I have been following the progress of the clinical trials of sodium dichloroacetate as a potential treatment for cancer through the public media. I am thankful that Health Canada would take the initiative to fund this research and would like to offer a contribution of my own.
Although I have no medical training, nor received more than a basic education in organic chemistry, I have been performing my own independent research and have come up with a hypothesis regarding DCA's effect on restoring mitochondrial function to cancerous cells. I also have a suggestion for a possible natural compound that I believe may serve the same function while minimizing the toxic side effects in sufficiently small doses.
The Electrokinetic Properties of DCA
My hypothesis is based around the electrokinetic properties of the dichloroacetate ion and how it might affect the overall chemical concentration gradient within cells. In the attached diagram, I have provided an atomic mass ratio comparison of the acetate and dichloroacetate ions, as well outlined the possible spin states that this arrangement of atoms could produce.
As you can see, in the chlorinated acetate the center of mass for rotation has moved from being centered towards the carboxyl group to the halogenated carbon. This new axis of rotation would give carboxyl group a functional character not present in the normal acetate ion, thereby magnifying its electrokinetic properties. I hypothesize that within cells this ion then plays a role in altering chemical gradients as described by electrophoretic theory, restoring a key balance which reactivates mitochondrial function, leading to the eventual apoptosis of the cancerous cell.
Diodoacetate Ion as a natural analog for DCA
While researching this possibility it occurred to me that a similar ion, diodoacetate (DIA), may serve the same functional role within cells while producing diminished toxic effects. The above image compares the atomic mass ratios of dichloroacetate with diodoacetate.
As you can see, this atomic mass ratio of the halogenated carbon to the carboxyl group is much larger, which should magnify the electrokinetic influence of the carboxyl group even further. The only mention of this ion I've discovered describes its use in the separation of proteins in the presence of this particular compound. (http://www.jbc.org/cgi/reprint/268/26/19422.pdf - Page 2, ) Although I have not been able to discover any mention of this ion being isolated in nature, my second hypothesis is in regards to this iodine-based acetate ion existing in ocean plant life and already being consumed as a regular dietary supplement in the Asian world.
Natural Sources for DIA
Brown algae like kelp and seaweed are natural concentrators of iodine from sea water. They are unique among the algae in their production of differentiated tissues. Also, certain members of the brown algae family can grow up to a half a meter a day, up to a length of 80 meters. This high growth rate would seem to require a means for combating cancer-induced metastasizing within the organism's tissues. Unlike within the human body, in which cancerous cells migrate into other tissues and organs once cellular cohesion has diminished, in seaweed or kelp metastasizing of tissues could lead to the total dissolution of the organism as its cells migrate out into the surrounding water. I propose that the brown algae evolved to accumulate iodine, the heaviest of the organic elements, to produce this acetate analog and maintain a proper electrokinetic balance and chemical gradient within their cells.
Kelp and seaweed have already been noted as possibly possessing anti-cancer properties, although the active biological component has never been identified. Cancer rates amongst countries that consume members of the brown algae family, such as China or Japan, are the lowest in the world. Yet, they also tend to have the highest rates of gastrointestinal cancers. This electrokinetic theory of cancerous cells suggests that cells exposed to a unusually high level of these ions would leave their internal chemical balanced shifted into an equally unhealthy state, leaving the cells and tissues regularly exposed to these higher doses at an equal risk for developing cancer.
Update:
I found a lab that can synthesize this stuff for $6800 for a 200 gram sample. Some people have reported success with DCA doses in range 10 milligrams per day, so for $6800 you'd get about 20,000 daily doses of DIA. Hell of a lot cheaper than chemo, which is why pharmaceutical companies aren't interested in researching DCA in the first place. At $11,889 for 8 weeks of FOLFOX treatment (When will the US flinch at Cancer Drug Prices?), there's obviously no money in researching possible cancer cures, just treatments.
However, because the compound includes iodine, this is probably too large of a daily intake. Recommended iodine intake is in the range of micrograms per day, but the toxicity level is around 2-3 grams, so it's hard to say. If the daily recommended intake is in the range of micrograms, you'd get 20,000,000 ten microgram doses out of a 200 gram sample. For $6800, you could provide enough of this dietary supplement to last one person 54,794 years. Or 547 people who live 100 years a piece.
And of course, this also may be available for free in fresh seaweed.
Monday, April 14, 2008
Electrophoretic Theory of Cancer
Sunday, November 11, 2007
College, Video Tapes and Phononic Computers
Been a while since I've written, but I've been tied up with college and the variety of odd jobs I do to try to keep money in my pocket.
College is going well. Despite this being my third time attending post-secondary (I've got two years of a Physics major as well as Comp Sci, Business and Philosophy from previous years) I feel pretty confident in my ability to get that damnable piece of paper that might help me get a better job.
Aside from that, I've also been working on a project proposal for the Labrador Institute. They've got an archive of old video tapes that they'd like converted into DVDs, so I've been conducting a lot of research into how to get the best quality captures from each tape. Considering they'll want several hundred tapes turned into 4 DVD sets each, it could take quite some time, but should be worth it in the end. Some of these tapes are the last remaining copies, so I'd like to do the best job possible.
Finally, last week a group of physicists in Singapore validated another idea I'd been toying with since I started researching peltier elements almost 3 years ago. Although I was thinking more along the lines of a 'thermal processing engine' that could also provide quantum elements, they've labelled it a Phononic Computer, which basically amounts to the same thing: a computer that uses heat to process information rather than electricity. However, they aren't looking for quantum elements, just standard logic gates with binary output, so I've still got my own little contribution to make somewhere along the line. Might have to go ahead and complete my electronics engineering program before I'll be taken seriously. You'd think it wouldn't be that difficult considering I called that solar cell advancement a year and a half before it was ever published, but thats life I guess.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Back to School
I've had a few interesting weeks.
I worked crushing uranium ore samples for three days. Just long enough for me to get to gamma radiation in my reading and have a chance to play with their old-school geiger counter, but not before I'd already crushed and milled over a hundred samples. And it's not easy work. The cotton masks they give you cut off a hefty percentage of your oxygen supply while you're working, leaving you constantly gasping for air when you've got two machines in full swing. I still can't breathe properly and it's been almost two weeks now. The machine that produced the most radioactive dust during the whole process was appropriately named "The Terminator."
So I went into work on the fourth day, told them it wasn't working out, then immediately went down to the college and registered for their engineering program. I've got a ton of ideas floating around in my head for different design geometries for traditional solid state devices, as well as some brand new concepts that I'll probably spend the next three years researching. Real exciting stuff... to me at least.
Either way, I've finished my first two days and am avidly reading over the material thats been supplied. I hope to stay ahead of the class, as I seriously slacked off during my 'searching' period at University. I think it's safe to say that I'm in more of a 'seek-and-destroy' mentality now.
Saturday, August 18, 2007
Screw Patents
Upon further thought, I've decided that most of the ideas surrounding intellectual property are garbage anyways and patents will require too much time and energy to write when the system electrical systems that will be required are possibly still decades away.
Instead, I'm taking all this bullshit and chucking it out the window. There's no point in one person stressing himself out so much over things that he can not control.
I'm thinking I'll probably put together a quick YouTube short featuring some info about the Weedshare alternative... simply because it was a real step forwards in digital distribution that's currently being moved against by most corporate interests. DRM is now being phased out in favor of watermarking, which means that instead of restricting access to media, it'll just be easier to figure out who you stole it from. Although MS will definitely still be seeking financial gain through their two patents which cover the Weedshare-style distribution and Zune-a-like media marketplace.
I'm going to coin a new term for this blog:
D. R. E. - Digital Rights Enforcement
While the RIAA is (apparently) acting to reduce piracy and ensure that artists benefit from their work (doubtful), there's no real agency acting to preserve and protect the rights of the consumer.
A digital distribution system that allows consumers to act as middle marketers for their favorite bands is a definite step forwards. However, if the companies responsible for maintaining the database of purchases and ownership cannot be trusted to stay float indefinitely, they do not actually create a form of permanent 'record label', as a simple software update can wipe them out.
Culturally, the vast majority of the world has already accepted that computers are here to stay. Yet we still live in a society of obsolescence. Not only hardware-wise, but software-wise as well. How many people are still using Windows 3.1? How about DOS? One might argue that advances in hardware quickly made these older platforms go the way of the dodo, but why should digital media platforms have to go the same way?
Sooner or later, we'll need to establish a permanent cultural digital record. One that can be given an absolute virtual value and can remain "Future Compatible" into the indefinite future. It shouldn't be that difficult to create. The actual codecs required would need to be extremely robust. You'd need to aim for the perfect range for the human audio and visual range, achieving a higher resolution than anything possible with analog recordings or current digital standards.
These codecs would also have to be extensible, allowing for 'upgrades' to the code as the hardware advances to new levels.
The business model that would back this format should be based around a sharing system like Shared Media Licensing's system, but with the new Cultural Record acting to give back to the society that's acting to give it it's indefinite and virtual value.
Thursday, August 9, 2007
Patents, patents, patents
I'm going to take a friend's advice and begin processing patents on all the devices I've come up with over the last few years.
This covers everything from the next generation of LEDs (untested) to any home or industrial appliance that requires a heating or cooling solution. The cooling solution might need to reference another patent, but the heating solutions so far are out of left field.
I'll need advice on how to process these though. I've got the designs, but need help writing the patent applications themselves.
Anyone out there familiar with patent law?
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Welcome to 1984
I have some new beefs.
http://www.physorg.com/news104
http://www.physorg.com/news103
Over a year and a half ago, I gave away a design for a new solar cell thought up by myself and a friend. We considered it an obvious advancement over the old design simply because it removed a series of successive layers in the cell design and replaced them with a prism and multiple solar cells tuned to different wavelengths to allow for better absorption.
We also suggested, in the same email, using carbon nanotubes to deal with an heat-induced electron over-excitation problem, and suspending the quantum dots used in the design in a solution to allow them to be printed directly onto a substrate. These suggestions would serve to increase the efficiency while decreasing the cost.
We made these suggestions in January 2006. I'd been in contact with Evident Technologies regarding the obvious flaws in their peltier element design and they'd fired back a white paper on their solar cells to inform me of the potential in their QD design. I don't believe they were at all expecting to recieve a new solar cell design back.
I've contacted the 'inventors' of our design, who claim this 'revolutionary breakthrough design paradigm' is their own creation. However, they won't share who thought up the idea or any other information.
I'm pissed. We thought we were being naive when we sent off the design. Surely there must be scientists with lists of degrees longer than my arms that have already been over these pathways and had the same thoughts, tested them and discounted them.
Apparently not.
And now they're going to sell these cells to the American Military to make them better and more efficient killing/policing machines.
Here's the text from every email I recieved and sent to Evident. I've bolded the specific suggestions that have since been implemented.
| Andrew Abbass | Tue, Jan 3, 2006 at 10:41 PM | |
| To: strouse@chem.ucsb.edu, fwise@ccmr.cornell.edu Bcc: company@nanocrystals.com, info@evidenttech.com, andrew.abbass@gmail.com | ||
| ||
| Andrew Abbass | Thu, Jan 5, 2006 at 5:09 PM | |
| To: strouse@chem.ucsb.edu, fwise@ccmr.cornell.edu, company@nanocrystals.com, info@evidenttech.com, andrew.abbass@gmail.com | ||
| ||
| Amib2@aol.com | Thu, Jan 5, 2006 at 7:47 PM | |
| To: andrew.abbass@gmail.com | ||
| ||
| Andrew Abbass | Thu, Jan 5, 2006 at 9:14 PM | |
| To: "Amib2@aol.com" | ||
| ||
| Christian Seemann | Fri, Jan 6, 2006 at 11:35 AM | |
| To: Andrew Abbass | ||
| ||
| Andrew Abbass | Sun, Jan 8, 2006 at 1:35 PM | |||||
| To: Amib2@aol.com, cseemann@evidenttech.com, andrew.abbass@gmail.com | ||||||
| ||||||
| Andrew Abbass | Mon, Jan 9, 2006 at 6:28 PM | |
| To: Amib2@aol.com, cseemann@evidenttech.com, andrew.abbass@gmail.com | ||
| ||
| Andrew Abbass | Tue, Jan 10, 2006 at 12:39 PM | |
| To: Amib2@aol.com, cseemann@evidenttech.com | ||
| ||
| Christian Seemann | Tue, Jan 10, 2006 at 6:43 PM | |||||
| To: Andrew Abbass | ||||||
| ||||||
| Andrew Abbass | Wed, Jan 11, 2006 at 10:35 PM | |
| To: Christian Seemann | ||
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| Andrew Abbass | Wed, Jan 18, 2006 at 3:48 PM | |
| To: Christian Seemann | ||
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| Frank Wise | Sat, Jan 21, 2006 at 8:46 PM | |
| To: Andrew Abbass | ||
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| Andrew Abbass | Mon, Jan 23, 2006 at 4:01 PM | |
| To: Frank Wise | ||
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| Andrew Abbass | Thu, Jan 26, 2006 at 12:34 PM | |
| To: Frank Wise | ||
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| Frank Wise | Thu, Jan 26, 2006 at 9:43 PM | |
| To: Andrew Abbass | ||
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| Andrew Abbass | Fri, Jan 27, 2006 at 2:47 AM | |
| To: Frank Wise | ||
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| Andrew Abbass | Sat, Jan 28, 2006 at 3:32 AM | |
| To: Frank Wise | ||
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| Frank Wise | Wed, Feb 15, 2006 at 11:44 AM | |
| To: Andrew Abbass | ||
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| Andrew Abbass | Wed, Feb 15, 2006 at 5:03 PM | |
| To: Frank Wise | ||
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| Andrew Abbass | Tue, Apr 25, 2006 at 8:24 PM | |
| To: Christian Seemann | ||
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| Andrew Abbass | Thu, Jul 26, 2007 at 2:24 AM | |
| To: Christian Seemann | ||
| ||
Damn greedy American Science Community, sucking on the teat of the American Military.
Thankfully, I saved the high output LED designs. I'd rather they didn't end up in the US Military's hands. Between that and the heat management system I've got in mind, these two components a key ingredients to producing efficient miniaturized solid state laser systems.
Maybe I'll give it to the Chinese just to be a prick.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
The Zune is 100% Broken
The Zune Scene and Slashdot are reporting that the Zune Marketplace DRM is now broken and 100% removable.
There was a real precedent set with the Weedshare incident. Two 'security upgrades', supposedly to protect the Zune Marketplace, were the official reason that SML closed it's doors. The fact that this can occur should shake the faith any might have in a digital media marketlace. Should the marketplace gain acceptance, simple software updates could trigger the next Great Depression. There has to be a mandated responsibility to the public.
Now that this protection has been broken as well, can we break through to daylight and try to examine this subject above the table and in full public view.