Can your lipstick make you ill? /The breakthrough of 'gene targeting'

October 13, 2007

Can your lipstick make you ill?

http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=31 & art_id=nw20071012005333765C227595 October 12 2007 at 03:12AM

By Karen JacobsAtlanta - Lipsticks tested by a United States consumer rights group found that more than half contained lead and some popular brands including Cover Girl, L'Oreal and Christian Dior had more lead than others, the group said on Thursday.The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics said tests on 33 brand-name red lipsticks by the Bodycote Testing Group in Santa Fe Spring, California, found that 61 percent had detectable lead levels of 0.03 to 0.65 parts per million (ppm).Lipstick, like candy, is ingested. The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a coalition of public health, environmental and women's groups, said the FDA has not set a limit for lead in lipstick.One-third of the lipsticks tested contained an amount of lead that exceeded the US Food and Drug Administration's 0.1 ppm limit for lead in candy - a standard established to protect children from ingesting lead, the group said. Thirty-nine percent of the lipsticks tested had no discernible lead, it said."It's critical that manufacturers reformulate their product," said Stacy Malkan, a co-founder of the coalition. "It's possible to make lipsticks without lead, and all companies should be doing that."Lead can cause learning, language and behavioral problems such as reduced school performance and increased aggression. Pregnant women and young children are particularly vulnerable to lead exposure, the group said in its statement. Lead has also been linked to infertility and miscarriage, it said.Procter and Gamble makes Cover Girl brand and France's L'Oreal is one of the largest cosmetic companies in the world.Over the last three months, more than 20 million toys made in China have been recalled, mostly due to the use of lead paint.The coalition said that some less expensive brands it had tested, such as Revlon, had no detectable levels of lead, while the more expensive Dior Addict brand had higher levels than some other brands.The Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association trade group said in a statement that lead was a naturally occurring element that was not intentionally added to cosmetics.The FDA has "set strict limits for lead levels allowed in the colors used in lipsticks, and actually analyse most of these to ensure they are followed", the association's statement said. "The products identified in the (CSC) report meet these standards."L'Oreal's US arm said its products are reviewed and tested by a safety team that includes toxicologists, pharmacists and doctors."All the brands of the L'Oreal Group are in full compliance with FDA regulations" as well as safety requirements in international markets, L'Oreal USA said in a statement.P & G said in a statement that the quantity of lead a consumer might be exposed to from its lip product "is hundreds of times less than the amount that she would get from eating, breathing and drinking water"."Lead builds up in the body over time and lead-containing lipstick applied several times a day, every day, can add up to significant exposure levels. The latest studies show there is no safe level of lead exposure," said Dr Mark Mitchell, president of the Connecticut Coalition for Environmental Justice.

The breakthrough of 'gene targeting'

http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1 & click_id=31 & art_id=iol1192286984266G532

October 13 2007 at 04:58PM

By Steve Connor, Science EditorAlmost every human disease has a genetic component and the research that earned this year's Nobel Prize in medicine developed into a practical method of finding out which defective gene gives someone a particular disorder.It also lies at the heart of the international effort to use embryonic stem cells for regenerative medicine.The three scientists who this week claimed the most coveted prize in science pioneered the development of genetically modified mice to understand the fundamentals of human diseases.Their discoveries led to the creation of laboratory mice to be used as medical models for more than 500 human disorders, ranging from heart disease and neuro-degenerative illnesses to diabetes and cancer.Learning how to modify mice genes using embryonic stem cells has also been pivotal in understanding how human embryonic stem cells may be used in future to treat diseased organs and tissues in situ, rather than relying on surgical transplants.Sir Martin Evans, 66, of Cardiff University, discovered that embryonic stem cells from mice had the power to develop into any tissues of the body, and developed the techniques of altering their genes using retroviruses.Capecchi and Smithies, working independently, discovered how to target individual genes and to create "knockout" mice, where an individual gene is eliminated to create a mouse model of a human disorder caused by a defective gene.Goran Hansson, a member of the Nobel committee, said targeting genes had transformed the understanding of human physiology and medicine."It is difficult to imagine contemporary medical research without the use of gene-targeted models," he added."The ability to generate predictable designer mutations in mouse genes has led to penetrating new insights into development, immunology, neurobiology, physiology and metabolism."The development of novel therapies to correct genetic defects in man will build on the experience of gene modification in mice that is based on the discoveries made by Capecchi, Evans and Smithies."To date, scientists have selectively knocked out about 10,000 mouse genes - about half of the mammalian genome - in an attempt to discover each gene's function.They hope to complete the process in the next few years and, thereby, understand the role of each gene in the overall function of the body.It was only in 1989 that the strands of the three scientists' researches were brought together to generate the first embryonic stem cells from mice which had undergone gene-targeted modification.Lord Rees of Ludlow, the president of the Royal Society, said the award recognised Sir Martin's groundbreaking research."He is a world leader in mammalian genetics and his research has undoubtedly increased our understanding of human diseases," he said.Sir Martin Evans is Professor of Mammalian Genetics at Cardiff University and a leading authority on embryonic stem cells, the cells of the early embryo that can develop into any of specialised tissues of the body.Sir Martin was the first person to isolate stem cells - the vital cells with the power to become anything from heart muscle to nerves - from early mouse embryos.