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Scientists identify genetic factors that influence height in individuals

An international collaboration of scientists has identified a fifth of the genetic factors that cause height to vary between individuals.

6 Oct 2014

Study provides better glimpse at the biology of height

The largest genome-wide association study (GWAS) to date, involving more than 300 institutions and more than 250,000 subjects, roughly doubles the number of known gene regions influencing height to more than 400.

6 Oct 2014

Researchers reveal 'programmable' antibiotic technique to target drug-resistant microbes

The multitude of microbes scientists have found populating the human body have good, bad and mostly mysterious implications for our health. But when something goes wrong, we defend ourselves with the undiscriminating brute force of traditional antibiotics, which wipe out everything at once, regardless of the consequences.

6 Oct 2014

New method for extracting potential bone-producing cells from human fat

Within our fat lives a variety of cells with the potential to become bone, cartilage, or more fat if properly prompted. This makes adipose tissue, in theory, a readily available reservoir for regenerative therapies such as bone healing if doctors can get enough of those cells and compel them to produce bone.

6 Oct 2014

TyrRS enzyme protects DNA during cellular stress

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have found that an enzyme best known for its fundamental role in building proteins has a second major function: to protect DNA during times of cellular stress.

3 Oct 2014

Blood test can help identify people at increased risk of atrial fibrillation, stroke

Many of those who are genetically predisposed to develop atrial fibrillation, which dramatically raises the risk of stroke, can be identified with a blood test. This is shown by new research from Lund University in Sweden.

3 Oct 2014

Women can now take proactive steps to reduce breast cancer risk

Now that medical professionals have identified gene mutations that predispose for breast cancer, patients can take proactive steps to reduce their risk.

3 Oct 2014

Researchers analyze incidence of childhood brain tumors

Older parents, birth defects, maternal nutrition and childhood exposure to CT scans and pesticides are increasingly being associated with brain tumors in children, according to new research from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis.

3 Oct 2014

Animal study suggests ibuprofen can reduce lung inflammation in elderly

New research shows that the lungs become more inflammatory with age and that ibuprofen can lower that inflammation.

3 Oct 2014

Salk researchers receive BRAIN Initiative funding

Joseph Ecker, a Salk professor and Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, and Margarita Behrens, Salk staff scientist, have been named recipients in the 2014 round of grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) through the BRAIN (Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies) Initiative for leading-edge work in neuroscience.

1 Oct 2014

Study shows healthy fat in olive oil may revive a failing heart

Oleate, a common dietary fat found in olive oil, restored proper metabolism of fuel in heart cells in an animal model of heart failure.

1 Oct 2014

Virginia Tech professor wins Paul L. Busch Award for outstanding work in water quality research

Amy Pruden, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech, is the 2014 recipient of the Paul L. Busch Award, including a $100,000 research grant.

1 Oct 2014

Gaucher disease: an interview with Dr Clement Olivier, Shire

Gaucher disease is the most common condition within a family of rare diseases known as the lysosomal storage diseases. The disease causes lipids to accumulate in cells, which is why it is referred to as a storage disorder. The accumulation occurs mainly in the spleen, liver, and bones, but may also occur in the lungs, heart, and central nervous system.

30 Sep 2014

Pitt researchers awarded $11.8 million NIH grant to explore genetic roots of cleft lip, palate

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine have been awarded a $11.8 million, five-year grant from the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, part of the National Institutes of Health, to continue their exploration of the genetic roots of cleft lip and cleft palate and to expand the effort to include populations in Colombia, Nigeria, the Philippines and Pennsylvania.

30 Sep 2014

Prenatal maternal stress exposure to Quebec ice storm predicts epigenetic profile of offspring

The number of days an expectant mother was deprived of electricity during Quebec's Ice Storm (1998) predicts the epigenetic profile of her child, a new study finds.

30 Sep 2014

TSRI study points way to potential therapies for hereditary spastic paraplegia

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have discovered that a gene mutation linked to hereditary spastic paraplegia, a disabling neurological disorder, interferes with the normal breakdown of triglyceride fat molecules in the brain. The TSRI researchers found large droplets of triglycerides within the neurons of mice modeling the disease.

30 Sep 2014

Study assesses effectiveness of UK-wide screening programme for Lynch Syndrome

Screening families of patients with bowel cancer for a genetic condition would cut their risk of developing bowel, womb, and ovarian cancers, new research has found.

30 Sep 2014

Myriad Genetics' Tumor BRACAnalysis CDx identifies 44% more candidates for PARP therapy

Myriad Genetics, Inc. today announced that its Tumor BRACAnalysis CDx- companion diagnostic test significantly improved the detection of cancer-causing BRCA1/2 mutations by 44 percent in women with ovarian cancer. Data from this new study were presented at the 2014 European Society for Medical Oncology annual meeting in Madrid, Spain.

29 Sep 2014

Scientists discover mechanism that resists cancer drugs in estrogen-positive breast cancer

Scientists have discovered a previously unknown mechanism by which estrogen prepares cells to divide, grow and, in the case of estrogen-positive breast cancers, resist cancer drugs. The researchers say the work reveals new targets for breast cancer therapy and will help doctors predict which patients need the most aggressive treatment.

29 Sep 2014

Researchers create new Cas9 animal model for in vivo genome editing experiments

Researchers from the Broad Institute and Massachusetts Institute of Technology have created a new mouse model to simplify application of the CRISPR-Cas9 system for in vivo genome editing experiments.

29 Sep 2014