Latest news with #UniversityOfThePhilippines
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Brain Abnormality in Modern Humans Linked to Ancient Neanderthal DNA
Significant brain defects known as Chiari malformations could be down the genes some of us have inherited from Neanderthals, according to a new study, causing a mismatch between brain shape and skull shape. The study focuses on Chiari malformation type I (CM-I), where the lower part of the brain extends too far into the spinal cord – typically linked to having a smaller-than-normal occipital bone at the back of the skull. It can lead to headaches, neck pain, and more serious conditions, and is thought to affect up to 1 in 100 people. Several other ancient human species had different skull shapes to our own, and a previous study published in 2013 put forward the idea that interbreeding between Homo sapiens and these other hominins may be a root cause of Chiari malformation type I (CM-I), the mildest type of the group. Related: Now, a team led by osteoarchaeologist Kimberly Plomp from the University of the Philippines has tested this hypothesis. "The legacy of these interbreeding events can be identified in the genomes of many living humans," the researchers write. The researchers used 3D modeling and shape analysis techniques to compare 103 skulls of people today with and without CM-I, and 8 fossil skulls from ancient species, including Homo erectus, Homo heidelbergensis, and Homo neanderthalensis (Neanderthals). People with CM-I had differences in skull shape, the analysis showed, including the area where the brain connects to the spine. However, these skull shapes weren't similar to all of the ancient hominins studied – only to Neanderthals. In fact, skulls from H. erectus and H. heidelbergensis were more similar to the skulls of modern humans without CM-I. As a result, the researchers suggest the original hypothesis was too broad, and should be adapted to look specifically at Neanderthal links. "Rather than the genes being traceable to H. erectus, H. heidelbergensis, and H. neanderthalensis, our results are consistent with them being traceable just to H. neanderthalensis," write the researchers. The study team proposes a Neanderthal Introgression Hypothesis to replace the one formed in 2013. It adds to a growing body of evidence around how early Homo sapiens and Neanderthals mingled, interbreeded, and exchanged genetic information. Next, the researchers are keen to expand the sample used in their analysis – in terms of both modern and ancient skulls, and across ages – which should tell us more about the relationship between CM-I skull structures and skulls in these early peoples. The hypothesis also needs to be put to the test in groups of people from different parts of the world. We know that African populations have less Neanderthal DNA than populations in Europe and Asia, which should be reflected in cases of CM-I. Ultimately, these findings and the techniques used to reach them could help inform ways of treating Chiari malformations or perhaps stopping them from happening in the first place – although it's likely there are several causes for the condition, including genetics. "The methods would seem to have the potential to help us develop a deeper understanding of the aetiology and pathogenesis of Chiari malformations, which could in turn strengthen diagnosis and treatment of the condition," write the researchers. The research has been published in Evolution, Medicine, and Public Health. One Piece of Advice to Parents Slashed Food Allergies in Children Mondayitis Could Have a Deadly Effect On Your Body Cannabis Use Is Linked to Epigenetic Changes, Scientists Discover
Independent Singapore
12-06-2025
- Health
- Independent Singapore
Filipino nurses and doctors face grim job future, survey warns
MANILA: Notwithstanding the increasing need for healthcare workers, young Filipinos getting into the medical and nursing careers are having a tough time finding a guaranteed, reliable, impartial, and rewarding positions in the country's healthcare system, according to a recent study conducted by researchers from Ateneo de Manila University and the University of the Philippines-Manila. The study underscores a disturbing irony —even as the Philippines is confronted by a serious lack of health professionals, with less than eight doctors per 10,000 people, far below the international standard of 10, the route for fresh graduates is peppered with complications and impediments. More than 127,000 nursing positions remain empty, mostly in the countryside and shorthanded private infirmaries, yet systemic problems keep countless capable professionals from getting into these roles. Researchers talked to dozens of young doctors and nurses, many of whom stated feeling lost and not supported as they entered the workforce. 'I finished my MD from one of the best schools in the country,' said a municipal health officer sent to a far-flung area in the country. 'But when I worked here, it was an entirely different ballgame. We weren't trained to deal with local government, procurement, or even community engagement. I wasn't prepared—but this is the reality of how things work.' See also China denies Uighur academic secretly sentenced to death The study cited a divide between medical training and real-world requirements. Existing medical instruction profoundly accentuates hospital-based care, frequently ignoring the competencies necessary for community-based health work, local government collaboration, and the execution of national health programs. Further complicating the situation are current hiring challenges. Local government units (LGUs) are constrained by budget guidelines that limit expenditure on salaries to just 45% of their yearly budget allocations. This frequently compels a nurse to spin numerous roles – clinical upkeep, public health tasks, even records administration—with no added compensation. 'The 45% cap on personnel services really prevents us from hiring,' acknowledged one provincial health official. 'You'll see a nurse working the ward, then handling public health programs, and still managing admin work.' For fresh graduates, this usually signifies limited job security, provisional contracts, and very few prospects for personal growth and career development. Many are willing to assist in the public sector but are hampered by severe civil service requirements or unappealing employment terms. In the private sector, many facilities can't match government remuneration, producing a talent drain as workers pursue higher salaries overseas. See also China talks up tech prowess in face of US rivalry 'The nurses we lost are our best nurses,' stated one hospital manager. 'It's painful to see the most experienced ones go. We're left with the inexperienced or the nearing-retirement.' Facilities are also having a hard time meeting new requirements under the Universal Health Care (UHC) Law. Some hospital clinics report spending over ₱50,000 just to conform to training and certification benchmarks, only to be refunded with as little as ₱2,000 by government agencies. Regardless of these findings, the researchers claim that a healthcare career is still worth getting into, as long as major changes are carried out. They recommend: Offering scholarships tied to return service agreements; Revamping curricula to emphasise community health and government service; Relaxing restrictive hiring policies; And providing robust support and mentorship for early-career health workers. With the healthcare system strained and future generations of professionals in jeopardy of being driven out before they can make a difference, the study strongly recommends addressing these systemic barriers and investing in the people who power the country's health.
Times of Oman
01-06-2025
- Business
- Times of Oman
Is the Philippines' reforestation drive coming up short?
Manila: Marlo Mendoza is the architect of one of the world's most ambitious regreening programmes. His office at the University of the Philippines in Laguna is crammed with books about trees and nature conservation. Hunched over his desk, he flicks through a glossy government brochure praising his project's successes, with 1.8 billion seedlings planted over 2 million hectares (approximately 4.9 million acres) across the Philippines. Millions of native trees have been replanted and are now growing into forests, sequestering carbon and supporting wildlife. Indigenous and farming communities cultivate produce among the forests and former timber cutters now manage tree farms. Communities sidelined in reforestation effort This is what Mendoza dreamed of — however, he admits it is far from the reality on the ground. "We mobilised the entire citizenry to plant, but where are all the trees planted?" Mendoza told DW. "I made the manual; many provisions were not followed." The Philippines National Greening Programme (NGP) was launched in 2011 as an ambitious response to decades of deforestation, which had become a huge issue during the 1970s and 1980s. But the NGP struggled with natural resource plundering, which depleted the Philippines' forest cover and replaced community and indigenous forests with plantations of invasive exotic species. An analysis of millions of satellite images suggests that as many as one in every 25 hectares of NGP land experienced a major deforestation event: That is, instead of barren sites being reforested, the opposite occurs — forests are cleared right before or during regreening efforts. More often than not, the sites are managed by communities with only short-term access to the land. They are required to grow single cash crops tied to the volatile global commodity markets, which do not provide a steady income. A group of environmental investigators that carried out the analysis said the results expose a new pattern of "greenwashing" — a marketing tactic used to make a product or service appear better for the environment than it is. The most common commodities grown on the sites, including timber and fruit, have a green stamp of approval, potentially eligible for export across the world. This includes the EU, despite the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), which requires traders to prove that products do not come from land that was deforested after 2020. Much of the EUDR's attention has focused on small farmers' challenges with proving that their land has not been associated with previous deforestation. Investigators said the image analysis suggests commodities on these sites have been falsely grown under the sustainable banner. Native trees cleared to grow cash crops Additionally, the analysis suggested that forest loss on NGP sites may be more widespread than previously understood. The clearing of forests included communities trying to take advantage of NGP funds. Eduardo Corona, a forest ranger in Palawan, an area of the Philippines covered in re-greening program sites, said that one of the most frustrating parts of his job was seeing the NGP used to clear native forests and being powerless to stop it, despite trying to raise the alarm. Corona was able to obtain one of the complaints he filed with his superiors, which relates to the UNESCO-recognised Mount Mantalingahan Protected Landscape. The DENR Forest Management Bureau (FMB) told investigators that some forest clearing occurred as part of site preparation, particularly in areas dominated by invasive species. They claimed the clearing was a necessary step taken under technical supervision to allow native species to thrive. The bureau also explained that the monitoring of the program beyond the three-year planting contracts is limited by the scale of the programme and budget constraints, with site inspections done by sampling rather than full verification. In cases where sites failed to meet survival rates, they attributed the underutilized funds to community partners' non-compliance, rather than flaws in program design. The investigation said independent audits and field reports suggest that deeper issues — including poor site selection, limited community support, and weak long-term sustainability planning — remain unaddressed. A major selling point of the re-greening program is that local communities would be given unused land to grow crops, so they would no longer need to chop down forests to survive. But the process for applying is so complicated that most communities give up seeking long-term tenure and only get access to the land for three years. Mendoza recounted cases where community groups were given access to land but not harvest rights. Many became overwhelmed with the application process and finally gave up on trying to get long-term access. This led to despair and sometimes illegal logging activities. "The [community group] may get frustrated then [they] enter into illegal selling transactions and [are] forced to cut trees illegally," he noted. Monoculture undermines sustainable livelihoods The regreening programme was also designed so that communities would be able to grow local produce for their own consumption. Instead, most are forced to grow risky cash crops for export, including exports to the European Union. According to Mendoza, communities would need both time and choices to make NGP work as intended, to figure out a sustainable mix of crops to guarantee income for their families. They got neither. For those who did manage to secure tenure, which guarantees 25-year access to the land, the government's usual mandate for community groups to grow a single cash crop often precluded any hopes for successfully living off the land. Single crop sites — often fast-growing, cheap timber trees — are vulnerable to market crashes, disease and all the other problems that monoculture brings with it, including the loss of biodiversity. Just over half of the 1 million hectares of designated production sites are tenured. Six out of 10 hectares are monoculture — sites that are growing just one commodity crop — which is widely considered unsustainable for local communities. A third of land under the NGP is both untenured and growing a single commodity crop, the least sustainable combination of all. The regreening programme was also intended to regrow and protect native rainforests. Of the 130,000 sites covering over 2 million hectares across the Philippines, some sites designated as protection areas — where indigenous rainforests and the biodiversity that accompanies them were meant to thrive — have little to no tree cover.
CNA
14-05-2025
- Politics
- CNA
CNA938 Rewind - Philippines' midterm election: What's at stake for Marcos and Duterte camps?
CNA938 Rewind Play The Philippines is eagerly awaiting the results of the midterm election, with over 18,000 positions up for grabs, including local and congressional seats. But the spotlight is on the Senate race. The contest in the Senate is not only seen as a referendum on President Ferdinand Marcos Junior's leadership, but it could also determine the political future of Vice President Sara Duterte. Andrea Heng and Hairianto Diman look at what's at stake for the Marcos and Duterte camps with Alicor Panao, Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, University of the Philippines Diliman
