Anti Depression Guide

In recent years, crystal meth (methamphetamine) and ecstasy (MDMA) have become some of America's top problem drugs. Meth can cause severe problems in the cardiovascular and central nervous systems. Furthermore, because there is no way to remove the drug from the body, therapies tend to focus on treating its side-effects.

But antibodies that bind to methamphetamines and methamphetamine-like compounds to effectively remove them from the bloodstream could change that. Michael Owens, director of the Center for Alcohol and Drug Abuse at the University of Arkansas, US, and colleagues claim to have developed a way to generate them.

The team have not yet tested the antibodies in humans, only in rats, but they say that a single injection can reduce the level of drug within the bloodstream for several days. By binding to drug molecules, the antibodies prevent them from reaching tissues like the heart and brain, and mark the compounds for clean up by the body.

Owens says that his team's antibodies bind to many drugs from the same chemical "family". Cocaine and nicotine are single, specific compounds but methamphetamines share a basic chemical skeleton with many other drugs. So-called "designer drugs" are made by modifying this skeleton to create specific effects. The team say their therapy works for meth, amphetamines and ecstasy.

Read the full anti-ecstasy antibody patent application.

Justin Mullins, New Scientist consultant

Acne is the scourge of modern youth. It is caused by a number of factors such as excess production of skin oil, the plugging of pores and by bacterial infection. Various over-the-counter treatments are available but these often have side effects such as causing skin to scale and drying out.

Robert Modlin, a dermatologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, US, and colleagues say they have come up with an exciting new treatment based on nanoparticles of chitosan, a polysaccaride from the shells of crustaceans like crabs and shrimps.

While investigating chitosan as a carrier for antibiotics the team made the surprising discovery that the material can kill various bacteria by itself. They say that biodegradable nanoparticles could be used to treat acne and to carry other compounds such as antioxidants and collagen. How long before teenagers are smearing their faces with ground shrimp shell?

Read the full anti-acne nanoparticles patent application.

Justin Mullins, New Scientist consultant

Humans have been tattooing their skin for more than 8000 years and probably regretting it for just as long. The ink used is a suspension of coloured particles in a liquid. India ink, for example, contains carbon particles suspended in water. After the ink is introduced into the skin using a needle the water diffuses into the surrounding tissue, leaving colour particles embedded in the skin.

That's the easy part. The difficult bit is removing the tattoo later. Current techniques include abrasion, surgical removal and laser treatment but all carry various risks, such as infection and the possibility of severe scarring. Now Michael Chancellor, professor of urology at the University of Pittsburgh, US, and a colleague have come up with a tattoo-erasing method they say is non-invasive.

It relies on a process called cavitation in which sound waves reduces the pressure of a liquid to the point where tiny bubbles of gas form. When the pressure is raised, the bubble collapses violently, generating huge pressures, albeit on a tiny scale.

Chancellor says ultrasound can be used to make this happen beneath the surface of tattooed skin so that the collapsing bubbles destroy pigment particles without damaging tissue. The result is a technique that should "safely, economically, and efficiently remove at least significant portions of the tissue markings", they say, adding that remaining ink particles can be removed by other techniques.
Read the full ultrasonic tattoo remover patent application.

Justin Mullins, New Scientist consultant

The study of cellulite is a relatively recent development in physiology. In 1999, researchers in the US found that cellulite is associated with a thin layer of connective tissue made of collagen that sits just below the skin. In people without cellulite, this layer is smooth and continuous. But in those with cellulite it is irregular and discontinuous, which gives rise to the dimpled effect associated with cellulite.

Now Alexander Dagum, a plastic surgeon at Stony Brook University Hospital in New York state, US, has come up with a novel way to treat the condition.

Dagum says cellulite can be reduced by injecting affected areas with collagenase, an enzyme that digests collagen. The treatment can be given either by injection or by applying patches every 4 to 6 weeks. In his patent application, Dagum even claims to have tested the treatment on 10 women, reducing the cellulite by over 70%.

Read the full digesting cellulite patent application

Justin Mullin, New Scientist contributor