f health 23

Sometimes, these side effects can be caused when a drug hits the wrong target, binding to the wrong protein. However, the difficulty of tracking this process means that little research has been carried out. Now, a new study led by scientists at the University of Oxford and published in  Nature Chemistry  has shown how a series of anti-HIV protein i nhibitor drugs can interfere with the processing of a protein known as prelamin A, essential for maintaining the shape of human cells and directly related to ageing. The researchers used mass spectrometry -- a long-established way of identifying molecules by measuring their mass -- to observe directly the drugs' 'hitchhiking' on the wrong protein. Professor Dame Carol Robinson of Oxford's Department of Chemistry, corresponding author on the paper, said: 'The "hitchhiking" of drugs on incorrect targets is a common problem but isn't much studied, as it can be difficult to observe directly. You have to ...

Ophelia Dadzie, a consultant dermatologist at The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Founder and Director of London Ethnic Skin Limited, says that "there is a lack of authoritative public health information in the UK about the efficacy and safety of this practice." Skin bleaching is a cosmetic procedure that involves lightening constitutive skin colour, and one such agent used is glutathione, an antioxidant that can be administered orally or intravenously. Anecdotal evidence suggests that there has been an increase in the use of intravenous glutathione for skin bleaching in the UK. This practice is usually provided by beauty and aesthetic clinics, and in some cases non-medical practitioners administer the treatment. Potential adverse side effects include toxicity of the nervous system, kidney and liver, headaches, and rare, but serious skin conditions such as Stevens Johnson syndrome and toxic epidermal necrolysis. Other potential risks include transmiss...