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Study: Gene linked to schizophrenia risk controls early neurodevelopment

A gene associated with the risk of schizophrenia regulates critical components of early brain development, according to a new study led by researchers from Penn State University.

26 Sep 2017

Pediatric researchers discover gene variants related to aggressive form of neuroblastoma

Pediatric researchers investigating the childhood cancer neuroblastoma have identified common gene variants that raise the risk of an aggressive form of that disease. The discovery may assist doctors in better diagnosing subtypes of neuroblastoma.

25 Sep 2017

Rutgers scientists use genetic engineering technique to create brain cells for studying Tourette’s

Scientists at Rutgers University-New Brunswick used a genetic engineering technique for the first time to create brain cells from the blood cells of individuals in a three-generation family with Tourette syndrome to help determine what causes the disease.

25 Sep 2017

Metabolism can impact host's susceptibility to develop malaria

Researchers from Instituto de Medicina Molecular Lisboa have found that the host's susceptibility to develop malaria depends on his or her metabolic state, which can be easily manipulated through external stimuli such as dietary patterns.

25 Sep 2017

Study: Antibody neutralizes dengue and Zika virus in mice

Brazil and other areas hardest hit by the Zika virus – which can cause babies to be born with abnormally small heads – are also home to dengue virus, which is spread by the same mosquito species.

25 Sep 2017

Medicaid has a bull’s-eye on its back, which means no one is entirely safe

When high levels of lead were discovered in the public water system in Flint, Mich., in 2015, Medicaid stepped in to help thousands of children get tested for poisoning and receive care.

25 Sep 2017

Scientists find complex personalities among tiny fishes

Scientists from the University of Exeter studied how guppies behaved in various situations and found complex differences between individuals.

25 Sep 2017

Legalizing mitochondrial donation can prevent children from inheriting life-threatening genetic disease

Australian laws need to change to allow women carrying mitochondrial disease to access a ground-breaking IVF procedure so they can have healthy, biologically-related children free from this incurable and life-threatening genetic disease, according to the Australian Mitochondrial Disease Foundation.

25 Sep 2017

“Super malaria” resistant to standard medications in South East Asia

The spread of a single multidrug resistant malaria parasite strain in Vietnam is cause for alarm say researchers.

25 Sep 2017

Study identifies two genes involved in invasive group A Streptococcus infections

Group A Streptococcus bacteria cause a variety of illnesses that range from mild nuisances like strep throat to life-threatening conditions including pneumonia, toxic shock syndrome and the flesh-eating disease formally known as necrotizing fasciitis.

22 Sep 2017

Study presents new method for tracing history of β-cells

Tracing the history of individual cells in the developing organism can reveal functional differences among seemingly uniform cells. This knowledge is important for defining the characteristics of highly regenerative cells in order to target them for cellular therapies, as well as to prevent the formation of unfit cells, which compromise the overall health of the organism.

22 Sep 2017

Genome-wide study reveals how transposons get prepared for jumping

The genome of a typical organism consists of many genes that are stringed like beads. This alignment has been surprisingly stable even over very long evolutionary periods. In addition to these genes, there are also many mobile elements, referred to as parasitic, that are spread across the whole genome and aggregated into different families according to their relatedness.

22 Sep 2017

Multi-gene test found to be better at identifying older adults at risk for Alzheimer's

A new test that combines the effects of more than two dozen genetic variants, most associated by themselves with only a small risk of Alzheimer's disease, does a better job of predicting which cognitively normal older adults will go on to develop Alzheimer's dementia than testing only for the well-known genetic variant APOE E4, a scientific team led by researchers at UC San Francisco and UC San Diego has found.

22 Sep 2017

Researchers use gene therapy to restore hearing and balance in mouse model of Usher syndrome

Hearing loss, sometimes associated with other disorders such as balance defects, is the most common sensory deficit, affecting more than 280 million people worldwide, according to WHO. In France, one child in 700 is born with severe or profound hearing loss, and one in every 1,000 will lose their sense of hearing before adulthood.

22 Sep 2017

New syndrome caused by biallelic mutations predisposes the body to tumors

A new syndrome caused by biallelic mutations - those produced in both gene copies inherited from the mother and father - in the FANCM gene predisposes the body to the appearance of tumours and causes rejection to chemotherapy treatments.

22 Sep 2017

Hard water may contribute to development of eczema by damaging skin barrier

Researchers from the University of Sheffield and King’s College London have discovered that exposing the skin to hard water damages the skin barrier – which is our defense against outside threats such as bacteria or sun burn – and increases the sensitivity of the skin to potential irritants found in everyday wash products such as soap or washing powder.

22 Sep 2017

Triple-action antibody to be tested as HIV vaccine

Scientists from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in collaboration with the pharmaceutical company Sanofi have engineered a three-pronged antibody that protected monkeys from two strains of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) better than the equivalent naturally occurring antibodies.

22 Sep 2017

New tissue-chip research aims to speed drug development for two genetic forms of epilepsy

An interdisciplinary team of Vanderbilt University researchers has received a two-year, $2-million federal grant to develop an "organ-on-chip" model for two genetic forms of epilepsy. These disorders affect both brain and heart and improved modeling could lead to new drug treatments.

22 Sep 2017

Study may contribute to genetic understanding of high-altitude adaptation

Many research groups have recently explored human adaptation and successfully identified candidate genes to high altitude living among three major far-flung global populations: Tibetans, Ethiopians and Peruvians.

22 Sep 2017

Alternative splicing may also trigger cancer, study shows

Cancer, which is one of the leading causes of death worldwide, arises from the disruption of essential mechanisms of the normal cell life cycle, such as replication control, DNA repair and cell death.

22 Sep 2017