HUMAN AND ANIMAL HEALTH

After years of research, a promising HIV/AIDS vaccine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine is moving into the critical human testing stage. The school's Institute of Human Virology, headed by Dr. Robert Gallo, who helped discover the human immunodeficiency virus that causes AIDS and who developed the HIV blood test, announced the next big step in the research Thursday. Scientists at the institute began work on the AIDS vaccine nearly two decades ago and have seen major breakthroughs on tests using animals, but, like much of the work on AIDS vaccines around the country, it has been a long process. "The results in monkeys are interesting, but they're not perfect," Gallo said at an event at the institute's Baltimore headquarters to announce the human trial. "If we keep just using monkeys, we're never going anywhere. We need for humans to respond." The institute's vaccine is just one of about 30 such drugs in some stage of hum...

. View gallery . . . Vatican City (AFP) - Pope Francis on Monday urged the Catholic Church to "move forward" as a review of teaching on the family got under way amid unprecedented controversy over its attitude to homosexuality. Related Stories How The Catholic Church In America Is Doing On The Eve Of Pope Francis's Visit   Huffington Post Come and meet us, gay US Catholics tell pope   AFP The Bishops’ Theological Divide   The Wall Street Journal Pope encourages Cuba to provide Church with 'freedom'   Reuters Why Evangelicals Are Attacking Pope Francis on Abortion   Huffington Post Saying the Church was "not a museum to keep or preserve", the Argentinian pontiff urged clerics debating a series of thorny social and religious issues in a synod to do so in a spirit of "solidarity, courage and humility". "It (the synod) is a place where the holy people of God move forward," he ...

View gallery . (Photo: Getty Images) Maybe your nightly glass of vino has turned into two or three. Or you’re overdoing it on the beer and have the paunch to prove it.  Whether you want to clean up your diet or you’re trying to nip a potential issue in the bud, giving up alcohol can be tough—but the benefits make it worth the effort, says Damon Raskin, MD, a Los Angeles–based physician who is board certified in addiction medicine.  “Taking a break from drinking alcohol—even if it’s just for a couple of weeks—is a good idea, especially if you’re regularly consuming more than the recommended daily limit,” Raskin says. (By the way, that limit is generally defined as a drink a day for women and two for men.)  Also, if your drinking seems to be affecting your work or personal relationships—regardless of how much hooch you’re knocking back—it’s time to consider taking it easy, he adds. (Lose up to 13 pounds in just 2 weeks with this 12-day liver detox...

Russia bombed IS group's Syrian stronghold and vowed to press its aerial campaign despite criticism from Washington and its allies that its military action was strengthening the extremists. PHOTOS File photo of a fighter jet taking part in the air campaign against the Islamic State group in Syria. (Photo: AFP/Jim Watson) ENLARGE CAPTION     A   A   BEIRUT: Russia bombed the Islamic State (IS) group's Syrian stronghold Saturday and vowed to press its aerial campaign despite criticism from Washington and its allies that the military action is strengthening the extremists. A long-time staunch backer of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Russia began sorties over its ally Wednesday in what it said would be a prolonged bombing campaign against IS and other extremist groups. Senior Moscow military officials said warplanes pounded Syria Saturday after a strike that blew up a command post in Raqa, IS's de facto capital in Syria, t...

This message is good for expected husbands and wives, parents, children, marriage couples, leaders and managers. "There is no perfect family.  We have no perfect parents, we are not perfect,  do not get married to a perfect person , neither do we have perfect children.  We have complaints about each other.  We are disappointed by one another.  Therefore, there is no healthy marriage or healthy family without the exercise of forgiveness.  Forgiveness is vital to our emotional health and spiritual survival.  Without forgiveness the family becomes a theater of conflict and a bastion of grievances.  Without forgiveness the family becomes sick.  Forgiveness is the sterilization of the soul, cleansing the mind and the liberation of the heart.  Anyone who does not forgive  has no peace of soul and communion with God.  Pain is a poison that intoxicates and kills.  Maintaining a wound of the heart is a self-destructive action....

A jerk a day keeps the doctor away according to researchers at Harvard By  Sophie Tighe  |  Yahoo Lifestyle  –  Wed, May 20, 2015 16:31 BST Good news for all men, everywhere – blokes who orgasm once a day reduce their risk of getting prostate cancer by 20 per cent. A new study conducted at Harvard Medical School found that men between the ages of 40 and 49 who ejaculated 21 or more times a month were 22 per cent less likely to get prostate cancer than men who only came four to seven times a month. Regular orgasms have been found to lower risk of prostate cancer in men [Rex] Researchers aren’t 100 per cent sure why regular emissions have such an effect on the likelihood of developing the deadly disease, but have called the findings “particularly encouraging”. One theory is that routine discharges flush out chemicals in the prostate that may cause cancer. Scientists also point out that a daily release stops the build up of old cells, which ar...

Chronological list of popes 1st millennium 1st century Numerical order Pontificate Portrait Name English · Regnal Personal name Place of birth Age at election / death or resigned Notes 1 1 April 33 – 29 June 67 (34 years, 89 days) St  Peter PETRUS (1 - 29 June 67) Šimʻōn Kêpâ (Simon Peter) Bethsaida ,  Galilea , Syria ,  Roman Empire 32 / 66 Apostle  of Jesus from whom he received the keys of the  Kingdom of Heaven , according to  Matthew   16:18–19 . Executed by crucifixion upside-down; feast day ( Feast of Saints Peter and Paul ) 29 June, ( Chair of Saint Peter ) 22 February. He is recognized by the Catholic Church as the first Bishop of Rome appointed by Christ. Also revered as saint in  Eastern Christianity , with a feast day of 29 June. [4] 2 29 June 67 – 23 September 76 (9 years, 86 days) St  Linus Papa  LINUS (10 - 23 September 76) Linus Volterra ,  Italia , Roman Empire  57 / 66 Feast d...