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Researchers awarded funds to assess effects of omega-3 fatty acids on breast cancer development

Two researchers at Marshall University have been awarded federal funds totaling more than $1 million to assess the effects of omega-3 fatty acids on breast cancer development.

18 Sep 2010

Two genes linked to ovarian clear cell carcinoma

Scientists at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center have identified two genes whose mutations appear to be linked to ovarian clear cell carcinoma, one of the most aggressive forms of ovarian cancer. Clear cell carcinoma is generally resistant to standard therapy.

9 Sep 2010

Further evidence on adverse effects of smoking on fertility

Two new studies have shed more light on how smoking may damage fertility, and give further weight to advice that mothers and fathers-to-be should stop smoking before attempting to conceive. The research is published online in the reproductive medicine journal Human Reproduction today (Wednesday 8 September).

8 Sep 2010

Research finds adenovirus impact on cell's suicide program pave way for new cancer therapy

A novel mechanism used by adenovirus to sidestep the cell's suicide program, could go a long way to explain how tumor suppressor genes are silenced in tumor cells and pave the way for a new type of targeted cancer therapy, report researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in the Aug. 26, 2010 issue of Nature.

26 Aug 2010

Researchers identify molecular signals that impact male fertility: Research

Male infertility is a common medical problem, affecting millions of men in the United States annually. Its causes include an inability to make productive sperm. Now, using yeast as a model organism, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine are beginning to identify the molecular signals that could in part underlie that problem.

25 Aug 2010

Researchers discover genetic alterations responsible for Kabuki syndrome

Using a new, rapid and less expensive DNA sequencing strategy, scientists have discovered genetic alterations that account for most cases of Kabuki syndrome, a rare disorder that causes multiple birth defects and mental retardation. Instead of sequencing the entire human genome, the new approach sequences just the exome, the 1-2 percent of the human genome that contains protein-coding genes.

16 Aug 2010

Researchers reprogram human embryonic stem cells to iPS cells for use in regenerative medicine

Human embryonic stem (ES) cells and adult cells reprogrammed to an embryonic stem cell-like state-so-called induced pluripotent stem or iPS cells-exhibit very few differences in their gene expression signatures and are nearly indistinguishable in their chromatin state, according to Whitehead Institute researchers.The pluripotency of ES cells fueled excitement over their use in regenerative medicine. While ethical hurdles associated with the clinical application of human ES cells appeared to have been overcome with the development of methods to create iPS cells, some recent research has suggested that ES and iPS cells have substantial differences in which sets of genes they express.

6 Aug 2010

Exposure of mBM-MSCs to VPA increases hepatic differentiation

Recent studies suggest that MSCs possess a greater differentiation potential than once thought and several hepatic differentiation protocols from bone marrow cells have been established. However, the incidence of bone marrow-derived hepatocytes was low. Moreover, a long culture period is needed in most cases.

31 Jul 2010

AMPK may regulate epigenetic mechanism: Research

AMP-activated protein kinase, or AMPK, is a master regulator protein of metabolism that is conserved from yeast to humans. When a cell is low on fuel, AMPK shuts down processes that use energy and turns on processes that produce energy.Biologists have been studying how AMPK works for several decades and know that once it is activated, AMPK turns on a large number of genes by passing the "make more energy" message through numerous signaling cascades in the cell. What was not known, until now, was that AMPK also works via an epigenetic mechanism to slow down or stop cell growth.

17 Jul 2010

Subtle mutation affecting epigenome may lead to inherited form of mental retardation: Researchers

A subtle mutation affecting the epigenome –- a set of dynamic factors that influence gene activity -- may lead to an inherited form of mental retardation that affects boys, find researchers at Children's Hospital Boston. The disorder, which also involves cleft lip or cleft palate, appears to hinge on an enzyme working in a biological pathway that may offer several potential drug targets.

12 Jul 2010

New breakthrough in stem cell and tissue engineering

The mechanism by which 'polycomb' proteins critical for embyronic stem cell function and fate are targeted to DNA has been identified by UCL scientists.

14 Jun 2010

Detailed analysis of epigenetics of Wilms tumor reveals similarities to stem cells

A detailed analysis of the epigenetics - factors controlling when and in what tissues genes are expressed - of Wilms tumor reveals striking similarities to stem cells normally found in fetal kidneys. These findings by Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center researchers have revealed new cellular pathways that are critical for Wilms tumor development and may also apply to other pediatric cancers.

4 Jun 2010

Constellation Pharmaceuticals raises $22 million in Series B financing round

Constellation Pharmaceuticals, Inc., the leading biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing new drugs targeting epigenetic regulation of the human genome, today announced that it has raised $22 million in a Series B financing round.

2 Jun 2010

DFG approves establishment of twelve new CRCs

The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft has approved the establishment of twelve new Collaborative Research Centres beginning 1 July 2010. This was decided by the responsible Grants Committee at its spring meeting in Bonn. The new CRCs will initially be funded for four years with a total of 112 million euros (including a 20% programme allowance for indirect project costs).

29 May 2010

Sanford-Burnham Scientific Symposium provides wealth of information on microRNAs, RNAi

Investigators from around the country came to Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) on Friday, May 7, to share their knowledge of the burgeoning young field of microRNAs. These small non-coding nucleic acids turn off proteins and have been implicated in viral infection, cancer, cardiovascular disease, HIV and numerous other conditions.

12 May 2010

Researchers investigate aberrant expression of nuclear matrix proteins in gastric cancer cells

Gastric cancer is the most common malignant gastrointestinal cancer and accounts for 25% of cancer deaths. Nuclear matrix, a filamentous protein framework for eukaryotic cellular chromatin, closely relates to DNA duplication and transcription. Research on nuclear matrix proteins will provide insight into how tumors developed.

7 May 2010

The emerging science of epigenetics

Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) possess remarkable properties of self-renewal and pluripotency, the ability to become almost any kind of cell within the body. And yet they share the same genome or set of genes with lineage-committed cells, cells fated to be or do one thing.

7 May 2010

NIH awards CSU biochemists $7.8M grant to study gene regulation within cells

A team of top biochemists at Colorado State University will investigate how chromosomes untangle to expose genes that dictate cell behavior - a unique project that could have a significant impact on understanding human health.

5 May 2010

Deficiency of frataxin protein causes Friedreich's ataxia

The defective gene responsible for Friedreich's ataxia was identified over 20 years ago, but so far our ideas of how this gene causes the disease have been merely speculative. It was assumed that, as a result of the mutation, the gene could no longer be transcribed because this stretch of DNA was inaccessible. FMI Group Leader Marc Bühler and his team have now carried out experiments demonstrating that this is not the case and revealing what actually happens in Friedreich's ataxia.

4 May 2010

Genomic component playing key role in promoting breast cancer progression discovered

Life Technologies Corporation today announced that its scientists have teamed with researchers from Stanford University School of Medicine, and other institutions to discover a genomic component that plays a key role in promoting breast cancer progression. A study published today in the journal Nature details how levels of a specific kind of non-coding RNA molecule in primary breast tumors regulate metastasis and tumor invasiveness and may be an important target for cancer diagnosis and therapy.

15 Apr 2010