Newsweek tells us that Botox safety animal tests were inaccurate 4/21/08 edition

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The current, April 21, issue of Newsweek (US edition, pg 45) has an article by Sharon Begley headed, "A New Reason To Frown; Does Botox get into the brain? Troubling research contradicts earlier findings about the treatment."It opens by telling us that versions of botulinum, such as Botox and Myobloc, were rigorously tested on animals and "preclinical testing showed that after being injected, they did not travel along the body's highways--nerve cells--to the brain and spinal cord."Then:"Oops. In a reversal of the usual sequence in science, researchers have discovered, after millions of people have received the drug, something fundamental about how Botox can act. Contrary to what turned up in preclinical testing, botulinum toxin can travel along neurons from the injection site into the brain, at least in lab animals. Researchers

at Italy's Institute of Neuroscience injected rats and mice with botulinum neurotoxin A in doses comparable to those used in people." We read, "'The discovery was quite serendipitous ... and surprising,' Matteo Caleo, who led the study, told the journal Science. 'A significant portion of the toxin is active where it's not intended to be.'"Begley writes that the discovery puts in a new light "the hospitalizations and deaths that have been reported following Botox injections" -- deaths that have followed its administration for medical rather than cosmetic purposes.The article ends with: "With the new evidence that Botox can spread to the brain in ways that preclinical tests failed to turn up, it's enough to bring back those Botox-erased frown lines."You'll find the full piece on line athttp://www.newsweek.com/id/131749Given that the more recent discovery was described as "serendipitous," and was not part of the pre drug

release testing, the article presents an excellent opportunity for letters to the editor discussing both the medical dangers and the ethical implications of animal testing to guarantee human product safety. An excellent site where you will find information is www.pcrm.orgNote: Not only was Botox tested on animals, each batch is tested using the notorious LD 50 test in which the concentration is tested by checking the dosage it takes to kill 50% of the test animals. Newsweek takes letters at lettersAlways include your full name, address, and daytime phone number when sending a letter to the editor. Remember that shorter letters are more likely to be published. And please be sure not to use any comments or phrases from me or from any other alerts in your letters. Editors are looking for original responses from their readers.Yours and the animals',Karen Dawn(DawnWatch is an animal advocacy media watch that looks at

animal issues in the media and facilitates one-click responses to the relevant media outlets. You can learn more about it, and sign up for alerts at http://www.DawnWatch.com. You may forward or reprint DawnWatch alerts if you do so unedited -- leave DawnWatch in the title and include this parenthesized tag line. If somebody forwards DawnWatch alerts to you, which you enjoy, please help the list grow by signing up. It is free.)Please go to www.ThankingtheMonkey.com to read advance reviews of Karen Dawn's new book, "Thanking the Monkey: Rethinking the Way we Treat Animals” and watch the fun celebrity studded promo video.To discontinue DawnWatch alerts go to http://www.DawnWatch.com/nothanks.php-------You are d to DawnWatch using the following address: dogs_goodDate: Sat Apr 19 21:38:33 2008

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