Whale trainer's family speak of shock at SeaWorld death

Dawn Brancheau's sister Diane Gross said SeaWorld ''was her dream''

The sister of a trainer who died after being attacked by a killer whale at a Florida entertainment park has said her family is in shock at the incident.

Veteran trainer Dawn Brancheau, 40, died after the orca grabbed her from a poolside platform and dragged her under the water.

Diane Gross said the family considered the death an accident, which they had yet to come to terms with.

Ms Gross said her sister had loved the whales like they were her children.

"She loved all of them," Ms Gross said, according to the Associated Press.

Sea World curator Chuck Tompkins: "He grabbed her hair and pulled her underwater". Courtesy Good Morning America/ABC News

"They all had personalities, good days and bad days."

She said her sister had been inspired to work with marine life after a trip, as a nine-year-old, to a SeaWorld centre.

The killer whale, Tilikum, was also reportedly involved in the death of a female trainer in Canada in 1991.

Other orcas were also said to have attacked trainers at SeaWorld parks in 2006 and 2004.

'Shoe floating'

A SeaWorld representative was quoted by Reuters as saying that the trainer, who had 16 years experience working with marine animals, was grabbed by the 12,000lb (5,450kg) killer whale as she rubbed its head. The firm has launched an investigation.

Eyewitnesses described how the whale "took off really fast, and then he came back around to the glass, jumped up, grabbed the trainer by the waist and started shaking her violently. The last thing we saw was her shoe floating".

FEARSOME PREDATOR The killer whale (Orcinus orca) is largest species of dolphin family Known as orcas, they roam all the oceans, from the Arctic and Antarctic to tropical seas Can specialise in particular prey: salmon, sea lions, seals, or walruses, even large whales Considered under threat due to pollution, loss of prey and habitat Despite its savage reputation, there have been very few documented attacks on humans After success of 1993 film Free Willy, the movie's star Keiko was freed near his native Iceland What to do with captive orcas? Killer whale attack: Your comments

Several other people in the audience described how the whale had pulled Ms Brancheau underwater and appeared to be swimming with her.

The entertainment park, in Orlando, known for its killer whale, seal and dolphin displays, was closed after the incident.

Tilikum is said to have been involved in previous incidents, the BBC's Andy Gallacher reports from Florida.

A SeaWorld spokesman said the orca had been one of three whales blamed for killing a trainer in 1991 after she had fallen in a pool at a marine park in British Columbia, Canada.

After the whale - nicknamed Telly - was sold to SeaWorld Orlando it was involved in a second incident when authorities discovered the body of a naked man lying across his back in 1999.

Officials later concluded the man, who had either crept into SeaWorld after closing time or hidden in the park until it closed, probably drowned after suffering hypothermia.

Though called a killer whale, the orca (Orcinus orca), is actually the largest member of the oceanic dolphin family.

Animal rights group Peta says it has long been asking SeaWorld to stop taking wild, ocean-going mammals and confining them to an area that, to them, is "the size of a bathtub".

Nigel Farage summoned for tirade against Van Rompuy

Nigel Farage: "You have all the charisma of a damp rag"

The head of the European parliament has summoned British Eurosceptic MEP Nigel Farage over his tirade against European Council President Herman van Rompuy.

Parliament President Jerzy Buzek is expected to reprimand Mr Farage at the meeting on Tuesday.

The former UK Independence Party (UKIP) MEP leader could face a suspension.

Mr Farage drew jeers on Wednesday when he told the chamber Mr Van Rompuy had "the charisma of a damp rag" and the appearance of a "low-grade bank clerk".

The attack came as Mr Van Rompuy, a former Belgian prime minister, made his maiden appearance in parliament in Brussels.

Mr Buzek is said to consider Mr Farage's outburst to have been "completely undignified", believing it "crossed a line" between the right to free speech and being plain insulting.

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Mr Farage's party, UKIP, campaigns for the withdrawal of Britain from the European Union. It has 13 representatives in the European parliament.

Possible penalties against Mr Farage range from a verbal reprimand to a 10-day suspension from parliament.

Mr Farage opened his attack against Mr Van Rompuy by saying "I don't want to be rude" - before launching into a personal attack lasting several minutes.

"Who are you? I'd never heard of you, nobody in Europe had ever heard of you," Mr Farage said.

"You seem to have a loathing for the very concept of the existence of nation states," he continued, adding: "Perhaps that's because you come from Belgium, which is pretty much a non-country."

Mr Farage, known for his outspoken interventions, did admit that he thought Mr Van Rompuy was "competent and capable", adding that this made him "dangerous".

"I have no doubt that your intention is to be the quiet assassin of European democracy and of European nation states," he said.

Mr Van Rompuy, 62, was chosen unanimously by the governments of the EU's 27 member states to take on the role of the first permanent European Council president.

Mr Van Rompuy said he held Mr Farage's comments "in contempt", without elaborating

Charity Commission investigates bullying charity

Christine Pratt's charity helpline has been under intense scrutiny

The Charity Commission has begun an investigation into the charity at the centre of a row over claims of bullying at Downing Street.

It said it had begun an inquiry after receiving more than 160 complaints about the National Bullying Helpline.

Helpline chief executive Christine Pratt was criticised for saying it had been contacted by Downing Street staff.

She spoke out following claims in a book about Gordon Brown's temper and behaviour towards staff.

The Charity Commission said it had a duty to "promote public trust and confidence in charities, and is aware of the potential impact on other charities that run confidential help lines".

'Prepared to resign'

All four of the charity's patrons resigned and another bullying charity had strongly criticised Mrs Pratt for what they called a breach of confidentiality. She said she had not named names or revealed details.

The National Bullying Helpline was temporarily suspended on Wednesday, saying it was considering its future and Mrs Pratt was "prepared to resign if necessary".

The row began on Sunday with a story in the Observer - based on a book by journalist Andrew Rawnsley - alleging that Mr Brown grabbed staff by the lapels, shoved them aside and shouted at them.

Business Secretary Lord Mandelson denied the claims, insisting the PM was "demanding" but "doesn't bully people".

But Mrs Pratt then contacted the BBC to say a flat denial sent out the wrong message and she would expect Downing Street to follow "due process" and look into calls that her helpline had taken from a small number of staff.

She was criticised by Lord Mandelson who suggested her remarks were part of a "political operation" directed by the Conservatives.

The Tories accused him of trying to "smear" Mrs Pratt. Mrs Pratt has denied any political influence and it is understood is now being represented by publicist Max Clifford.

The government has denied allegations in Mr Rawnsley's book that the head of the civil service, Sir Gus O'Donnell, had a "pep talk" with Mr Brown about his behaviour towards staff following reports some were frightened by his temper.

Sir Gus said on Wednesday he had spoken to the PM about how to motivate staff but denied talking to him about his "behaviour".

Mr Brown has said claims he intimidated staff were "completely wrong".

MULTICULTURALISM and environmentalism

“For more than a decade MULTICULTURALISM and environmentalism have been the twin ideological pillars of the Labour state. RUTHLESSLY ENFORCED WITH PROPAGANDA AND OPPRESSION, THE TWO DOCTRINES HAVE BEEN USED TO JUSTIFY BUREAUCRATIC EXPANSION, INCREASED TAXATION, THE CURTAILMENT OF LIBERTIES AND SOCIAL REVOLUTION.

LABOUR’S DETERMINATION TO IMPOSE THESE TWO DOGMAS ON SOCIETY has been accompanied by an air of zealous certainty. Questioning the existence of man-made climate change or the benefits of mass immigration is treated as a form of vicious, uncaring extremism.

‘The science is settled,’ screeches Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband at anyone who dares challenge his hardline green agenda, while other LEFT-WING POLITICIANS THROW ACCUSATIONS OF RACISM AT OPPONENTS OF THE DIVERSITY FETISH…

The iron convictions of recent years are no longer supportable. Last week the publication of documents showed that, CONTRARY TO NOISY OFFICIAL PROPAGANDA ABOUT THE UNIVERSAL BENEFITS OF MULTICULTURALISM, LABOUR HAS DISGRACEFULLY PURSUED A MASS IMMIGRATION POLICY BASED ON ITS NARROW POLITICAL INTERESTS. One Whitehall paper even stated that MIGRATION HAD ‘OPENED UP NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR ORGANISED CRIME’…

A report from a highly respected House of Lords committee demolished the Government’s boasts that unprecedented levels of migration boost economic prosperity. It said THE DESTRUCTION OF EFFECTIVE BORDERS HAS DRIVEN DOWN WAGES AND IMPOSED A HUGE BURDEN ON PUBLIC SERVICES…

Yesterday Professor Phil Jones, recently suspended as director of the unit over the e-mail scandal, confessed he had trouble ‘keeping track of information’ and did not do ‘a thorough job’. Most importantly, he admitted that SINCE 1995 THERE HAS BEEN ‘NO STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT’ GLOBAL WARMING.

So there we have it. ONE OF THE SCIENTISTS IN CHARGE OF CLIMATE CHANGE ANALYSIS SAYS THAT THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO BASIS FOR ALL THE HYSTERIA THAT THE POLITICIANS HAVE GENERATED…

It is shameful we have been taxed and bullied because of a massive political fraud, just as the CASE FOR MASS IMMIGRATION IS SO RIDDLED WITH LIES. As the foundations of these two ideologies crumble it is striking to see the similarities between them. Both involve CONSTANT GUILT-TRIPPING BY THE STATE, WITH ORDINARY DECENT CITIZENS MADE TO FEEL ASHAMED OF EVERYTHING FROM PATRIOTISM TO CAR OWNERSHIP. BOTH HAVE CREATED AN ATMOSPHERE OF FEAR IN WHICH BASIC LIBERTIES ARE SUPPRESSED.

So in the name of the Government’s ‘war on climate change’ spy cameras are placed in wheelie bins and huge fines are imposed for putting out rubbish on the wrong day. In the same way IT IS NOW IMPOSSIBLE TO HAVE OPEN DISCUSSION ABOUT MULTICULTURALISM AND THAT IS THE WAY ZEALOTS WANT IT.

A high priest of the liberal establishment, the journalist Andrew Marr, once wrote an article in which he called for ‘THE VIGOROUS USE OF STATE POWER TO COERCE AND REPRESS’ IN THE CAMPAIGN FOR DIVERSITY. THE GOVERNMENT HAD TO ‘STAMP HARD’ ON POLITICALLY INCORRECT THOUGHTS, HE ARGUED, FOR ‘REPRESSION CAN BE A GREAT, CIVILISING FORCE FOR GOOD’, EXACTLY THE SORT OF LANGUAGE BELOVED OF DICTATORS.

ENVIRONMENTALISM AND MULTI-CULTURALISM HAVE BEEN IMPOSED THROUGH CONSTANT PROPAGANDA...

Both ideologies have led to a massive burden on the public through the cost of welfare for migrants and rising taxes and energy bills to pay for the green agenda. Each creed has created its own expensive bureaucracy, with the public sector now awash with diversity co-ordinators, equalities managers, and sustainability officers.

The advocates of both ideologies tend to be appalling hypocrites. Just as the loudest political advocates for multiculturalism rarely live on inner-city housing estates so the leading green campaigners, like the US politician Al Gore, could not care less about their own carbon footprints as they travel around by limousine and jet...

OUR INDEPENDENT NATIONHOOD IS BEING DESTROYED BY LEFT-WING IDEOLOGUES FILLED WITH HATRED OF BRITAIN AND A LONGING FOR EU AND WORLD GOVERNMENT. We can only hope that the exposure of their spectacular dishonesty has not come too late.”

Small dogs originate in Middle East, says gene study

Small dogs may have evolved from the Middle Eastern grey wolf

Small dogs may all originate from the Middle East, according to research from the University of California.

A study published in the journal BioMed Central found a gene found in small dogs, IGF1, is closely related to one found in Middle Eastern wolves.

Archaeologists have found the remains of small dogs dating back 12,000 years in the region.

In Europe, older remains have been uncovered, dating from 31,000 years ago, but these are from larger dogs.

"Because all small dogs possess this variant of IGF1, it probably arose early in their history," said Dr Melissa Gray from the University of California, Los Angeles.

The team of researchers took samples from grey wolf populations around the world.

Maybe they can have a better understanding of the history of their pets Dr Melissa Gray

"We have a couple of individuals from North America, from Yellowstone and Alaska, several from the Middle East, Israel, Iran, India, China, Russia, Italy, Spain, Belarus and Belgium," explained Dr Gray.

The study says the similarity between the variant found in small dogs and that in the Middle Eastern grey wolf shows small size probably originated as a result of the wolf's domestication.

The scientists believe people may have preferred smaller dogs because they were easier to house in farming societies where space was at a premium.

Animals often become smaller as a result of domestication and the trend can be seen in cattle, pigs and goats.

Dr Gray believes the results could be useful for dog breeders: "Because we have this gene and that it affects body size it could possibly be used as a way to breed for small body size."

And she hopes small dog owners around the world will find the results interesting. "Maybe they can have a better understanding of the history of their pets and where they came from and how they likely dispersed out from the region."

Brown denies unleashing 'forces of hell' on Darling

Alistair Darling: 'It was a weekend you could have done without' (Courtesy of Sky News - Jeff Randall Live)

Gordon Brown has denied ordering any briefing against his chancellor, after Alistair Darling said "the forces of hell" had been unleashed against him.

Mr Darling said No 10 and the Tories had given him "a weekend you could have done without" after he had forecast the worst recession for 60 years, in 2008.

But Mr Darling rejected suggestions he had been bullied by the prime minister.

And Mr Brown told GMTV he "would never instruct anybody to do anything other than support my chancellor".

The PM, who again denied allegations of bullying, said he and Mr Darling and their families had been friends for 20 years and had "huge mutual respect".

Mr Brown was speaking on Wednesday morning after Mr Darling's comments in a Sky News interview on Tuesday evening.

A Conservative spokesman said: "The idea that Gordon Brown runs a happy and united team has been blown apart.

"This is amazing public confirmation from the prime minister's own chancellor that he ordered his henchmen to brief against him."

'Still here'

In August 2008, Mr Darling caused a political uproar when he said economic conditions were "arguably the worst they've been in 60 years".

I do not know why the briefers did what they did. One day maybe they will explain Alistair Darling

Following this, there were media reports that 10 Downing Street was unhappy with his analysis and his handling of the economy.

There were also suggestions Mr Darling might be reshuffled to make way for Ed Balls, the Schools Secretary and a close ally of Mr Brown.

Questioned by Sky News about the response to his comments, Mr Darling said that "the forces of hell were unleashed".

And asked whether that had been orchestrated by 10 Downing Street, he said: "The Tories as well. It was a weekend you could have done without.

The idea of Gordon instructing us to brief against Alistair Darling is totally wrong Damian McBride Mr Brown's former spin doctor

"I do not know why the briefers did what they did. One day maybe they will explain.

"What I do know is, unfortunately and it's not a great source of pleasure, but what I said did turn out to be true."

In an apparent reference to Mr Brown's former spin doctor Damian McBride, the chancellor added: "Frankly, my best answer for them is, I'm still here, one of them is not."

Mr McBride was forced to resign last year after a planned smear campaign against senior Conservatives emerged in leaked e-mails he had written.

'Robust exchanges'

Asked about Mr Darling's suggestions of a briefing campaign, the PM said: "I was never part of anything to do with this. Look, this was the most amazing time... and lots of things were happening in this time.

"But I would never instruct anybody to do anything other than support my chancellor, and I think Alistair will confirm that."

Mr McBride also told BBC Radio 5 Live the allegations were untrue, saying: "The idea of Gordon instructing us to brief against Alistair Darling is totally wrong. The idea of me briefing against Alistair Darling is totally wrong."

He added: "The Sunday papers were ringing up and asking us if we were angry with the chancellor and the answer was no."

Mr Darling rejected suggestions he had ever been bullied by Mr Brown, but said: "Of course, Gordon and I have some very robust exchanges.

"I can't imagine any healthy relationship between a prime minister and a chancellor where they don't have differences from time to time."

He admitted there had been "some bad days" in his relationship with the prime minister but insisted there was more that united the two men than would "ever divide us".

'Friendly, caring'

Mr Brown was also asked again whether he had bullied anyone: "No. I get angry sometimes, doesn't everybody? I get impatient. I'm driven to do the things.

Darling speaking about the economy in August 2008

"Actually, we work in an open plan office, we're a sort of family in Downing Street and like every family there's issues that come from time to time, but we've got a great working environment and we get things done."

Schools Secretary Ed Balls also told the BBC he did not "recognise this atmosphere" of alleged bullying at Number 10.

"Jeremy Heywood, who is the top civil servant, said the opposite was true - it was a friendly, caring, supportive environment. I think he is right," Mr Balls said.

Mr Darling's comments follow allegations in political journalist Andrew Rawnsley's book that Mr McBride and Charlie Whelan, another Brown supporter, had been behind the briefing.

Both Mr McBride and Mr Whelan, a senior official with the Unite union, had their names put to the chancellor in the Sky News interview, but he did not refer to either directly.

The Rawnsley book's allegations of bullying also led the chief executive of the National Bullying Helpline, Christine Pratt, to go on television to say they had received calls from Downing Street staff.

This prompted its patrons to resign in protest at what they described as a breach of confidence and in a statement on Wednesday the charity announced its helpline had been "temporarily suspended", with Mrs Pratt "prepared to resign if necessary".

Brown 'very upset' by bully claims

Brown 'very upset' by bully claims, says Ed Balls

Mr Brown has been upset by the claims, said Ed Balls

Gordon Brown has been "very upset" by allegations about his behaviour towards staff, his ally Ed Balls told the BBC.

The schools secretary said there was "no truth" in claims that the cabinet secretary was so concerned he had to have a private word with the PM.

"I don't think it damages him, it hurts him personally," Mr Balls said.

Cabinet Secretary Sir Gus O'Donnell has denied speaking to the PM about him acting in a "bullying" manner and said there was no need for an inquiry.

The bullying allegations were prompted initially by Andrew Rawnsley's book which detailed incidents where it is alleged Mr Brown grabbed staff by the lapels, shoved them aside and shouted at them.

Cleared up

Then the head of the National Bullying Helpline said they had received calls from the prime minister's office - although she said they were not about Mr Brown personally.

The Tories and Lib Dems have called for the situation to be cleared up.

But on Monday, Sir Gus said there was no need for an inquiry and a Downing Street spokesman said: "The cabinet secretary would like to make clear that he has never raised concerns with the prime minister about him acting in a bullying or intimidatory manner in relation to Number 10 staff, let alone giving him any sort of verbal warning."

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Mr Brown also said the story was "completely wrong".

Mr Balls told BBC Radio 4's Today programme Mr Rawnsley's book had been incorrect on every allegation and said he had known Mr Brown for years and "at no point has it ever occurred to me that Gordon Brown is, or would ever be, a bully".

"It is something which personally he feels very upset about because he knows there is no truth to these allegations," said Mr Balls.

"I don't think it damages him, it hurts him personally."

'Fire in belly'

He said Mr Brown was "tough" and had "a strength of character and drive" adding: "That's what you want in a prime minister, you want people who are tough and can drive things forward."

His comments were echoed by Lord Sugar, star of The Apprentice and the government's enterprise champion, who told GMTV: "Do you want some docile type of person who is just not going to have any spirit about them or do you want someone who has got a bit of fire in their belly, who will react, who will get a bit emotional sometimes?

"That is not bullying as far as I am concerned."

Mr Rawnsley is sticking by his book, saying his source for the claim that Sir Gus had been moved to speak to the prime minister about his behaviour towards Downing Street staff was "24 carat".

He said the statement issued on Monday by Sir Gus had been a "careful choice of words".

But Lord Mandelson has suggested that the separate claims made by the National Bullying Helpline were part of a "political operation" directed by the Conservatives.

Charity row

The Conservatives accused him of trying to "smear" the charity's chief executive, Christine Pratt.

But the charity trustees are meeting on Tuesday to discuss the situation.

Mrs Pratt was heavily criticised by another bullying charity and some of her own patrons, including the Conservative MP Ann Widdecombe, who resigned saying she had breached the confidentiality of callers.

Mrs Pratt has said she did not name anyone or reveal details and has said she is "not politically motivated".

In a separate interview, former prime minister Tony Blair - whom Mr Brown has admitted having fierce battles with during his time as chancellor - was asked on the BBC World Service's World Today programme about the way prime ministers treated their staff.

Mr Blair replied: "Well I think I know what you're referring to and I honestly have absolutely nothing to say about that at all."

Obesity rise on death certificates

Obesity rise on death certificates, researchers say

By Emma Wilkinson Health reporter, BBC News

Obesity is linked with several conditions, such as heart disease

There has been a "dramatic rise" in deaths in England in which obesity was a contributory factor, researchers say.

They said death certificates showed there were 757 obesity related deaths in 2009, compared with 358 in 2000.

There were likely to be many more such deaths where obesity was not recorded, the University of Oxford team said in the European Journal of Public Health.

It comes as the Scottish government warned of a "ticking time bomb", saying 40% of Scots could be obese by 2030.

One public health expert said people often did not realise obesity was linked with many serious conditions.

This shows doctors are increasingly recognising obesity as a cause of death Professor Michael Goldacre, University of Oxford

The researchers said as obesity was rarely listed as the main cause of death, a simple snapshot of death certificates would not have picked up the rise.

The marked increase was apparent when they included contributing causes of death in the analysis.

Other figures recently released by ministers showed more than 190 people under 65 died as a direct result of obesity in 2009 compared with 88 in 2000.

When contributing factors were included, there were 757 obesity related deaths in 2009 compared with 358 in 2000.

Recognition

About a quarter of adults in the UK are now obese.

Obesity and problems caused by being overweight are thought to cost the NHS more than £3bn a year.

The Scottish government said 40% of Scots could be classed as obese by 2030, if things do not change.

Scotland's Public Health Minister Shona Robison is due to launch an anti-obesity strategy later.

Study leader Professor Michael Goldacre said although the death certificate figures tallied with rises in levels of obesity in the population over the same period, they did not know before the study whether doctors would be recording obesity on death certificates.

"We know for example obesity contributes to heart disease but if someone dies of heart disease you don't necessarily expect doctors to note if they were obese.

"But this shows doctors are increasingly recognising obesity as a cause of death."

He added: "One of the key messages is you can't rely on underlying causes alone - if you don't look at other causes you cannot see what is contributing to disease."

Professor Alan Maryon-Davis, president of the Faculty of Public Health, said people in the "early stages" of obesity did not often realise how dangerous being overweight could be and their weight commonly "creeps up" without them noticing.

"People do not realise how closely linked it is with serious conditions, such as heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure and diabetes.

"We have to take obesity seriously."

top UN climate official

Yvo de Boer resigns as top UN climate official

Mr de Boer is now set to become a consultant

Yvo de Boer, the UN's top climate change official, says he will resign after nearly four years in the post.

His departure takes effect from 1 July, five months before 193 countries are due to reconvene in Mexico for another attempt at a global deal on climate.

Nations failed to reach a binding deal at the Copenhagen meeting in December.

Mr de Boer said he was announcing his departure now so that a successor could be found well before the Mexico meeting later this year.

The former Dutch civil servant was appointed as executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 2006. As the UN's climate negotiator, he was widely credited with raising the profile of climate change issues.

We were about an inch away from a formal agreement. It was basically in our grasp, but it didn't happen... so that was a pity Yvo de Boer

But suspicion and distrust between developing and industrial countries barred the way to a binding accord at the UN's climate change summit in Copenhagen in December.

In a statement, Mr de Boer said: "It was a difficult decision to make, but I believe the time is ripe for me to take on a new challenge."

Mr De Boer said he would become a consultant on climate and sustainability issues for KPMG, a global accounting firm, and would be associated with several universities.

'Deeply disappointed'

Mr de Boer is said to be deeply disappointed with outcome of the last summit in Copenhagen, which drew 120 world leaders but failed to reach a binding global accord.

But he said the failure to secure a treaty at Copenhagen was unrelated to his decision to quit, and that he had begun looking for a new job last year, before the summit.

He told the Associated Press news agency that he believed talks were "on track", although it was uncertain whether a full treaty could be finalised at the next high-level conference which starts in November.

Mr de Boer said the accord reached in Copenhagen, brokered by US President Barack Obama, "was very significant".

But he acknowledged frustration that the deal fell short of the consensus and was merely "noted" rather than formally adopted by all countries.

"We were about an inch away from a formal agreement. It was basically in our grasp, but it didn't happen... so that was a pity," he said.

Fifty-five countries submitted pledges for curbing greenhouse gas emissions by the 31 January deadline in the "Copenhagen Accord", the document produced at the UN climate summit in the Danish capital.

At the time, Mr de Boer said the pledges would invigorate the UN process, but several environment groups said they did not go far enough. In some cases the pledges were weaker than those made before the summit.

Track record

According to AP, people who know Mr de Boer said he was more disheartened by the slow pace of negotiations than he was ready to admit.

"I saw him at the airport after Copenhagen," said Jake Schmidt, a climate expert for the US-based Natural Resources Defense Council, "He was tired, worn out."

Mr Schmidt said that the summit "clearly took a toll on him."

In 2007, during exhausting negotiations at the Bali conference, Mr de Boer left the stage in tears after being accused by China of procedural irregularities.

Before he took up his post with the UNFCCC, Mr de Boer was involved in European Union environmental policy in his role with the Dutch Environment Ministry. He also served as vice-chair of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development.

A different UN climate body - the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which reviews climate science - has come under fire in recent months for a mistake on the melting of Himalayan glaciers and for referencing "grey literature" - a WWF report which had not been peer-reviewed.

The head of the IPCC, Dr Rajendra Pachauri, has rejected calls for his resignation.

In November, hundreds of e-mails from the Climatic Research Unit (CRU) at the University of East Anglia, UK, appeared on the web.

CRU maintains one of the world's most important datasets on how global temperatures have changed.

An inquiry is underway to consider whether the e-mail exchanges between researchers show an attempt to manipulate or suppress data "at odds" with scientific practice.

'Diabetic effect' in dolphins offers new hope for type 2 diabetes cure

February 20, 2010

'Diabetic effect' in dolphins

offers new hope for

type 2 diabetes cure

(Al Stanzani)

Dolphins also develop type 2 diabetes but can switch their insulin resistance on and off

Mark Henderson, Science editor, in San Diego

• 26 COMMENTS

RECOMMEND? (28)

Dolphins are the only animals apart from humans to develop a natural form of type 2 diabetes, according to new research. The discovery offers important insights into a disease that is linked to one in 20 deaths.

American scientists have discovered that bottlenosed dolphins show a form of insulin resistance very similar to that seen in human diabetes. Unlike patients with the condition, the marine mammals can turn this state on and off when appropriate, so it is not normally harmful.

The findings indicate that dolphins could provide a valuable animal model for investigating type 2 diabetes, which promises to advance research into new therapies. If researchers can learn how the animals switch off their insulin resistance before it becomes damaging, it could be possible to develop a cure.

Stephanie Venn-Watson, a veterinary epidemiologist at the US National Marine Mammal Foundation, who led the research, said that it could have profound implications for a disease that affects an estimated 2.75 million adults in Britain.

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It suggests that the bottle-nosed dolphin is “an important, natural and long-lived model for insulin resistance and diabetes, a disease that accounts for 5 per cent of human deaths globally”, she told the San Diego conference of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. “It is our hope that this discovery can lead to novel ways to prevent, treat and even cure diabetes in humans while also benefiting dolphin health.”

She emphasised that the research did not mean that dolphins should be used as laboratory animals, as their large brains and high intelligence would make this unethical. Studies of their genetic code and physiology, revealed by blood and urine samples, could nevertheless provide important clues to the biology of diabetes.

The unexpected discovery has emerged from a study of more than 1,000 blood samples collected from 52 dolphins. When the animals had fasted overnight, their blood sugar remained high and their blood chemistry changed in ways similar to diabetic patients. Unlike people with diabetes, the dolphins’ blood reverted to normal once they had been fed.

Dr Venn-Watson said that such controlled diabetes might be beneficial to dolphins. Their diet of fish is high in protein and low in sugar, and they often go long periods without eating, yet they have large brains with high energy demands.

By making their bodies resistant to insulin while fasting, they may be able to keep their brains well supplied with sugar. Once they have eaten, the insulin resistance stops to prevent damage to their health. “We propose that, while some people may eat high- protein diets to help control diabetes, dolphins appear to have developed a diabetes-like state to support a high-protein diet,” she said. “It works to their advantage to have a condition that keeps blood sugar in the body.

“If dolphins indeed have a genetic fasting switch that can turn diabetes on and off, then finding and controlling such a switch could lead to the control of insulin resistance and possibly the cure to type 2 diabetes in humans.”

Dr Venn-Watson’s team has found that dolphins with excessive iron levels, or haemochromatosis, have high insulin levels that suggest a more harmful form of diabetes similar to the human disease. High iron is associated with insulin resistance in humans.

The findings are significant because there is no ideal animal model of type 2 diabetes. While rodents, cats, pigs and some primates display some aspects of diabetes, none mimics the disease as closely as dolphins.

Mark Simmonds, international head of science at the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, said there were ethical objections to using dolphins to study human disease and that dolphins were too distantly related from humans to be useful. He said: “The idea that dolphins would generally be a good model for the study of human disease seems unlikely. It is a grave concern that dolphins might be used in biomedical research. Dolphins are intelligent and sophisticated animals, vulnerable to stress and suffering when confined and removed from their natural environment.”

A link with obesity

• Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body acquires resistance to insulin — a hormone that controls blood sugar

• It is often triggered by obesity, though genetic factors are also involved, and it generally occurs in people over the age of 40

• The disease causes blood-sugar levels to become elevated, resulting in progressive damage to blood vessels and nerves

• Complications include cardiovascular disease, poor circulation leading to amputation of limbs, blindness and impotence

• Type 2 diabetes has been diagnosed in about two million people in the UK

• There is no cure, though it can be controlled by diet, exercise, weight loss and drugs

Census discovers 5,000 marine species

By Victoria Gill Science reporter, BBC News, San Diego

The hirsuta crab was so unusual it warranted a whole new family designation

A preview of the Census of Marine Life has revealed that the project has discovered over 5,000 new species.

These include bizarre and colourful creatures, as well as many organisms that produce therapeutic chemicals.

A panel of scientists presented these early insights at the American Association for the Advancement of Science annual meeting in San Diego.

The final report from the decade-long census will be released in October 2010.

The project has involved more than 2,000 scientists from 80 countries, and the researchers involved believe the census will lay the scientific foundations for marine policies to protect vulnerable habitats.

Bottom trawling bulldozes through reef habitats that are thousands of years old Jason Hall-Spencer University of Plymouth

The researchers presented images of some of the most striking species discovered in the last decade, including a crab so unusual it warranted a whole new family designation. This member of the new Kiwaidae family of crabs, discovered near Easter Island, was named Kiwa hirsuta because of its furry appearance.

One member of the panel, Shirley Pomponi, a scientist from Florida Atlantic University, highlighted a new species of sponge.

This was found in the Florida Keys in August of 1999. Further investigation revealed that it produced a chemical with anti-cancer properties, which is now being investigated as a potential therapeutic.

Dr Pomponi said: "Adaptation to life in the sea has resulted in the production of chemicals that not even the most advanced computer program could produce.

"Mother nature still makes the best chemicals."

Bulldozing reefs

A major aim of the census is to provide the scientific support for the establishment of a global network of marine protected areas to prevent damage from fishing and other human activity.

This new sponge produces a chemical with anti-cancer properties

Dr Jason Hall-Spencer, a marine biologist from the UK's University of Plymouth, said that delicate coral reefs were under threat from deep-sea trawling.

"All but one of the reefs I've looked at has been very badly damaged by bottom trawling - where a fishing net is dragged along the sea floor," he said.

"Bottom trawling bulldozes through reef habitats that are thousands of years old.

"But the good news is that we now have the data to change policy and work with fishermen to say where marine protected areas should be."

need for more NHS care at home

Burnham stresses need for more NHS care at home

Mr Burnham said more treatments must be offered outside hospitals

There must be a "decisive shift" in the NHS to provide more care in people's homes, the health secretary has said.

Andy Burnham said the health service must be more "confident" in being able to offer services, such as kidney dialysis, outside hospitals.

This could improve patient experiences as well as save billions, he added.

The Tories have pledged to put patients in the "driving seat", with people able to receive treatment for more minor ailments in their local communities.

'Patient convenience'

The Lib Dems say high-street pharmacists and the voluntary sector should play a role in supporting patients with long-term conditions and those with one-off medical queries or issues.

In a speech, Mr Burnham said: "The time has come for the NHS to make a decisive shift in providing more care out of hospitals and in the patient's community and home."

Integrating health services into the local community could save the NHS £2.7bn a year, he argued.

Last month, Gordon Brown unveiled plans to offer cancer sufferers free home care from specialist nurses, including access to chemotherapy.

What we know now is that we can safely do far more in the patient's home Health Secretary Andy Burnham

And on Thursday, Mr Burnham told the BBC he wanted "to make the convenience of the patient the most important thing".

"It's about a personal NHS, a patient-centred NHS. For the individual, it's about bringing the services to them rather than vice versa," he said.

"Perhaps, in the past, the NHS has been a bit too much of a 'take it or leave it, like it or lump it' service.

"What we know now is that we can safely do far more in the patient's home, and at a local level, than we could before."

Taking the example of dialysis, he said it could have "a massive effect" on a patient's quality of life to be treated at home.

"It really can give them control back of their life, to balance work with treating their condition."

'Knock-about'

The health secretary restated Labour aims to provide more social care for the elderly at home and said he hoped a cross-party consensus could be reached.

He has called a conference on the issue on Friday, but the Conservatives have refused to attend unless Labour drops proposals for a "death tax".

A government Green Paper published last year suggested that one option for funding long-term care in England could be a compulsory levy of up to £20,000 which could be imposed after an individual's death.

"These issues are too important to be the stuff of normal knock-about," Mr Burnham said. "I think we do need to work across the political divide to find a sustainable solution for the long-term."

He also confirmed the government's intention to outline proposals on giving patients the right to die at home in future.

The African Union has condemned a coup in Niger

Col Goukoye Abdul Karimou read a statement signed by Col Salou Djibo

The African Union has condemned a coup in Niger, where soldiers have detained President Mamadou Tandja.

AU chief Jean Ping said he was watching developments "with concern" after a day of gun battles culminated in a takeover led by Colonel Salou Djibo.

West African bloc Ecowas "roundly condemned" the coup and dispatched a mission to talk to the plotters.

But one opposition activist told the BBC the soldiers were "honest patriots" who were fighting tyranny.

Heavy artillery

Mr Tandja provoked a political crisis last August when he changed the constitution of the uranium-rich country to allow him to remain in power indefinitely.

NIGER Chronic poverty Population 14 million, 61% live on less than $1 a day Resource rich Huge reserves of uranium, Chinese firms digging for oil Politcally unstable History of coups, assassinations and on-off rebellion by nomadic Tuareg people in the north Source: World Bank Country profile: Niger

The Economic Community Of West African States (Ecowas), which suspended Niger after Mr Tandja's actions, said it had "zero tolerance" for any unconstitutional changes of government.

"We condemn the coup d'etat just as we condemn the constitutional coup d'etat by Tandja," Ecowas official Abdel Fatau Musa told the BBC's Network Africa programme.

He said the group had already sent a team to Niger and would maintain sanctions "until constitutional order is restored".

The BBC's Idy Baraou in the capital, Niamey, said on the morning after the coup, people in the city were going to mosques and shops as normal.

He said there was not an obvious military presence on the streets, but heavy artillery had been deployed around the presidential palace.

While state radio has been broadcasting military music overnight, state TV station Tele Sahel is continuing with live programming from a traditional wrestling championship.

Freedom fighters?

In a televised address on Thursday evening, a spokesman for the plotters announced that the constitution had been suspended and all state institutions dissolved.

The junta, which has called itself the Supreme Council for the Restoration of Democracy, imposed a curfew and closed the country's borders.

NIGER JUNTA Col Salou Djibo Coup leader Col Djibrilla Hima Hamidou Involved in 1999 coup Col Goukoye Abdul Karimou Junta spokesman Col Amadou Harouna

The plotters said their aim was to restore democracy and save the population from "poverty, deception and corruption".

The move came after gunfights around the presidential palace reportedly resulted in several fatalities.

Soldiers captured Mr Tandja while he was chairing his weekly cabinet meeting, a government source told the BBC.

Little is known about coup leader Col Djibo, but another of the plotters, Col Djibrilla Hima Hamidou, was junta spokesman during the last military takeover in 1999.

The president was assassinated during that coup, but civilian rule was restored within a year.

One opposition activist, Mahamadou Karijo, whose Party for Democracy and Socialism has been bitterly opposed to Mr Tandja's rule, praised the soldiers for fighting tyranny.

"They behave like they say - they are not interested in political leadership, they will fight to save the Nigerien people from any kind of tyranny," he told Network Africa.

History of instability

The government and opposition had been holding on-off talks since December to try to resolve the country's political crisis.

Profile: Mamadou Tandja

Mr Tandja, a former army officer, was first voted into office in 1999 and was returned to power in an election in 2004.

His current whereabouts are unknown, but soldiers are thought to be holding him at a military base on the outskirts of Niamey.

Niger has experienced long periods of military rule since independence from France in 1960.

It is one of the world's poorest countries, but Mr Tandja's supporters argue that his decade in power has brought a measure of economic stability.

Under his tenure, the French energy firm Areva has begun work on the world's second-biggest uranium mine - ploughing an estimated $1.5bn into the project.

China National Petroleum Corporation signed a $5bn deal in 2008 to pump oil within three years.

HIV illness 'delayed by' herpes drug aciclovir

The HSV2 virus causes genital herpes

A common treatment for herpes can delay the need for HIV drugs in people with both infections, say US researchers.

A study of 3,300 patients in Africa found aciclovir reduced the risk of HIV progression by 16%, The Lancet reports.

Although a "modest" effect, the researchers said the cheap treatment was a simple way of keeping people with HIV healthy for longer.

One expert said it was important to note that aciclovir did not seem to make HIV patients less infectious.

The researchers from the University of Washington, Seattle, concentrated on people infected with HIV-1 - the most common type of infection.

While the HIV disease ameliorating effect we have observed is modest, it could add one more tool to help people with HIV infection stay healthy for longer Dr Jairam Lingappa, study leader

It is known that most people who are infected with HIV-1 are also infected with herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV2), or genital herpes.

Previous studies have shown that keeping the herpes virus suppressed reduces HIV levels but it was unclear whether this would slow down the disease.

Those in the trial were either given a twice daily dose of aciclovir or a dummy pill and then they were monitored for two years.

At the end of the study, 284 people on aciclovir had either started taking HIV medication, had a drop in CD4 count suggesting they should be on medication or had died. The comparable figure for patients taking the placebo was 324.

Use of aciclovir treatment did not reduce HIV transmission to their heterosexual partners.

More options

The researchers pointed out that HIV treatment with antiretroviral drugs would probably have a greater effect on reducing HIV disease progression than was seen with aciclovir.

But the herpes treatment may provide an additional option for individuals who have not reached medical thresholds for initiating antiretroviral therapy.

"Further investigation is needed to establish if suppression of this herpes virus has a role in HIV-1 treatment for people not eligible for antiretroviral therapy."

Study leader, Dr Jairam Lingappa, said: "While the HIV disease ameliorating effect we have observed is modest, it could add one more tool to help people with HIV infection stay healthy for longer."

Gus Cairns, editor of HIV Treatment Update, said: "It's nice to see a positive result in this field.

"There are biological reasons to believe that treating people's herpes could make them less likely to acquire HIV, or less likely to transmit it if they already have it, but results of trials testing the idea have been disappointing.

"Now at least we find that aciclovir, a very cheap, non-toxic and widely-available drug, can prolong the time some patients may be able to stay off the more expensive, and sometimes toxic, HIV drugs."

He added that the delay in HIV progression seen in the study may translate into a year or two off HIV medications.

"The only reservation I have is that aciclovir doesn't appear to make people less infectious, whereas the HIV drugs certainly do."

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