Home

Taal Volcano Update

Alert Level 4 is up over Taal Volcano due to magmatic eruption and lava fountaining on Monday, adding Alert Level 5 may be raised within the next few hours or days, Phivolcs says.

Alert level 4 means hazardous explosive eruption is possible within hours to days meanwhile Alert Level 5 (Hazardous Eruption Ongoing) would come with an eruption column of up to 15 kilometers high and could bring a base surge, which Phivolcs describes as thick smoke and ash that could travel across the surface of Taal Lake.

Phivolcs adds a volcanic tsunami is possible in case of an eruption. And it is strongly recommended to evacuate, especially in high-risk areas or within 14 km from the main river. Public are also warned to take precautions, due to health effects of exposure to volcanic ash and gases which are stealthy and hazardous. (Sources: Philippine News Agency; and Philstar)

World’s 1st dengue drug, made by Pinoys

Science Secretary Fortunato de la Peña remarks on the developments in the Philippines’s historic feat of developing the world’s first dengue medicine. Among those listening is Dr. Rita Grace Alvero (seated, in blue), program leader of the Dengue Herbal Drug Clinical Trial of Pharmalytics Corp. in partnership with the De La Salle Medical and Health Sciences Institute and support from the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

THE first anti-dengue medicine in the world may be available by end of next year. And, also significant, it is made by Filipino researchers in the Philippines.

Dr. Rita Grace Y. Alvero, program leader of the dengue herbal clinical trial from Pharmalytics Corp., told the “Talakayang HeaRTbeat” on Monday that the researchers from Pharmalytics and De La Salle Medical and Health Sciences Institute have concluded Phase 1 of the clinical trial for the drug against dengue that they got from three plant components. They are hopeful that it will be approved for marketing by the end of 2020.

“We have completed the preclinical testing. We have completed the safety analysis in animals. We are now in the human testing. We have just concluded the Phase 1 clinical trial. [Based on] our findings, there was no dose-limiting toxicity,” Alvero said, partly in Filipino.

She explained that the last cohort, or people who took the medicine, took 106 capsules of 400 mg of its three plant components and no toxicity was observed.

“We will probably start Phase 2 and Phase 3 by the first quarter of next year. We will end by the third quarter. [Then] we will apply for marketing authorization. Hopefully, by the end of 2020, the anti-dengue drug may be out [in the market],” Alvero explained in citing the details of the process of making the drug.

Her announcement was met with a round of applause from Department of Science and Technology (DOST) officials, including Secretary Fortunato T. de la Peña, Undersecretary Rowena Cristina Guevara and Director Dr. Jaime Montoya of the Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (PCHRD), and experts Dr. Gisela Concepcion of University of the Philippines-Diliman, Dr. Irene Villaseñor of UP Diliman and Dr. Renato Reyes of Central Luzon State University, who were present during the forum.

She clarified that it will not be a herbal supplement.

“It is a drug. That means it has a scientific basis to back up the efficacy of the anti-dengue drug,” Alvero explained.

De la Peña quipped: “That will be her [Alvero’s] Christmas gift [to us] next year.”

Montoya said he is “very excited” with the developments in making the anti-dengue drug.

“It is the very first in its class. No country, even the US, has an anti-dengue drug produced. We are looking forward to this,” he said.

The dengue drug project by Alvero started in 2012, for a processing period of eight years.

The dengue research was part of the DOST’s Tuklas Lunas program to produce reliable and affordable medicines sourced from the country’s rich biodiversity.

De la Peña said Tuklas Lunas has 28 centers all over the country and 28 research-implementing institutions. A total of P1.5 billion was invested in the program since it started in 2011.

Besides the anti-dengue drug being developed by Pharmalytics and De La Salle, a herbal supplement against dengue was developed by Herbanext Laboratories.

Herbanext’s herbal supplement from tawa-tawa, under the Daily Apple brand name, was released in August at the height of the dengue epidemic in the country.

Guevara said, “As we continue our path [on] the future of medicine development, DOST wishes to honor our Filipino knowledge and traditions in healing combined with the modern discoveries of research and development. This knowledge is a gift from our ancestors. As such, it will be a guide to learn from past mistakes, open new doors to discovery and provide us with courage to face the future. In this we hope for a tomorrow that will enable our countrymen to have cheap, safe, effective and easily accessible medicines.”

For his part, Montoya said, “We are very optimistic that this will happen. We have the best scientists, we have a rich biodiversity, which is the source of these natural medicines, and we have the support of the government, the Council and the department [DOST]. We have the best pool of scientists, of experts.”

He added: “We are very hopeful and optimistic that in the next few years, we are coming up with the very promising, very effective, affordable and safe drugs that will address the leading causes of morbidity and mortality [in the country].”

Image Credits: Lyn Resurreccion

Regular exercise could improve the cardiovascular health of overweight kids

New American research has found that regular physical activity could help boost the cardiovascular health of children who were previously inactive.

Carried out by researchers at Augusta University and the University of Georgia, the new study looked at 175 boys and girls aged eight to 11. Three-quarters of the children had obesity, a majority had prediabetes (where their glucose levels were already higher than normal, which is a major risk factor for diabetes), 3% were prehypertensive and 5% were already hypertensive.

All of the children took part in an eight-month daily after-school aerobic exercise program, which involved coming to the Georgia Prevention Institute every afternoon where they were asked to do their homework for about half an hour and were given a healthy snack.

However, while one group of children were placed in an exercise group and also participated in instructor-led aerobic activities like jumping rope and playing tag for 40 minutes, the group of children placed in the control group took part in more sedentary activities such as crafts, music and board games.

The findings, published in the International Journal of Obesity, showed that after completing the eight-month program, the children who had been assigned to the exercise group showed twice the improvement in key measures of cardiovascular fitness like good cholesterol levels, aerobic fitness and body fat levels, compared to the control group.

“They could do more, breathe better, their heart rates were lower when they were pushing themselves,” said corresponding author Dr. Catherine Davis.

However, they did not show improvements in other key measures such as blood pressure, insulin resistance or arterial stiffness, which is an early indicator of cardiovascular risk. In addition, the team also found that children in the study who had more body fat or a higher body mass index (BMI) already had stiffer arteries than those carrying less fat.

The children in the exercise group did not lose any weight, or reduce their BMI or waist size, which Davis explained is due to growing children replacing some fat with muscle, which is a healthy response.

“They should be growing. With exercise, you can allow their body to develop in a more healthy way,” Davis said.

The researchers say the study shows that children need easy-access aerobic activities which will encourage them to stay physically active. These activities should also be fun, to encourage the children to take part, but not necessarily competitive.

“Children need to feel encouraged to do physical activity even when they are not winning,” said Davis, which means kids should have a variety of programs to choose from and which are not targeted only to those who are sporty, fast or who have good coordination, she says. IB/RGA