Genes News and Research

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Gene linked to kidney cancer in children discovered

Cancer Research UK-funded scientists have identified two genes linked to Wilms' tumour - a type of childhood kidney cancer - according to research published in Clinical Cancer Research.

2 Apr 2010

Scientists create genetic map to identify mechanism behind heart abnormalities

Though heart disease is a major cause of disability and death, very little is understood about its genetic underpinnings. Recently, an international team of investigators at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (IMBA), Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) and other organizations shed new light on the subject.

2 Apr 2010

Brain stem cells in subventricular zone characterized by transcription factor Protein Tlx

The "cradle" of new neurons in the adult brain is well known. It is what is called the subventricular zone, a tissue structure lining the lateral ventricles. This is where neural or brain stem cells reside, which are responsible for generating new neurons if needed. For many years now, the subventricular zone has been suspected to be the origin of specific malignant brain tumors called gliomas, the most deadly type of which is glioblastoma.

2 Apr 2010

New clues into genomic complexity of Mimivirus

A study published online today in the journal Genome Research offers surprising new clues into the genomic complexity of the giant Mimivirus, the largest known virus in the world. Previous studies have shown that unlike most viruses, the Mimivirus has more genes than many bacteria and performs functions that normally occur only in cellular organisms.

2 Apr 2010

Biotech reports record financial results for 2010 first quarter

Biotech racked up impressive gains for both the month of March and the first quarter of 2010. The Burrill Biotech Select Index posted a 3.7 percent jump in value in March and an 8 percent overall gain for Q1 '10.

2 Apr 2010

Researchers identify link between genetic mutation and schizophrenia

In what may provide the most compelling evidence to date, researchers at Columbia University Medical Center have illuminated how a genetic variant may lead to schizophrenia by causing a disruption in communication between the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex regions of the brain, areas believed to be responsible for carrying out working memory.

2 Apr 2010

Mouse study indicates rapamycin drug prevents Alzheimer's disease, extends lifespan

If research results continue to be repeated and are turned into clinical trials, a drug already approved for some uses could be marshaled - sooner than we expect - to prevent Alzheimer's disease in humans and improve health to the end of life.

2 Apr 2010

Genes improperly granted patents

Some time mid last year six breast cancer patients sued reputed Myriad Genetics, a company that holds patent of two vital genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 that play a role in increasing the risk of breast and ovarian cancers. The fees that the company charges for these genetic tests is a whopping $3,000 which these women claim they cannot afford and the most important of all these women cannot get a second opinion regarding the tests since no one else does them.

1 Apr 2010

Genetic risk factor for schizophrenia can disrupt connectivity at level of single neurons

The strongest known recurrent genetic cause of schizophrenia impairs communications between the brain's decision-making and memory hubs, resulting in working memory deficits, according to a study in mice.

1 Apr 2010

Mtb fine-tunes behaviour to escape detection and causes TB

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) possesses extraordinary survival ability by masking itself from the host immune system and persisting for decades inside the host. Speaking at the Society for General Microbiology's spring meeting in Edinburgh today, Dr Kristine Arnvig provides further insight into how the bacterium causes tuberculosis (TB) by fine-tuning its behaviour in response to its surroundings to escape detection.

1 Apr 2010

Bile secretions in small intestine send signals to disease-causing gut bacteria

Bile secretions in the small intestine send signals to disease-causing gut bacteria allowing them to change their behavior to maximize their chances of surviving, Montana State University research associate Steve Hamner told the Society for General Microbiology during its spring meeting in Edinburgh, Scotland.

1 Apr 2010

Court rules against gene patents

The New York Times: A judicial ruling that "threw out parts of two gene patents and called into question thousands more" has biotechnology executives hastening "to reassure their investors that the ruling would not necessarily undermine their businesses, at least in the short run. But the executives themselves were struggling on Tuesday to figure out what the long-term impact would be."

1 Apr 2010

EMBL scientists identify genes involved in human cell division

Name a human gene, and you'll find a movie online showing you what happens to cells when it is switched off. This is the resource that researchers at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany, and their collaborators in the Mitocheck consortium are making freely available, as the result of a study in which they have identified the genes involved in mitosis - the most common form of cell division - in humans.

1 Apr 2010

Feinstein Institute scientists seek sisters for lupus study

The SisSLE (Sisters of Women with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus) research study is looking for sisters: one with a diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), an autoimmune disease and one (or more) who does not have lupus.

31 Mar 2010

Plant-based system could help improve lives of hemophilic patients

Hemophilia, a disease linked with legends of European monarchs, frail heirs and one flamboyant charlatan called Rasputin, still afflicts many people today.

31 Mar 2010

New clues may help explain why some people are more susceptible to stress than others

UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have found new clues that might help explain why some people are more susceptible to stress than others.

31 Mar 2010

AAN awards 2010 Dreifuss-Penry Epilepsy Award to Vanderbilt University School of Medicine researcher

The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) is awarding the 2010 Dreifuss-Penry Epilepsy Award to Martin J. Gallagher MD, PhD, with Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. Gallagher will receive the award during the AAN's 62nd Annual Meeting in Toronto, held April 10 through April 17, 2010.

31 Mar 2010

2010 John Dystel Prize for Multiple Sclerosis Research awarded to Yale University researcher

The American Academy of Neurology is awarding the 2010 John Dystel Prize for Multiple Sclerosis Research to David A. Hafler, MD, with Yale University. Hafler will receive the award during the AAN's 62nd Annual Meeting in Toronto, held April 10 through April 17, 2010.

31 Mar 2010

Drinking orange juice with fast-food meal may help prevent vascular inflammation

Eating foods containing flavonoids -- orange juice, in this case -- along with a high-fat, high-carbohydrate fast-food meal neutralizes the oxidative and inflammatory stress generated by the unhealthy food and helps prevent blood vessel damage, a new study by University at Buffalo endocrinologists shows.

31 Mar 2010

Judge throws out human gene patents linked to cancers

The New York Times: A federal judge Monday threw out two patents on human genes that are linked to breast and ovarian cancer. "The decision, if upheld, could throw into doubt the patents covering thousands of human genes and reshape the law of intellectual property."

31 Mar 2010