Let the naming begin

With the exception of the Spanish Flu,* we’re not supposed to use place names for diseases because something something offensive to entire nations. And the current system of Covid-19 variants (B.whatever) isn’t easy to remember.

Fear not! The WHO has a plan — one that is already doomed to be outdated, but shouldn’t offend anyone except antiquarians: The variants will be named using the letters of the Greek alphabet.

A country may be more willing to report it has found a new variant if it knows the new version of the virus will be identified as Rho or Sigma rather than with the country’s name.

We’re already at Kappa. To quote the 20th century philosopher Scooby-Doo, “Ruh-ro.”

WHO’s plan: “When the 24 letters of the Greek alphabet have been exhausted, another series like it will be announced.” (We suggest auctioning off naming rights.)

* Which has a really interesting reason for being called that.

Surprise plot development!

“China confirms first human case of H10N3 bird flu strain” — but don’t you worry, the risk of transmission is low … says the Chinese state health agency.

Sunscreen worries

Sure, SPF numbers are pretty straightforward, but the American Academy of Dermatology says that, in its poll, it found that a lot of people don’t know how to use sunscreen properly. It’s not just applying too little. Two-thirds of people don’t reapply sunscreen as often as they should.

• 42% either tend to not reapply sunscreen at all or reapply it only when they get wet.
• 30% apply sunscreen just to their face instead of also applying it to other areas of their body.

Yes, yes, your customers probably look quite good with a tan. But maybe you can convince them to use sunscreen properly and get their tan from a bottle. (We won’t tell.)

That said…

Be careful. Some brands of sunscreen contain too-high levels of benzene, according to analysis by Valisure — an independent lab that likes to test medications and healthcare products. The company is pushing the companies (or the FDA) to recall the products.

Which products, you ask? We’re talking some big-name brands, but General Counsel Greg Reybold scares me so I won’t list them here. The list is in Valisure’s petition to the FDA (PDF).

Your chromosomes are fat

British researchers, for reasons known only to themselves, decided to weigh human chromosomes. Well, “calculate the mass” is more accurate — they determined the number of electrons and figured the rest from there.

The result: “Our measurement suggests the 46 chromosomes in each of our cells weigh 242 picograms (trillionths of a gram).”

What’s interesting: That’s a lot more than they expected, “and, if replicated, points to unexplained excess mass in chromosomes.”

Coming soon: “Dark DNA.”

A minor auto-injector note

Autoinjectors are cool devices — let patients take meds that aren’t in a pill or capsule by automating the dosage. One downside, though, is that there can be a lot of waste if they’re used regularly. Manufacturers are taking notice. The latest: Phillips-Medisize has created the Aria Smart Autoinjector which “consists of a reusable drive and disposable cassette.”

Because it’s just got the meds and not the delivery guts, that syringe (1- or 2.25-ml) uses a lot less material.

Tomorrow’s skin tester

A team of Chinese and American researchers has developed a nifty device for identifying skin conditions. It uses a sensor about the size of a quarter (or a one-yuan coin) to vibrate the skin in a suspect area. The device measures the elasticity of the skin — it turns out that skin stiffness, measured very accurately, is a useful indicator of what condition might be present.

“The data produced can assist in diagnosis, treatment tracking and disease monitoring particularly for skin associated disorders, such as skin cancer, as well as in aspects of aesthetic dermatology and of the recovery from surface wounds.”

It could also be used by individuals: “In the near future, we believe this technology will allow people to monitor their skin health status anytime with a simple wearable device.”

Free as in beer

It seems an odd roadblock to overcome, but be aware: There are people who aren’t getting vaccinated because they don’t realize or believe it’s free. They’re afraid of unexpected medical bills. So if you meet one, remind them: They’ve bought and paid for it already.

So that’s how the trip works

What with psychedelics being in the medical news more and more, it seems important to learn, you know, how they work.

Neuroscience researchers at Cornell looked at fMRI scans of people on and off LSD, and made some interesting observations. In short, having an acid trip is having parts of your brain communicate that don’t usually talk to one another.

“If you think of our neural connections as like a series of roads and highways, LSD doesn’t change the roadways, but it does lower the energy you need to get from one to the other. It flattens the energy landscape between different parts of the brain, bringing them closer together.”

By doing that, it adds a bit of flexibility to the brain that it probably didn’t have since childhood — and that flexibility may be why psychedelics work for depression: They help the brain get out of whatever rut its dug itself into.

The Long(ish) Read: One shot to rule them all?

Why not a universal coronavirus vaccine? We have the technology. Well, a few reasons (and yes, money is one).