Thalidomide: The journey from curse to boon

Bilirubin, a curse and a boon.

B oth hydrophobic bile salts 2 and unconjugated bilirubin (UCB) induce apoptosis in cultured cells at moderately elevated concentrations and cell necrosis at higher concentrations. Retention of bile salts in cholestasis is believed to cause secondary damage to hepatocytes, and retention of UCB in severe neonatal jaundice is known to cause bilirubin encephalopathy. For both agents, the cytotoxic...

Agricultural Subsidies in India Boon or Curse

A progressive agriculture serves as a powerful engine of economic growth of any country. It helps in initiating and sustaining the development of other sectors of the economy. In view of this, after independence the Government of India adopted a positive approach and specific programmes like new agriculture technology were introduced. Indian farmers being poor were not in a position to buy thes...

Disposable PLASTICS , “ A Boon or a Curse ? ”

In today’s world we are living in an age where disposables have become a way of life. In this “use and throw” society, plastics have become a part of our day to-day lifestyle, and affect everyone. Plastics have several drawbacks, and also contain toxins that can trigger the development of cancerous diseases. The hospital today is on the brink of a progressing ecological catastrophe. Excessive u...

An epidemiologist's journey from typhus to thalidomide, and from the Soviet Union to Seveso.

DNA damage in cancer therapeutics: a boon or a curse?

Millions of DNA-damaging lesions occur every day in each cell of our bodies due to various stresses. The failure to detect and accurately repair these lesions can give rise to cells with high levels of endogenous DNA damage, deleterious mutations, or genomic aberrations. Such genomic instability can lead to the activation of specific signaling pathways, including the DNA damage response (DDR) p...