Canada Report

'Death switch' might help fight human diseases

The discovery by Canadian researchers of a "death switch" in plants and mammals could tap into the secret of longer life.

Professor John Thompson of the University of Waterloo said two powerful genes encoding proteins comprise a "switch" for regulating programmed cell death.

These genes have "broad application" in combating a range of human illnesses, such as cancer, heart disease, glaucoma and Alzheimer's.

"When the switch is on, cells die, but when it is off, they grow and proliferate," said Thompson, a biologist.

Programmed cell death in humans is termed apoptosis, and many diseases are attributable to abnormal apoptosis.

Cancer cells targeted to undergo apoptosis are unable to turn on the death switch and proliferate to form a tumor.

When the death switch is turned on in human colon carcinoma cells, apoptosis is induced and the cancer cells die. Similarly, the induction of premature apoptosis in human cells can be prevented by turning the switch off, he said.

"This holds the prospect of being able to ameliorate human diseases arising from abnormal apoptosis," Thompson added.

Plants exhibit delayed death when the switch is locked in the off position, which can enhance the shelf life of fruit, vegetables and flowers. This can also result in increased seed yield and enhanced tolerance of plants to environmental stress.

Negotiations are continuing through the weekend after a Canadian postal workers strike threatened to start last Friday was averted.

The strike deadline by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers was extended after Canada Post made a new offer.

Union president Deborah Bourque said many issues remain unresolved and the offer wasn't enough to form the basis of a settlement.

Job security, benefits, wages, retirement, workload and safety are among the key issues.

The last strike, before Christmas 1997, ended when the federal government ordered the workers back to work.

- Numerous respiratory ailments and unexplained fevers are being investigated at a Toronto rehabilitation hospital that was a SARS center during the city's first outbreak of the disease. Nine patients were experiencing the symptoms at West Park Healthcare Center. Test results are expected in the next week but SARS wasn't believed to be the cause.

- Canada's provinces are being encouraged to allow same-sex marriages while the Supreme Court reviews proposed federal legislation. Justice Minister Martin Cauchon issued the call after unveiling groundbreaking legislation that would make Canada the world's third country to allow same-sex civic weddings. Only Ontario and British Columbia will perform the marriages now.

The value of the Canadian dollar is falling after the Bank of Canada scaled-back its economic expectations for the country. The dollar ended the week at 70.79 U.S. cents, while the U.S. greenback returned $1.4126 Canadian before bank exchange fees.

Canada's central bank made a surprise 0.25 percent cut in its trend-setting interest rate to 3 percent while the prime lending rate dropped to 4.75 percent.

There's little change in Canadian stock exchanges, with the Toronto index at 7,082 points and the Canadian Venture Exchange, 1,108 points on Friday.

Lotto 6-49: (Wednesday) 14, 21, 26, 33, 35 and 46; bonus 42. (July 12) 4, 8, 13, 21, 29 and 35; bonus 3.

- Both sides are claiming victory in the U.S.-Canada softwood lumber dispute that is devastating the forestry industry in Western Canada. A U.S. lobby group said the ruling under the North American Free Trade Agreement confirmed Canadian lumber exporters were dumping wood into the U.S. market at below cost. The Canadian industry says the 190-page ruling proves nothing and will likely reduce the average 8 percent anti-dumping duties added to Canadian softwood sold in the United States.

- Two pilots - Ian MacKay, 41, of Rossland, British Columbia, and Eric Ebert, 36, of Toronto - were killed when their water bomber plane crashed while fighting a forest fire in eastern British Columbia. Witnesses said their four-engine Lockheed Electra exploded after hitting the ground.

- A survey from the Consumers' Association of Canada shows that drivers in Nova Scotia pay an average of 100 percent more - and as much as 300 percent more - for auto insurance than people in other parts of the country.

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