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DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is the hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms. Nearly every cell in a person’s body has the same DNA. Most DNA is located in the cell nucleus (where it is called nuclear DNA), but a small amount of DNA can also be found in the mitochondria (where it is called mitochondrial DNA or mtDNA).

Study of mutations in cell's DNA help trace its life history

Researchers have developed new methods to trace the life history of individual cells back to their origins in the fertilised egg. By looking at the copy of the human genome present in healthy cells, they were able to build a picture of each cell's development from the early embryo on its journey to become part of an adult organ.

30 Jun 2014

Phase III TAS-102 study for metastatic colorectal cancer shows improved survival

The new combination agent TAS-102 is able to improve overall survival compared to placebo in patients whose metastatic colorectal cancer is refractory to standard therapies, researchers said at the ESMO 16th World Congress on Gastrointestinal Cancer in Barcelona.

30 Jun 2014

patients with KRAS wild-type MCRC can benefit from Cetuximab Or Bevacizumab With Combi Chemo Equivalent For patients with KRAS wild-type MCRC

For patients with KRAS wild-type untreated colorectal cancer, adding cetuximab or bevacizumab to combination chemotherapy offers equivalent survival, researchers said at the ESMO 16th World Congress on Gastrointestinal Cancer in Barcelona.

30 Jun 2014

Taiho Oncology presents TAS-102 Phase III RECOURSE trial results in mCRC patients

Taiho Oncology, Inc., a subsidiary of Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (Japan), announced today detailed findings from its global Phase III RECOURSE trial of TAS-102 (nonproprietary names: trifluridine and tipiracil hydrochloride), an oral combination anticancer drug.

28 Jun 2014

Non-Hodgkin lymphoma subgroups found to have different survival rates

A Mayo Clinic-led group of researchers has discovered three subgroups of a single type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma that have markedly different survival rates. These subgroups could not be differentiated by routine pathology but only with the aid of novel genetic tests, which the research team recommends giving to all patients with ALK-negative anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (ALCL). Findings are published in the journal Blood.

27 Jun 2014

Personalized antibiotic therapy can help fight antibiotic-resistant infections

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned last fall that the U.S. faces "potentially catastrophic consequences" if it doesn't act quickly to combat the growing threat of antibiotic-resistant infections, which kill about 23,000 Americans a year.

27 Jun 2014

Cancer drug shows promise in treating blood cell disorders

Scientists working to make gene therapy a reality have solved a major hurdle: how to bypass a blood stem cell's natural defenses and efficiently insert disease-fighting genes into the cell's genome.

27 Jun 2014

Scientists report first successful step toward vaccine that targets mutation in brain cancer

Astrocytomas and oligodendrogliomas are subtypes of a brain cancer called 'glioma'. These incurable brain tumors arise from glial cells, a type of support cell found in the central nervous system.

26 Jun 2014

Current sequencing protocols overlook DNA crucial to bacterial virulence

Genomic sequencing is supposed to reveal the entire genetic makeup of an organism. For infectious disease specialists, the technology can be used to analyze a disease-causing bacterium to determine how much harm it is capable of causing and whether or not it will be resistant to antibiotics.

26 Jun 2014

Researchers compare genome sequences of malaria vectors to investigate insecticide resistance

Researchers from LSTM have exploited a natural experiment created by insecticidal pressure to determine how the most important malaria vectors - A. gambiae s.s. and A. coluzzii - respond rapidly to environmental change.

26 Jun 2014

USAMRIID scientists propose new standards to sequence viral genomes

Scientists at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) have proposed a set of standards aimed at developing a common "language" among investigators working to sequence viral genomes and characterize viral stocks.

26 Jun 2014

Advancements in HIV treatment help patients live longer

Huge advancements have taken place in HIV treatment and prevention over the past 10 years, but there is still no cure or vaccine. A new review shows that because of advancements in treatment, people with the virus are living longer.

25 Jun 2014

Study: Cohesin mutations are common in melanoma and bladder cancer

Massive sequencing of cancer genomes brings to light new genes every day that could be involved in the process of tumour formation.

25 Jun 2014

Frederic Bushman gets Pioneer Award from Human Gene Therapy

Frederic D. Bushman, PhD's (University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine) early pioneering work in understanding how HIV reproduces by inserting its genetic material into the DNA of a host cell led to key advances in the ability to move pieces of DNA and whole genes between cells.

25 Jun 2014

Wild fleas transmit Chagas' disease in some regions of Latin America

For 10 years, major fumigation campaigns in the villages have eliminated the fleas that transmit Chagas' disease in many Latin American countries.

25 Jun 2014

New study finds genetic links between schizophrenia risk and cannabis use

Genes that increase the risk of developing schizophrenia may also increase the likelihood of using cannabis, according to a new study led by King's College London, published today in Molecular Psychiatry.

25 Jun 2014

New method to help patients with cancer, genetic conditions, neurological disorders

UT Arlington physics researchers may have developed a way to use laser technology to deliver drug and gene therapy at the cellular level without damaging surrounding tissue. The method eventually could help patients suffering from genetic conditions, cancers and neurological diseases.

25 Jun 2014

SLAC research reveals rapid DNA changes that act as molecular sunscreen

The molecular building blocks that make up DNA absorb ultraviolet light so strongly that sunlight should deactivate them - yet it does not. Now scientists have made detailed observations of a "relaxation response" that protects these molecules, and the genetic information they encode, from UV damage.

24 Jun 2014

Computer analysis of family photos could help diagnose rare genetic disorders

Computer analysis of photographs could help doctors diagnose which condition a child with a rare genetic disorder has, say Oxford University researchers.

24 Jun 2014

Study paves way to develop novel therapies for nasopharyngeal cancer

A team of scientists from the Cancer Science Institute of Singapore (CSI Singapore) at the National University of Singapore, National University Cancer Institute Singapore (NCIS) and National University Hospital Singapore (NUH), discovered a distinct mutational signature and nine significantly mutated genes associated with nasopharyngeal cancer, paving the way to developing novel therapies for this deadly disease.

23 Jun 2014