Fanconi Anemia News and Research

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Fanconi anemia or FA, is a rare, inherited blood disorder that leads to bone marrow failure. FA causes your bone marrow to stop making enough new blood cells for your body to work normally. FA also can cause your bone marrow to make many abnormal blood cells. This can lead to serious health problems such as cancer.

Researchers detect new gene mutation linked to Fanconi anemia

Fanconi anemia is a rare genetic disease characterized by bone marrow failure heralded by low platelet counts and unusually large red blood cells.

14 Jul 2017

Study uncovers how effects of HSP90 protein can alter course of genetic diseases

Proteins do most of the work inside the human body, supporting the structure, function, regulation, and repair of organs, tissues and cells.

24 Feb 2017

Scientists discover molecular link between rare childhood genetic disease and major cancer gene

A team of researchers led by a University of Rhode Island scientist has discovered an important molecular link between a rare childhood genetic disease, Fanconi anemia, and a major cancer gene called PTEN.

1 Dec 2016

Novel ‘gene therapy in a box’ could effectively deliver modified blood stem cells

A table-top device that enables medical staff to genetically manipulate a patient's blood to deliver potential new therapies for cancer, HIV and other diseases would eliminate the need for multi-million-dollar "clean rooms," making gene therapy more possible for even the poorest of countries.

24 Oct 2016

Network of proteins linked to cancer may play vital role in male fertility

Researchers studying reproductive science identified a network of proteins often linked to cancer as also important to male fertility and the birth of healthy offspring, according to a study in the Oct. 18 online issue of Cell Reports.

19 Oct 2016

Genome engineering-based methods pave way for new treatment of patients with sickle cell disease

A team of physicians and laboratory scientists has taken a key step toward a cure for sickle cell disease, using CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing to fix the mutated gene responsible for the disease in stem cells from the blood of affected patients.

12 Oct 2016

Researchers discover new function of genes in Fanconi anemia pathway

Researchers from UT Southwestern Medical Center have identified an important new function of genes in the Fanconi anemia pathway - a finding that could have implications for development of new therapies to treat this disorder and some cancers.

3 May 2016

Scientists use FAN1 knockout mice to refine detailed mechanisms involved in damaged DNA repair

Like jewels in a vault, our precious genetic material is stored in the nucleus of a cell--sequestered away from potentially damaging cellular components and toxins so that no harm can come to it. Yet over the course of a life moving through this world, our DNA does get damaged, and our cells have a host of complicated repair mechanisms to deal with such injuries.

13 Apr 2016

Researchers discover molecular target for DNA repair defects behind Fanconi anemia

Researchers have identified a molecular target and experimental treatment strategy for DNA repair defects behind Fanconi anemia – a complex genetic disorder responsible for birth anomalies, organ damage, anemia and cancer.

12 Jan 2016

Researchers identify cause of rare syndrome consistent with Fanconi Anemia

An international team of researchers has established the cause of rare syndrome consistent with Fanconi Anemia: a de novo mutation in a so called RAD51 gene, which is responsible for repairing damages in the DNA.

23 Dec 2015

John H. Postlethwait selected to receive GSA's George W. Beadle Award

The Genetics Society of America is pleased to announce that John H. Postlethwait, PhD (University of Oregon) has been selected to receive the Society's George W. Beadle Award for outstanding contributions to the community of genetics researchers.

16 Jan 2015

Resveratrol in red wine may prevent cancer

Alcohol use is a major risk factor for head and neck cancer. But an article published in the November issue of the journal Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology shows that the chemical resveratrol found in grape skins and in red wine may prevent cancer as well.

4 Dec 2014

Scientists find that DNA repair drug could help treat leukaemia, other cancers

A team of scientists led by Research Associate Professor Motomi Osato and Professor Yoshiaki Ito from the Cancer Science Institute of Singapore at the National University of Singapore found that a drug originally designed for killing a limited type of cancer cells with DNA repair defects could potentially be used to treat leukaemia and other cancers.

26 Aug 2014

Drug to kill limited type of cancer cells with DNA repair defects could treat leukaemia

A team of scientists led by Research Associate Professor Motomi Osato and Professor Yoshiaki Ito from the Cancer Science Institute of Singapore (CSI Singapore) at the National University of Singapore (NUS) found that a drug originally designed for killing a limited type of cancer cells with DNA repair defects could potentially be used to treat leukaemia and other cancers.

26 Aug 2014

Aldea Pharmaceuticals announces closure of $24M Series B equity financing

Aldea Pharmaceuticals, a company pioneering novel therapeutics to treat aldehyde metabolism disorders, today announced that it has closed a $24 million Series B equity financing.

25 Aug 2014

Scientists find interplay between two specific proteins crucial for flawless repair of crosslink damage

Environmental influences such as ionizing radiation, intense heat or various chemical substances damage the DNA constantly.

27 May 2014

Genetic basis of hereditary disease causes severe brain atrophy in Jews of Moroccan ancestry

Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) researchers have unraveled the genetic basis of a hereditary disease that causes severe brain atrophy, mental retardation and epilepsy in Jews of Moroccan ancestry, according to a study published this week online in the Journal of Medical Genetics.

11 Mar 2014

Biostatistics provides clues to understanding autism: an interview with Dr Knut M. Wittkowski, The Rockefeller University

The incidence of autism spectrum disorders has increased sharply since it was first described 60 years ago. Today, ASD affects more than 1% of all children in the U.S. and about half of them develop a life-long disability.

3 Mar 2014

Researchers reveal how genetic susceptibility plays large role in cancer risk

In laboratory experiments conducted on human cell lines at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, scientists have shown that people carrying certain mutations in two hereditary cancer genes, BRCA2 and PALB2, may have a higher than usual susceptibility to DNA damage caused by a byproduct of alcohol, called acetaldehyde.

24 Jan 2014

Researchers find that 20% of women with ovarian cancer had inherited mutations in gene pathway

A new study conservatively estimates that one in five women with ovarian cancer has inherited genetic mutations that increase the risk of the disease, according to research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

23 Jan 2014