Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Scientists have taken the first steps towards producing a sustainable and pure source of the healthy fats found in oily fish

Eating such fish is encouraged as part of a healthy diet as their oils are rich in very long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (VLCPUFAs). However, views on the health-promoting nature of VLCPUFAs have to be balanced against the marine pollution that can cause fish, and the oils extracted from them, to be contaminated with heavy metals and dioxins, and the fact that fish stocks are in global decline.

20 May 2004

New study of tumor genetics may help to treat patients with head and neck cancer

Head and neck tumors account for more than 40,000 new cancers annually in the United States. The most common of these is squamous cell carcinoma. Prognosis is based largely on location and size of the tumor, and if the cancer has spread, or metastasized, to lymph nodes and distant sites in the body.

19 May 2004

Closer to understanding the function of a protein linked to an inherited form of the movement disorder dystonia

The protein, torsinA, is defective in patients with DYT1 dystonia, an inherited condition that causes uncontrollable movements in the limbs and torso. Learning what torsinA does could be an important step toward developing a treatment for the disorder.

19 May 2004

Inactivating a protective molecule may help chemotherapy for leukemia but harm bone marrow

Inactivating a protective molecule in leukemic cells to make them more vulnerable to chemotherapy might also make healthy blood-forming cells more sensitive to the toxic effects of those same drugs.

19 May 2004

Benitec acquires Avocel to focus on rapid development of hepatitis C therapeutics

Benitec Ltd. today announced the acquisition of Avocel, Inc. of Sunnyvale, CA, a leading RNAi therapeutics company, and the establishment of its wholly-owned US subsidiary, Benitec, Inc. Through the acquisition, Benitec gains its first in-house advanced therapeutic development program using DNA-directed RNAi (ddRNAi) to target the Hepatitis C virus.

18 May 2004

Discovery of the gene for Cornelia de Lange syndrome

An international team of researchers has discovered the gene for Cornelia de Lange syndrome, a disabling, multisystem genetic disease that affects an estimated one in 10,000 children. The finding is expected to lead to a genetic test, enabling rapid and definitive diagnosis of the syndrome, as well as prenatal testing for families who already have one child with the disease.

17 May 2004

Inheriting the wrong version of a gene called CHEK2 doubles a woman's risk of developing breast cancer

Inheriting the wrong version of a gene called CHEK2 doubles a woman's risk of developing breast cancer, Cancer Research UK scientists confirm in a major new international study published in the June edition of the American Journal of Human Genetics.

17 May 2004

Want a new type of man? Maybe less brawn and more brains?

A new version of the human male is a distinct possibility, given the genetic erosion of the “junk” sex-determining chromosome that makes men male.

17 May 2004

Genetically engineered viruses may create new class of cancer therapies

A genetically engineered virus can selectively kill cancerous cells in the lung and colon while leaving healthy cells intact, according to new research published today in Cancer Research by William Wold and colleagues at Saint Louis University School of Medicine.

15 May 2004

Cancer-causing gene identified that may play a key role in the development of leukemia and other cancers

Using genetically engineered mice, researchers at the Johns Hopkins Children's Center have identified a gene that functions as a cancer-causing gene (or oncogene) and may play a key role in the development of leukemia and other cancers in children and adults.

15 May 2004

Vitamin discovery offers clues for cancer chemotherapy

NH-Dartmouth Medical School cancer researchers, in a fusion of biochemistry and genetics, have discovered a new vitamin in a molecular pathway central to such vital processes as gene regulation, metabolism and aging. And, they found that milk contains this nutrient.

15 May 2004

3 people with drug-resistant HIV become first to undergo a new form of gene therapy

The idea is to use a modified form of HIV to deliver an "antisense" gene to the immune cells that HIV infects. This is integrated into the cells' genome, and stays there until a cell is infected. Then it is switched on, and produces RNA complementary to the "sense" RNA encoding a viral protein. In theory, the RNAs should bind together, blocking viral replication.

14 May 2004

Technique to visualize changes in nerve connections when flies learn may help to understand how memories form

For the first time, researchers have used a technique called optical imaging to visualize changes in nerve connections when flies learn. These changes may be the beginning of a complex chain of events that leads to formation of lasting memories.

14 May 2004

Researchers identify new genes that control the formation of cilia found throughout the human body

Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers have used a combination of brainpower and computer power to identify a multitude of new genes that control the formation of tiny, hair-like cilia that stipple the surfaces of many organs in a wide variety of creatures.

14 May 2004

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is nearly four times as common in veterans of the first Persian Gulf War as in nonveterans

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) is nearly four times as common in veterans of the first Persian Gulf War as in nonveterans, according to a new study.

13 May 2004

Publication of epilepsy research

Bionomics Limited has announced today that research by its collaborators Women's and Children's Hospital, in conjunction with the University of Melbourne and a US group in Tennessee, has been published in the scientific journal, Human Molecular Genetics.

13 May 2004

Father's sperm packs more than just a fertilizer

The major function of a man's sperm was fertilization, scientists once thought. True, sperm contains the father's chromosomes; but new studies from Wayne State University show that RNAs critically important to early growth of an embryo are also delivered.

13 May 2004

Suprachiasmatic nucleus brain tissue sheds light on jet lag

New research led by a University of Washington biologist demonstrates that there are at least two circadian clocks in the mammal brain, one that sticks strictly to an internal schedule and another that can be altered by external influences such as light and dark.

12 May 2004

Nanobodies herald a new era in cancer therapy

Cancer, along with heart and vascular disease, is the major cause of death in the Western world. The first generation of anti-cancer drugs has already saved many lives, but because these medicines are non-specific they also often have severe side effects.

12 May 2004

Ingenium's acquisition of US patents may lead to drug discovery and development

Ingenium Pharmaceuticals AG has acquired outright US patents no. 5,994,075 and no. 6,015,670 from Incyte Corporation, the company announced today.

12 May 2004

Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Scientists have taken the first steps towards producing a sustainable and pure source of the healthy fats found in oily fish

New study of tumor genetics may help to treat patients with head and neck cancer

Closer to understanding the function of a protein linked to an inherited form of the movement disorder dystonia

Inactivating a protective molecule may help chemotherapy for leukemia but harm bone marrow

Benitec acquires Avocel to focus on rapid development of hepatitis C therapeutics

Discovery of the gene for Cornelia de Lange syndrome

Inheriting the wrong version of a gene called CHEK2 doubles a woman's risk of developing breast cancer

Want a new type of man? Maybe less brawn and more brains?

Genetically engineered viruses may create new class of cancer therapies

Cancer-causing gene identified that may play a key role in the development of leukemia and other cancers

Vitamin discovery offers clues for cancer chemotherapy

3 people with drug-resistant HIV become first to undergo a new form of gene therapy

Technique to visualize changes in nerve connections when flies learn may help to understand how memories form

Researchers identify new genes that control the formation of cilia found throughout the human body

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is nearly four times as common in veterans of the first Persian Gulf War as in nonveterans

Publication of epilepsy research

Father's sperm packs more than just a fertilizer

Suprachiasmatic nucleus brain tissue sheds light on jet lag

Nanobodies herald a new era in cancer therapy

Ingenium's acquisition of US patents may lead to drug discovery and development

Sensing a Healthier Future

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer