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UAB researchers demonstrate persistence of donor microbes in recipients after fecal transplant

University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers have made the first direct demonstration that fecal donor microbes remained in recipients for months or years after a transplant to treat the diarrhea and colitis caused by recurrent Clostridium difficile infections -- a serious and stubborn cause of diarrhea after an antibiotic treatment for some other illness.

14 Jun 2017

Scientists create method for mapping genome-wide DNA damage caused by chemical carcinogen

Scientists have known for decades that smoking cigarettes causes DNA damage, which leads to lung cancer. Now, for the first time, UNC School of Medicine scientists created a method for effectively mapping that DNA damage at high resolution across the genome.

13 Jun 2017

Gene editing technology can introduce hundreds of unintended mutations, study shows

As CRISPR-Cas9 starts to move into clinical trials, a new study published in Nature Methods has found that the gene-editing technology can introduce hundreds of unintended mutations into the genome.

29 May 2017

Clinical study tests 100-year-old drug in children with autism spectrum disorder

In a small, randomized Phase I/II clinical trial (SAT1), researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine say a 100-year-old drug called suramin, originally developed to treat African sleeping sickness, was safely administered to children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), who subsequently displayed measurable, but transient, improvement in core symptoms of autism.

26 May 2017

Scientists identify ten new genetic variants linked to cardiac structure and function

Strong or weak, big or small - variations in our genome play a decisive part in how our heart is shaped and works.

24 May 2017

Scientists identify new risk genes providing insights about cause of CAD

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a leading cause of death worldwide. Despite dozens of regions in the genome associated with CAD, most of the genetic components of heart diseases are not fully understood, suggesting that more genes are out there to be found.

23 May 2017

Newly identified biomarkers could help predict cognitive deficits in Parkinson's disease patients

New biomarkers identified by a research team in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania could help predict which Parkinson's disease patients will suffer significant cognitive deficits within the first three years of their diagnosis.

18 May 2017

Researchers identify many dangerous strains of TB pathogens

Researchers from the Vavilov Institute of General Genetics of the Russian Academy of Sciences (VIGG) and the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology have established a catalog of mutations in 319 virulence genes of mycobacteria that cause tuberculosis.

16 May 2017

Guardant Health introduces new initiative to sequence tumor DNA of one million cancer patients

Guardant Health, the world leader in comprehensive liquid biopsies, announced an ambitious goal to sequence the tumor DNA of more than 1 million cancer patients within five years.

15 May 2017

Specific genotype may predict recovery in patients with advanced cirrhosis after hepatitis c treatment

Genotyping of patients with advanced cirrhosis from hepatitis C virus could help health-care professionals predict the likelihood of improvement after successful hepatitis C treatment, thus minimizing the need for liver transplants.

8 May 2017

Myriad and Clovis ink deal on FDA-approved BRACAnalysis CDx test to identify patients with germline BRCA mutations for rucaparib treatment

Myriad Genetics, Inc. and Clovis Oncology, Inc. have announced a companion diagnostic collaboration to support a post-marketing regulatory commitment related to Clovis’ PARP inhibitor, Rubraca. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

3 May 2017

Researchers identify new rare genetic variants linked to extreme longevity

The search for the genetic determinants of extreme longevity has been challenging, with the prevalence of centenarians (people older than 100) just one per 5,000 population in developed nations.

25 Apr 2017

Positive CHMP opinion recognizes efficacy of Biogen’s SPINRAZA for treatment of spinal muscular atrophy

Biogen today announced the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use of the European Medicines Agency adopted a positive opinion recommending the granting of a marketing authorization for SPINRAZA to treat patients with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA).

21 Apr 2017

Method based on genetic information predicts response to drugs in epileptic patients

Researchers affiliated with the University of Campinas in São Paulo State, Brazil, have shown that genetic information can be used to improve early prediction of the response to drugs in patients with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE), one of the most severe forms of epilepsy.

5 Apr 2017

Horizon 2020 program selects Precision NanoSystems’ NanoAssemblr platform to develop RNA medicines

Precision NanoSystems NanoAssemblr platform has been selected for the controlled manufacture of nanomedicines as part of the multinational B-SMART (Brain-Specific, Modular and Active RNA Therapeutics) translational research project.

From Precision NanoSystems Inc. 3 Apr 2017

Scientists uncover how tumor cells can switch disguises to spread easily around the body

Scientists have uncovered how tumor cells in aggressive uterine cancer can switch disguises and spread so quickly to other parts of the body.

30 Mar 2017

Researchers enhance safety, effectiveness of potential HIV vaccine using on/off genetic switch

By engineering an on/off switch into a weakened form of HIV, University of Nebraska-Lincoln researchers have enhanced the safety and effectiveness of a potential vaccine for the virus that has killed approximately 35 million people during the past 35 years.

30 Mar 2017

Proteomics unravels molecular mechanisms influenced by genetic variations

How does type 2 diabetes develop? A team of researchers headed by the Helmholtz Zentrum München and the Technical University of Munich has come closer to finding an answer to this problem. The team examined the functional effects of exemplary genetic variations relevant for type 2 diabetes. Their approach can be applied to many clinical pictures.

28 Mar 2017

Researchers develop novel genetic score to calculate age-specific risk of Alzheimer's disease

An international team of scientists, led by researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine and University of California San Francisco, has developed a novel genetic score that allows individuals to calculate their age-specific risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (AD), based upon genetic information.

22 Mar 2017

Methylation status of ten positions in genome correlates with all-cause mortality

Various chemical modifications in the genome determine whether genes are read or deactivated. Methyl labels in the DNA play a key role in this "epigenetic" regulation of gene activity.

20 Mar 2017