DNA News and Research

RSS

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).

Pan-Cancer Initiative: Patterns Emerge Across Diverse Tumor Types

...

27 Sep 2013

Sister stem cells display considerable differences despite having identical DNA

Scientists have used a brand new technique for examining individual stem cells to uncover dramatic differences in the gene expression levels - which genes are turned 'up' or 'down'- between apparently identical 'sister' pairs.

27 Sep 2013

Length of telomere may help determine prostate cancer patient's prognosis

Like the plastic caps at the end of shoelaces, telomeres protect — in their case — the interior-gene containing parts of chromosomes that carry a cell's instructional material. Cancer cells are known to have short telomeres, but just how short they are from cancer cell to cancer cell may be a determining factor in a prostate cancer patient's prognosis, according to a study led by Johns Hopkins scientists.

27 Sep 2013

Genomic instability in CFS is associated with less favorable outcome in patients with CaP

Detailed evaluation of a prostate cancer tumor biopsy may predict treatment outcomes for image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) or surgery for prostate cancer, according to research presented today at the American Society for Radiation Oncology's (ASTRO's) 55th Annual Meeting.

27 Sep 2013

Scientists unravel secrets of mechanism that snips our genes

Certain diseases such as cystic fibrosis and muscular dystrophy are linked to genetic mutations that damage the important biological process of rearranging gene sequences in pre-messenger RNA, a procedure called RNA splicing.

27 Sep 2013

New imaging technique reveals first 3D pictures of chromosome structure

A new method for visualising chromosomes is painting a truer picture of their shape, which is rarely like the X-shaped blob of DNA most of us are familiar with.

27 Sep 2013

Four Geisinger Health System researchers receive $25M grant to initiate ClinGen Project

Four Geisinger Health System researchers have taken center stage in the national arena of genomics thanks to new funding from the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), an arm of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH).

27 Sep 2013

New hepatitis virus reported by scientists was a false alarm

The report by scientists of a new hepatitis virus earlier this year was a false alarm, according to UC San Francisco researchers who correctly identified the virus as a contaminant present in a type of glassware used in many research labs.

27 Sep 2013

Genes in mitochondria shape each person's risk for heart disease and diabetes

Genes in mitochondria, the "powerhouses" that turn sugar into energy in human cells, shape each person's risk for heart disease and diabetes, according to a study published recently by researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in the Biochemical Journal.

27 Sep 2013

Mayo Clinic experts to discuss risk factors, screening and treatments for breast cancer

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Mayo Clinic breast cancer experts are available to discuss risk factors, screening and treatments.

27 Sep 2013

Folic acid deficiency may be associated with multi-generational impact on health

Folic acid deficiency can cause severe health problems in offspring, including spina bifida, heart defects and placental abnormalities. A study out today reveals that a mutation in a gene necessary for the metabolism of folic acid not only impacts the immediate offspring but can also have detrimental health effects on the next several generations.

27 Sep 2013

TSRI scientists discover process by which special immune cells in skin help heal wounds

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have discovered an important process by which special immune cells in the skin help heal wounds. They found that these skin-resident immune cells function as "first responders" to skin injuries in part by producing the molecule known as interleukin-17A (IL-17A), which wards off infection and promotes wound healing.

27 Sep 2013

'Jekyll-and-Hyde' protein could be potent target for developing new cancer drugs

The mood changes of a 'Jekyll-and-Hyde' protein, which sometimes boosts tumour cell growth and at other times suppresses it, have been explained in a new study led by Oxford University researchers.

27 Sep 2013

VolitionRx enters into distribution agreement with Active Motif for NuQ product line

VolitionRx Limited, a life sciences company focused on developing blood-based diagnostic tests for different types of cancer, today entered into an agreement with Active Motif, a leading provider of kits and reagents to enable epigenetics research.

26 Sep 2013

Three research groups awarded NIH grants to develop framework for evaluating genetic variants

Three grants totaling more than $25 million over four years will help three research groups to develop authoritative information on the millions of genomic variants relevant to human disease and the hundreds that are expected to be useful for clinical practice. The awards are from the National Institutes of Health.

26 Sep 2013

Epigenetic changes appear to be candidates as early stage biomarkers for Parkinson

Parkinson disease, a neurodegenerative disorder in which both genetic and environmental factors play important roles, has been associated with epigenetic changes (those molecular modifications that alter the behavior of genes without changing the DNA sequence).

26 Sep 2013

Stem cell lines are ideal research tools for designing models to understand disease progression

Scientists from King's College London have announced that 16 human embryonic stem (hES) cell lines have been approved by the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) and placed on their Stem Cell Registry, making them freely available for federally-funded research in the USA.

25 Sep 2013

UCSF inaugurates new endowment of PhD education programs in basic sciences

Sequoia Capital Chairman Sir Michael Moritz, KBE, and his wife, Harriet Heyman, in collaboration with UC San Francisco, have kicked off a new endowment with a $60 million contribution to ensure the future of PhD education programs in the basic sciences.

25 Sep 2013

$Researchers show link between FTO gene and hip fracture in women$

Researchers show link between FTO gene and hip fracture in women

Australian researchers have demonstrated a strong association between the FTO (fat and obesity) gene and hip fracture in women. While the gene is already well known to affect diabetes and obesity, this is the first study to show that its high-risk variant can increase the risk of hip fracture by as much as 82%.

25 Sep 2013

Understanding genetic, physiological basis for metabolic diseases related to circadian function

A new study by a team of University of Notre Dame researchers, which appears in the Sept. 2 edition of the journal PLoS ONE, is a significant step in understanding the molecular genetic and physiological basis for a spectrum of metabolic diseases related to circadian function.

24 Sep 2013

DNA News and Research

Further Reading

Pan-Cancer Initiative: Patterns Emerge Across Diverse Tumor Types

Sister stem cells display considerable differences despite having identical DNA

Length of telomere may help determine prostate cancer patient's prognosis

Genomic instability in CFS is associated with less favorable outcome in patients with CaP

Scientists unravel secrets of mechanism that snips our genes

New imaging technique reveals first 3D pictures of chromosome structure

Four Geisinger Health System researchers receive $25M grant to initiate ClinGen Project

New hepatitis virus reported by scientists was a false alarm

Genes in mitochondria shape each person's risk for heart disease and diabetes

Mayo Clinic experts to discuss risk factors, screening and treatments for breast cancer

Folic acid deficiency may be associated with multi-generational impact on health

TSRI scientists discover process by which special immune cells in skin help heal wounds

'Jekyll-and-Hyde' protein could be potent target for developing new cancer drugs

VolitionRx enters into distribution agreement with Active Motif for NuQ product line

Three research groups awarded NIH grants to develop framework for evaluating genetic variants

Epigenetic changes appear to be candidates as early stage biomarkers for Parkinson

Stem cell lines are ideal research tools for designing models to understand disease progression

UCSF inaugurates new endowment of PhD education programs in basic sciences

Researchers show link between FTO gene and hip fracture in women

Understanding genetic, physiological basis for metabolic diseases related to circadian function

Understanding the DNA Damage Response in Innate Immunity eBook

Latest eBooks

Industry Focus eBook - Analytical Chemistry (3rd edition)

Industry Focus eBook - Microbiome (1st edition)

Industry Focus eBook - Cell biology (5th edition)

Advancing degrader and proximity-based drug development

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo