tools of light

Snack Foods ~ Genetically Engineered Ingredients Act II Microwave Popcorn (ConAgra) -Butter -Extreme Butter -Corn on the Cob Frito-Lay* (PepsiCo) -Lays Potato Chips (all varieties) -Ruffles Potato Chips (all) -Doritos Corn Chips (all) -Tostitos Corn Chips (all) -Fritos Corn Chips (all) -Cheetos (all) -Rold Gold Pretzels (all) -Cracker Jack Popcorn Healthy Choice Microwave Popcorn (ConAgra) -Organic Corn (soy/canola oils) Mothers Corn Cakes (Quaker) -Butter Pop Orville Redenbacher Microwave Popcorn (ConAgra) -Original -Homestyle -Butter -Smart Pop -Pour Over -Orville Redenbacher Popcorn Cakes -Chocolate -Caramel -Orville Redenbacher Mini Popcorn Cakes -Butter -Peanut Caramel -Chocolate Peanut Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn (Betty Crocker/General Mills) -Natural -Homestyle -Jumbo Pop -Extra Butter -Light -94% Fat Free Butter Pringles (Procter & Gamble) -Original -Low Fat -Pizza-licious -Sour Cream & Onion -Salt & Vinegar -Cheezeums -Quaker Rice Cakes -Peanut Butter -Chocolate Crunch -Cinnamon Streusel -Mini -Chocolate -Ranch -Sour Cream & Onion -Apple Cinnamon -Caramel Corn -Quaker Corn Cakes -White Cheddar -Caramel Corn -Strawberry Crunch -Caramel Chocolate Chip *Frito has informed its corn and potato suppliers that the company wishes to avoid GE crops, but acknowledges that canola or other oils and ingredients in its products may be from GE sources. Soda & Juice Drinks ~ Genetically Engineered Ingredients Coca Cola (Coca Cola) Sprite Cherry Coke Barq’s Root Beer Minute Maid Orange Minute Maid Grape Surge Ultra PepsiCo Pepsi Slice Wild Cherry Pepsi Mug Root Beer Mountain Dew Cadbury/Schweppes 7-Up Dr. Pepper A & W Root Beer Sunkist Orange Schweppes Ginger Ale Capri Sun juices (Kraft/Phillip Morris) -Red Berry -Surfer Cooler -Splash Cooler -Wild Cherry -Strawberry Kiwi -Fruit Punch -Pacific Cooler -Strawberry -Orange -Grape Fruitopia (Coca Cola) -Grape Beyond -Berry Lemonade -Fruit Integration -Kiwiberry Ruckus -Strawberry Passion -Tremendously Tangerine Fruit Works (PepsiCo) -Strawberry Melon -Peach Papaya -Pink Lemonade -Apple Raspberry Gatorade (Quaker) -Lemon Lime -Orange -Fruitpunch -Fierce Grape -Frost Riptide Rush Hawaiian Punch (Procter & Gamble) -Tropical Fruit -Grape Geyser -Fruit Juicy Red -Strawberry Surfin Hi-C (Coca Cola) -Pink Lemonade -Watermelon Rapids -Boppin’ Berry -Tropical Punch -Smashin’ Wildberry -Blue Cooler -Blue Moon Berry -Orange -Cherry Kool Aid (Kraft/Phillip Morris) -Blastin’ Berry Cherry -Bluemoon Berry -Kickin’ Kiwi Lime -Tropical Punch -Wild Berry Tea -Ocean Spray -Cranberry Juice Cocktail -Cranapple -CranGrape -CranRaspberry -CranStrawberry -CranMango Squeeze It (Betty Crocker/General Mills) -Rockin’ Red Puncher -Chucklin’ Cherry -Mystery 2000 Sunny Delight (Procter & Gamble) -Sunny Delight Original -Sunny Delight With Calcium Citrus Punch -Sunny Delight California Style Citrus Punch Tang juices (Kraft/Phillip Morris) -Orange Uproar -Fruit Frenzy -Berry Panic Tropicana Twisters (PepsiCo) -Grape Berry -Apple Raspberry Blackberry -Cherry Berry -Cranberry Raspberry Strawberry -Pink Grapefruit -Tropical Strawberry -Orange Cranberry -Orange Strawberry Banana V-8 (Campbells) -V8 Tomato Juices (all varieties) -Strawberry Kiwi -Strawberry Banana -Fruit Medley -Berry Blend -Citrus Blend -Apple Medley -Tropical Blend -Island Blend Soup ~ Genetically Engineered Ingredients Campbell’s -Tomato -Chicken Noodle -Cream of Chicken -Cream of Mushroom -Cream of Celery -Cream of Broccoli -Cheddar Cheese -Green Pea -Healthy Request Chicken Noodle -Cream of Chicken -Cream of Mushroom -Cream of Celery -Campbell’s Select Roasted Chicken with Rice -Grilled Chicken with Sundried Tomatoes -Chicken Rice -Vegetable Beef -Chunky Beef with Rice -Hearty Chicken & Vegetable -Pepper Steak -Baked Potato with Steak & Cheese -New England Clam Chowder -Soup to Go Chicken Noodle -Chicken Rice -Garden Vegetable -Vegetable Beef & Rice Simply Home Chicken Noodle Chicken Rice Garden Vegetable Vegetable Beef with Pasta Healthy Choice (ConAgra) -Country Vegetable -Fiesta Chicken -Bean & Pasta -Chicken Noodle -Chicken with Rice -Minestrone Pepperidge Farms (Campbell’s) -Corn Chowder -Lobster Bisque -Chicken & Wild Rice -New England Clam Chowder -Crab Soup Progresso (Pillsbury) -Tomato Basil -Chicken Noodle -Chicken & Wild Rice -Chicken Barley -Lentil -New England Clam Chowder -Zesty Herb Tomato -Roasted Chicken with Rotini -Fat Free Minestrone -Fat Free Chicken Noodle -Fat Free Lentil -Fat Free Roast Chicken Tomatoes & Sauces ~ Genetically Engineered Ingredients Del Monte (Nabisco/Phillip Morris) -Tomato Sauce Five Brothers Pasta Sauces (Lipton/Unilever) -Summer Vegetable -Five Cheese -Roasted Garlic & Onion -Tomato & Basil Healthy Choice Pasta Sauces (ConAgra) -Traditional -Garlic & Herb -Sun-Dried Tomato & Herb Hunts (ConAgra) -Traditional Spaghetti Sauce -Four Cheese Spaghetti Sauce -Tomato Sauce -Tomato Paste Prego Pasta Sauces (Campbells) -Tomato, Basil & Garlic -Fresh Mushroom -Ricotta Parmesan -Meat Flavored -Roasted Garlic & Herb -Three Cheese -Mini-Meatball -Chicken with Parmesan Ragu Sauces (Lipton/Unilever) -Old World Traditional -Old World with Meat -Old World Marinara -Old World with Mushrooms -Ragu Robusto Parmesan & Romano -Ragu Robusto Roasted Garlic -Ragu Robusto Sweet Italian Sausage -Ragu Robusto Six Cheese -Ragu Robusto Tomato, Olive Oil & Garlic -Ragu Robusto Classic Italian Meat -Chunky Garden Style Super Garlic -Chunky Garden Style Garden Combo -Chunky Garden Style Tomato, Garlic & Onion -Chunky Garden Style Tomato, Basil & Italian Cheese -Pizza Quick Traditional In addition, should you want more info concerning GMO products and the companies producing them, please take a look at this excellent list put together by Stephanie Ladwig-Cooper on Facebook. ********************************************************************** Polymorphism, bacteria inside us help dictate inflammation, antitumor activity Date: December 20, 2014 Source: The Wistar Institute A common polymorphism -- a variation in a person's DNA sequence that is found with regularity in the general population -- can lead to a chain of events that dictates how a tumor will progress in certain types of cancer, including a form of breast cancer as well as ovarian cancer, according to new research from The Wistar Institute that was published online by the journal Cancer Cell.--The research reveals a more explicit role about the symbiotic relationship humans have with the various bacteria that inhabit our body and their role during tumor progression.--"Our research indicates that interactions between the helpful bacteria in our bodies and immune cells at places situated away from tumors influence systemic responses in the host that alter how these tumors are able to progress," said José Conejo-Garcia, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Professor and Program Leader in the Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis Program at The Wistar Institute and lead author of the study.--Humans are colonized with trillions of bacteria -- known as commensal bacteria because there are benefits to having these bacteria in our bodies -- that inhabit the gastrointestinal and respiratory tracts and our skin. [F1]These bacteria provide a first line of defense against infection. Recent research has found that interactions between these bacteria and the immune system are critical for providing important defenses against tumors occurring outside of the intestines.--[F2]In order for the immune system to recognize commensal as well as microscopic organisms that can cause disease -- or pathogens -- many of our cells are programmed to recognize pathogen-associated molecular patterns. At least 23% of the general public carries mutations in a group of pathogen recognition receptors called Toll-like receptor (TLR) genes. One of the most abundant polymorphisms, occurring in about 7.5% of the general population, or slightly more than one in fifteen people, which results in loss of function, is in TLR5. Although this polymorphism is found in completely healthy individuals, the people who do carry it are susceptible to illnesses such as Legionnaires disease, urinary tract infections, and bronchopulmonary dysplasia. Knowing that this variant could impact some immune responses, Wistar researchers set out to understand whether TLR5 signaling influences cancer.--The researchers found that TLR5 signaling influences certain types of cancer in different ways and is dependent upon the ability of the tumor to respond to interleukin 6 (IL-6), a small protein that can have both pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory properties. In individuals with functional TLR5 expression, commensal bacteria are able to stimulate IL-6 production, greater mobilization of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), which in turn transform gamma delta T cells, a T cell subset that possesses innate-like properties, to produce high amounts of galectin-1, a protein that suppresses antitumor immune activity and hastens tumor progression.---However, the researchers also showed that TLR5 signaling does not always mean that tumors will grow faster. TLR5-deficient mice with tumors that produce low levels of IL-6 have faster tumor progression. In this instance, IL-17, another interleukin closely associated with autoimmune diseases and inflammation, is consistently found in higher levels in TLR5-deficient mice that have tumors, but IL-17 only accelerates cancer when the tumors are unresponsive to IL-6.---Researchers observed these phenomena were dependent upon commensal bacteria. When commensal bacteria were removed with antibiotics, the differences in TLR5-mediated tumor progression were not observed. The researchers noted that the differences in inflammation and progression of tumors are recapitulated in TLR5-responsive and unresponsive patients with ovarian and luminal breast cancer. The researchers performed a survival analysis using data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) on patients for whom data on their TLR5 status was known.----"Although independent sets of data and higher numbers of patients are needed, our data suggest that ovarian cancer reflects the evolution of IL-6-dependent tumors, while luminal breast cancer appears to become more aggressive in carriers of the polymorphism that abrogates TLR5 signaling," Conejo-Garcia said.---[F3]For ovarian cancer, which is associated with high levels of IL-6, researchers found a significantly higher number of TLR5-deficient patients alive six years after their initial diagnosis compared with patients with TLR5, indicating a correlation between the absence of TLR5 and improved survival. For luminal breast cancer, which is associated with low levels of IL-6, the long-term survival prospects were worse for patients without TLR5.---Story Source-The above story is based on materials provided by The Wistar Institute. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.---Journal Reference-Melanie R. Rutkowski, Tom L. Stephen, Nikolaos Svoronos, Michael J. Allegrezza, Amelia J. Tesone, Alfredo Perales-Puchalt, Eva Brencicova, Ximena Escovar-Fadul, Jenny M. Nguyen, Mark G. Cadungog, Rugang Zhang, Mariana Salatino, Julia Tchou, Gabriel A. Rabinovich, Jose R. Conejo-Garcia. Microbially Driven TLR5-Dependent Signaling Governs Distal Malignant Progression through Tumor-Promoting Inflammation. Cancer Cell, 2014; DOI: 10.1016/j.ccell.2014.11.009 **************************************************************************** Extracting bioactive compounds from marine microalgae Date:-December 24, 2014 Source:-Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) Microalgae can produce high value health compounds like omega-3s , traditionally sourced from fish. With declining fish stocks, an alternative source is imperative. Published in the Pertanika Journal of Tropical Agricultural Science, researchers evaluated various methods for extracting fatty acids and carotenoids from two microalgae species.---Microalgae are photosynthetic microorganisms that produce high value compounds considered essential for human health, including polyunsatured fatty acids (e.g., omega-3s like EPA and DHA), various pigments (chlorophyll and carotenoids), and vitamins. Although fish have traditionally been our principal dietary source of EPA and DHA, declining marine fish stocks, the unpleasant odour of fish oil, and other disadvantages, have prompted a search for alternative sources of these nutrients.--In a study, published in the Pertanika Journal of Tropical Agricultural Science, S. P. Loh and S. Lee of the Universiti Putra Malaysia evaluated various methods for extracting fatty acids and carotenoids from two microalgae species: Chaetoceros gracillis, a diatom, and Nannochloropsis occulata, a unicellular green alga. Both species play an important role in the food chain, while N. occulata is also widely cultivated for fish hatcheries and shrimp farms.---No standard extraction methods currently exist for determining the fatty acid or carotenoid content of microalgae. Therefore, the researchers selected different extraction methods based on these criteria: maximum extraction efficiency, ease of handling, and use of solvents of low toxicity.-Overall, the study found that high amounts of fatty acids and carotenoids could be obtained from both microalgae. However, for both fatty acid and carotenoid extration, one extraction method was superior in N. occulata while another method yielded the best results in C. gracillis.--The researchers also found that N. occulata had higher amounts of the omega-3 fatty acid EPA, while C. gracillis was particularly high in palmitic acid and palmitoleic acid levels. In addition, there were significantly higher carotenoid levels in N. occulata compared to C. gracillis.--Story Source--The above story is based on materials provided by Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. *********************************************************************** Scientists trace nanoparticles from plants to caterpillars-- Are nanoparticles getting in our food? Date: December 16, 2014 Source: Rice University   The buildup of fluorescent quantum dots in the leaves of Arabidopsis plants is apparent in this photograph of the plants under ultraviolet light.--In one of the most comprehensive laboratory studies of its kind, Rice University scientists traced the uptake and accumulation of quantum dot nanoparticles from water to plant roots, plant leaves and leaf-eating caterpillars.--The study, one of the first to examine how nanoparticles move through human-relevant food chains, found that nanoparticle accumulation in both plants and animals varied significantly depending upon the type of surface coating applied to the particles. The research is available online in the American Chemical Society's journal Environmental Science & Technology.--"With industrial use of nanoparticles on the rise, there are increasing questions about how they move through the environment and whether they may accumulate in high levels in plants and animals that people eat," said study co-author Janet Braam, professor and chair of the Department of BioSciences at Rice.--Braam and colleagues studied the uptake of fluorescent quantum dots by Arabidopsis thaliana, an oft-studied plant species that is a relative of mustard, broccoli and kale. In particular, the team looked at how various surface coatings affected how quantum dots moved from roots to leaves as well as how the particles accumulated in leaves. The team also studied how quantum dots behaved when caterpillars called cabbage loopers (Trichoplusia ni) fed upon plant leaves containing quantum dots.--"The impact of nanoparticle uptake on plants themselves and on the herbivores that feed upon them is an open question," said study first author Yeonjong Koo, a postdoctoral research associate in Braam's lab. "Very little work has been done in this area, especially in terrestrial plants, which are the cornerstone of human food webs."--Some toxins, like mercury and DDT, tend to accumulate in higher concentrations as they move up the food chain from plants to animals. It is unknown whether nanoparticles may also be subject to this process, known as biomagnification.--While there are hundreds of types of nanoparticles in use, Koo chose to study quantum dots, submicroscopic bits of semiconductors that glow brightly under ultraviolet light. The fluorescent particles -- which contained cadmium, selenium, zinc and sulfur -- could easily be measured and imaged in the tests. In addition, the team treated the surface of the quantum dots with three different polymer coatings -- one positively charged, one negatively charged and one neutral.--"In industrial applications, nanoparticles are often coated with a polymer to increase solubility, improve stability, enhance properties and for other reasons,"[F4] said study co-author Pedro Alvarez, professor and chair of Rice's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. "We expect surface coatings to play a significant role in whether and how nanomaterials may accumulate in food webs."--Previous lab studies had suggested that the neutral coatings might cause the nanoparticles to aggregate and form clumps that were so large that they would not readily move from a plant's roots to its leaves. The experiments bore this out. Of the three particle types, only those with charged coatings moved readily through the plants, and only the negatively charged particles avoided clumping altogether. [F5]The study also found that the type of coating impacted the plants' ability to biodegrade, or break down, the quantum dots.--Koo and colleagues found caterpillars that fed on plants containing quantum dots gained less weight and grew more slowly than caterpillars that fed on untainted leaves.[F6] By examining the caterpillar's excrement, the scientists were also able to estimate whether cadmium, selenium and intact quantum dots might be accumulating in the animals. Again, the coating played an important role.--"Our tests were not specifically designed to measure bioaccumulation in caterpillars, but the data we collected suggest that particles with positively charged coatings may accumulate in cells and pose a risk of bioaccumulation,[F7]" Koo said. "Based on our findings, more tests should be conducted to determine the extent of this risk under a broader set of ecological conditions."--Story Source-The above story is based on materials provided by Rice University. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.-Journal Reference-Yeonjong Koo, Jing Wang, Qingbo Zhang, Huiguang Zhu, E. Wassim Chehab, Vicki L. Colvin, Pedro J. J. Alvarez, Janet Braam. Fluorescence Reports Intact Quantum Dot Uptake into Roots and Translocation to Leaves ofArabidopsis thalianaand Subsequent Ingestion by Insect Herbivores. Environmental Science & Technology, 2014; 141201181933007 DOI: 10.1021/es5050562   ************************************************************************* Estrogen worsens allergic reactions in mice Date:December 29, 2014 Source:NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Estradiol, a type of estrogen, enhances the levels and activity in mice of an enzyme that drives life-threatening allergic reactions, according to researchers from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The study results may help explain why women frequently experience more severe allergic reactions compared to men. Furthermore, the results reaffirm the importance of accounting for gender in the design of animal experiments.--Anaphylaxis is an allergic reaction triggered by food, medication or insect stings and bites. Immune cells, particularly mast cells, release enzymes that cause tissues to swell and blood vessels to widen. As a result, skin may flush or develop a rash, and in extreme cases, breathing difficulties, shock or heart attack may occur. Clinical studies have shown that women tend to experience anaphylaxis more frequently than men, but why this difference exists is unclear.---In the current study, NIAID researchers found that female mice experience more severe and longer lasting anaphylactic reactions than males. Instead of targeting immune cells, estrogen influences blood vessels, enhancing the levels and activity of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), an enzyme that causes some of the symptoms of anaphylaxis. When the researchers blocked eNOS activity, the gender disparity disappeared. In addition, giving estrogen-blocking treatments to female mice reduced the severity of their allergic responses to a level similar to those seen in males.--While the study has identified a clear role for estrogen and eNOS in driving severe anaphylactic reactions in female mice, more work is needed to see if the effects are similar in people and may be applied toward future preventive therapies.-Story Source:-The above story is based on materials provided by NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.-Journal Reference-Valerie Hox, Avanti Desai, Geethani Bandara, Alasdair M. Gilfillan, Dean D. Metcalfe, Ana Olivera. Estrogen increases the severity of anaphylaxis in female mice through enhanced endothelial nitric oxide synthase expression and nitric oxide production. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 2014; DOI: 10.1016/j.jaci.2014.11.003 ************************************************************************* Cornstalks Everywhere But Nothing Else, Not Even A Bee David Liittschwager That cube was put there by David Liittschwager, a portrait photographer, who spent a few years traveling the world, dropping one-cubic-foot metal frames into gardens, streams, parks, forests, oceans, and then photographing whatever, or whoever came through. Beetles, crickets, fish, spiders, worms, birds — anything big enough to be seen by the naked eye he tried to capture and photograph. Here's what he found after 24 hours in his Cape Town cube:     There were 30 different plants in that one square foot of grass, and roughly 70 different insects. And the coolest part, said a researcher to the Guardian in Britain, "If we picked the cube up and walked 10 feet, we could get as much as 50 percent difference in plant species we encountered. If we moved it uphill, we might find none of the species." Populations changed drastically only a few feet away — and that's not counting the fungi, microbes, and the itsy-bitsies that Liittschwager and his team couldn't see. Another example: Here's a cube placed 100 feet off the ground, in the upper branches of a Strangler fig tree in Costa Rica. We're up in the air here, looking down into a valley. What's up? More than 150 different plants and animals live in or passed through that one square foot of tree: birds, beetles, flies, moths, bugs, bugs, then more bugs...   E.O. Wilson, the Harvard biologist, in his introduction to David Liittschwager's book of these photographs, says that it's usually big animals that catch our attention. But if we get down on our knees and examine any small patch of ground, "gradually the smaller inhabitants, far more numerous, begin to eclipse them." They are the critters that create and aerate the soil, that pollinate, that remove the clutter. And there are lots and lots and lots of them. The Corn Which brings me back to Iowa, where my NPR colleague, commentator and science writer Craig Childs, decided to have a little adventure. As he tells it in his new book, he recruited a friend, Angus, and together they agreed to spend two nights and three days smack in the middle of a 600-acre farm in Grundy County. Their plan was to settle in amongst the stalks (there are an "estimated three trillion" of them in Iowa) to see what's living there, other than corn. In other words, a Liittschwager-like census. Cornfields, however, are not like national parks or virgin forests. Corn farmers champion corn. Anything that might eat corn, hurt corn, bother corn, is killed. Their corn is bred to fight pests. The ground is sprayed. The stalks are sprayed again. So, like David, Craig wondered, "What will I find?"The answer amazed me. He found almost nothing. "I listened and heard nothing, no bird, no click of insect."-There were no bees. The air, the ground, seemed vacant. He found one ant "so small you couldn't pin it to a specimen board." A little later, crawling to a different row, he found one mushroom, "the size of an apple seed." (A relative of the one pictured below.) Then, later, a cobweb spider eating a crane fly (only one). A single red mite "the size of a dust mote hurrying across the barren earth," some grasshoppers, and that's it. Though he crawled and crawled, he found nothing else. "It felt like another planet entirely," he said, a world denuded.   Illustration by NPR Yet, 100 years ago, these same fields, these prairies, were home to 300 species of plants, 60 mammals, 300 birds, hundreds and hundreds of insects. This soil was the richest, the loamiest in the state. And now, in these patches, there is almost literally nothing but one kind of living thing. We've erased everything else. We need to feed our planet, of course. But we also need the teeny creatures that drive all life on earth. There's something strange about a farm that intentionally creates a biological desert to produce food for one species. It's efficient, yes. But it's so efficient that the ants are missing, the bees are missing, and even the birds stay away. Something's not right here. Our cornfields are too quiet.   TOP       [F1]Glyphosates Destroy this bacteria opening everyone up to a variety or host of activity which can create all kinds of imbalances---with the added metals and biofilms as well from the chemtrails ---you would be able to create a considerable overload and expedite the spread of anything to create the tumours-paracitical—viral---fungal and negative bacteria over load [F2]This can refer to skin lesions as well [F3]The reasons for different cancer activity in different regions what gets turned on and what gets turned off [F4]And to act as a ligand so that other nanoparticles can either be aligned or cleave to the existing nano’s replicating into whatever the program is sequencing [F5]Negatively charged nano stopped the clumping or aggregating –so these do not seem to collect [F6]This will effect the plant life as well [F7]Bioaccumalation from positively charged nanoparticles and coatings ***************************************************************