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Overlooked DNA shuffling drives deadly paediatric brain tumour

One of the deadliest forms of paediatric brain tumour, Group 3 medulloblastoma, is linked to a variety of large-scale DNA rearrangements which all have the same overall effect on specific genes located on different chromosomes.

23 Jun 2014

Researchers explore genetic and cellular mechanisms of retinal development

The circuitry of the central nervous system is immensely complex and, as a result, sometimes confounding. When scientists conduct research to unravel the inner workings at a cellular level, they are sometimes surprised by what they find.

20 Jun 2014

Yap1 oncogene drives recurrence and progression of pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer tumors addicted to mutant Kras signaling for their growth and progression have a ready-made substitute to tap if they're ever forced to go cold-turkey on the mutant oncogene, scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center report in the journal Cell.

20 Jun 2014

New research reveals gene's role in type 1 diabetes

New research describes details of how a diabetes-related gene functions on a biological pathway that affects the release of insulin. The study authors say that finding drugs that act on that pathway may eventually lead to a new treatment for type 1 diabetes.

20 Jun 2014

Susceptibility gene for type 1 diabetes regulates self-destruction of cell's energy factory

A team led by researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania found that a susceptibility gene for type 1 diabetes regulates self-destruction of the cell's energy factory. They report their findings this week in Cell.

20 Jun 2014

Weizmann Institute scientists 'fingerprint' a culprit in depression and anxiety disorders

According the World Health Organization, such mood disorders as depression affect some 10% of the world's population and are associated with a heavy burden of disease. That is why numerous scientists around the world have invested a great deal of effort in understanding these diseases. Yet the molecular and cellular mechanisms that underlie these problems are still only partly understood.

20 Jun 2014

Research provides unique insight into lncRNAs that regulate lung development

It's a long way from DNA to RNA to protein, and only about two percent of a person's genome is eventually converted into proteins.

19 Jun 2014

DNA sequencing does not reveal the pathogenicity of bacteria

While more and more genomic information is becoming available at a drastically increasing pace, the knowledge we can gain about how microorganisms interact with their surrounding, infect hosts and alter their molecular programs in accordance to changing environmental conditions remains widely not deducible from genomic data alone, the researchers from University of Southern Denmark claim.

19 Jun 2014

Fragile Y hypothesis explains the factors behind chromosome loss

A UT Arlington research team says their study of genetic information from more than 4,000 beetle species has yielded a new theory about why some species lose their Y chromosome and others, such as humans, hang on to it.

18 Jun 2014

Entomologists develop chromosome map to find ways to prevent dengue fever, yellow fever

Virginia Tech entomologists have developed a chromosome map for about half of the genome of the mosquito Aedes agypti, the major carrier of dengue fever and yellow fever.

18 Jun 2014

Researchers identify six gene loci associated with pulmonary diseases

In their investigations or so-called genome-wide association studies, the team of researchers compared the genetic profile of study participants to the forced vital capacity (FVC), a volume parameter of lung function.

18 Jun 2014

Pfizer and Cellectis enter into global strategic collaboration to develop CAR-T immunotherapies

Pfizer Inc. and Cellectis today announced that they have entered into a global strategic collaboration to develop Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell (CAR-T) immunotherapies in the field of oncology directed at select targets.

18 Jun 2014

A new approach to treating whipworm infections

Researchers have deduced essential biological and genetic information from the genome sequence of the whipworm, an intestinal parasitic worm that infects hundreds of millions of people in developing countries.

18 Jun 2014

Pig whipworm genome could lead to new treatment options for human diseases

New treatments for inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, diabetes and autism could be on the horizon, after a global University of Melbourne - lead study successfully mapped the genes of a parasitic worm in pigs.

18 Jun 2014

Genomic study reveals striking contrasts that may aid disease prevention

Virginia Tech entomologists have developed a chromosome map for about half of the genome of the mosquito Aedes agypti, the major carrier of dengue fever and yellow fever.

17 Jun 2014

Greenwood Genetic and Clemson receive first round of fund from SRHC

Seven research projects from Greenwood Genetic Center and Clemson University faculty were selected to receive the first round of funding provided by Self Regional Healthcare (SRHC).

16 Jun 2014

Researchers identify tremendous genetic diversity

In the most comprehensive genetic study of the Mexican population to date, researchers from UC San Francisco and Stanford University, along with Mexico's National Institute of Genomic Medicine (INMEGEN), have identified tremendous genetic diversity, reflecting thousands of years of separation among local populations and shedding light on a range of confounding aspects of Latino health.

13 Jun 2014

Study examines effect of phthalate exposure in humans’ sperm epigenetics

A new three-year, $440,000 study led by environmental health scientist Richard Pilsner at the University of Massachusetts Amherst is now underway to investigate whether phthalate levels in expectant fathers have an effect on the couples' reproductive success, via epigenetic modifications of sperm DNA.

12 Jun 2014

Gene variant that increases risk of type 2 diabetes identified in Latino individuals

A genetic analysis of DNA samples of approximately 3,700 Mexican and U.S. Latino individuals identified a gene variant that was associated with a 5-fold increase in the prevalence of type 2 diabetes, findings that may have implications for screening in this population, according to a study in the June 11 issue of JAMA, a diabetes theme issue.

11 Jun 2014

Research to identify new potential targets for cancer therapy

In 2012, about 8.2 million people died of cancer making the disease a major cause of death worldwide. According to the WHO World Cancer Report 2014, this figure is expected to rise within the next two decades.

11 Jun 2014