Genetic News and Research

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UCLA researchers tweak CRISPR to accelerate genomic editing

The powerful gene-editing tool, CRISPR, has revolutionized research by allowing scientists to snip and patch DNA with remarkable precision. But tracking the impact of these changes on gene function can be time-consuming. Researchers currently analyze each edit one at a time, a process that can take weeks.

9 Apr 2018

ALS and frontotemporal dementia share genetic connections

Nearly half of all patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a fatal neuromuscular disorder, develop cognitive problems that affect memory and thinking.

9 Apr 2018

Researchers find link between common genetic variant and AFib risk in Latinos

"There is a paradox at play when it comes to atrial fibrillation in the Latino population," said Dr. Dawood Darbar.

9 Apr 2018

Study reveals how apoE4 gene confers risk for Alzheimer's disease in brain cells

Using human brain cells, scientists at the Gladstone Institutes discovered the cause of--and a potential solution for--the primary genetic risk factor for Alzheimer's disease, a gene called apoE4.

9 Apr 2018

Oxidative stress due to lack of tumor suppressor gene promotes cancer progression, study shows

Researchers from the Cancer Science Institute of Singapore (CSI Singapore) at the National University of Singapore have identified that RUNX3, a tumour suppressor gene absent in many cancer types, acts as a barrier against oxidative stress in cancer cells.

9 Apr 2018

Physical fitness helps reduce genetic risk of heart disease, study finds

Keeping fit, even if you're born with a high genetic risk for heart disease, still works to keep your heart healthy, according to a study led by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

9 Apr 2018

Research team identifies new class of antibiotics to fight drug resistance

Researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago and Nosopharm, a biotechnology company based in Lyon, France, are part of an international team reporting on the discovery of a new class of antibiotics.

6 Apr 2018

Researchers uncover mechanism critical to keeping blood stem cells functional

Hematopoietic stem cells, that form mature blood cells, require a very precise amount of protein to function - and defective regulation of protein production is common in certain types of aggressive human blood cancers.

6 Apr 2018

Mice study reveals important role of pTreg cell population in autoimmune diabetes

In autoimmune diseases such as type 1 diabetes, some of the immune system's T cells mistakenly attack the body's own cells, while protective T regulatory cells try to defend against that attack.

6 Apr 2018

Scientists develop indices that provide information about prognosis of cancers

Researchers from the School of Medicine in Ribeirão Preto, at the University of São Paulo, in collaboration with international groups, have developed indices that provide information about the prognosis of cancers, aid in the choice of the most appropriate therapy to be used and identify potential targets for the development of new drugs.

6 Apr 2018

Largest genomic analysis supports additional classification of tumors

University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers are reporting the concluding findings from a major analysis of nearly 10,000 different tumor samples that focused on identifying similarities between cancers based on changes in their genes, and the way their genes are expressed.

6 Apr 2018

Research provides new insights about gender differences in airway disease risk

Human airways already demonstrate gender-based differences in DNA methylation signatures at birth, providing an early hint of which infants may be predisposed to develop respiratory disorders like asthma later in life, a research team reports in a paper published online April 3, 2018, in Scientific Reports.

6 Apr 2018

Johns Hopkins scientist calls for more integration of epigenetics and genetics research

In a review article published April 5 in the New England Journal of Medicine, scientist Andrew Feinberg, M.D., calls for more integration between two fields of DNA-based research: genetics and epigenetics.

6 Apr 2018

Discordance between brain regions could lead to attention deficit disorders

Researchers from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and colleagues have discovered how two brain regions work together to maintain attention, and how discordance between the regions could lead to attention deficit disorders, including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression.

6 Apr 2018

Scientists identify key genetic events responsible for initiating childhood leukemia

The key genetic events responsible for initiating the early stages of a type of childhood leukemia have been identified by scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research, London. Insights into the ‘founder’ genetic mutation for this type of leukemia, present in all the cancer cells, could be used in the development of new targeted drugs.

6 Apr 2018

Scientists create organoids that could help guide bladder cancer treatment

Researchers have created patient-specific bladder cancer organoids that imitate many of the features of real tumors and may therefore be used to study how cancer evolves.

6 Apr 2018

Novel technology gives rise to mouse pancreatic tumors that resemble human cancer

Novel technology developed at UT Health San Antonio gives rise to mouse pancreatic tumors that have the same traits as human pancreatic cancer. A U.S. patent is pending on the invention.

6 Apr 2018

New comprehensive analysis of breast and gynecological cancers

A large amount of information has been gathered by researchers from University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center who were studying the molecular features of tumors and their subtypes. They were working on breast and four types of gynaecological cancers.

6 Apr 2018

Study provides systematic view of gene enhancer activity in diverse tumors

At the heart of any cancer diagnosis or treatment are cells. If one thinks of the cell components controlling gene activation as a Russian nesting-doll of gene regulatory layers, within those increasingly smaller tiers are short pieces of non-coding DNA called enhancers.

5 Apr 2018

Searching for most appropriate genetic factors that contribute to alcohol sensitivity

Alcohol use disorder is a complex trait, both in its causes and characteristics. Individuals' sensitivity to alcohol can predict their risk of adverse alcohol outcomes like AUD. Further, AUD runs in families, reflecting in part a genetic component.

5 Apr 2018