Genetic News and Research

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Researchers find novel use for old compound in cancer treatment

The compound, alpha-difluoromethylornithine or DFMO, targets the activity of a specific enzyme and, even in very limited doses, is effective in protecting against the malignancy in animal models.

19 Jan 2009

FDA issues final guidance on genetically engineered animal regulation

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a final guidance for industry on the regulation of genetically engineered (GE) animals under the new animal drug provisions of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA).

19 Jan 2009

DREAM gene found to be a genetic candidate for explaining old age dementia

In 2002, a group of scientists at the University of Toronto was able to identify a gene which they dubbed DREAM (downstream regulatory element antagonistic modulator).

19 Jan 2009

Genetic variations in DNA repair patterns may increase risk of pancreatic cancer

Genetic variations in DNA repair patterns may increase risk of pancreatic cancer by as much as threefold or decrease it by as much as 77 percent, depending on the genes involved, according to a report published in the January 15, 2009, issue of Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

19 Jan 2009

Defects in critical DNA repair genes may predict pancreatic cancer risk

Abnormalities in genes that repair mistakes in DNA replication may help identify people who are at high risk of developing pancreatic cancer, a research team from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center reports in the Jan. 15 issue of Clinical Cancer Research .

19 Jan 2009

FDA approves RiaSTAP for bleeding in patients with congenital fibrinogen deficiency

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has licensed RiaSTAP, an orphan drug for the treatment of bleeding in patients with a rare genetic defect known as congenital fibrinogen deficiency. Without treatment, these patients are at risk of potentially life-threatening bleeding.

18 Jan 2009

Domain duplication, divergence, and loss events in vertebrate Msx paralogs reveal phylogenomically informed disease markers

The work of Forsyth scientist Peter Jezewski, DDS, Ph.D., has revealed that duplication and diversification of protein regions ('modules') within ancient master control genes is key to the understanding of certain birth disorders.

15 Jan 2009

New drug shows promise for phenylketonuria

PKU is described by scientists as an autosomal recessive genetic disease that is characterized by a deficiency in an enzyme called phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH).

15 Jan 2009

Scientists explain genetic disease first discovered in Quebec 24 years ago

Scientists at the MUHC and McGill University have identified a gene essential for the uptake of vitamin B12 in human cells.

15 Jan 2009

Genetic variation cues social anxiety in monkeys and humans

A genetic variation involving the brain chemical serotonin has been found to shape the social behavior of rhesus macaque monkeys, which could provide researchers with a new model for studying autism, social anxiety and schizophrenia.

15 Jan 2009

Discovery of link between genetic defect on chromosome 15 and epilepsy

In a research published in the advanced online publication of the scientific magazine Nature Genetics, researchers have identified a genetic defect for common epilepsies on chromosome 15.

15 Jan 2009

Strong relationship between our health as adults and our early diet

If you have trouble keeping weight off and you're wondering why - the surprising answer may well be the cheeseburgers you ate - when you were a toddler.

15 Jan 2009

Variations in mismatch repair genes predict prognosis in pancreatic cancer

Variations in mismatch repair genes can help predict treatment response and prognosis in patients with pancreatic cancer, according to research from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center presented today in advance of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium.

13 Jan 2009

Natural 'defence' gene reveals how oestrogen fuels cancer

CANCER RESEARCH UK scientists have shown for the first time how a natural 'defence' gene involved in fighting infections such as common colds, can be triggered by hormones to ignite and drive cancers like breast, ovarian, and possibly prostate cancer. Their findings are published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine.

13 Jan 2009

Scientists unlock secret to overeating

CANCER RESEARCH UK scientists have found new evidence that the tendency to overeat could be genetic according to research published in the International Journal of Obesity.

13 Jan 2009

Discovery of first gender-linked susceptibility gene for late-onset Alzheimer's disease

In the Jan. 11 online edition of Nature Genetics, they report the results of their two-stage genome-wide association study of patients with Alzheimer's disease. The research showed that women who inherited two copies of a variant in the PCDH11X gene, found on the X chromosome, are at considerably greater risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

12 Jan 2009

Researchers find molecular origin of blood stem cells

A research team led by Nancy Speck, PhD, Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, has identified the location and developmental timeline in which a majority of bone marrow stem cells form in the mouse embryo.

12 Jan 2009