and other animals, the vagina (: vaginas or vaginae) is the elastic, muscular reproductive organ of the female genital tract. In humans, it extends from the vulval vestibule to the cervix (neck of the uterus). The vaginal introitus is normally partly covered by a thin layer of mucosal tissue called the hymen. The vagina allows for copulation and birth. It also channels menstrual flow, which occurs in humans and closely related primates as part of the menstrual cycle. To accommodate smoother penetration of the vagina during sexual intercourse or other sexual activity, vaginal moisture increases during sexual arousal in human females and other female mammals. This increase in moisture provides vaginal lubrication, which reduces friction. The texture of the vaginal walls creates friction for the penis during sexual intercourse and stimulates it toward ejaculation, enabling fertilization. Along with pleasure and bonding, women's sexual behavior with other ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cup-to-disc Ratio
The optic cup is the white, cup-like area in the center of the optic disc. The ratio of the size of the optic cup to the optic disc (cup-to-disc ratio, or C/D) is one measure used in the diagnosis of glaucoma. Different C/Ds can be measured horizontally or vertically in the same patient. C/Ds vary widely in healthy individuals. However, larger vertical C/Ds, or C/Ds which are very different between the eyes, may raise suspicion of glaucoma. A C/D which enlarges vertically over months or years suggests glaucoma. Cup-to-disc ratio The ''cup-to-disc ratio'' (often notated ''CDR'') is a measurement used in ophthalmology and optometry to assess the progression of glaucoma. The optic disc is the anatomical location of the eye's "blind spot", the area where the optic nerve leave and blood vessels enter the retina. The optic disc can be flat or it can have a certain amount of normal cupping. But glaucoma, which is in most cases associated with an increase in intraocular pressure, ofte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glaucoma
Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that can lead to damage of the optic nerve. The optic nerve transmits visual information from the eye to the brain. Glaucoma may cause vision loss if left untreated. It has been called the "silent thief of sight" because the loss of vision usually occurs slowly over a long period of time. A major risk factor for glaucoma is increased pressure within the eye, known as Intraocular pressure, intraocular pressure (IOP). It is associated with old age, a family history of glaucoma, and certain medical conditions or the use of some medications. The word ''glaucoma'' comes from the Ancient Greek word (), meaning 'gleaming, blue-green, gray'. Of the different types of glaucoma, the most common are called open-angle glaucoma and closed-angle glaucoma. Inside the eye, a liquid called Aqueous humour, aqueous humor helps to maintain shape and provides nutrients. The aqueous humor normally drains through the trabecular meshwork. In open-angle glaucoma, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Intraocular Pressure
Intraocular pressure (IOP) is the fluid pressure inside the eye. Tonometry is the method eye care professionals use to determine this. IOP is an important aspect in the evaluation of patients at risk of glaucoma. Most tonometers are calibrated to measure pressure in millimeters of mercury (mmHg). Physiology Intraocular pressure is determined by the production and drainage of aqueous humour by the ciliary body and its drainage via the trabecular meshwork and uveoscleral outflow. The reason for this is because the vitreous humour in the posterior segment has a relatively fixed volume and thus does not affect intraocular pressure regulation. An important quantitative relationship (Goldmann's equation) is as follows: :P_o = \frac + P_v Where: * P_o is the IOP in millimeters of mercury (mmHg) * F the rate of aqueous humour formation in microliters per minute (μL/min) * U the resorption of aqueous humour through the uveoscleral route (μL/min) * C is the facility of outflow in mic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blind Spot (vision)
A blind spot, scotoma, is an obscuration of the visual field. A particular blind spot known as the ''physiological blind spot'', "blind point", or ''punctum caecum'' in medical literature, is the place in the visual field that corresponds to the lack of light-detecting photoreceptor cells on the optic disc of the retina where the optic nerve passes through the optic disc.Gregory, R., & Cavanagh, P. (2011)"The Blind Spot" Scholarpedia. Retrieved on 2011-05-21. Because there are no cells to detect light on the optic disc, the corresponding part of the field of vision is invisible. Via processes in the brain, the blind spot is interpolated based on surrounding detail and information from the other eye, so it is not normally perceived. Although all vertebrates have this blind spot, cephalopod eyes, which are only superficially similar because they evolved independently, do not. In them, the optic nerve approaches the receptors from behind, so it does not create a break in t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Optic Disc
The optic disc or optic nerve head is the point of exit for ganglion cell axons leaving the eye. Because there are no rods or cones overlying the optic disc, it corresponds to a small blind spot in each eye. The ganglion cell axons form the optic nerve after they leave the eye. The optic disc represents the beginning of the optic nerve and is the point where the axons of retinal ganglion cells come together. The optic disc in a normal human eye carries 1–1.2 million afferent nerve fibers from the eye toward the brain. The optic disc is also the entry point for the major arteries that supply the retina with blood, and the exit point for the veins from the retina. Structure The optic disc is located 3 to 4 mm to the nasal side of the fovea. It is a vertical oval, with average dimensions of 1.76mm horizontally by 1.92mm vertically. There is a central depression, of variable size, called the optic cup. This depression can be a variety of shapes from a shallow indent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
