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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).

Study reveals the effects of pre-surgical chemotherapy on breast cancer genome

Results from one of the first studies to determine the effects of pre-surgical, or neoadjuvant, chemotherapy on the breast cancer genome offer up two key insights.

26 Feb 2020

New method to deliver an immune system 'uncloaking' device directly to cancer cells

Scientists at Johns Hopkins report they have designed and successfully tested an experimental, super small package able to deliver molecular signals that tag implanted human cancer cells in mice and make them visible for destruction by the animals' immune systems.

26 Feb 2020

New form of gene editing slows ALS progression in mice

With a new CRISPR gene-editing methodology, scientists from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign inactivated one of the genes responsible for an inherited form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis - a debilitating and fatal neurological disease for which there is no cure.

26 Feb 2020

King's researchers launch largest ever study into eating disorders

Researchers at King's College London have launched the largest ever study into eating disorders. Partnering with the National Institute for Health Research BioResource and the eating disorder charity Beat, they aim to recruit at least 10,000 people in England who have experienced an eating disorder at some point in their life to a pioneering new study that aims to unlock the secrets of eating disorders.

26 Feb 2020

New compound could improve the success rate of photodynamic therapy

PDT does not always kill cells deep within a cancerous tumor, allowing tumors to grow back again.

26 Feb 2020

Gene-editing is more error-prone than thought, new findings suggest

The standard gene-editing tool, CRISPR-Cas9, frequently produces a type of DNA mutation that ordinary genetic analysis misses, claims new research published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

26 Feb 2020

Cultural transition to agriculture linked with emergence of human-adapted pathogens

Using Salmonella enterica genomes recovered from human skeletons as old as 6,500 years, an international team of researchers illustrates the evolution of a human pathogen and provides the first ancient DNA evidence in support of the hypothesis that the cultural transition from foraging to farming facilitated the emergence of human-adapted pathogens that persist until today.

25 Feb 2020

Understanding the arms race between bacteria and viruses

University of Otago researchers have contributed to an international study which helps improve the understanding of bacteria and viruses.

25 Feb 2020

Promega introduces Wizard HMW DNA Extraction Kit ahead of AGBT 2020

Promega, a global biotechnology manufacturer, today launched its new Wizard HMW DNA Extraction Kit for researchers working with large fragments of genomic DNA.

From Promega Corporation 25 Feb 2020

Ancient DNA analysis provides insight into genetic history of Sardinia

A new study of the genetic history of Sardinia, a Mediterranean island off the western coast of Italy, tells how genetic ancestry on the island was relatively stable through the end of the Bronze Age, even as mainland Europe saw new ancestries arrive.

24 Feb 2020

Chromosomal imbalance in cancer cells can either promote or inhibit metastasis

Cancer cells are notorious for their genetic disarray. A tumor cell can contain an abundance of DNA mutations and most have the wrong number of chromosomes.

24 Feb 2020

DNA topological problems may cause lymphoma, study shows

Researchers from the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre, Madrid, and the Andalusian Molecular Biology and Regenerative Medicine Centre, Seville, published today a paper in Nature Communications that shows that DNA topological problems may cause endogenous DNA breaks that have a causal relationship with cancer.

24 Feb 2020

New way to chart human genome with CRISPR/nanopore sequencing technique

In search of new ways to sequence human genomes and read critical alterations in DNA, researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine say they have successfully used the gene cutting tool CRISPR to make cuts in DNA around lengthy tumor genes, which can be used to collect sequence information.

24 Feb 2020

Specific gut bacteria may predict development of pulmonary arterial hypertension

Researchers have identified a distinct collection of bacteria found in the gut that may contribute to and predict the development of pulmonary arterial hypertension, according to new research published today in the American Heart Association's journal Hypertension.

24 Feb 2020

IDT's new xGen Prism DNA Library Prep Kit launched

Integrated DNA Technologies, a leading comprehensive genomics solutions provider, has launched the xGen Prism DNA Library Prep Kit, designed to produce high-quality Next Generation Sequencing data from precious but challenging samples, assisting in the early detection of cancer mutations and other applications.

From Integrated DNA Technologies 24 Feb 2020

Switching what heart cells consume could help them regenerate

Switching what the powerhouses of heart cells consume for energy could help the heart regenerate when cells die, a new study led by UT Southwestern researchers suggests.

23 Feb 2020

Coriell researchers find new genetic indicator of obesity risk

Obesity is among the most common complex diseases in the United States and has been a stubborn public health challenge for decades. Its causes are wide ranging, but genetic heritability is increasingly understood to be an influential factor in determining a person's risk for the disease.

23 Feb 2020