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SLU professor to investigate natural history and progression of Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency

Jeffrey Teckman, M.D., professor of pediatrics and biochemistry and molecular biology at Saint Louis University, has received a $1.4 million grant from the Alpha-1 Foundation to investigate the natural history and progression of Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency, an inherited disease that can cause liver damage in children as well as adults.

4 Oct 2012

Scientists use new communications, research technologies to quickly identify, contain microbes

Since the outbreak of what became known as SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, 10 years ago, scientists have been quick to identify and contain new viruses, which they attribute to improved communication among researchers and from the general public, NPR's "Shots" blog reports.

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

Rare study highlights anal cancer prognosis risks

The presence of palpable, clinically involved inguinal lymph nodes and male gender are both independent risk factors for poor prognosis in anal cancer, confirm the results of a UK analysis.

3 Oct 2012

NF1 gene mutations cause noninheritable or spontaneous breast cancers

Cancerous tumors contain hundreds of mutations, and finding these mutations that result in uncontrollable cell growth is like finding the proverbial needle in a haystack. As difficult as this task is, it's exactly what a team of scientists from Cornell University, the University of North Carolina, and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York have done for one type of breast 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

‘Hygiene hypothesis’ updated to ‘Old Friends’ hypothesis

A new scientific report out today from the International Scientific Forum on Home Hygiene (IFH) dismantles the myth that the epidemic rise in allergies in recent years has happened because we’re living in sterile homes and overdoing hygiene.

3 Oct 2012

Study identifies epigenetic changes that occur in adult stem cells to generate different body tissues

The team led by Manel Esteller, director of the Cancer Epigenetics and Biology Program in the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), Professor of Genetics at the University of Barcelona and ICREA researcher, has identified epigenetic changes that occur in adult stem cells to generate different body tissues. The finding is published this week in The American Journal of Pathology.

3 Oct 2012

Genetics may make some women more vulnerable to the pressure of being thin

Genetics may make some women more vulnerable to the pressure of being thin, a study led by Michigan State University researchers has found.

3 Oct 2012

Biologists combine laser cutting technology with modern sequencing to analyze gene activity in fungi

With a combination of microscopic laser scissors and modern sequencing methods, biologists at the Ruhr-Universit-t have analyzed the activity of genes in the entire genome of certain fungi in one fell swoop.

3 Oct 2012

Experimental stem cell treatment improves vision in blind mice

An experimental treatment for blindness, developed from a patient's skin cells, improved the vision of blind mice in a study conducted by Columbia ophthalmologists and stem cell researchers.

3 Oct 2012

Biomarkers can increase success rate of clinical trials for breast cancer drugs by almost 50%

Using biological markers--genetic characteristics that are associated with some patients with breast cancer--can increase the success rate of clinical trials for breast cancer drugs by almost 50 per cent, says new research from the University of Toronto Mississauga.

3 Oct 2012

Genetics, trauma independently influence subthreshold psychosis

Study findings published in Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica confirm that both genetics and environmental factors such as trauma independently influence the development and persistence of subthreshold psychotic symptoms.

2 Oct 2012

Zinc deficiency mechanism associated with many health problems, aging

A new study has outlined for the first time a biological mechanism by which zinc deficiency can develop with age, leading to a decline of the immune system and increased inflammation associated with many health problems, including cancer, heart disease, autoimmune disease and diabetes.

2 Oct 2012