RNA Sequencing News and Research

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New species of tRNA-derived small RNAs contribute to cell proliferation in cancer

Since their discovery in the 1950s, transfer RNAs (tRNAs) have been best known for their role in helping the cell make proteins from messenger RNA templates. However, recent studies have led to a previously-unsuspected concept that tRNAs are not always the end product; namely, they further serve as a source of small RNAs.

30 Jun 2015

Study explores innovative approach to identifying successful treatment for HER2+ breast cancer

Ahmad M. Khalil, PhD, knew the odds were against him -- as in thousands upon thousands to one. Yet he and his team never wavered from their quest to identify the parts of the body responsible for revving up one of the most aggressive forms of breast cancer, HER2+. This month in Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, Khalil and his colleagues at Case Western Reserve University proved the power of persistence; from a pool of more than 30,000 possibilities, they found 38 genes and molecules that most likely trigger HER2+ cancer cells to spread.

25 Apr 2015

Penn Med's BLINKER Team named one of 16 finalists in NIH 'Follow that Cell Challenge'

James Eberwine, PhD, the Elmer Holmes Bobst Professor of Systems Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, was named one of 16 finalists in the first phase of the Follow that Cell Challenge funded by the National Institutes of Health. The competition was run by crowdsourcing company Innocentive and 687 designated "solvers" entered initially.

2 Apr 2015

EMA approves Baylor's hollow fiber system for development of TB drugs

The European Medicines Agency (EMA), the equivalent of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, has approved the use of the hollow fiber system for the development of drugs to treat and prevent tuberculosis (TB).

24 Mar 2015

Researchers discover new metabolic mechanisms linked to macrophage polarization

A group of researchers from Washington University in St. Louis, Agios Pharmaceuticals and ITMO University has discovered new metabolic mechanisms that regulate macrophage polarization - the unique ability of these immune cells to change their specialization depending on the required task.

18 Mar 2015

Study describes the dual role of microRNA during hepatitis C infection

In the battle between a cell and a virus, either side may resort to subterfuge. Molecular messages, which control the cellular machinery both sides need, are vulnerable to interception or forgery.

13 Mar 2015

Research findings offer new insights into pathophysiology of PTSD

Researchers at the Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System and University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, with colleagues in New York and the United Kingdom, have identified genetic markers, derived from blood samples that are linked to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The markers are associated with gene networks that regulate innate immune function and interferon signaling.

11 Mar 2015

CaptureSeq technology can accurately measure activity of genes

A new gene sequencing technology allows us to explore the human genome at a much higher resolution than ever before, with revolutionary implications for research and cancer diagnosis.

10 Mar 2015

UCLA life scientists develop new method to find genetic markers for many diseases

UCLA life scientists have created an accurate new method to identify genetic markers for many diseases -- a significant step toward a new era of personalized medicine, tailored to each person's DNA and RNA.

4 Mar 2015

Beckman Coulter Genomics Introduces a Scalable RNA-seq service line for processing intact and degraded RNA samples

This fully automated sample preparation pipeline delivers consistent results run after run, reducing user variability and bias and allows processing of a large amount of samples with reduced turnaround time relative to manual library construction.

25 Feb 2015

MD Anderson researchers find way to predict patients who may respond to BRAF inhibitors

Powerful drugs known as BRAF-inhibitors have been crucial for melanoma patients, saving lives through their ability to turn off the BRAF protein's power to spur cancer cell growth.

24 Feb 2015

Genomics of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC): an interview with Professor Thomas J. Giordano

There are two types of thyroid cells and therefore there are two broad types of thyroid cancer. Medullary carcinoma is derived from parafollicular or C cells, whereas follicular cells give rise to several types of thyroid cancers.

4 Feb 2015

Scientists identify gene mutations that provide better insight into hepatitis-liver cancer link

Using whole genomic sequencing, scientists from RIKEN in Japan have for the first time demonstrated the profound effect that chronic hepatitis infection and inflammation can have on the genetic mutations found in tumors of the liver, potentially paving the way to a better understanding of the mechanisms through which these chronic infections can lead to cancer.

2 Feb 2015

TCGA researchers uncover differences between tumors with and without HPV infection

The study by The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) researchers analyzed the genomes of 279 head and neck cancer tumors. They identified subtypes of head and neck cancer based on their genomic characteristics, changes in smoking-related tumors, as well as genomic differences in head and neck cancer tumors linked to HPV, the most commonly sexually transmitted disease in the United States.

31 Jan 2015

Research opens door to potential new cancer biomarkers

A new analysis opens the door to discovery of thousands of potential new cancer biomarkers.

20 Jan 2015

Study finds difference between results from IHC and quantitative molecular techniques

The cause of type 1 diabetes remains unknown. Several studies using immunohistochemistry (IHC) have independently reported hyperexpression of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I on pancreatic islet cells in young patients with recent-onset type 1 diabetes. Investigators have therefore suggested that HLA hyperexpression may be an important first step in the development of type 1 diabetes.

12 Jan 2015

UT Austin researchers identify network of genes that drives alcohol dependence

Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have identified a network of genes that appear to work together in determining alcohol dependence. The findings, which could lead to future treatments and therapies for alcoholics and possibly help doctors screen for alcoholism, are being published this week in the journal Molecular Psychiatry.

2 Dec 2014

Finding could upend scientific consensus about when embryonic cells begin separating into cell types

Bioengineers at the University of California, San Diego have discovered that mouse embryos are contemplating their cellular fates in the earliest stages after fertilization when the embryo has only two to four cells, a discovery that could upend the scientific consensus about when embryonic cells begin differentiating into cell types.

28 Nov 2014

New method could make Ebola surveillance quicker, cheaper for West African nations

A new method for examining the Ebola virus genome could make surveillance quicker and cheaper for West African nations, and help detect new forms of the virus. The detailed procedure is being shared with the research community along with the study paper, which is freely available in the open access journal Genome Biology.

19 Nov 2014

New study reveals link between aristolochic acid and kidney cancer

A new study on a large cohort of kidney cancer patients in Europe sheds light on the genetic architecture of the disease -- and reveals an apparent link between exposure to aristolochic acid and incidence of kidney cancer, particularly in Romania.

29 Oct 2014