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BUSM leads genome-wide evaluation of genetic variants associated with Parkinson's disease

Boston University School of Medicine investigators have led the first genome-wide evaluation of genetic variants associated with Parkinson's disease (PD). The study, which is published online in PLOS ONE, points to the involvement of specific genes and alterations in their expression as influencing the risk for developing PD.

6 Oct 2012

Two genes linked to increased risk of diabetes-associated kidney disease

An international group of researchers has discovered two genes that increase the risk of developing diabetes-associated kidney disease.

6 Oct 2012

Researchers determine function of new IKKα enzyme variant in colorectal cancer

Researchers from IMIM, Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute, have succeeded in determining the function of a new variant of enzyme IKKalpha (IKKα) to activate some of the genes taking part in the tumor progressions of colorectal cancer.

5 Oct 2012

Mouse genome consists of 10-nm chromatin fibres

Scientists in Canada and the United States have used three-dimensional imaging techniques to settle a long-standing debate about how DNA and structural proteins are packaged into chromatin fibres. The researchers, whose findings are published in EMBO reports, reveal that the mouse genome consists of 10-nm chromatin fibres but did not find evidence for the wider 30-nm fibres that were previously thought to be important components of the DNA architecture.

5 Oct 2012

Researchers identify genetic risk allele for uterine fibroids

Uterine fibroids are the most common type of pelvic tumors in women and are the leading cause of hysterectomy in the United States. Researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) are the first to discover a genetic risk allele (an alternative form of a gene) for uterine fibroids in white women using an unbiased, genome-wide approach.

5 Oct 2012

Report finds increase in occurrence of MRSA bacteria in Denmark

In 2011, more Danes became infected with MRSA bacteria, and the number was the highest in over 25 years. The increase was primarily seen in otherwise healthy people without any hospital relation. Although the number of MRSA positive pig herds is on a par with the level seen in 2010, significantly more pigs at slaughter were found to be infected with the so-called pig MRSA, and the number of people infected with pig MRSA is increasing. This appears from the Danish surveillance report, DANMAP, for 2011.

5 Oct 2012

New gene test can detect pre-cancerous cells in patients with mouth lesions

Researchers from Queen Mary, University of London have developed a new gene test that can detect pre-cancerous cells in patients with benign-looking mouth lesions. The test could potentially allow at-risk patients to receive earlier treatment, significantly improving their chance of survival.

5 Oct 2012

RNA clue to MS disease course

Researchers say that the RNA profiles of peripheral blood mononuclear cells can identify two distinct subsets of patients with multiple sclerosis.

4 Oct 2012

New spontaneous genetic mutations play a significant role in schizophrenia

Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers have identified dozens of new spontaneous genetic mutations that play a significant role in the development of schizophrenia, adding to the growing list of genetic variants that can contribute to the disease.

4 Oct 2012

Lecture to discuss insights into genes and neurodegenerative diseases gleaned from baker's yeast

Insights into our genes and neurodegenerative diseases gleaned from humble baker's yeast, among other things, will be showcased by genetics experts at a free public lecture.

4 Oct 2012

Cellectis, Medicago complete first step in therapeutic protein research collaboration

Medicago Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing highly effective and competitive vaccines based on proprietary manufacturing technologies and Virus Like Particles, and Cellectis plant sciences, a US-based subsidiary of Cellectis Group, the specialist in genome engineering, today announced the successful completion of the first step in their research collaboration to improve therapeutic proteins produced in tobacco plants.

4 Oct 2012

Haploidentical bone marrow transplants for sickle cell disease: an interview with Dr. Javier Bolaños Meade

Bone marrow transplant (also called stem cell transplant) is a medical intervention that allows a physician to deliver very high doses of chemotherapy (if needed) but more importantly, deliver a new immune system to the patient to fight a disease (such as cancer).

3 Oct 2012

Pressure to be thin may be influenced by genes in some women

Genetics may make some women more vulnerable to the pressure of being thin, a study published in the International Journal of Eating Disorders has found. From size-zero models to airbrushed film stars, thinness is portrayed as equaling beauty across Western culture, and it's an ideal often cited as a cause of eating disorder symptoms in young women.

3 Oct 2012

New insights on mechanisms involved in regeneration of insulin-producing cells

Researchers at Cedars-Sinai's Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute have found that a blood vessel-building gene boosts the ability of human bone marrow stem cells to sustain pancreatic recovery in a laboratory mouse model of insulin-dependent diabetes.

3 Oct 2012