The Sunday Diigo Links Post (weekly)

• Worms – a medical miracle for arthritis sufferers? | SmartPlanet

  Singularly unappealing, but fascinating. And a boon if it works: treat auto-immune disease by ingesting pig worm eggs.
  QUOTE
  Biopharmaceutical company Coronado Biosciences is conducting clinical trials using the eggs of the pig whipworm to regulate immune activity. The treatment is centered on the “hygiene hypothesis,” which asserts that today’s sterile, germ-free homes can actually make us sick. Lack of exposure to pathogens could prevent immune systems from properly regulating, explained Dr. Bobby Sandage, CEO of Coronado.

  Worms co-evolved with all animals, dating as far back as dinosaurs. Foreign bodies usually trigger an acute immune response when they infect animals, but the worms figured out a way to the dampen it, creating a potentially symbiotic relationship with the host organism. Anti-inflammatory cytokines – the messenger cells of the immune system – are created and produce a therapeutic response that could treat chronic diseases.
  UNQUOTE

  tags: health auto_immune disease worms smartplanet

• The Real Estate Deal That Could Change the Future of Everything – Neighborhoods – The Atlantic Cities

  Fantastic article about two developers in DC who are bringing “disruption” to how real estate development gets financed.
  QUOTE
  You can invest in buying your own home. But you can’t buy into a true real estate deal unless government regulators believe you’re wealthy enough to know how to handle your own money. Until now, the Millers themselves have been restricted to raising funds from accredited investors they personally know. This is how the system works: If you want in, you must know the right people and have enough money – six or seven figures’ worth.

  Most American cities as we know them today weren’t built this way. Historically, hotels and restaurants and shops were built by local people investing in their own neighborhoods. “And now, people are invested in nothing local!” Ben exclaims. “Everything’s remote, everything’s on Wall Street, everything’s in mutual funds.”
  UNQUOTE

  tags: atlantic_cities emily_badger development urbanism urban_renewal

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.