DNA Damage News and Research

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Mother cells pass on DNA damage to offspring, study shows

A new University of Colorado Boulder study has shown that some dividing human cells are "kicking the can down the road," passing on low-level DNA damage to offspring, causing daughter cells to pause in a quiescent, or dormant, state previously thought to be random in origin.

17 May 2017

Studies show harmful links between use of e-cigarettes and bladder cancer risk

Data being presented at the 112th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Urological Association shows harmful links between the use of e-cigarettes and bladder cancer risk, and associates the intensity of smoking traditional cigarettes to a higher risk of mortality among bladder cancer patients

17 May 2017

Mayo Clinic research advances understanding of DNA repair mechanisms

We humans like to think our DNA is well-protected in the nucleus of each cell. But it's a hard life for the hard-working genetic code.

12 May 2017

Scientists identify unusual mutations in endometriosis using gene sequencing tools

Using gene sequencing tools, scientists from Johns Hopkins Medicine and the University of British Columbia have found a set of genetic mutations in samples from 24 women with benign endometriosis, a painful disorder marked by the growth of uterine tissue outside of the womb.

11 May 2017

New technology could hold key to predicting outcome of blood cancer patients

Technology that can detect the length of small DNA structures in cancer cells could hold the key to predicting the outcome of patients with two different types of blood cancer.

11 May 2017

Study reveals role of good-guy protein in initiating and maintaining cancer

Under normal conditions, the CHD4 protein is one of the good guys: it stops cells from transcribing faulty DNA, thereby eliminating potential mutation. But in colon cancer and perhaps other kinds of cancer as well, it appears that this protein becomes a kind of double agent, working for the enemy.

9 May 2017

Researchers develop hybrid nanomaterial for destruction of cancer cells

Most tumors contain regions of low oxygen concentration where cancer therapies based on the action of reactive oxygen species are ineffective.

4 May 2017

Scientists map genetic changes that help drive aggressive brain tumor

University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers and collaborators have mapped genetic changes that help drive an aggressive tumor as it develops in the brain – helping to lay the foundation for targeted treatment of the disease.

3 May 2017

Maternal grandmother’s smoking in pregnancy increases risk of ASD in grandchildren

Scientists from the University of Bristol have looked at all 14,500 participants in Children of the 90s and found that if a girl's maternal grandmother smoked during pregnancy, the girl is 67% more likely to display certain traits linked to autism, such as poor social communication skills and repetitive behaviors.

27 Apr 2017

Study provides new insights on molecular mechanisms that impair muscle stem cells during aging

Researchers at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute have identified a previously unrecognized step in stem cell-mediated muscle regeneration.

26 Apr 2017

Researchers discover cancer-fighting properties in beta blockers

A new study finds that carvedilol, a drug typically used to treat high blood pressure, can protect against the sun-induced cell damage that leads to skin cancer. Researchers serendipitously discovered the beta blocker's cancer-fighting properties after making an error in the lab.

24 Apr 2017

Study explains how genetic mutations linked to telomere capping complex contribute to cancers

Scientists at The Wistar Institute have unveiled part of the protein complex that protects telomeres - the ends of our chromosomes. The study, published online in Nature Communications, explains how a group of genetic mutations associated with this protein complex contributes to various cancers.

10 Apr 2017

Attacking TERT protein may be effective approach to destroying ALM cancer cells

A team of researchers report a significant genetic association linked to an aggressive form of melanoma in a study published today in the journal Genome Research.

4 Apr 2017

New study illuminates dark side of p53 gene in cancer

The gene p53 is the most commonly mutated gene in cancer - it is p53's job to monitor cells for DNA damage and to mark damaged cells for destruction and so cancer cells with mutated DNA must disable p53 before it disables them.

3 Apr 2017

Researchers propose novel theory of how some cancers circumvent killing power of targeted therapies

Nearly 50 years into the "war" on cancer, doctors possess weapons that once would have seemed magical in their tumor-killing specificity.

29 Mar 2017

Breakthrough technique harvests stem cells from urine to study Down syndrome

One of the biggest challenges in studying Down syndrome is finding the right research model. Animals and established cell lines are limited in their ability to mimic human disease, and results don't always translate to patient populations.

28 Mar 2017

Scientists discover potential role for 'jumping genes' in ALS

By inserting an amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)-linked human gene called TDP-43 into fruit flies, researchers at Stony Brook University and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory discovered a potential role for 'transposons' in the disease.

24 Mar 2017

Research suggests way to reverse age-related and radiation-induced DNA damage

DNA repair is essential for cell vitality, cell survival and cancer prevention, yet cells' ability to patch up damaged DNA declines with age for reasons not fully understood.

24 Mar 2017

New Danish research provides structural knowledge of DNA repair complex

New Danish research provides mechanistic insight into how DNA is monitored and repaired if damage occurs. The results may eventually help to improve the treatment of certain types of cancer, as the DNA repair complex provides a mechanism for cancer cells to resist chemotherapy.

21 Mar 2017

Researchers identify key mutation that promotes melanoma growth by suppressing immune response

University of California, Irvine researchers have identified a specific mutation that allows melanoma tumor cells to remain undetected by the immune system.

7 Mar 2017