Genetic News and Research

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Four microRNAs appear to play critical roles in controlling cholesterol, triglyceride metabolism

Four tiny segments of RNA appear to play critical roles in controlling cholesterol and triglyceride metabolism. In their report receiving advance online publication in Nature Medicine, a Massachusetts General Hospital-based research team describes finding how these microRNAs could reduce the expression of proteins playing key roles in the generation of beneficial HDL cholesterol, the disposal of artery-clogging LDL cholesterol, control of triglyceride levels and other risk factors of cardiovascular disease.

27 Oct 2015

Scientists decode central signal switch associated with epileptic seizures

Scientists at the University of Bonn and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Israel) have decoded a central signal cascade associated with epileptic seizures. If the researchers blocked a central switch in epileptic mice, the frequency and severity of the seizures decreased. Using a novel technology, it was possible to observe the processes prior to the occurrence of epileptic seizures in living animals.

27 Oct 2015

Genetic discovery sheds light on how prostate cancer develops and spreads

A new and important genetic discovery, which sheds light on how prostate cancers develop and spread, has been made by an international research team led by scientists at The University of Nottingham.

27 Oct 2015

UTMB researchers find mechanisms to determine when pregnant women go into labor

During the last few weeks of a woman's pregnancy, many keep an overnight bag ready to go at a moment's notice in case they begin to go into labor. They do this because there is no clear signal that labor is about to begin - before the body makes it abundantly clear that this process has started. Understanding the mechanisms that initiate this process is especially important when treating women at risk of going into labor early.

27 Oct 2015

New drug combination may be effective against malignant melanoma

A team of Massachusetts General Hospital investigators has discovered a new combination of drugs that may be effective against one of the deadliest cancers, malignant melanoma. The combination - pairing a drug targeted against mutations in the BRAF gene with a second drug that targets another important signaling pathway - was discovered through one of the largest screens of cancer drug combinations conducted to date.

27 Oct 2015

Patients with treatment-resistant autoimmune blood conditions may benefit from sirolimus

The immunosuppressant sirolimus is an effective and safe steroid-sparing therapy for children and young adults with highly treatment-resistant autoimmune blood conditions, according to a study published online today in Blood, the Journal of the American Society of Hematology.

27 Oct 2015

Advanced pancreatic cancer patients now have access to new FDA-approved drug, Onivyde

Patients with advanced pancreatic cancer now have access to the new FDA approved drug, Onivyde, that produced significant overall survival rates in an international clinical study conducted in part by researchers at HonorHealth Research Institute and the Translational Genomics Research Institute.

27 Oct 2015

Scalable production of gene therapy vectors: an interview with Frank Ubags

Gene therapy involves introducing genetic material into cells to replace missing or malfunctioning genes or to add a gene to express a beneficial protein in order to treat certain diseases, such as cancer or inherited disorders.

26 Oct 2015

UW researchers develop new model to more accurately predict harmful genetic mutations

Between any two people, there are likely to be at least 10 million differences in the genetic sequence that makes up their DNA.

26 Oct 2015

Study: Blackouts, near drownings linked to sudden death risk

The annual congress of the South African Heart Association is being held in Rustenburg from Oct. 25-28, 2015. Experts from the European Society of Cardiology will present a special programme.

26 Oct 2015

New study shows involvement of cKit-expressing progenitors in heart muscle cell formation

A new study from the Interdisciplinary Stem Cell Institute at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine demonstrates the involvement of cKit-expressing progenitors in the formation of cardiomyocytes – heart muscle cells. The findings help resolve a long-standing controversy regarding the role of cKit in the heart.

26 Oct 2015

First computational method based on evolutionary principles developed to predict protein dynamics

Researchers from the Structural Biology Computational Group of the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre, led by Alfonso Valencia, in collaboration with a group headed by Francesco Gervasio at the University College London (UK), have developed the first computational method based on evolutionary principles to predict protein dynamics, which explains the changes in the shape or dimensional structure that they experience in order to interact with other compounds or speed up chemical reactions.

26 Oct 2015

Strensiq approved for treatment of patients with juvenile-onset HPP

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Strensiq (asfotase alfa) as the first approved treatment for perinatal, infantile and juvenile-onset hypophosphatasia (HPP).

24 Oct 2015

Plague endemic in man since early Bronze Age, but has not always been flea-borne

A recent analysis of ancient DNA has revealed that the plaque had been endemic in humans for at least 3000 years before the first global outbreak on record (the Plague of Justinian in 541 AD). Furthermore, the disease was not always transmitted by fleas, with mutation to the bubonic form only occurring around the start of the 1st millennium BC.

23 Oct 2015

New joint initiative to explore clinical interpretation of molecular tests for cancers

A new conference helping doctors navigate one of the most important scientific questions faced by the cancer community could help improve survival rates for patients.

23 Oct 2015

Stem cell biology and gene-editing techniques offer hope for kidney regeneration

Mini-kidney organoids have now been grown in a laboratory by using genome editing to re-create human kidney disease in petri dishes.

23 Oct 2015

Discovery may lead to development of cell-based regenerative therapy to restore thyroid function

A discovery made by investigators from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and the Boston University School of Medicine may help lead to the development of a cell-based regenerative therapy which could be used to restore thyroid function in patients with cancer who have had their thyroids surgically removed and children born with congenital hypothyroidism.

23 Oct 2015

Potential new drug target for acute myeloid leukemia

New treatment options are badly needed for acute myeloid leukemia, a relatively rare form of cancer. The malignancy begins in the bone marrow, and from there can spread rapidly to the bloodstream, depriving the body of the essential blood cells that carry oxygen and fight infections.

23 Oct 2015

Researchers reveal why malaria vaccine provides only moderate protection among vaccinated children

Using new, highly sensitive genomic sequencing technology, an international team of researchers has found new biological evidence to help explain why the malaria vaccine candidate RTS,S/AS01 (called RTS,S) provided only moderate protection among vaccinated children during clinical testing.

23 Oct 2015

New drug delivery method could be used to target cancer, tuberculosis

Scientists have designed a novel method for improving the delivery of therapeutic molecules into diseased cells such as those found in cancer and tuberculosis.

23 Oct 2015

Genetic News and Research

Four microRNAs appear to play critical roles in controlling cholesterol, triglyceride metabolism

Scientists decode central signal switch associated with epileptic seizures

Genetic discovery sheds light on how prostate cancer develops and spreads

UTMB researchers find mechanisms to determine when pregnant women go into labor

New drug combination may be effective against malignant melanoma

Patients with treatment-resistant autoimmune blood conditions may benefit from sirolimus

Advanced pancreatic cancer patients now have access to new FDA-approved drug, Onivyde

Scalable production of gene therapy vectors: an interview with Frank Ubags

UW researchers develop new model to more accurately predict harmful genetic mutations

Study: Blackouts, near drownings linked to sudden death risk

New study shows involvement of cKit-expressing progenitors in heart muscle cell formation

First computational method based on evolutionary principles developed to predict protein dynamics

Strensiq approved for treatment of patients with juvenile-onset HPP

Plague endemic in man since early Bronze Age, but has not always been flea-borne

New joint initiative to explore clinical interpretation of molecular tests for cancers

Stem cell biology and gene-editing techniques offer hope for kidney regeneration

Discovery may lead to development of cell-based regenerative therapy to restore thyroid function

Potential new drug target for acute myeloid leukemia

Researchers reveal why malaria vaccine provides only moderate protection among vaccinated children

New drug delivery method could be used to target cancer, tuberculosis

eBook: Using iPSCs models for human disease research and drug discovery eBook

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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