Epigenetics News and Research

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Epigenetics is the study of chemical reactions that influence gene expression, through activation or deactivation of genes at specific times and locations.

SAGE Labs, Autism Speaks expand partnership to create first rat models for translational research

Autism Speaks, the world's leading autism science and advocacy organization, today announced its expanded collaboration with Sigma Advanced Genetic Engineering (SAGE) Labs, an initiative of Sigma- Life, to develop the first rat models with modified autism associated genes, intended to accelerate discovery and translational autism research.

3 Aug 2012

MDxHealth’s Irvine, California and CLIA laboratory receive CAP accreditation

MDxHealth SA, a leading molecular diagnostic company that develops and commercializes epigenetic tests to support cancer treatment, today announced that the company's Irvine, California, CLIA laboratory has received College of American Pathology (CAP) accreditation.

1 Aug 2012

Researchers discover new approach to treat two lethal metastatic cancers

A potentially powerful new approach to treating two lethal metastatic cancers - triple negative breast cancer and clear cell renal cell carcinoma, the most common form of kidney cancer - has been discovered by researchers at Mayo Clinic in Florida.

1 Aug 2012

High choline intake during pregnancy may improve how a child responds to stress

If you're sick from stress, a new research report appearing in the August 2012 issue of The FASEB Journal suggests that what your mother ate-or didn't eat-may be part of the cause.

31 Jul 2012

PedBrain Tumor network publishes evaluation of first 125 genome analyses of medulloblastomas

Brain tumors are the primary cause of cancer mortality in children. Even if a cure is possible, young patients often suffer from the stressful treatment which can be harmful to the developing brain. The most common childhood brain tumors are medulloblastoma and pylocytic astrocytoma.

27 Jul 2012

Scientists demonstrate link between cancer and faulty differentiation of stem cells

Stem cells hold great promise for the medicine of the future, but they can also be a cause of disease. When these self-renewing, unspecialized cells fail to differentiate into diverse cell types, they can start dividing uncontrollably, leading to cancer. Already several decades ago, Weizmann Institute scientists were among the first to demonstrate the link between cancer and the faulty differentiation of stem cells. Now a new Weizmann Institute-led study, published in Molecular Cell, reveals a potential molecular mechanism behind this link.

24 Jul 2012

Researchers identify several gene mutations responsible for medulloblastoma

Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital have identified several gene mutations responsible for the most common childhood brain tumor, called medulloblastoma, adding evidence to the theory that the diagnosis is a group of genetically distinct cancers with different prognoses. These and accompanying findings are likely to lead to less-toxic, better-targeted treatment approaches over the next two years, the researchers said.

23 Jul 2012

Keystone Symposia on Molecular and Cellular Biology receives Gates Foundation grant

Keystone Symposia on Molecular and Cellular Biology is pleased to announce that it has received a fourth grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to promote discoveries that will solve urgent global health problems via support of infectious disease conferences in the "Keystone Symposia Global Health Series."

20 Jul 2012

SGC, Life Technologies to generate first-ever master set of epigenetic recombinant antibodies

Life Technologies Corporation today announced it has signed a collaborative partnership with the Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC), and several groups of leading expert scientists in antibody technology at the Universities of Chicago and Toronto, to generate a first-ever master set of quality epigenetic recombinant antibodies for use in disease-related research.

20 Jul 2012

New research sheds light on pluripotency

New research at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem sheds light on pluripotency-the ability of embryonic stem cells to renew themselves indefinitely and to differentiate into all types of mature cells.

19 Jul 2012

Newborn size may predict paternal diabetes risk

The parents of newborn babies who are small are at increased risk for developing diabetes later in life, suggest findings from a study of an Indian population.

10 Jul 2012

Scientists discover two key epigenetic regulating genes that govern stem cell differentiation

The ability to control whether certain stem cells ultimately become bone cells holds great promise for regenerative medicine and potential therapies aimed at treating metabolic bone diseases. Now, UCLA School of Dentistry professor and leading cancer scientist Dr. Cun-Yu Wang and his research team have made a significant breakthrough in that direction. The scientists have discovered two key epigenetic regulating genes that govern the cell-fate determination of human bone marrow stem cells.

10 Jul 2012

New epigenetic path toward a cure for osteoarthritis

In what could be a breakthrough in the practical application of epigenetic science, U.K. scientists used human tissue samples to discover that those with osteoarthritis have a signature epigenetic change (DNA methylation) responsible for switching on and off a gene that produces a destructive enzyme called MMP13.

7 Jul 2012

Insight into understanding IDH mediated disease

Agios Pharmaceuticals, the leading biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing novel drugs in cancer metabolism, announced today the publication of a new study that provides further evidence of the link between a mutated metabolic enzyme and acute myeloid leukemia (AML), one of the most common types of leukemia in adults.

6 Jul 2012

Reprogramming asthma-promoting immune cells diminishes airway damage and inflammation

Reprogramming asthma-promoting immune cells in mice diminishes airway damage and inflammation, and could potentially lead to new treatments for people with asthma, researchers have found.

5 Jul 2012

Epigenetic changes due to methylation play a key role in altering genes in RA

It's not just our DNA that makes us susceptible to disease and influences its impact and outcome. Scientists are beginning to realize more and more that important changes in genes that are unrelated to changes in the DNA sequence itself - a field of study known as epigenetics - are equally influential.

4 Jul 2012

Important insight into association between childhood maltreatment and suicide

Exposure to childhood maltreatment increases the risk for most psychiatric disorders as well as many negative consequences of these conditions. This new study, by Dr. Gustavo Turecki and colleagues at McGill University, Canada, provides important insight into one of the most extreme outcomes, suicide.

4 Jul 2012

Study demonstrates effectiveness of combination therapy for breast cancer cells in vitro

A study conducted at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) demonstrates an effective combination therapy for breast cancer cells in vitro.

3 Jul 2012

Abnormal bone marrow stem cells drive development of myelodysplastic syndromes

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have found that abnormal bone marrow stem cells drive the development of myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), serious blood diseases that are common among the elderly and that can progress to acute leukemia. The findings could lead to targeted therapies against MDS and prevent MDS-related cancers. The study is published today in the online edition of the journal Blood.

2 Jul 2012

Touch important for side-effects of medicines for premature babies with respiratory problems

Discovering that touch is important for the side-effects of a medicine for premature babies with respiratory problems. This is what Sanne Claessens finds so fascinating about fundamental research in medical pharmacology. PhD defence 27 June.

28 Jun 2012