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).

Novel AAV gene therapy offers various advantages

A new, simplified method for producing large amounts of viral vector cassettes capable of shuttling genes into host cells will help advance the promising field of gene therapy as applications move into large animal studies and human clinical trials.

6 Jan 2011

Profectus BioSciences commences GENEVAX IL-12 phase 1 study for HIV

Profectus BioSciences, a leader in the development of therapeutic and preventive vaccines against infectious diseases and cancers, and the AIDS Clinical Trials Group announced today the initiation of a phase 1 study of Profectus' multi-antigen HIV plasmid DNA vaccine administered with various doses of GENEVAX™ interleukin-12 pDNA adjuvant and delivered using the electroporation based TriGrid™delivery system developed by Ichor Medical Systems.

6 Jan 2011

Columbia research team identifies bacteria may play a key role in atherosclerosis

Dr. Emil Kozarov and a team of researchers at the Columbia University College of Dental Medicine have identified specific bacteria that may have a key role in vascular pathogenesis, specifically atherosclerosis, or what is commonly referred to as "hardening of the arteries" - the number one cause of death in the United States.

6 Jan 2011

SuperGen initiates enrollment in first human trial of SGI-110 in MDS and AML

SuperGen, Inc. today announced that it has enrolled the first patient in its first in human study of SGI-110, a second-generation hypomethylating agent, in patients with intermediate-2 or high-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) or acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

5 Jan 2011

KINAXO, AstraZeneca enter oncology research collaboration

KINAXO Biotechnologies GmbH announced today that it has entered into a collaboration with AstraZeneca. Under the terms of the agreement, KINAXO will apply its technology platform to support one of AstraZeneca's oncology programs. KINAXO will employ high-end mass spectrometry-based technologies to quantitatively analyze posttranslational protein modifications on a proteome-wide scale.

5 Jan 2011

Low-radiocarbon nutrition permanently reduces genetic damage to brain cells

A new method of child and maternal nutrition could prevent a specific type of genetic damage that would otherwise occur in up to 160 million brain cells in each person over their lifetime. Preventing this genetic damage could have significant implications related to aging and cancer.

5 Jan 2011

Encouraging results from exon skipping gene-based therapy study for DMD

Scientists at Royal Holloway, University of London have reported encouraging results in a new gene-based therapy for Duchenne Muscular dystrophy (DMD) which at present has no known cure and affects one in 3,000 young boys.

4 Jan 2011

FDA clears first automated molecular tests to diagnose and differentiate HSV infection

BD Diagnostics, a segment of BD, announced today that it filed for U.S. Food and Drug Administration 510(k) clearance for the first fully automated molecular tests to diagnose and differentiate HSV types 1 and 2.

From BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company) 4 Jan 2011

CDK1 protein deactivates EZH2 enzyme that causes cancer spread

By sticking a chemical group to it at a specific site, a protein arrests an enzyme that may worsen and spread cancer, an international research team led by scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reports in the January issue of Nature Cell Biology.

4 Jan 2011

Embryome Sciences announces $4M equity financing, changes name to ReCyte Therapeutics

BioTime, Inc. today announced a $4 million equity financing by its subsidiary, Embryome Sciences, Inc. Concurrent with the financing, Embryome Sciences will be renamed ReCyte Therapeutics, Inc. and will develop therapeutic products for cardiovascular and blood diseases. The new equity financing is being led by a $2.5 million investment by private investors and a $1.5 million investment from BioTime that valued ReCyte Therapeutics at a post money valuation of $60 million on a fully diluted basis.

4 Jan 2011

First whole genome sequence of Parsi breast cancer woman

Avesthagen Limited has yet again established its position as a leader in the successful application of next gen technologies as it announces the completion of the first Parsi breast cancer whole genome sequence of a 74-year-old Parsi woman with a heritable form of breast cancer. The incidence of breast cancer in most populations is strongly linked to a genetic basis but little is known about the variants at the present time.

4 Jan 2011

Study: Multitude of genes are linked to adult height

As much as 90 percent of variation in adult height may be caused by genetic inheritance, but a multitude of genes are involved. Most of these have yet to be discovered.

4 Jan 2011

Hydrocephalus in Ugandan children linked to farm animals, previous bacterial infection

Hydrocephalus in Ugandan children and other developing countries is seasonal, linked to farm animals and in part, caused by previous bacterial infection, according to an international team of researchers from Uganda and the United States, who believe that the best approach to this problem is prevention.

3 Jan 2011

Fungus may provide clue about human response to changes in circadian rhythm

Humans are not the only species ruled by a circadian rhythm. Even simple organisms like moulds are governed by an inner clock. Studying red bread mould may teach us how our own internal clock works. This is exactly what the Centre for Organelle Research at the University of Stavanger, Norway is doing.

30 Dec 2010

Low levels of microbe-killing molecules improve survival rate of people with CGD

Investigators at the National Institutes of Health have observed that the survival rate of people with a rare immunodeficiency disease called chronic granulomatous disease is greatly improved when even very low levels of microbe-killing molecules are present.

30 Dec 2010

Researchers to identify gene variants that cause ischemic stroke

Researchers from the University of Maryland School of Medicine are coordinating an international team of scientists working to identify genes or gene variants that may make a person more likely to have a particular type of stroke called an ischemic stroke.

30 Dec 2010

Dosing initiated in combination Phase I study of palifosfamide with etoposide and cisplatin/carboplatin in SCLC

ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc., announced today that the first patient has been dosed in a Phase I, single arm, dose escalation study at the Indiana University Cancer Center of intravenous (IV) palifosfamide (ZIO-201) in combination with etoposide (VP-16) and cisplatin/carboplatin (platinum) in the treatment of small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and other cancers.

29 Dec 2010

Molecular interaction between structural HCV protein and protein critical to viral replication identified

Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have identified a molecular interaction between a structural hepatitis C virus protein (HCV) and a protein critical to viral replication. This new finding strongly suggests a novel method of inhibiting the production of the virus and a potential new therapeutic target for hepatitis C drug development.

29 Dec 2010

BIOMICs oversees SGIker DNA Bank to know genetic heritage of Basque lineage

The BIOMICs Group, based at the Lucio Lascaray building in the álava/Araba campus of the University of the Basque Country, is specially known for overseeing the SGIker DNA Bank, not only undertaking this task, but also feeding data into the gene research bank and making good use of it for their own lines of research.

28 Dec 2010

Study sheds light on how bacteria developed resistance to antibiotics

Studying how bacteria incorporate foreign DNA from invading viruses into their own regulatory processes, Thomas Wood, professor in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University, is uncovering the secrets of one of nature's most primitive immune systems.

27 Dec 2010