UF/IFAS Moves Closer In Quest For Peanut That Won’t Cause Allergic Reaction
September 30, 2014
A University of Florida scientist has moved one step closer to his goal of eliminating 99.9 percent of peanut allergens by removing 80 percent of them in whole peanuts.
Scientists must eliminate peanut allergens below a certain threshold for patients to be safe, said Wade Yang, an assistant professor in food science and human nutrition and member of UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.
If Yang can cut the allergens from 150 milligrams of protein per peanut to below 1.5 milligrams, 95 percent of those with peanut allergies would be safe. It’s challenging to eliminate all peanut allergens, he said, because doing so may risk destroying peanuts’ texture, color, flavor and nutrition. But he said he’s using novel methods like pulsed light to reach an allergen level that will protect most people.
Yang, whose study is published online in this month’s issue of the journal Food and Bioprocess Technology, cautioned that he has done peanut allergen experiments only in a laboratory setting so far. He hopes to eventually conduct clinical trials on animals and humans.
Dr. Shih-Wen Huang, professor emeritus in the Department of Pediatrics and Head of the Pediatric Allergy Clinic at UF Health, is familiar with the UF/IFAS research. Huang outlined more steps in the peanut allergen research.
“I am pleased to see their work is progressing well,” Huang said. “However, more challenges are waiting until the final products are accepted from the public, especially the patients with peanut allergies.”
Two years ago, Yang was using his technique on peanut extract. He’s now testing it on the peanut itself. In his 2012 study, he removed up to 90 percent of the allergic potential from peanut protein extracts.
“This process proves that pulsed light can inactivate the peanut allergenic proteins and indicates that pulsed light has a great potential in peanut allergen mitigation,” Yang said.
About 1.9 million people, or 0.06 percent of U.S. residents, are allergic to peanuts, according to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health.
Reactions can range from skin rashes to anaphylaxis, which can be fatal. Currently, the best way for those allergic to peanuts to stay safe is to avoid them, according to the NIH. Many people carry epinephrine injectors that help offset their allergy symptoms until they reach a hospital.
Pictured: Wade Yang, left, an assistant professor in food science and human nutrition at UF/IFAS, used pulsed light to remove 80 percent of the allergens from a whole peanut. By doing so, he moves closer to his goal of eliminating 99.9 percent of allergens in peanuts. Courtesy photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Two Now Charged With Convenience Store Murder
September 29, 2014
A mother and her son have are now both charged with the shooting death two weeks ago of an Escambia County convenience store operator.
Dontonio Diaz Thornton, 19, was arrested over the weekend and charged with homicide and robbery, while his mother, 39-year old Willie Mae Thornton was originally charged with battery and burglary. Monday, a charge of homicide was filed against Willie Mae Thornton.
Both remain in the Escambia County Jail without bond.
On September 13 shortly before 2 p.m, Phoung Nguyen Truong, 50, was found deceased behind the counter at his place of business, the T M Food Mart located in the 1000 block of West Michigan Avenue.
The arrests were announced Saturday afternoon during a press conference with Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan, investigators, Assistant State Attorney John Molchon and the family of Phoung Troung.
Pictured: The family of Phoung Troung speaks during a Saturday afternoon press conference as Assistant State Attorney John Molchon and Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan (right) listen. Courtesy photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Readers Ask: What’s Happened To Jacks Branch Road Paving Project?
September 29, 2014
A project to widen and resurface Jacks Branch Road from Muscogee Road to Barrineau Park road started a year ago. But following the April flood and into the summer, most of the work on the project seemed to stop, according to area residents.
“It’s been so long that some of the driveways and other work will have to be redone due to washout, and it’s really looking bad with the trash and overgrowth,” one resident wrote to NorthEscambia.com. “I am just really curious as to what happened to the project and would like it to get moving again so our roads can get cleaned up. They are truly a mess.”
NorthEscambia.com posed the question to county officials, and we learned the contractor, Roads, Inc., is now back on the project:
“The contractor is on site working on forming and pouring the mitered end sections for the driveways,” Senior Project Coordinator Elizabeth Bush of the Escambia County Public Works Department, Engineering Division. “The contractor did some widening a couple weeks ago on the north end of the project and they should be back clipping the shoulders for widening in a couple weeks.”
After drainage structures are replaced under residential driveways to meet current safety standards, the construction team will focus efforts on widening the shoulders of the roadway. Once widened, the road will then be resurfaced, according to Escambia County.
The $2.6 million construction project is funded by the Florida Department of Transportation and is managed by Escambia County. The expected completion date of the project is November 28, 2014.
Have a problem or concern you want NorthEscambia.com to investigate? Email news@northescambia.com today.
Pictured top, inset and below: Washouts and damaged construction work along Jacks Branch Road. Pictured middle bottom: A driveway that’s been repaired multiple times along Jacks Branch Road. Pictured bottom: A construction debris pile in place so long that weeds are growing out of it. Reader submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
One Charged In Early Sunday Morning Shooting In Escambia County
September 29, 2014
One person was arrested after a weekend shooting in Escambia County.
The shooting happened in the parking lot of Gene’s Lounge off West Navy Boulevard about 2 a.m. Sunday. The victim, Miequle Delorean Brock, 28, was transported to a local hospital with an apparent gunshot wound.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office arrested 23-year-old Darius Devon Williams for resisting arrest, possession of a weapon and dealing in stolen property. His bond was set at $101,000. Additional charges related to the shooting area expected to be filed.
Chance Of Showers Tonight
September 29, 2014
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
- Monday Night A 30 percent chance of showers, mainly before 7pm. Patchy fog after 3am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a low around 67. Northeast wind around 5 mph.
- Tuesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 88. Calm wind becoming east around 5 mph in the morning.
- Tuesday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 67. Calm wind.
- Wednesday Partly sunny, with a high near 88. Calm wind becoming southeast around 5 mph in the afternoon.
- Wednesday Night A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 68. South wind around 5 mph becoming east after midnight.
- Thursday A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 87. East wind around 5 mph becoming south in the afternoon.
- Thursday Night A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 70. South wind around 5 mph.
- Friday A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 85.
- Friday Night A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 60.
- Saturday Sunny, with a high near 80.
- Saturday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 51.
- Sunday Sunny, with a high near 80.
Exoskelton Created In Escambia County To Be Featured On Discovery Channel
September 29, 2014
An upcoming segment of The Discovery Channel’s Daily Planet program will feature a new exercise exoskeleton developed by researchers at the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition (IHMC) in Pensacola.
Called the Grasshopper, or Hopper, the device was designed, built and tested as part of a NASA-funded project exploring the use of robotic exoskeletons for microgravity exercise. Because the Hopper uses motors instead of gravity to create the load on the user, the device is suited for use on space missions. Exercise in zero-gravity conditions is critical to maintain muscle strength and bone mass.
The Hopper is designed to replicate the effect of squat exercise with free weights, and its associated loading on the body. To test this claim, the Hopper was brought to EXOS, a leader in integrated performance training, nutrition and physical therapy for professional and elite athletes, the military and innovative corporations.
The IHMC team is led by Senior Research Scientist Peter Neuhaus. Members include Research Associate Nick Payton and student interns Travis Craig and Jeremy Gines. Noraxon, a company specializing in evidence-based biomechanics, provided sensors and technical analysis to compare exercise using the Hopper versus use of free weights.
The Daily Planet segment was filmed at IHMC and the EXOS center in Gulf Breeze. The shows host, Lucas Cochran, was instrumented with the Noraxon sensors and coached by an EXOS specialist on how to properly perform the squat motion, both with free weights and while strapped into the Hopper. The data showed that his muscles and heart responded in very similar fashion while using either the Hopper or the free weights. In addition, Cochran reported that the Hopper was more comfortable than free weights for a similar weight.
The Daily Planet segment will air late October 2014.
Pictured top: IHMC Senior Research Scientists Peter Neuhaus, right, works with Lucas Cochran, left, during testing of the IHMC exoskeleton Grasshopper during filming of the Discovery Channel’s Daily Planet program. Pictured inset: Cochran works out in the IHMC exoskeleton Grasshopper. At left is Stefan Underwood from EXOS, Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Florida Dept. Of Corrections Targets Problems With Inmate Health Care
September 29, 2014
Department of Corrections Secretary Mike Crews is threatening to stop payments to a Missouri-based company that won a five-year, $1.2 billion contract to provide health care to the majority of the state’s prisoners, accusing Corizon of failing to provide adequate treatment. Corizon provides medical care for inmates in North and Central Florida, including prisons in Century and Santa Rosa County.
Crews sent a letter to Corizon CEO Woodrow Meyers on Friday saying that the company has failed to follow through after audits revealed shortcomings in multiple areas, including medical care, nursing and administration.
“All too often, we are finding that these corrective action plans are not being carried out and that the level of care continues to fall below the contractually required standard,” Crews wrote. “As of this date, many of the most critical expectations including complete and full staffing, responding to DOC concerns and reducing the number of grievance(s) are often not being met.”
Crews said he has had concerns about the contract since the privatization effort was launched in September 2013.
“When we met in person on December 18, 2013, I expressed concern about issues that appeared to be developing during the first two months of our partnership. At that time, we specifically discussed patient care issues, utilization management, and communication. All three of these areas continue to be cause for concern,” he wrote Friday.
The secretary threatened to withhold payments at any institution that fails to meet 80 percent of auditing standards and keep the hold in place until applicable standards for care are met. Crews also warned that he would remove prisons from Corizon’s contract if the institutions fail consecutive audits or have “exceptionally high levels of non-compliance.”
Corizon started providing inmate medical care last year after a long-running legal dispute over a decision by state lawmakers in 2011 to approve prison health privatization in budget fine print, known as “proviso” language. Wexford Health Sources is being paid $240 million over five years to provide health services to nine prisons in South Florida.
Both companies have come under fire for deficient care to prisoners in Florida and other states. Disability Rights Florida sued Crews and Wexford Health Systems earlier this month, alleging that torture and abuse of prisoners had been ignored for years.
Jonathan Plotnick, an inmate at Lake Correctional Institution, recently sued Crews and Corizon because health care workers at the prison refused to allow Plotnick to see a surgeon about a hernia operation even though they were aware that extreme pain prevented him from functioning normally. During a hearing in federal court earlier this month, Corizon officials agreed to allow Plotnick to consult with a surgeon, and he has since had the procedure. Plotnick’s lawyer Randall Berg said he knows of 10 other inmates who were also refused the surgery.
The struggle over the privatized health care is the latest woe for the embattled prisons agency, which houses more than 100,000 inmates. State and federal officials are investigating inmate deaths and corruption at a number of Florida prisons, including Franklin Correctional Institution, where inmate Randall Jordan-Aparo was gassed to death in 2010.
Crews has been on a crusade to purge the department of corrupt and abusive guards since The Miami Herald reported earlier this year about mentally ill inmate Darren Rainey, who died at Dade Correctional Institution after guards allegedly forced him to shower in scalding hot water as punishment two years ago.
In the past two months, Crews has fired 45 guards for a variety of reasons, including for having a role in the deaths or beatings of inmates.
Four investigators sued the department earlier this year after Gov. Rick Scott’s inspector general refused to grant them whistleblower protection. The investigators were concerned about retaliation after exposing Jordan-Aparo’s death. The investigators accused Scott’s chief Inspector General Melinda Miguel of ignoring complaints about the inmate’s gassing.
And the department is grappling with a growing gang population, often aided by rogue guards. Two former Taylor Correctional Institution sergeants are awaiting trial after being accused earlier this year of ordering an inmate to be killed to protect the guards’ role as kingpins of an institution-wide gang operation.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
Pictured: Inmate medical facilities inside the Century Correctional Institution. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
Northview Homecoming Parade Entry Deadline Is Tuesday; Homecoming Meal Available
September 29, 2014
The sixth annual Northview High School Homecoming Parade is Friday, and the deadline for entries is tomorrow.
The parade will line up at noon and travel from Bratt Elementary School to Northview High. Entries are being accepted now; there is no cost to enter. For a printable entry form, click here. Entries are due by Tuesday.
Contact Perry Byars at (850) 327-6681 ext. 248 for more information.
A homecoming meal will available Friday from 10 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. from the football concession stand to support the Tommy Weaver Scholarship Fund. The $7 meal will include a BBQ pork sandwich, chips, dessert and drink. Call in large orders by Wednesday to Perry Byars at (850) 327-6681 ext. 248 if 10 or more meals are desired. Meal prepared by Archie’s Catering Services.
The Northview Chief’s homecoming game will kickoff at 7 p.m. on October 3 against the Jay Royals.
Pictured: The 2013 Northview High School Homecoming Parade. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
Learn More About Proposed Tax, New Santa Rosa Judicial Center At Jay Meeting
September 29, 2014
Residents in northern Santa Rosa County will have the chance Tuesday to learn more about a possible new judicial center.
On the November general election ballot voters in Santa Rosa County will have the opportunity to decide if a proposed countywide one cent local option sales tax should be adopted to fund a new judicial center and if approved, where the new facility will be located through four ballot measures.
A public meeting will he held Tuesday night at 6:00 at the Jay Community Center at 5259 Booker Street.
The current Santa Rosa County Courthouse is located in downtown Milton. Built in 1927, the building size is no longer sufficient for all the necessary courthouse functions and the design of the building creates security issues for the public and staff. The parking, heating and cooling system, and telephone and computer network infrastructure are also no longer adequate for daily operations. Officials say a new facility that can serve the county today, and up to 75 years in the future, is needed.
Voters will be asked if they support a one percent local option sales tax for five years. Often referred to as a “one cent”sales tax, it would increase sales tax by one percent. If approved, the sales tax will be limited to five years.
Voters will also have the opportunity to voice their preference for where a possible new judicial facility should be built. In three non-binding referendum items, voters have the option of voting yes or no for each of the three possible locations for a new facility:
- approximately seven acres next to the current courthouse in downtown Milton
- In excess of 15 acres on U.S. Highway 90 southwest of the Peter Prince Airport
- 22.46 acres on Hwy. 90 in Pea Ridge.
Jerry D. Statham
September 29, 2014
Jerry D. Statham, 71, from Molino, passed away on Saturday, September 27, 2014.
Jerry was born in Albertville, AL but moved to the Pensacola area in 1970 due to Navy deployment. Jerry loved everything about the area, including the military, the hunting and fishing and church involvement, enough to call it his permanent home. Jerry proudly served 20 years in the US Navy and then continued to work in Navy contract maintenance with the Northrop, Raytheon and L3 as an aviation electrician.
He is preceded in death by his mother and father, J.B. and Lilla Mae Statham.
Jerry is survived by his wife of 52 years, Linda; his daughter and son-in-law, Sonya and Tim Doten; sister, Kathryn Naomi Cornelius; brothers-in-law, Gary Miller, Roger Miller and Kenneth Cornelius; and multiple cousins, nieces and nephews.
He was a member of Highland Baptist Church in Molino.
Services are scheduled for Thursday, October 2, 2014, at Faith Chapel North with Pastor Brian Calhoun officiating. Visitation will begin at 11 a.m. with services at to follow at 12 p.m.
Interment will be at 2 p.m. at Barrancas National Cemetery.
Pallbearers will be Harold Holder, Charles Barton, Jackie Cunningham, Charles Purvis, Ed Latham, and Bill Miller.
Honorary pallbearers will be members of Adult III Sunday School class and Highland Baptist Church.