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Gene therapy approach could pave the way for treatment of Stargardt disease

A leading Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Oxford has shared the details of his research which could pave the way for a new treatment for sight loss condition Stargardt disease.

7 Feb 2020

Patients stuck with bills after insurers don’t pay as promised

The more than $34,000 in medical bills that contributed to Darla and Andy Markley's bankruptcy and loss of their home in Beloit, Wisconsin, grew out of what felt like a broken promise.

7 Feb 2020

SUNY Downstate epidemiologist is part of international initiative to uncover clues on coronavirus

Twice each day, SUNY Downstate School of Public Health evolutionary epidemiologist Sergios-Orestis Kolokotronis, PhD, joins a global group of scientists in reviewing a worldwide database of the latest genomic information about the Wuhan strain of novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) that so far has infected more than 28,000 people, including more than 250 outside of China, and resulted in at least 560 deaths.

6 Feb 2020

Largest genome study sheds light on how genetic glitches trigger tumor formation

It is well-known that when a gene mutates, it triggers tumor formation by stimulating abnormal cell growth and proliferation. Cancer starts from a mutant gene that kickstarts a series of abnormal growth, forming a tumor. However, the exact mechanism of how this happens remains unclear.

6 Feb 2020

Genetic fingerprints could help identify cancer-causing culprits

Causes of cancer are being cataloged through an international study revealing the genetic fingerprints of DNA-damaging processes that drive cancer development.

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

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

First comprehensive survey of viruses found within different cancers

Researchers from the University of East Anglia have helped to carry out the first comprehensive survey of viruses found within different types of cancer.

5 Feb 2020

Cancer mutations may arise decades before diagnosis

Researchers at EMBL's European Bioinformatics Institute and the Francis Crick Institute have analyzed the whole genomes of over 2600 tumors from 38 different cancer types to determine the chronology of genomic changes during cancer development.

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

Many household filters are only partially effective at removing PFAS from drinking water

The water filter on your refrigerator door, the pitcher-style filter you keep inside the fridge and the whole-house filtration system you installed last year may function differently and have vastly different price tags, but they have one thing in common.

5 Feb 2020

Study underscores the need for more precise rare disease definitions

Some diseases are like black swans. They occur so rarely that many physicians never encounter them in their clinical practice, complicating efforts to treat them.

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

Princeton researchers find link between microbes and cancers in threatened California foxes

Can staph microbes lead to cancer? Microbes are known to affect digestion, mood and overall health, and now Princeton researchers have shown that a shift in the microbiome is linked to cancer -- at least in a threatened subspecies of foxes found only on one island off the California coast.

4 Feb 2020

New treatment target for acute kidney injury prevention revealed

Up to 10% of patients who are hospitalized or undergo surgery will experience acute kidney injury, and as many as 50% of patients in intensive care units will meet the criteria for AKI, the National Kidney Foundation has determined. Some of these patients will progress to kidney failure within months.

4 Feb 2020

Yale researchers find way to reverse type-2 diabetes and liver fibrosis in mice

In a pair of related studies, a team of Yale researchers has found a way to reverse type-2 diabetes and liver fibrosis in mice and has shown that the underlying processes are conserved in humans.

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

Unveiling the structure of the influenza virus

The flu season is coming, and the frigid temperatures make it worse. The influenza B virus is the causative agent of the common flu, but over the past years, it has become more potent in causing disease. Now, a team of MIT scientists has found and unveiled the structure of the virus, particularly the key influenza protein, in the hopes to develop new drugs to combat influenza.

4 Feb 2020