DNA News and Research

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DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is the hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms. Nearly every cell in a person’s body has the same DNA. Most DNA is located in the cell nucleus (where it is called nuclear DNA), but a small amount of DNA can also be found in the mitochondria (where it is called mitochondrial DNA or mtDNA).

Molecule stops DNA replication in its tracks

When a dividing cell duplicates its genetic material, a molecular machine called a sliding clamp travels along the DNA double helix, tethering the proteins that perform the replication.

19 Oct 2008

Discovery of earliest known cases of human tuberculosis in Neolithic village

The discovery of the earliest known cases of human tuberculosis (TB) in bones found submerged off the coast of Israel shows that the disease is 3000 years older than previously thought. Direct examination of this ancient DNA confirms the latest theory that bovine TB evolved later than human TB.

14 Oct 2008

Discovery of two novel gene locations that raise risk of type 1 diabetes

Genetics researchers have identified two novel gene locations that raise the risk of type 1 diabetes. As they continue to reveal pieces of the complicated genetic puzzle for this disease, the researchers expect to improve predictive tests and devise preventive strategies.

14 Oct 2008

Design of a compound that stabilizes the main natural suppressor of tumours

An interdisciplinary team of researchers, headed by Ernest Giralt at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) and Javier de Mendoza at the "Institut Catala d'Investigaciió Quimica" (ICIQ, Tarragona), have discovered a substance with the capacity to maintain protein p53 stable even when it presents certain mutations that promote the appearance of cancer.

14 Oct 2008

Ultrafast photodynamics of DNA

DNA, the molecule that acts as the carrier of genetic information in all forms of life, is highly resistant against alteration by ultraviolet light, but understanding the mechanism for its photostability presents some puzzling problems. A key aspect is the interaction between the four chemical bases that make up the DNA molecule.

12 Oct 2008

Landmark study unlocks stem cell, DNA secrets to speed therapies

In a groundbreaking study led by an eminent molecular biologist at Florida State University, researchers have discovered that as embryonic stem cells turn into different cell types, there are dramatic corresponding changes to the order in which DNA is replicated and reorganized.

12 Oct 2008

Body's built-in weapon against HIV explained

Humans have a built-in weapon against HIV, but until recently no one knew how to unlock its potential.

12 Oct 2008

Inherited disorders and copy number changes in human alpha-globin genes

A researcher from the University of Leicester has shed new light on the way genetic material is exchanged between chromosomes, the effect this 'aberrant exchange' has had on inherited disorders like thalassaemia (a form of anaemia), and its link with malaria.

12 Oct 2008

Research explores potential link between surname and Y chromosome type

Scientists at the world-leading Department of Genetics at the University of Leicester - where the revolutionary technique of genetic fingerprinting was invented by Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys- are developing techniques which may one day allow police to work out someone's surname from the DNA alone.

12 Oct 2008

Testicles may be a source of stem cells

A team of researchers from Britain and Germany have found that a man's testicles may be a source of stem cells.

12 Oct 2008

New non-invasive prenatal blood test for Down's syndrome, safer for the fetus

American researchers have created a prenatal blood test which can be used to determine if an unborn baby has Down's syndrome and the new test is safer for the fetus.

7 Oct 2008

Discovery of gene variant for cleft lip

About 20 percent of isolated cleft lip, one of the world's most common birth defects, may be due to a one-letter difference in the DNA sequence of a gene involved in facial development, researchers supported by the National Institutes of Health report.

6 Oct 2008

Improper cooking linked to 32 cases of Salmonella in the U.S.

Following another outbreak in the United States of salmonella, Americans have been warned to follow the cooking instruction on the labels of some prepared chicken products.

6 Oct 2008

Sea birds' DNA may hold keys to aging and cancer, Bucknell researcher says

Chances are, a mouse in the wild will live less than a year before stumbling upon a hungry falcon or feline.

5 Oct 2008

DNA of good bacteria drives intestinal response to infection

A new study shows that the DNA of so-called "good bacteria" that normally live in the intestines may help defend the body against infection.

2 Oct 2008

Statin-induced muscle disorders are focus of $2.5 million in grants from NIH

Approximately 200,000 of the 38 million people in the U.S. who take statins to treat high cholesterol may develop life-threatening muscle disease.

2 Oct 2008

Short RNAs show a long history

MicroRNAs, the tiny molecules that fine-tune gene expression, were first discovered in 1993. But it turns out they've been around for a billion years.

1 Oct 2008

Discovery of genetic link between obesity and colon cancer risk

A new study reveals the first-ever genetic link between obesity and colon cancer risk, a finding that could lead to greater accuracy in testing for the disease, said a researcher at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB).

30 Sep 2008

A DNA-based vaccine shows promise against avian flu

Though it has fallen from the headlines, a global pandemic caused by bird flu still has the United States' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on high alert. Yet, to date, the only vaccines that have proven even semi-effective are produced in chicken eggs, take five to six months to prepare and act against a single variant of the H5N1 virus, which mutates incredibly quickly.

30 Sep 2008