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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).

Inovio evaluates responses of immunotherapy product in treating HPV linked head and neck cancer

Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE MKT: INO) today announced it has initiated a phase I/IIa clinical trial to evaluate safety, immunogenicity and clinical responses of its immunotherapy product, INO-3112, in treating human papillomavirus (HPV)- associated head and neck cancer.

10 Jun 2014

Wistar findings suggest means of boosting initial immune response

Your first response to an infectious agent or antigen ordinarily takes about a week, and is relatively weak. However, if your immune system encounters that antigen a second time, the so-called memory response is rapid, powerful, and very effective.

10 Jun 2014

Researchers solve structure of key protein that drives DNA copying in plasmids

Staph infections that become resistant to multiple antibiotics don't happen because the bacteria themselves adapt to the drugs, but because of a kind of genetic parasite they carry called a plasmid that helps its host survive the antibiotics.

10 Jun 2014

MERS virus can be transmitted from camel to man

A report published yesterday provided the first solid evidence that the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) virus (MERS-cov) can be contracted by man through close contact with an infected camel.

9 Jun 2014

Rubicon signs agreements with 7 distributors to expand availability of DNA library preparation products

Rubicon Genomics, Inc., today announced that it signed agreements with seven distributors in Europe to expand the availability of its leading DNA library preparation products, including ThruPLEX®-FD Prep Kit and PicoPLEX™ DNA-seq Kit for use with Illumina® next-generation sequencing (NGS) systems and PicoPLEX™ WGA Kit for use on arrays, and to prepare for new product launches planned for the coming months.

9 Jun 2014

Sequenom signs national agreement to provide MaterniT21 PLUS LDT

Sequenom, Inc., a life sciences company providing innovative testing and genetic analysis solutions, announced today its wholly owned subsidiary, Sequenom Laboratories, has signed a national agreement with a leading health insurance company covering 13 million people throughout the United States, to provide the MaterniT21™ PLUS laboratory-developed test (LDT).

9 Jun 2014

Research finding paves way for targeted approaches to treating cancer patients

Twelve years ago, UNC School of Medicine researcher Brian Strahl, PhD, found that a protein called Set2 plays a role in how yeast genes are expressed - specifically how DNA gets transcribed into messenger RNA. Now his lab has found that Set2 is also a major player in DNA repair, a complicated and crucial process that can lead to the development of cancer cells if the repair goes wrong.

9 Jun 2014

New class of genetic switches gives clues on stem cell development

Case Western Reserve researchers have discovered landmarks within pluripotent stem cells that guide how they develop to serve different purposes within the body.

9 Jun 2014

Scientists unravel how herpesviruses fight against our immune system

How the virus does this was unknown until now. The scientists from the HZI research group "Viral Immune Modulation" under the leadership of Prof. Melanie Brinkmann have now been able to show that the virus is actively preventing activation of the innate immune system through Toll-like receptors.

9 Jun 2014

Scientists design nanoparticle to target tumor cells

Scientists at UC Santa Barbara have designed a nanoparticle that has a couple of unique - and important - properties.

9 Jun 2014

Researchers uncover several gene networks with potentially important roles in autism

A large new analysis of DNA from thousands of patients has uncovered several underlying gene networks with potentially important roles in autism.

9 Jun 2014

TSRI develops accurate structural map of complex molecular machines in cells

A team led by researchers at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) has used advanced electron microscopy techniques to determine the first accurate structural map of Mediator, one of the largest and most complex "molecular machines" in cells.

6 Jun 2014

Gene networks may offer attractive targets for developing new autism drugs

A large new analysis of DNA from thousands of patients has uncovered several underlying gene networks with potentially important roles in autism.

6 Jun 2014

Brain circuit problem may contribute to auditory hallucinations of schizophrenia

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have identified problems in a connection between brain structures that may predispose individuals to hearing the "voices" that are a common symptom of schizophrenia. The work appears in the June 6 issue of the journal Science.

6 Jun 2014

Scientists identify new way to reactivate latent HIV

A team of scientists at the Gladstone Institutes has identified a new way to make latent HIV reveal itself, which could help overcome one of the biggest obstacles to finding a cure for HIV infection.

6 Jun 2014

Rice develops highly accurate test to detect signs of HIV

Rice University bioengineers are developing a simple, highly accurate test to detect signs of HIV and its progress in patients in resource-poor settings.

6 Jun 2014

SGC and CHDI Foundation collaborate to discover new drug targets for Huntington's disease

The Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC) and CHDI Foundation have entered into a unique open-access research collaboration to discover and characterize new drug targets for Huntington's disease (HD) using structural and chemical biology In this first partnership of its kind, SGC and CHDI have explicitly agreed not to file for patents on any of the collaborative research and to make all reagents and knowledge available without restriction to the wider research community, including pharmaceutical, biotech, and academic research groups.

6 Jun 2014