Genes News and Research

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Understanding the genetic background of idiopathic ketotic hypoglycemia

Lisa is two years old. She often gets uneasy--shaking and sweating--especially in the morning. She vomits and refuses to eat. Her mother, Karoline, knows she has to act before Lisa starts to deteriorate.

9 Feb 2020

Researchers offer new hope for diagnosis, treatment of age-related macular degeneration

Researchers have identified a new protein linked to age-related macular degeneration (AMD) that could offer new hope for the diagnosis and treatment of the disease, which affects over 1.5 million people in the UK alone.

8 Feb 2020

New gene therapy improves vision in blind mice

Mice born blind have shown significant improvement in vision after undergoing a new gene therapy developed by a team of Japanese scientists.

7 Feb 2020

Research provides new insights into molecular basis of X-chromosome inactivation

Researchers at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Heidelberg and Institut Curie in Paris have shown that the protein SPEN plays a crucial role in the process of X-chromosome inactivation, whereby female mammalian embryos silence gene expression on one of their two X chromosomes.

7 Feb 2020

Coronavirus - pandemic or not?

The coronavirus strain called 2019-nCoV has been causing widespread illness in China, with 28,276 affected by the virus and over 565 deaths worldwide, mostly in China. As of now, it is already more deadly than the SARS epidemic that raged between 2002 and 2004.

6 Feb 2020

Researchers compile large catalog of cancer mutations

Mutations in 38 different types of cancer have been mapped by means of whole genome analysis by an international team of researchers from, amongst others, the University of Copenhagen, Aarhus University, Aarhus University Hospital, and Rigshospitalet.

6 Feb 2020

Study lays foundation for translating mitochondrial biology into clinical applications

A study led by The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center furthered understanding about mitochondria, the cell components known as the "powerhouse of the cell." Knowing more about the genome is crucial given that mitochondria play important roles in tumorigenesis.

6 Feb 2020

Researchers discover new mutational phenomenon chromothripsis in cancer

Researchers at Harvard Medical School and EMBL-EBI have carried out the largest analysis across cancer types of the newly discovered mutational phenomenon chromothripsis.

6 Feb 2020

Analyzing cancer-specific alterations found in tumor's RNA

Researchers at EMBL-EBI were among the leaders of a large international consortium that carried out a joint analysis of data from over 1000 donors of more than 25 cancer types, studying data on their whole genomes along with tumor transcriptome data, which indicates the genes that are active within a tumor.

6 Feb 2020

Researchers study how structural variations in the genome can lead to cancer

Structural variations in genomes can arise from deleting, amplifying, or reordering genomic segments ranging from a few thousand letters of the genetic code to whole chromosomes.

6 Feb 2020

UMass Amherst study aims to develop new test for BRCA-positive lactating moms

Breastfeeding women with a pathogenic BRCA1 or BRCA2 genetic mutation face a significant risk, even at a young age, of breast and ovarian cancer.

6 Feb 2020

New plant-based drug shown to help patients with head and neck cancers

In a UCLA-led phase I clinical trial, a new plant-based drug called APG-157 showed signs of helping patients fight oral and oropharyngeal cancers. These cancers are located in the head and the neck.

5 Feb 2020

Researchers discover new genetic drivers of cancer

The discovery of genetic drivers of cancer can have critical implications for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer patients, yet genome analysis has focused primarily on only 1-2% of the whole genome - the part that contains the code for making proteins.

5 Feb 2020

Targeting a protein could be key to suppressing breast cancer metastasis

A new study by University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center researchers suggests that targeting a protein known as heat shock protein 47 (Hsp47) could be key for suppressing breast cancer metastasis.

5 Feb 2020

Study may suggest new therapeutic approaches to control immune responses

Researchers have provided new insight on the role of cyclic AMP (cAMP) in regulating the immune response.

5 Feb 2020

Study sheds new light on genetic relationship between three mood disorders

Researchers shed new light on the genetic relationship between three mood disorders associated with depression--major depression and bipolar disorder types 1 and 2, in a new study in the journal Biological Psychiatry, published by Elsevier.

5 Feb 2020

Analysis shows overall survival in lung cancer patients harboring 'niche' mutations

Mutations were observed in all genes studied, except c-MET, DDR2, MAP2K1, and RET.

5 Feb 2020

Heart muscle cells of zebrafish change their metabolism during heart regeneration

Researchers from the group of Jeroen Bakkers at the Hubrecht Institute have found that the muscle cells in the heart of zebrafish change their metabolism, the way in which they generate energy, during heart regeneration.

5 Feb 2020

Gut microbes in wasps help overcome pesticides

An intriguing study published in February 2020 in the journal Cell Host & Microbe reports that when wasps are exposed to atrazine, a commonly used pesticide, the gut microbiome undergoes changes that help them overcome the ill-effects of the exposure. In addition, the changes are passed on to the offspring, which means that the next generation will also inherit atrazine resistance even without being exposed to the chemical.

4 Feb 2020

Prenatal single cell blood test for gene defects

With the current state of knowledge regarding genetic testing, non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) is in favor for genetic testing in unborn babies, using fragments of DNA circulating in the mother’s blood.

4 Feb 2020