Embryonic Development News and Research

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Embryonic development or embryogenesis is the process by which the embryo is formed and develops. It starts with the fertilization of the ovum, egg, which, after fertilization, is then called a zygote. The zygote undergoes rapid mitotic divisions, the formation of two exact genetic replicates of the original cell, with no significant growth (a process known as cleavage) and cellular differentiation, leading to development of an embryo.

Research sheds light on prenatal heart formation, chromosome 22q.11 deletion syndrome

Researchers studying the common genetic disorder chromosome 22q.11 deletion syndrome have identified key proteins that act together to regulate early embryonic development. One protein is essential to life; in animal studies, embryos without the protein do not survive past the first few days of gestation.

13 May 2010

DNA sequence of amphibian genome sheds light on the study of embryonic development

A pair of University of Houston researchers contributed to the assembly of the first comprehensive DNA sequence of an amphibian genome, which will shed light on the study of embryonic development, with implications for preventing birth defects and more effectively treating many human diseases.

7 May 2010

Scientists discover key molecular mechanism in breast cancer metastasis

Scientists at the University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center have identified a key molecular mechanism in breast cancer that enables tumor cells to spread to adjacent or distant parts of the body in a process called metastasis.

5 May 2010

Small piece of RNA plays big role in development of IPF: Researchers

A small piece of RNA appears to play a big role in the development of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), according to lung disease researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Their study, which is the first to examine microRNAs in the disease, is available online in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

29 Apr 2010

Advances in understanding of cardiac-specific genes in heart development

Researchers at the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital (THI at St. Luke's) announced today the results of research which they believe marks a significant advance in understanding how cardiac-specific genes are turned on during the development of the heart in mice embryos.

23 Apr 2010

Potential mate's signal activates molecular switch

A mystery about the mechanism behind sexual mate selection has been resolved. According to a new study published in the journal Nature, Universit- de Montr-al researchers have discovered a molecular switch that becomes activated in response to a potential mate's signal. Simply put, an organism knows that a potential mate is close-by and healthy enough to mate.

19 Apr 2010

New insights into yeast cells may help identify cancer cells and stem cells development: Study

Yeast cells decide whether to have sex with each other within two minutes of meeting, according to new research published today in Nature. One of the authors of the study, from Imperial College London, says the new insights into how yeast cells decide to mate could be helpful for researchers looking at how cancer cells and stem cells develop.

19 Apr 2010

Researchers develop new mouse model of VUR to study chronic kidney disease in children

Kidney damage associated with chronic reflux is the fourth leading cause of chronic kidney disease and is the most common cause of severe hypertension in children. Doctors and researchers at Nationwide Children's Hospital have developed a new mouse model of vesicoureteral reflux, a common childhood condition that can lead to chronic kidney disease in children.

7 Apr 2010

Cook Medical's new IVF culture-oil purification process reduces contaminant trace to below detectable limits

A new purification process developed by Cook Medical for culture oil used in assisted reproduction eliminates traces of contaminants below detectable limits of 0.1 parts per million. The oil is purified by a proprietary refining technique that removes hydrocarbon impurities, which can have adverse effects on fertilization and threaten the viability of the developing embryos. The culture oil viscosity, MEA and LAL parameters remain unchanged.

27 Mar 2010

Turning microRNAs into novel drugs

Researchers around the globe are working on turning microRNAs, over 5,000 of which already have been identified, into novel drugs for a wide range of applications, reports Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN). These noncoding single-stranded RNAs act through binding to complementary mRNA sequences, thus preventing their translation into protein or accelerating mRNA breakdown, according to the March 15 issue of GEN.

20 Mar 2010

Comparison study of genetic tests for ASD finds CMA with highest detection rate

The Autism Consortium, an innovative research, clinical and family collaboration dedicated to catalyzing research and enhancing clinical care for families with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), announced today that the results of its comparison study of genetic testing methods for autism spectrum disorders is available from the journal Pediatrics through early online release in their eFirst pages today and will appear in the journal's April issue.

15 Mar 2010

ATS releases new clinical policy statement on CCHS

The American Thoracic Society has released a new official clinical policy statement on congenital central hypoventilation syndrome (CCHS), a disorder of respiratory and autonomic nervous system (ANS) regulation. The ANS regulates reflexive acts, including heart rate and blood pressure, digestion, body temperature and pain perception.

15 Mar 2010

Protein competition over MAPK provides mechanism to integrate different signals directing early embryonic development

A Princeton University-led research team has discovered that protein competition over an important enzyme provides a mechanism to integrate different signals that direct early embryonic development. The work suggests that these signals are combined long before they interact with the organism's DNA, as was previously believed, and also may inform new therapeutic strategies to fight cancer.

10 Mar 2010

Researchers identify a new mechanism for tumor control

The interaction of a ligand (Neurotrophine-3) and its dependence receptor (TrkC) constitutes a novel mechanism for tumor control in pediatric cancers such as neuroblastoma, and may also be important to the inhibition of other cancers such as breast cancer.

9 Mar 2010

Signaling molecules may link certain actions of B cells to solid tumor growth: Study

Cancer researchers studying the immune system have identified a previously unrecognized set of targets and biomarkers to battle solid tumors.

25 Feb 2010

Scientists discover molecular pathway to regenerate damaged kidney tissues

Scientists have discovered a molecular pathway that works through the immune system to regenerate damaged kidney tissues and may lead to new therapies for repairing injury in a number of organs.

16 Feb 2010

Study: Common underlying mechanism causes complex defects in brain development and function

A new study reveals that a common underlying mechanism is shared by a group of previously unrelated disorders which all cause complex defects in brain development and function. Rett syndrome (RTT), Cornelia de Lange syndrome (CdLS) and Alpha-Thalassemia mental Retardation, X-linked syndrome (ATR-X) have each been linked with distinct abnormalities in chromatin, the spools of proteins and DNA that make up chromosomes and control how genetic information is read in a cell.

16 Feb 2010

Transition through hemogenic endothelial intermediate necessary for hematopoietic stem cell formation

Biologists at UC San Diego have identified the specific region in vertebrates where adult blood stem cells arise during embryonic development.

14 Feb 2010

Mapping of human genome modification during embryonic development

Scientists at The Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS) and The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) led an international effort to build a map that shows in detail how the human genome is modified during embryonic development.

4 Feb 2010

Research suggests growth factor gene plays a central role in palate development

Cleft palate has been linked to dozens of genes. During their investigation of one of these genes, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis were surprised to find that cleft palate occurs both when the gene is more active and when it is less active than normal.

3 Feb 2010