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Bacteria share genes with one another, even across tissue boundaries

Bacteria in the human body are sharing genes with one another at a higher rate than is typically seen in nature, and some of those genes appear to be traveling - independent of their microbial hosts - from one part of the body to another, researchers report in the journal Scientific Reports.

11 Apr 2019

Active lifestyle influences regenerative capacity of neurons after spinal cord injury

The influence of an active lifestyle on the regenerative capacity of the peripheral nervous system, that is, the set of cranial and spinal nerves that control motor and sensory functions, is described here for the first time, explains Ángel Barco, who has led the participation of the Institute of Neurosciences UMH-CSIC, in Alicante, in this international study.

11 Apr 2019

Scientists develop new CRISPR-based 'allelic drive'

New CRISPR-based gene drives and broader active genetics technologies are revolutionizing the way scientists engineer the transfer of specific traits from one generation to another.

10 Apr 2019

Study provides new insights into genetic factors underlying facial beauty

Genes play a role in determining the beauty of a person’s face, but that role varies with the person’s sex, according to a new study by Qiongshi Lu and colleagues at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, published 4th April in PLOS Genetics.

5 Apr 2019

New Research Unit funded by DFG aims to improve diagnosis of genetic diseases

How can we improve the identification and prompt diagnosis of genetic diseases? A new Research Unit at Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin will set out to identify and reliably interpret important non-coding sections of our genomes in the hope of finding the diagnosis for unsolved diseases.

5 Apr 2019

New genetic information behind urogenital track anomalies uncovered

About one in every 100 babies is born with some kind of developmental anomaly in the urogenital tract. In most cases abnormalities are mild, but sometimes life-long and even life-threatening disease develops.

4 Apr 2019

Study finds cellular protein as a 'gas pump attendant' of cancer development

The cells which make up our body vary significantly. A liver cell does not look like a muscle cell and each has a unique function. This is because liver cells produce the proteins that characterize them, and muscle cells do the same.

1 Apr 2019

ETH researchers take major step towards personalized cancer immunotherapy

Cells belonging to the body's own immune system can help fight tumours. For several years now, this has allowed oncologists to use medications known as checkpoint inhibitors to encourage T cells to eliminate tumor cells.

30 Mar 2019

New Hasso Plattner Institute for Digital Health launched at Mount Sinai

The Mount Sinai Health System and the Hasso Plattner Institute today announced an affiliation that brings together industry leaders with combined expertise in health care delivery, health sciences, biomedical and digital engineering, machine learning and artificial intelligence to rapidly develop digital health products with real-time predictive and preventive capabilities that empower patients and health care providers, and improve health and health outcomes.

29 Mar 2019

People born with short telomeres found to have short-lived immune system cells

Scientists at Johns Hopkins say they have found that people born with abnormally short chromosome endcaps, or telomeres, have immune system cells that age and die prematurely.

27 Mar 2019

New computer program developed by TGen lights up cancer-causing genetic mutations

By conjuring the spell "Lumos!" wizards in the mythical world of Harry Potter could light up the tip of their magic wands and illuminate their surroundings. So, too, does LumosVar, a computer program developed by the Translational Genomics Research Institute, "light up" cancer-causing genetic Var-ients, or mutations, illuminating how physicians might best treat their patients.

21 Mar 2019

Researchers use big data to gain better understanding of hepatitis E virus

As far as research is concerned, hepatitis E had long led a shadowy existence - even though it is the main cause for acute viral inflammation of the liver.

18 Mar 2019

Scientists create process for classifying neurons in mouse brain

It's been estimated that the human brain contains roughly 100 billion neurons, together completing countless tasks through countless connections.

14 Mar 2019

Access to real-time genotype data influences prescriber behavior after PCI

Today, in a late-breaking featured clinical research session at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Sessions 2018, researchers from Penn Medicine present first-of-its-kind data on the impact of real-time CYP2C19 genotype results when prescribing antiplatelet drugs in the clinic.

13 Mar 2019

23andMe to predict risk of diabetes from genetic makeup

DNA testing company 23andMe will soon release a DNA test that can predict an individuals' risk of developing type 2 diabetes, but many experts are concerned.

12 Mar 2019

Researchers develop statistical approach to reveal elusive cancer-promoting genes

Australian and US researchers have developed a way to discover elusive cancer-promoting genes, and have already identified one that appears to promote aggressive breast cancers.

11 Mar 2019

Causes of disease including infant cancer can be revealed with new tool from Princeton University research team

Machine learning is being used to gain insight into the causes of hundreds of diseases, with Princeton University researchers discovering four specific genes that contribute to infant cancer.

4 Mar 2019

Scientists shed light on the history of Zika virus in Thailand

The circulation of the dengue virus for the past sixty years in South-East Asia is relatively well known. For Zika, the situation is much less clear.

28 Feb 2019

Researchers are developing and testing novel gene therapy to cure Crigler-Najjar syndrome

Crigler-Najjar syndrome affects about one in a million people at birth. Because of a defective gene, these individuals lack an essential enzyme in their liver to eliminate bilirubin, a toxic bile pigment that accumulates in all body tissues causing jaundice and potentially leading to irreversible and lethal neurological damage.

28 Feb 2019

Scientists identify how cells make choice between various mechanisms to repair DNA

When DNA in the cell nucleus gets damaged, our cells can resort to a variety of repair mechanisms. A recent study published in 'Nature Cell Biology', to which scientists from Helmholtz Zentrum Muenchen made major contributions, elucidates the molecular basis by which a cell makes the choice between these repair mechanisms.

28 Feb 2019