Saliha Alnoor, V Colgate-Palmolive. B.C.

VANCOUVER — The trial of a B.C. woman claiming she was injured by a defective toothbrush began Tuesday in B.C. Supreme Court.





Saliha Alnoor, of Surrey, says that an Active Angle toothbrush manufactured by Colgate-Palmolive fractured when she was brushing her teeth in November 2006.





In her opening statement, Alnoor said that her gums bled profusely and she lost consciousness.





Alnoor claimed that the Colgate toothbrush was defective and said that she has suffered permanent injuries and has paid more than $6,000 in dental costs to repair the damage, with another $94,000 in treatments.





She told the judge that the failure of the company to produce Colgate-Canada president Scott Jeffery as an "adverse" witness should result in a favourable judgment.





The company has filed a statement of defence in which it denies all allegations.





Colgate said if any injuries were suffered, they were caused by the negligence of the plaintiff.







Read more: http://www.theprovince.com/court+begins+hearing+defective+toothbrush+case/5941786/story.html#ixzz1iX3qFU79

The Harper government spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in its unsuccessful legal battle against Insite, Vancouver's supervised injection site, according to newly released documents.

VANCOUVER — The Harper government spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in its unsuccessful legal battle against Insite, Vancouver's supervised injection site, according to newly released documents.





Between 2006 and 2011, the Conservatives spent $637,158 in a bid to shut down the Downtown Eastside clinic — funds that represented more than 20 per cent of Insite's annual $3-million operating budget.





The clinic, opened in 2003, has long been a burr under the saddle of a federal government that has fiercely resisted embracing the harm-reduction philosophy which underpins the clinic's operations.





The federal legal bill comes courtesy of a Justice Department reply to an access to information request, submitted last October by the Vancouver Sun. The request followed a landmark ruling by the Supreme Court in favour of keeping the clinic open.





In a unanimous decision, the judges ruled that not allowing the clinic to operate under an exemption from drug laws would violate the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.





The Harper regime between 2006 and 2008 reluctantly had granted the facility an exemption from drug laws, allowing it to operate. But between 2008 and last autumn's court ruling, it waged legal action to close down the clinic.





This, despite the fact Insite has had the long-standing support of both the Vancouver and B.C. governments. Polls show the clinic also has the support of about 70 per cent of Vancouverites.





And it has shown itself to be effective in reducing harm. In 2009, nearly 500 overdoses occurred at the clinic but no deaths. In 2010, 221 overdoses occurred with no deaths.





A 2011 study in the British medical journal The Lancet found overdose deaths have dropped 35 per cent in the area of the clinic since it opened.





However, Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq has explained that her government prefers to focus its efforts on prevention and treatment.





Insite's main goal is neither of these. With 12 injection booths and a staff that includes nurses, counsellors and mental health and social workers, the clinic attempts to reduce harm that users do to themselves, particularly by way of overdosing.





The clinic does not supply any drugs; rather, it provides a safe, medically supervised location and clean needles for addicts to administer their drugs. Importantly, it also provides counselling for those wishing to get off drugs.





Last year, the clinic was responsible for 5,268 referrals to various social and health agencies and 458 drug users were admitted to detox programs. Surely, this is the most worthwhile part of what the clinic does.





As the clinic's website states: "Through Insite, clients develop trusting relationships with our health care and social workers, making them more likely to pursue withdrawal management, addiction counselling and other addiction treatment services."





The government's vigorous legal battle against the clinic — even in the face of community acceptance and research showing the centre's effectiveness in reducing fatalities — shows an unproductive stubborn streak. The same bull-headed approach was in evidence in the Conservatives' determination in 2010 to get rid of the long-form census, against widespread advice, and their refusal last fall to reconsider an expensive, punitive omnibus crime bill at a time when crime rates have been falling in Canada.





The Harper government certainly allowed its ideological leanings to get in the way of rational decision-making in the case of Insite. The result was an unnecessary expenditure of a bucket full of public cash at a time when Ottawa is working hard to reduce spending in order to balance the federal budget.







Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/health/Yaffe+600K+spent+close+injection+site+underscores+Tory+stubbornness/5941238/story.html#ixzz1iTjfJFks

More extreme weather heading toward Sweden: Share3 A new low pressure area with strong winds and precipitation is on the way toward Sweden. It will pass over central Sweden

More extreme weather heading toward Sweden


Online: http://www.thelocal.se/38294/20120102/



A new low pressure area with strong winds and precipitation is on the way toward Sweden. It will pass over central Sweden on Wednesday and will bring rain and snow over most of the country, as well as a risk of gale force winds in the south and along the coast.





"There will be a complete storm on the North Sea and then, the night to Wednesday, we will see gale force winds in all of Götaland. There is a risk of more trees falling," said Åsa Rasmussen, meteorologist for Sveriges Television (SVT) on Monday.



The Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute, SMHI, is preparing to issue warnings for the coming storm.



"There'll be warnings, but we don't issue these until 24 hours before something is expected to happen, so they are yet to come," said Lisa Frost, forecaster at SMHI to news agency TT on Monday afternoon.



She is expecting warnings to be issued during Monday evening or during the night to Tuesday.



"My guess is that there will be a Class 1 warning for Götaland, but for parts of the west coast and down towards Skåne, I think it will be a Class 2 warning," said Frost to TT.



But Danish forecasters are more worried about the readings.



"It is a very strong low pressure area, which can be best described as an 'atmospheric bomb' as the pressure drops so suddenly. We're talking of gale force winds up to 35-40 metres per second," said Danish meteorologist Andreas Nyholm to Danish paper Ekstrabladet.



However, Nyholm doesn't think that the storm will hit Scandinavia with the same force that Dagmar did. He is joined in that opinion by Frost at SMHI.



Sweden has not had winds as strong as those recorded during recent weeks for years.



"Some of our stations measured the strongest winds in at least 15 years," said Andersson to DN.



Between Christmas and New Year the weather calmed down slightly in the wake of storm Dagmar but by then northern parts of the country had suffered extensive forest damage caused by the strong winds.



The National Board of Forestry (Skogsstyrelsen) has been taking stock of damages done to Swedish woods over the Christmas period and while work continues it has to do so with more bad weather en route for Sweden.



“We hope to have some preliminary figures ready this week,” Johanna From, regional director at the agency told TT.



The Swedish National Railway (Statens Järnvägar, SJ) is also still working at establishing the extent of the damages done to its network in the aftermath of the storms.

happy new year!

happy new year!

Happy holidays!

Happy holidays!

HIV/AIDS Vaccine Developed at The University of Western Ontario Proceeding to Human Clinical Trials Sumagen Canada, the vaccine (SAV001)

HIV/AIDS Vaccine Developed at The University of Western Ontario Proceeding to Human Clinical Trials






London, ON – The first and only preventative HIV vaccine based on a genetically modified killed whole virus has received approval by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to start human clinical trials.



Developed by Dr. Chil-Yong Kang and his team at The University of Western Ontario, with the support of Sumagen Canada, the vaccine (SAV001) holds tremendous promise, having already proven to stimulate strong immune responses in preliminary toxicology tests with no adverse effects or safety risks. It is the only HIV vaccine currently under development in Canada, and one of only a few in the world.



“FDA approval for human clinical trials is an extremely significant milestone for our vaccine, which has the potential to save the lives of millions of people around the world by preventing HIV infection," says Kang, a researcher and professor at Western's Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry.



Western President Amit Chakma says, "This joint venture between Sumagen and Western is a prime example of what collaboration between private industry and university researchers can achieve. Dr. Kang and his team are to be commended for their exceptional talent and remarkable persistence in developing a vaccine that addresses a tragic health crisis affecting millions of people around the globe."





Dr. Dong Joon Kim, a representative of Sumagen Co. Ltd. says, “Our company has committed substantial resources to this project since 2005 and we are very pleased to reach this milestone. It is our desire to continue growing our business in Canada and being a part of the business community in London.”



HIV/AIDS has killed more than 28 million people worldwide, and more than 35 million people currently live with the virus infection. Since the virus was characterized in 1983, there have been numerous trials through pharmaceutical companies and academic institutions around the world to develop vaccines; however, no commercialized vaccine has been developed to date. Other HIV vaccines evaluated through human clinical trials have focused on either one specific component of HIV as an antigen, genetic vaccine using recombinant DNA, or recombinant viruses carrying the HIV genes. Kang’s vaccine is unique in that it uses a killed whole HIV-1, much like the killed whole virus vaccines for polio, influenza, rabies and hepatitis A. The HIV-1 is genetically engineered so it is non-pathogenic and can be produced in large quantities.



Before it can be commercialized, the SAV001 vaccine must go through three phases of human clinical trials:



•Phase I, set to begin in January 2012, will double check the safety of the vaccine in humans, involving only 40 HIV-positive volunteers.

•Phase II will measure immune responses in humans, involving approximately 600 HIV-negative volunteers who are in the high-risk category for HIV infection.

•Phase III will measure the efficacy of the vaccine, involving approximately 6,000 HIV-negative volunteers who are also in the high-risk category for HIV infection.

Through WORLDiscoveries, Western’s technology transfer office, Sumagen Canada has secured patents for the SAV001 vaccine in more than 70 countries, including the U.S., the European Union, China, India and South Korea. The vaccine has been manufactured at a bio-safety level 3 (BSL3) good manufacturing practice (GMP) facility in the U.S.



Download high resolution photos















About Sumagen Canada



Located in The Stiller Centre for Technology Commercialization in Western’s Research Park in London, Ontario, Sumagen Canada was established in 2008 specifically to manage and support clinical development of Kang’s vaccine. Sumagen Canada is a subsidiary of Sumagen Co. Ltd., a Korean-based pharmaceutical venture company.





About The University of Western Ontario



Located in London, Ontario, The University of Western Ontario is one of Canada’s leading research-intensive universities, committed to producing generations of talented leaders and innovations of national benefit and global value and significance.

National securities regulator decision coming: Supreme Court ruling will not please all provinces.

The Supreme Court is ready to pronounce judgment on whether Ottawa's controversial attempt to create a national securities regulator — without the consent of some provinces — is legal.

The country's top court said Monday it will rule on the constitutionality of Ottawa regulating in an area that had previously been thought to be provincial territory.

The single regulator concept was championed by Finance Minister Jim Flaherty almost from the moment he took office in 2006, with Ontario initially the only ally. Following a lengthy study process, the minister was able win over a number of provinces.

Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty backs the idea of a national securities regulator.(Canadian Press file photo)But with Quebec, Alberta and Manitoba still firmly in the no camp, and British Columbia and Saskatchewan vacillating, Flaherty decided to seek a clear legal green light.

The minister maintains a single regulator would be more effective in catching and prosecuting fraudsters.

"Those who commit securities fraud will face a tougher, more comprehensive regime. No more falling through the cracks," Flaherty said in the spring of 2010 when he announced plans to go to the court.

Ottawa's position has the backing of most national business groups as well as international bodies such as the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and the International Monetary Fund.

Opponents have noted that the presence of a single regulator in the United States did nothing to head off the subprime mortgage disaster that triggered a global recession in 2008.

Appeal courts in Quebec and Alberta have already ruled that Ottawa is treading on provincial jurisdiction with its proposed legislation.

But in a recent interview with The Canadian Press, Alberta Finance Minister Ron Liepert said his province would be willing to co-operate with Ottawa if the top court rules against the provincial position.

"At the end of the day, we've fought the battle, the court will rule and we live with it and move on," he said.

That does not mean every province will fall in line, however, and Quebec in particular has not softened its stance.

The current legislation does not require every province to join. The intention is to establish a national regulator and have as many provinces as possible "opt in," leaving the door open for others to follow.

Securities regulation in Canada is currently a fiefdom of the 10 provinces and three territories, although under the "passport" arrangement company documentation approved by one province is recognized by the others.

In arguments to the court in April, federal lawyers said securities trading is critical to the country's overall economy and hence is a national concern. Aside from the jurisdictional issue, opposing provinces argue that the current system of co-operation functions well and that Ottawa is trying to fix a problem that doesn't exist.