A Thursday news Ireland update

A vaccine jab that prevents & stops people from smoking for life being developed

     

The vaccine works by genetically engineering an antibody that filters out nicotine when it enters the blood

SCIENTISTS have invented a jab that takes the pleasure out of smoking, it has emerged.

Just one injection could provide lifelong protection from the cravings of nicotine and prevent the physical effects of smoking such as relaxation and lowering of the heart rate.

It could be used to "vaccinate" children from ever smoking and help smokers to quit.

Scientists at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York have tested the vaccine on mice but could soon start human trials.

Mice which had been given the jab stayed just as active as previously, while those not administered with the vaccine relaxed and their blood pressure and heart activity lowered – classic signs nicotine had reached the brain.

Dr Ronald Crystal, professor of Genetic Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College and research leader said the jab could help committed quitters beat physical nicotine cravings.

He said: "They will know if they start smoking again, they will receive no pleasure from it due to the nicotine vaccine, and that can help them kick the habit.

"Smoking affects a huge number of people worldwide, and there are many people who would like to quit, but need effective help. This novel vaccine may offer a much-needed solution."

The vaccine works by genetically engineering an antibody that filters out nicotine when it enters the blood.

The body then replicates the antibody – creating a never-ending supply of immunity.

Dr Crystal said: "As far as we can see, the best way to treat chronic nicotine addiction from smoking is to have these Pacman-like antibodies on patrol, clearing the blood as needed before nicotine can have any biological effect.

"Our vaccine allows the body to make its own monoclonal antibodies against nicotine, and in that way, develop a workable immunity.

"While we have only tested mice to date, we are very hopeful that this kind of vaccine strategy can finally help the millions of smokers who have tried to stop, exhausting all the methods on the market today, but find their nicotine addiction to be strong enough to overcome these current approaches."

Studies show that between 70 and 80 per cent of smokers who try to quit light up again within six months.

Dr Crystal says the vaccine could be rolled out to non-smokers to prevent them starting in the first place, just as jabs are used to prevent infections.

He added: "Just as parents decide to give their children an HPV vaccine, they might decide to use a nicotine vaccine.

"But that is only theoretically an option at this point. We would of course have to weightbenefit versus risk, and it would take years of studies to establish such a threshold."

The team are planning to test the jab on rats, animals and then eventually humans.

The research was published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

The volume of Irish retail sales slightly down for May 2012

 
The CSO reported today that the volume of Irish retail sales (i.e. excluding price effects) decreased by 0.1% in May 2012 when compared with April 2012 and there was an annual fall of 2.1%. If Motor Trades are excluded, the volume of retail sales increased by 0.8% in May 2012 when compared with April 2012, while there was also an annual rise of 0.8%.
The sectors with the largest month on month volume decreases are Bars (-4.2%), Books, Newspapers and Stationery (-2.8%), Electrical Goods (-2.5%) and Motor Trade (-1.9%). A monthly increase was seen in Food beverages & Tobacco (6.5%), Hardware, Paints & Glass (6.3%) and Pharmaceuticals Medical & Cosmetic Articles (3.8%).
The value of retail sales decreased by 0.4% in May 2012 when compared with April 2012 and there was an annual change of –1.5%. If Motor Trades are excluded, there was a monthly increase of 0.7% in the value of retail sales and an annual increase of 1.5%.
Dermot O'Leary, chief economist of Goodbody Stockbrokers said:
May was a better month for retail sales but consumer spending is effectively bouncing along the bottom, with drivers to remain weak in 2012 and 2013.


Better month for sales in May…
While retail sales are volatile on a monthly basis, the trend since the start of the year is effectively flat. In May, retail sales volumes fell modestly (-0.1% mom), but our preferred core measure (i.e. excluding the motor trade) showed an increase of 0.8% mom. This follows an upwardly revised fall of 0.6% mom in April. On an annual basis, core retail sales also grew by 0.8%, improving from -2% yoy in April.
…but sales volumes are bouncing along the bottom -Weather effects can play a big role in these fluctuations. May 2012 was a better than average month for the weather, while May 2011 was particularly wet. With weather in June 2012 being wet we are likely to see a fall in sales this month. Due to this volatility, it is sometimes better to look at the level of spending rather than the change. The chart attached shows that after falling by 15% from the peak retail sales volumes are now fluctuating around this trough level.
A “green army” effect? -On an annual basis, the best performing category by far is “electrical goods” which was up by 9% yoy in volume terms and up by 3% in value terms. Despite still having to reduce prices to clear stock, there may be a “European Championship”effect at play here as demand increased for electrical goods ahead of the football finals. Annual volume growth was also experienced in five other categories (see table).
Drivers of spending still weak -The most important driver of consumer spending will be disposable income which in turn will be driven by employment, earnings and taxation. While we will undoubtedly see fluctuations on a monthly basis, the outlook for consumption is weak in Ireland for the next two years at least. In the short-term, continued uncertainty about the external environment is also likely to keep precautionary savings high in the short term also. We remain comfortable with our forecast of a decline in consumer spending for both 2012 and 2013.

Irish bank crash the worst & most costly since great Depression

     

Ireland’s bank crash is the most expensive and deepest of any economy since the Great Depression, says a new IMF report.

The fund said that Ireland is the only country to suffer from fiscal costs, increases in public debt and output losses due to a banking crisis. And it said there is no sign of conclusion in the debt crisis.

"Ireland holds the undesirable position of being the only country currently undergoing a banking crisis that features among the top 10 of costliest banking crises along all three dimensions, making it the costliest banking crisis in advanced economies since at least the Great Depression," according to the IMF paper, entitled Systemic Banking Crises Database: An Update.

"And the crisis in Ireland is still ongoing."

The authors believe that advanced economies have more options available to exit the downturn.

They also have more credibility with the markets, which allows them time to manoeuvre and use options such as bank guarantees.

"Deposit freezes, while rare, are most frequently used by emerging economies, whereas guarantees on bank liabilities are more common among advanced economies," the authors said.

"Guarantees are more common among advanced economies, perhaps because of generally better institutions and access to international capital markets, rendering the announcement of guarantees more credible."