Movati Athletic Brings Unique Fitness Club Experience to Mississauga
An Upscale, Spacious Facility with a Boutique-Like Sense of Community, at an Unprecedented Value
MISSISSAUGA, ON, Jan. 9, 2020 /CNW/ - Movati Athletic, one of Canada's fastest growing fitness clubs, is celebrating its grand opening in Mississauga with its latest prototype facility.
Movati Athletic's unique fitness club concept offers the most current boutique classes and a premium fitness experience at an unprecedented value for residents of Mississauga and south Brampton. This marks the 16th location for Movati Athletic and the third in the GTA for the 23-year old, Canadian-born fitness chain.
The sprawling 70,000-square-foot Mississauga club delivers an upscale, lifestyle-oriented fitness experience. All of the GTA's hottest fitness trends – yoga, cycling, boxing, high intensity training (HIIT) and more – are incorporated under one roof. In addition, the club offers world-class functional, cardio and strength training facilities. Encompassing three levels, and featuring two pools, including a women's-only pool and fitness area, Movati Athletic offers something for everyone. Membership includes an unparalleled number and range of studio classes – more than 150 professionally instructed, regularly scheduled activities every week.
"We are proud to expand our countless options of fitness and classes in the Toronto area," said Joseph Lo, president of Movati Athletic. "Movati Athletic is committed to putting its members first and ensuring that they feel welcome, comfortable and healthy, from our obsession with cleanliness to the best fitness instructors, personal trainers and member experience team in the business. Joining Movati is like having memberships to six different boutique studios and a premium fitness club – all under one roof and in one membership."
"In our research, our members have referred to us as 'an affordable luxury'," said Lo. "Our goal across the Movati network is to improve the health and wellness of our members every day, and we look forward to delivering on our promise in Mississauga and surrounding communities."
While the club is airy and spacious, members often remark how they feel a close connection and mutual support among fellow Movati Athletic members, studio instructors, personal trainers and staff.
"For me, Movati is about community," said Raina, a member at the Burlington club and one of Movati Athletic's 100,000+ members across Ontario. "It is also an escape, an opportunity to empower myself. And everything is under one roof."
The new Mississauga club features six dedicated fitness studios, including the open-air Sky Studio, Hot Yoga, Anti-Gravity Fitness, Movati Cycle, FUEL Functional Training and Small Group Training. Studio fitness classes include 15 kinds of yoga, six varieties of Pilates, four styles of dance and boxing, bodyART, Movati Drums Alive and Personal Training, all led by certified instructors and trainers. Movati is also the first fitness club in the GTA to offer the Bungee Fitness™ workout.
Among Movati Athletic's signature offerings:
Movati Training – a unique, small group training program that combines the benefits of personal training, the camaraderie of a more intimate group and the science of high intensity interval training in one program
Movati FUEL – the largest and most complete dedicated cross-training functional training space in the Greater Toronto Area, a true playground for the fitness enthusiast
Movati Cycle – featuring Movati's signature Rhythm and Beats ("party on a bike!") and Speed and Power (performance-focused) classes
Other features include a family pool, men's and women's Eucalyptus steam rooms and infra-red saunas, and additional amenities like Kids' Club Playroom, Café and several relaxing lounges.
The new club is also a boost to the Mississauga and area economies. Movati Athletic invested nearly $20 million in development and construction, created more than 150 construction jobs, and will create almost 150 permanent team positions.
An open house, including guided tours and demonstrations, will take place throughout the day January 11 at Movati Athletic, 6685 Century Avenue, Mississauga. A formal opening ceremony featuring local political and business leaders takes place at 2 p.m.
About Movati Athletic Movati Athletic is a privately held company with 16 locations across Ontario. Established in 1997, Movati Athletic is a pioneer in fitness industry offering an experience that goes beyond just working out. It offers a full range of the latest fitness services and amenities tailored to its members' needs. With nearly 2,000 full- and part-time team members, its caring and exceptional people ensure that members feel welcome, feel comfortable and feel healthy. Driven by a vision to empower people's lives through fitness and health, making the communities it serves healthier and happier, Movati Athletic is poised for growth nationally and internationally. Visit movati.ca for more information.
SOURCE Movati Athletic
Postcode drug lottery for patients at risk of HIV
The efficacy of HIV-prevention drug PrEP is long-established, but access to the drug in England is restricted to participants on the NHS Impact Trial. At least 15 men who were waiting for trial places have acquired the lifelong disease – so how is limiting trial places for a crucial drug already proven to work justified?
GlobalData’s pharmaceutical writer Chloe Kent says: “England lags far behind the rest of the UK when it comes to PrEP. The drug is only accessible through the NHS Impact Trial, which launched at the end of 2017 and currently has the capacity for 26,000 total participants. NHS England supplies the drug to various participating local authorities, which ultimately control how the drug is distributed. Outside of England, PrEP is freely available for patients in Scotland and Wales.
“The drug’s efficacy is long established and the Impact Trial is taking place under the guise of assessing various logistical queries surrounding the distribution of the drug in England.
“These include finding out how many people who attend sexual health clinics are at high risk of HIV, and thus eligible for PrEP, how likely people offered the drug are to accept it, and how long they tend to use the medication for, as well as the impact of HIV and other STIs on the population. But for patients at risk of HIV, a postcode lottery that makes the drug available through certain NHS jurisdictions and not others can be incredibly frustrating.
“So, why is the Impact Trial even taking place when PrEP’s efficacy is already established?”
British HIV Association (BHIVA) chair Dr Laura Waters says: “PrEP is indeed very efficacious at preventing HIV, but at the time that was established Truvada, the branded version of the drug used for PrEP, was very expensive. By undertaking a trial we were able to use the much less expensive generic version of the drug.
“Sexual health clinics have faced significant funding cuts so the trial is also about the feasibility of offering PrEP in real-life via the already over-stretched services.”
The local authority public health budget in the UK has been cut by £700m in real terms between 2014/15 and 2019/20, which has led to sexual health service budgets being cut slashed 25%. Meanwhile, demand for sexual health services rose by 15% between 2014 and 2018 and rates of STIs such as syphilis and gonorrhoea are skyrocketing. Alongside a patent law hangover, the trial exists to assess whether supplying PrEP to patients who need it is financially feasible under austerity.
In October 2019, the government announced that the local authority public health grant would increase by 1% in real terms in 2020-2021, but this is unlikely to make a substantial difference to the funding of sexual health services.
UK government using Twitter to improve public health
Over the past few years, the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare and medicine has generated much excitement in both the public and private sector. GlobalData’s technology writer Ellen Daniel looks at how AI and big data can help improve public health.
Daniel says: “As well as being beneficial in the diagnosis, and potentially the prediction, of individual conditions, big data, and the AI used to analyse it, also has the potential to address public health concerns for the population as a whole.
“However, data does not only need to come from conventional sources, with social media having potential applications in identifying potential public health issues, and informing the best way to educate the public about particular issues.
“Professor Peter Bradley, director for Health Intelligence at Public Health England explains how text analysis has been used to identify the best way to combat misinformation surrounding vaccinations.”
Bradley says: “What we’re able to do is look at the Twitter feed. In this case we looked at every Twitter feed that had [vaccine related tweets] and we can begin to understand the sentiment behind these feeds, the types of people who are showing concern. That allows us to target messaging so that the appropriate scientific advice is given to groups to counteract this myth that has persisted in in the society around vaccinations.
“We’re now moving towards a possibility of having a much more personalised approach where we can improve health by using the data that’s coming through, big data potentially, and making sure that we are using all those possibilities that we have in terms of using data from smart phones and citizen generated data in all its forms.
“We are going to have to think very closely about what the public really wants to share in terms of the data and what do they want to use it for. We already work very closely with the National Data Guardian and other groups that are concerned about information governance and this is a really big area for us.
“We can’t currently access a lot of our data because it’s not deemed appropriate, so the need for that debate is really crucial - artificial intelligence and related activities can introduce bias, so the way that we train our data is very important. We don’t want to be prejudicing people who we are most trying to help.”
4,000 of the world’s largest companies, including over 70% of FTSE 100 and 60% of Fortune 100 companies, make timelier and better business decisions thanks to GlobalData’s unique data, expert analysis and innovative solutions, all in one platform. GlobalData’s mission is to help our clients decode the future to be more successful and innovative across a range of industries, including the healthcare, consumer, retail, financial, technology and professional services sectors.
Increased Mobility of Patients Opens New Opportunities: Plastic Surgery is not High-Class Privilege Anymore
Once the prerogative of the rich and famous, plastic surgery is now accessible to patients of all strata of society. Expert surgeons of Nordesthetics clinic explain the changing demographic features of their typical patient: a middle-class female. These patients typically have an increased mobility, which allows them to seek better deals undergoing plastic surgery abroad.
January 8, 2020. Plastic surgery has become much more accessible. In the last 10 years, the number of plastic surgery procedures almost doubled globally. 6,7 million procedures were carried out in 2010, while in 2018 this number rose to 10,6 million. The growing popularity of plastic surgery also indicates the change in patient demographics. For example, a recent study of Saudi Arabian plastic surgery patients indicates that 68% of them are employees and 47% receive an average salary.
“The stereotype of a rich and famous patient is no longer valid in plastic surgery,” commented Vilius Sketrys, the commercial director of Nordesthetics clinic - the leading international plastic surgery center based in Kaunas, Lithuania. “Most of our patients are neither rich nor famous. On the contrary, they are so-called ‘common people.’ Demographically, the typical patient in our clinic is a middle-class female.”
He pointed out the variety of lifestyles, backgrounds and professions among the patients of the clinic. Oil-pumping stations workers, medical nurses and social care workers, school teachers, photographers, graphic designers and artists, an opera student, a bus driver, a stewardess and a cruise ship employee, a fitness champion and a professional bodybuilder - the range is as wide as that. According to Mr Sketrys, for most of these people, plastic surgery has nothing to do with their social status or profession. On the contrary, the desire to have more aesthetically pleasing appearance cuts across all statuses and professions.
For this type of patient, the price of surgery is a very important factor. It raises the issue of plastic surgery financing which is solved differently in different parts of the world. In the USA, where the largest number of plastic surgeries take place annually, aesthetic plastic surgery is never financed by the state or the health insurance companies. Patients use their own income or loans to finance their surgeries.
The opposite example is Brazil- the second-leading country in the total number of plastic surgeries. Some of the Brazilian clinics started offering poor patients free plastic surgeries, which were carried out by trainees or beginner surgeons. Later on, the government recognized “the right to beauty” and started funding plastic surgery in public hospitals. This type of practice is still used as a training ground for plastic surgeons.
The UK represents a kind of middle ground. In some cases, aesthetic plastic surgeries may be financed by the NHS, usually when it is necessary for the psychological well-being of the patient. However, in most cases in the UK, as in other parts of Europe, patients are expected to finance their operations on their own.
The differing prices and conditions of financing makes plastic surgery one of the fastest-developing fields of medical tourism. Increased mobility of patients opens for them new opportunities thus adding to the accessibility of plastic surgery. It is especially true when clinics in certain regions succeed in maintaining high quality standards while charging significantly lower prices. Such medical centers are capable of attracting patients from countries in which plastic surgery is still a luxury commodity. Mr Sketrys says that such is the case of Nordesthetics clinic.
“Most of our patients are middle-class individuals who finance plastic surgeries using their own disposable income or loans. For them, the price is an important factor and we take that into account in our business strategy, although our main focus is the quality of our services. Our clinic offers European standards of high quality for substantially lower prices than in the UK or Scandinavia, where most of our patients come from,” he explained.
Plastic surgery prices at Nordesthetics clinic are up to 2-3 times lower than in Scandinavian countries, the UK or Ireland where most patients of the clinic come from. Apart from the qualified doctors and medical staff, the patients receive logistical support and personal assistance while they visit Kaunas, Lithuania, including transfers to and from the airport. 90% of patients of Nordesthetics clinic are medical tourists looking for affordable quality treatment abroad.
Leafreport Uncovers Massive Price Gaps up to 3200% in CBD Products
Leafreport has broken new ground with a market report that compares over 3,500 CBD products.
TEL AVIV, ISRAEL -- For an industry that’s projected to reach $20 billion by 2024 in the U.S. alone, the CBD (cannabidiol) market continues to baffle the general public. That is, until now.
“What we encountered was a wild, wild west scenario in terms of manufacturing and marketing. There’s no uniformity in terms of quality, concentrations, prices, or even labeling,” says Noa Gans, the Head of Product for Leafreport. “Newcomers to CBD have simply been unable to shop wisely.”
Amid this daunting landscape, the results offer a first-of-its-kind roadmap for consumers of all stripes. Pointing to the most surprising findings, Gans cited huge discrepancies between prices for similar products -- including 250% among vaporizers, 1,000% between tinctures, and a staggering 3,200% overall.
“We’ve successfully created benchmarks that answer nearly any question a curious CBD user could encounter,” Gans noted. “Whether its potency or price points, this report gets to the heart of what everybody needs to know.”
The document is part of Leafreport’s efforts to provide new tools and information aimed at demystifying the world surrounding cannabis-derived compounds. With recent polling showing that 14% of Americans are using CBD for everything from pain relief to sleep aids, their work can not come at a more important time.
“With the industry growing at such a rapid pace, an educated consumer base is absolutely vital,” Gans explained. “Transparency and the hunt for the truth has to come above everything else.”
About Leafreport
Leafreport is a CBD dedicated portal. The company’s mission is to introduce transparency into the CBD industry through its public database of comprehensive product reviews, comparisons, information, and education about CBD. Medical Reviews are a core service and competitive advantage for Leafreport over other online sources. Leafreport’s Medical Reviews are provided by vetted members of the medical and scientific community to ensure accurate, current, and patient-focused content.
What Triathletes Need to Know About Nutrition Planning
Whether you’re training for your first triathlon or you’ve been among the elite club of triathlon participants for decades, nutrition planning has to be an important part of your life to ensure success across the miles. Just like the race itself is always on your mind, the proper nutrition to help you plan for that race must always be on your mind, as well. Otherwise, you risk having setbacks that could render you unable to reach your goal. To help you increase your focus, here are a few things that triathletes need to know about nutrition planning.
Don’t Overdo It
Training for a triathlon can be a grueling process. Especially if you’ve never competed in a triathlon, the physical exertion you feel during training can be quite overwhelming. As a result, after your more intense workouts, you may be tempted to overload on calories to try and make up for what your body has lost. Typically, though, this leads to eating calories in excess of what you burned during your workout. This can cause unwanted weight gain and a crash in blood sugar, later on, that will lead to more unhealthy snacking. Therefore, it’s important to carefully track your post-workout calories so you know exactly what you’re putting into your body.
Plan Ahead
The road to your first triathlon doesn’t end after a day or a week of training. In most cases, proper training can take months or even years, depending on your personal motivation. When you’re at the starting line of this training, then, it’s crucial that you plan ahead to achieve success. Nutrition plansare a big part of this formula, as they provide guidance on different nutrients your body needs as well as guidelines for your daily caloric intake. If you stick to a solid nutrition plan alongside your other training goals, you will be ready when race day comes.
Avoid Celebrating the Wrong Way
When you reach various milestones along the path to race day, it can be tempting to go all-out in celebration. While celebrating success is certainly okay and can actually lead to further success, you must be sure to celebrate without backtracking on the progress you’ve made. Specifically, this means avoiding excess sweets such as cake, soda, candy, and a whole host of other bad-for-you treats. While sweets are okay in limited moderation, too many can cause your blood sugar to spike and then crash, which is not only bad for your health but also can lead to further sweet-eating that will cause a huge delay in progress.
Don’t Forget Water
In the midst of your careful nutrition planning, it can be easy to overlook one of the most essential elements of a good training plan: adequate hydration. Without enough water, your body won’t be able to properly digest the foods you intake, and you’re likely to eat too much food since water can help you feel full by occupying room in your stomach. On top of that, your circulatory, musculoskeletal, digestive, and other body systems rely on adequate water intake to function properly.
Don’t Give Up
Training for a triathlon is a long process. As such, there will be days when you won’t meet your goals or you’ll make a mistake that causes you to backtrack. When that happens, though, the most important thing is that you pick back up tomorrow and continue your progress. This is ultimately what will help you achieve your overarching goal of participating in and completing a triathlon.
New Treatment Approved in Canada for Most Common Type of Leukemia
CALQUENCE® (acalabrutinib) is now available for adult patients with previously untreated and relapsed/refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia
MISSISSAUGA, ON, Jan. 8, 2020 /CNW/ - AstraZeneca Canada today announced that Health Canada has approved Calquence® (acalabrutinib), an oral Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor, for the treatment of adult patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), as monotherapy or in combination with obinutuzumab in the first-line setting, and as monotherapy for relapsed/refractory (r/r) disease.1
CLL is the most common type of leukemia in adults, accounting for 44 per cent of all cases in Canada.2 More than 2,200 people in Canada are diagnosed with the disease each year and more than 600 will die from it.3,4 Despite advancements in the treatment of CLL, there is still no cure for the disease and even after successful initial treatment, some patients may relapse, leaving them in need of further innovation.
"CLL is most often diagnosed when patients are more than 60 years old, at a time when they are already dealing with other health conditions related to aging and are trying to maintain the best quality of life," says Antonella Rizza, CEO of Lymphoma Canada. "Today's announcement offers Canadians living with CLL an important new option for this incurable but treatable disease."'
The Canadian approval was granted under Project Orbis, a new international health authority collaboration which provides a framework for simultaneous submission and review of oncology products among international partners.5 Under this collaboration, Health Canada, the U.S. FDA, and the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) collectively reviewed the application for Calquence, making it the second treatment approved as part of the program and the first in hematology.
"In the last several years, we've been moving away from traditional chemotherapies to more targeted therapies for CLL." said Dr. Carolyn Owen, Alberta Health Services, Calgary. "Health Canada's approval of acalabrutinib provides a new effective and well tolerated treatment option for CLL patients and improves their treatment options."
The Health Canada approval of Calquence was based on positive interim data from two Phase III clinical trials, ELEVATE-TN and ASCEND.6,7 The ELEVATE-TN trial evaluated the safety and efficacy of Calquence in combination with obinutuzumab, a CD20 monoclonal antibody, or Calquence alone versus chlorambucil, a chemotherapy, in combination with obinutuzumab in previously untreated patients with CLL. The ASCEND trial evaluated the efficacy of Calquence in previously treated patients with CLL.Together, the trials showed that Calquence in combination with obinutuzumab or as a monotherapy significantly reduced the relative risk of disease progression or death. Across both trials, the safety and tolerability of Calquence were consistent with its established profile.1
About chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) Chronic lymphocytic leukemia is the most common type of leukemia in adults, which begins in the bone marrow, and progresses slowly.8 In CLL, too many blood stem cells in the bone marrow become abnormal lymphocytes and these abnormal cells have difficulty fighting infections.9 As the number of abnormal cells grows there is less room for healthy white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets.9This could result in anaemia, infection and bleeding.9 B-cell receptor signalling through BTK is one of the essential growth pathways for CLL. Many people with CLL do not have any symptoms upon diagnosis, and the disease is often found in blood tests for unrelated health problems.10
About Calquence Calquence (acalabrutinib; previously known as ACP-196) is a selective inhibitor of Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK).1 Calquence binds covalently to BTK, thereby inhibiting its activity, and has demonstrated this with minimal interactions with other immune cells in pre-clinical studies.1,6,7 In B cells, BTK signaling results in activation of pathways necessary for B cell proliferation, trafficking, chemotaxis and adhesion.1 The recommended dose of Calquenceis one 100mg capsule taken orally twice daily (approximately 12 hours apart), until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity.1 Calquence may be taken with or without food.1
About AstraZeneca AstraZeneca is a global, innovation-driven biopharmaceutical business with a primary focus on the discovery, development and commercialization of primary and specialty care medicines that transform lives. Our primary focus is on three important areas of healthcare: Cardiovascular and Metabolic disease; Oncology; and Respiratory, Inflammation and Autoimmunity. AstraZeneca operates in more than 100 countries and its innovative medicines are used by millions of patients worldwide. In Canada, we employ more than 675 employees across the country and our headquarters are located in Mississauga, Ontario. For more information, please visit the company's website at www.astrazeneca.ca.
References
_________________________________
1
AstraZeneca Canada Inc., Calquence® (acalabrutinib), Product Monograph. November 2019.
ClinicalTrials.gov. Elevate CLL TN: Study of Obinutuzumab + Chlorambucil, Acalabrutinib (ACP-196) + Obinutuzumab, and Acalabrutinib in Subjects With Previously Untreated CLL. NCT02475681. Available online. Accessed July 2019.
7
Ghia P, Pluta A, Wach M, et al. ASCEND Phase 3 study of acalabrutinib vs. investigator's choice of rituxumab plus idelalisib (idR) or bendamustine (BR) in patients with relapsed/refractory (R/R) chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL). Abstract LB2606 at: European Hematology Association 2019 Annual Meeting. Available online. Accessed July 2019.
LQT Therapeutics Announces up to C$1.8M in Seed Funding Led by Fonds de solidarité FTQ to Accelerate Research of New Therapies for Long QT Syndrome
LAVAL, QC, Jan. 8, 2020 /CNW Telbec/ - LQT Therapeutics, Inc. ("LQTT"), a newly formed life-science company, today announced it has raised up to C$1.8 Million in seed funding led by Fonds de solidarité FTQ and other founding investors. LQTT aims to develop a series of preclinical compounds to provide a new treatment option for patients with Long QT Syndrome ("LQTS") and other cardia arrhythmias. LQTS is a rare genetic heart rhythm condition causes rapid, chaotic heartbeats or arrhythmias due to a prolonged QT interval. These arrhythmias, called Torsades des Pointes, may result in a sudden fainting spell or seizure, cardiac arrest, and in some cases, sudden cardiac death. According to the US National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, one out of 7,000 people living in the US may have LQTS with an estimated 3,000-4,000 deaths in children and young adults each year. People who have Long QT Syndrome have few signs or symptoms and may only become aware of their condition due to a serious cardiac event, an electrocardiogram, family history, or genetic testing.
The scientific founders, Dr. Anthony Rosenzweig MD, Dr. David Milan MD and Dr. Saumya Das MD PhD, are physician scientists with first-hand experience of taking care of patients with long QT syndrome. "The consequences of undiagnosed or poorly treated Long QT Syndrome can be debilitating and life threatening", commented the founders. "Patients with Long QT Syndrome must avoid strenuous exercise or competitive sports as well as certain medications that can precipitate lethal cardiac arrhythmias. The continued monitoring for arrhythmias, and the lack of safe medications to prevent these arrhythmias adversely affect a person's quality of life. Therefore, the promise of a new treatment option which specifically targets the underlying disease, provides hope of returning these people to a normal and active life."
Current therapies for the treatment of LQTS are limited to interventions that slow the heart rate such as beta-blockers; implantable defibrillators which restore normal rhythm by providing an electrical shock directly to the heart; substantial lifestyle modifications including diet, exercise limitations; and reduced daily activities designed to reduce potential triggers for LQTS. The funding provided by the Fonds will allow us to continue to advance pre-clinical development of a series of novel compounds in an effort to bring a treatment to people in need.
"Our research has uncovered a unique and novel therapeutic approach to modulate electrical properties of certain sodium channels which are potentially important in the treatment of Long QT Syndrome. We're eager to see these discoveries move forward in a way that can help our patients," noted Anthony Rosenzweig, MD, Chief of Cardiology and Co-Director of the Corrigan Minehan Heart Center, Massachusetts General Hospital.
"The Fonds has been present in the field of biotechnology for more than 30 years and our investment in LQTT is the first of a new initiative under which the Fonds will support the ecosystem in Québec and elsewhere in Canada by acting as a founding shareholder along with successful entrepreneurs to create and scale lasting biotech companies," Didier Leconte, Vice President for Investments, Life Sciences and Funds-of-funds at Fonds de solidarité FTQ. "This is another demonstration of Fonds's commitment towards the biotechnology industry."
With the help of financing from Fonds de solidarité FTQ, the newly formed team at LQTT will explore a class of molecules and licensed intellectual property targeting a unique pathway for the treatment of LQTS and other cardiovascular arrythmias. LQT Therapeutics core technology is the result of research conducted by Anthony Rosenzweig, MD, David Milan, MD, PhD and Saumya Das MD, PhD with support from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. Initial start-up team members will include Dr. Philip Sager, one of the Company's Founders, Paul F. Truex, MBA, and Marc Vidal, PhD. Current and future team members will be located at Québec's Center for Biotechnology Innovation ("CQIB") in Laval, Québec. In addition, Saumya Das, MD, PhD and David Milan, MD, PhD will provide scientific oversight and clinical insights as eventual members of the LQTT Board of Directors. They will join Paul F. Truex, Philip Sager, MD, Marc Vidal, PhD, and Serge Langford from Fonds de solidarité FTQ. Details can be found at the company's website www.lqttrx.com.
About LQT Therapeutics
LQT Therapeutics ("LQTT") is a biopharmaceutical company discovering and developing therapies for the treatment of all forms of Long QT Syndrome (LQTS). LQTS is a rare orphan disorder effecting an estimated 1 in 7,000 people in the United States. LQTS often goes undiagnosed and is believed to result in 3,000 to 4,000 sudden deaths in children and young adults each year in the United States. More details about LQTS can be found at www.sads.org.
LQTT was founded on discoveries and innovations of its three scientific founders in collaboration with the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Anthony Rosenzweig, MD, Chief of Cardiology and Co-Director of the Corrigan Minehan Heart Center, Massachusetts General Hospital; Saumya Das, MD, PhD, Co-Director of Resynchronization and Advanced Cardiac Therapeutics Program, Massachusetts General Hospital; and David Milan, MD, Chief Scientific Officer of the Leducq. All will continue to provide scientific and clinical leadership for the LQTT's development initiatives.
LQTT is pioneering a precision medicine approach to its discovery and development efforts by: exploiting advancements in genetic identification of Long QT Syndrome and its various sub-types; Targeting unique biomechanical causes of each sub-type of Long QT Syndrome; efficiently selecting appropriate small-molecule therapeutics to target specific biological pathways to interrupt adverse cardiac signalling; and working with scientific and clinical leaders worldwide to broaden our portfolio to include treatments for all subtypes of LQTS. LQTT's initial focus will be to develop small molecule inhibitors targeted at a kinase responsible for electrical and mechanical remodelling of ion channels which cause Long QT Syndrome. More details about the company are available at www.lqttrx.com
About the Fonds de solidarité FTQ
The Fonds de solidarité FTQ is a development capital investment fund that channels the savings of Quebecers into investments. As at November 30, 2019, the organization had $16.7 billion in net assets, and through its current portfolio of investments supports over 215,000 jobs. The Fonds is a partner in more than 3,100 companies and today has more than 700,000 shareholder-savers.
SOURCE LQT Therapeutics
New possible strategy for treating chronic pain due to burns may help sufferers including veterans
UNDER STRICT EMBARGO UNTIL 01.00 GMT 10 JANUARY 2019
Not for publication or broadcast before this time
New research shows how second-degree burns cause hard-to-treat chronic pain, and this understanding may be key to treating these complications, common in war veterans This research, published in Physiological Reports, suggests that burns cause changes to neurons in multiple parts of the spinal cord, even far from the injury site, which can contribute to chronic pain and other long-term complications.
Second degree burns initially only affects layers of the skin, specifically the top and second layers. More than 11 million individuals per year around the world suffer burn injuries severe enough to require hospitalization and long-term care (1).
Treatment of burns normally entails localised treatment at the site of the burn, but this doesn’t address problems that the burn may cause in other parts of the body, such as the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord), which is crucial for fully treating the burn and possible neurological complications, such as neuropathic pain.
Siraj Patwa and his colleagues at Yale University and the US Department of Veterans Affairs studied spinal cord neurons in a burn injury mouse animal model and found that the skin injury affected the structural connections between neurons. They also identified an important molecule in this problem called PAK1, which is involved with regulating these changes in the spinal cord.
An exciting discovery from this work was the identification of an existing clinical drug targeting PAK1, called Romidepsin, which is already used in cancer treatment. One promising avenue of study is looking at “re-purposing” this drug for targeting chronic pain associated with burn injuries.
Andrew Tan, senior author on the study said:
“This research has exciting potential to provide a new avenue for speeding up the development of new treatments for long-lasting complications that often follow burn injury. Having a treatment that would not only treat the acute injury, but long-lasting complications could have a big impact on clinicians’ treatment of burns, including battlefield injured-veterans."
ENDS
Notes for Editors
Latarjet J and Choiniere M. Pain in burn patients. Burns 1995; 21: 344-348.
The Physiological Society brings together over 4,000 scientists from over 60 countries. The Society promotes physiology with the public and parliament alike. It supports physiologists by organising world-class conferences and offering grants for research and also publishes the latest developments in the field in its three leading scientific journals, The Journal of Physiology, Experimental Physiology and Physiological Reports. www.physoc.org
High-Tech Stress-Relief System Seen As New Profit Center for Spas, Health and Fitness Centers Patented NuCalm® System Offers A 2-Hour Nap in 20 Minutes
(Issued January 2020) -- Operators of U. S. spas and health and fitness centers -- a $40 billion industry -- need to be on the lookout for latest industry trends in order to stay ahead of their competition and to open new revenue streams.
Whether it’s a boutique recovery studio in Manhattan or Pittsburgh, or a massage therapy studio in Utah, owners are recognizing that, increasingly, clients are seeking the same high-level personal training and recovery tools used by the world’s elite athletes. The drug-free, FDA-approved NuCalm system has brought a new level of relaxation and recovery worldwide to pro athletes, cancer patients, pilots, stressed executives, veterans suffering from PTSD, and many others. Some 2,000 dentists on four continents have successfully used NuCalm to relax over two million anxious patients.
“Word is out on NuCalm’s ability to give the equivalent of a 2 – 3 hour nap in just 20 minutes,” says Jim Poole, President/CEO of Solace Lifesciences Inc., maker of NuCalm (www.NuCalm.com). “Health and fitness club and studio operators recognize the importance of recovery and are integrating it in a way that fits their members’ needs and interests. Recovery is vital to athletes and anyone else under stress looking to reduce fatigue and enhance performance. Research shows the effect of adequate recovery on physiological and psychological health.”
NuCalm is ideal for treating anxiety, depression, and insomnia and is the world's only patented neuroscience technology clinically proven to manage stress and improve sleep quality without drugs or side effects. It biochemically helps your brain interrupt adrenaline and cortisol release by mimicking what naturally occurs right before you sleep. It restores balance to the autonomic nervous system, enabling people to better deal with stress management, sleep quality, athletic and cognitive performance, illness and/or injury recovery, and overall health.”
Recovery is trendy because fitness instructors and students realize how people get worn down by high intensity workouts. Poole says, “Instructors are learning more about recovery, and they’re sharing that with their clients. Many older athletes say their recovery strategies play a major role in their athletic performance, allowing them to continue playing at a high level long after many of their colleagues have retired. Amateur and recreational athletes naturally follow their lead.”
“NuCalm allows you to enter a lucid dream state so you feel, think, and sleep better,” Poole says. “After 30 minutes of wearing the disc, headphones with a specially-designed music and beat, your body might feel as it would had it just gotten 2 - 4 hours of restorative sleep, a state hovering between awareness and sleep.”
NuCalm has proven to be a selling point for first-time visitors considering whether or not to explore spa or fitness facility services or memberships. Many leading health, fitness and spa businesses offering futuristic equipment and technology now include 21st century amenities like NuCalm for clients seeking to recover from daily stressors.
Last April, NuCalm was featured on NBC’s Today show as a standout stress-reliever. Host Craig Melvin and his crew visited New York’s ReCOVER Studio and tried several relaxation options, ultimately agreeing NuCalm worked best. It has been featured on www.wellandgood.com and won several awards and five-star reviews at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. A New York Times reporter reviewed her NuCalm experience starting her article by asking: ‘What if your training session began with a nap?’ and described her NuCalm session as “heaven.”
This past summer, 100-mile ‘ultra’ endurance runner and exercise and healthy lifestyle aficionado Mike Littrell became frustrated there was no affordable, high-level relaxation and recovery facility in Pittsburgh. In August, he opened his Pittsburgh Performance Institute, offering a range of equipment and systems including NuCalm. He tells clients who mostly range from 30 to 50 that ”During a half-hour NuCalm session, you’re pulled into a lucid dream state, and when finished, you feel calm and relaxed.”
The Pittsburgh Performance Institute (PPI), the city’s first-of-its-kind ‘Recovery Studio,’ has found a unique niche, offering high-level pro athlete-level recovery and relaxation without the expense. NuCalm sessions are one of their more popular options.
“NuCalm is the ultimate biohack,” Poole says, “so why not provide it as a service to clients, and why not charge for it? It can be an impressive profit center.” Since the U. S. health and fitness industry has been growing 3 - 4% annually for the last ten years and shows no signs of slowing down, Poole says the winners will be owners who spot trends and act on their vision.
