Lithium could be a new treatment for Azheimer's disease

There is no decisive blow of treatment for Alzheimer's disease yet. Monoclonal antibodies against beta amyloid have been used in clinical medicine with limited success, that is, only reducing the progress of the disease to an extent. They could cause pretty serious side effects including cerebral bleeding. So no definite choice of treatment yet.

Here is an article in Nature which could sets off  a new horizon for the treatment and/or prevention of Alzheimer's disease. Lithium could be such a medicine as it says from the standpoint of pathophysiological findings in mouse as well as of human pathological data. Lithium carbonate has been a drug for bipolar disorder for a long time. But it has only narrow width of concentration for treatment and could cause serious complication with overdose. Lithium orotate is introduced as a substitute. Lithium won't matter patent and, if lithium is proved clinically effective to prevent and treat Alzheimer's disease with double blind study, the medication of lithium won't cost so expensive as the antibody med or other forms of cutting edge drug. It would be another advantage of lithium med. 

 Aron L, et al. Lithium deficiency and the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. Nature. 2025. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-025-09335-x

If lithium med is proved to be of use, hasten to publish it in the market. Millions of people must be waiting for it. John AC4CA should have been one of them since he had his wife Jackie suffering from Alzheimer's disease and was always concerned about any new treatment.

     

A new variant Nimbus positive

 Two or three days later than my wife, I have developed typical symptoms of Nimbus. Runny nose, wet cough and most strikingly severe sore throat as they say like swallowing razor blade in the throat. Yesterday, even it was a national holiday, a friend of ours, Dr. Cho has had his office running for COVID cases. My wife was correctly diagnosed for new variant of COVID by him.  My test result was also clearly positive as shown in the photo below. My wife has been prescribed 5 days of Paxlovid. As Dr. Cho told her, med for a day could be diverted to me, not having come to see him today. Of course, I would give it back to her tomorrow when consulting his office.

Ever since the pandemic started in 2020, we have been very cautious not to be infected by the virus. This new strain Nimbus has strong immunity evasion. Fortunately, as WHO says, there are no serious comlications reported in the world.  

Through this tiny experience, I have learned a few things;

As an elderly, I have felt weakness. I was not sure if it was due to my age or this contagious illness. I was surprised not to feel feverish. I was just staggering. It might be due to weakness of COVID or feverish condition 

The fight against COVID is almost endless even though the newly evolving strains are less pathogenic than the previous ones. WHO observation is encouraging to us. But there could be serious mutated strains prevailing in the future.

The super big nation has withdrawn from WHO. Was it a good decision, I wonder. It would impede the lives of the people not only in the US but also in the world. If the US supports WHO in this settings, I am sure the US will be given credit by people around the world. 

PS; I should have remarked with the result that it won't necessarily mean the pathogen was Nimbus. But our symptoms and epidemiological data in this area mean Nimbus as the pathogen.

I am also heartily grateful to Dr. Cho for his enthusiastic service for us. Even though he is not on the air any longer, he was a ham with a call sign of 7N2JZK.  

A thousand of autumns

It is my wife's 73rd birthday today. Soon, It will have been more than half a century we spent our lives together.  

 My wife's name, Chiaki, stands for a thousand of autumns in Japanese. Her parents have wanted her for a long time, it means. I know how much she has been loved by them. 

A couple of years ago, before closing her practice, at the reception room.

She has recovered from the episode of subacute thyroiditis with steroid tapered off for now. So far, she is busy attending a sport gym and caring for flowers in the garden. 

We are stepping into the last chapter of our lives. No one knows when our lives are put an end. I would do as much as I can for her in order to tell her parents when we meet in the heaven that I have tried to make her happy. 

Until that time, let's grow old together! 

Heat wave and grass mulching

As already told, the heat wave and drought have been quite harsh this year. The highest temp in a day has been over 35 deg C for a few weeks. They say even summer vegetables won't grow if the highest temp goes over 35 deg C. All the green beans have been withered. So did from 30 to 40% of sweet melons. Others have also been weakened despite of some watering once a day or so. Some professional farmers are watering their vegetables with continuous irrigation system. It is not a pratical idea for an amateur like me. 

I have tried grass mulching again. Carrots need much water until budding when sowed on soil. Home grown carrot seeds were sowed once with total failure even watered twice in a day. Then I put some grass mulch on it while watering in the same way. They were successfully germinated as this photo shows. Of course, the mulching has been taken off when buds were recognized.

The seeds of carrot are well known for being photophilic. I was afraid the mulching would have disturbed germination hiding light reaching the seeds. But it didn't matter. Seems the sunray in summer was strong enough to get through the mulching. I am happy those home grown seeds would grow to be harvested in several weeks. It is a step toward self contained farming. 

 This is the rose with grass mulching I have posted a few days ago. Putting further grass beneath its branches around, the soil has been pretty wet even in the hardest sun shine. There are new leaves grown on branches as well as some new flowers. The grass would become compost in some time and nourish the tree in the future.

On the other hand, global warming which has brought about this heatwave should be handled with as soon as possible. Before we are over the tipping point. I was convinced about it again this summer.

A pleasant encounter 4 years ago

 Looking for any own description on Langsamer Satz by Webern, in my other blog in Japanese, I found a post on a happy meeting with Paula K9IR on 20m CW in 2021. Jim W9VNE seems to have introduced this blog to her. As she said, this blog has inspired her to consider starting violin again in her upcoming retirement. She told me she had played it in her teen age days. Stories on music and cello in this blog has invited, as she said, to do so. It was a delightful surprise to me. I have, as the post says, enthusiastically mentioned about that poignant piece by Webern to her at that time. It has occupied my mind then. Ham radio has been such a pleasant hobby and through such a QSO with her, it was the most brilliant hobby to me. 

I have written about that Webern's piece twice in this blog. It was composed when he met his wife in the future and made hiking with her. He thought he would go with her hand in hand even in rainy days, that is, in the days of hardship in life. He had thought about possible unhappy days at the time of the height of happiness.  

Music such as Bach, some chamber music of Beethoven, Brahms, Faure and many more, always bring me contradictory impressions at the same time. An example is Bach's Suite in h minor. In its ouverture, we hear something joyfully festive and, at the same time, sadness. The latter accentuates the former. This double meaning in some music which sound poignant may be a universal characteristics of music. It is always even mysterious to me. Good music must be resonant to us in the deepest emotion. I might have told this story in another post in the past. Listning to this Langsamer Satz by Webern, I am convinced of this consequence music gives to our mind. I might have mentioned of the same thing in the past. How Webern has composed this piece might correspond to the essential process music elicits.  

It is a bit sad for me not to be able to go on talking about music on CW with her. Someday, I might have a chance to discuss about it on line.

I just wonder if she has started playing violin again.

Listening a few different sources of this piece, I am sure this one by Belcea String Quartet is the best. Most emotional and haunting. Even though I have already posted it on another post.

  

 

Grass mulching

It has been a harsh and blistering summer this year. Before the weather bureau declares it was the hottest summer ever, we knew it had been here. Water melons have half matured but the other half was withered. Some of pumpkins were dried as well. Ocra or paprika was failure as well. Tomatoes were decayed by the heat wave as well as attack of bugs. Egg plants were only exceptions. They have been harvested at regular interval and have been cooked with soy sauce, vinegar and sugar. 

I found this rose was wearied and was almost withered. It is my wife's territory. But I decided to give much grass mulching around it. Then, I have been pouring much water in morning. It has revived as this photo shows. The grass will be decayed and would work as compost for the rose. I realized the egg plants which survived well had been given grass mulching beneath as well. These two cases may prove that grass mulching would really work fine in such a heat wave and drought. 

 I have been practising this grass mulching for several years. This year, I have learned it was really working in the heating drought. In some cases, even live grass, so far as they won't disturb vegetables to grow, could help soil remaining humid. 

Every year, I am learning something from one to another. But I wonder how long I could carry on farming in this way. Farming longa, vita brevis. 

In order to overcome populism

This attitude in education is important. In order to overcome conspiracy which undermine our minds and to eliminate authoritarianism in politics. Both are prevailing in the present world through populism. 

I have not expected to see Bertrand Russel's words shining as a proverb of wisdom after half a century pause since my young days. His works for pacifism, especially anti nuclear arm movement, still remain unforgettable achievement to me.

Quote;

 “Education is conceived more in terms of indoctrination by most school officials than in terms of enlightenment. My own belief is that education must be subversive if it is to be meaningful. By this I mean that it must challenge all the things we take for granted, examine all accepted assumptions, tamper with every sacred cow, and instill a desire to question and doubt. Without this the mere instruction to memorise data is empty. The attempt to enforce conventional mediocrity on the young is criminal.“

— Bertrand Russell, as quoted, in Ronald William Clark, The Life of Bertrand Russell (1976), p. 423