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mRNA sequencing reveals transcriptomic landscape of breast cancer

GW Cancer Research Team in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, in the School of Medicine and Health Sciences, published a study that is the first of its kind to use mRNA sequencing to look at the expression of genome, at a unprecedented resolution at the current time, in three types of breast cancer.

15 Feb 2012

UPV/EHU biologist analyzes genetic and environmental causes of obesity in Romani families

Esther Rebato is a well-known figure in the field of Physical Anthropology. She not only holds the prestigious Alex Hrdli-ka academic medal of the Czech Republic, but she is also the Chair of the Spanish Association of Physical Anthropology. This lecturer at the Department of Genetics, Physical Anthropology and Animal Physiology of the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) has carried out numerous pieces of work into nutritional habits, life quality and other associated aspects.

15 Feb 2012

Study confirms increased risk of cancers linked with Lynch syndrome

People with Lynch syndrome have a genetic mutation that gives them a high risk of several types of cancer including bowel cancer. The genes that are damaged can't repair any errors that occur in our DNA.

15 Feb 2012

Gene sequencing could identify genetic variants of lung cancer and colorectal cancer

Foundation Medicine Inc., a molecular information company that brings comprehensive cancer gene analysis to routine clinical care, and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have come up with the results from their collaborative next-generation sequencing (NGS) study to assay cancer-relevant genes in 24 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and 40 colorectal cancer (CRC) cases.

14 Feb 2012

Epigenetic mechanisms maintain tolerance in T cells specific for self antigens

At the most basic level, the immune system must distinguish self from non-self, that is, it must discriminate between the molecular signatures of invading pathogens (non-self antigens) and cellular constituents that usually pose no risk to health (self-antigens).

14 Feb 2012

'Targeted' drugs may be effective against lung and colorectal tumors driven by novel gene abnormalities

Novel gene abnormalities discovered in a subpopulation of lung and colorectal tumors could potentially identify patients with a good chance of responding to highly specific "targeted" drugs already in use for treating other cancers, scientists report.

14 Feb 2012

Scientists create fungi with additional foreign genes to produce chemicals for drugs

Usually, mould fungi are nothing to cheer about - but now they can be used as "chemical factories". Scientists at the Vienna University of Technology have succeeded in introducing bacterial genes into the fungus Trichoderma, so that the fungus can now produce important chemicals for the pharmaceutical industry. The raw material used by the fungus is abundant - it is chitin, which makes up the shells of crustaceans.

14 Feb 2012

Scientists create new mouse model for medulloblastoma

Scientists at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) developed a new mouse model for studying a devastating childhood brain cancer called medulloblastoma.

14 Feb 2012

People with Lynch syndrome face increased risks of breast and pancreatic cancers

A new prospective study of patients with Lynch syndrome - an inherited disorder of cancer susceptibility caused by mutations in specific DNA repair genes - provides the first strong evidence that people with Lynch syndrome face significantly increased risks of breast and pancreatic cancers.

14 Feb 2012

Discovery of novel rearrangements and fusions supports role for NGS in treatment of cancer

Foundation Medicine, Inc., a molecular information company that brings comprehensive cancer gene analysis to routine clinical care, and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute today announced the Nature Medicine publication of results from their collaborative next-generation sequencing (NGS) study to assay cancer-relevant genes in 24 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and 40 colorectal cancer (CRC) cases.

13 Feb 2012

Researchers discover a startling feature of early brain development

Researchers at the Salk Institute have discovered a startling feature of early brain development that helps to explain how complex neuron wiring patterns are programmed using just a handful of critical genes. The findings, published February 3 in Cell, may help scientists develop new therapies for neurological disorders, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and provide insight into certain cancers.

13 Feb 2012

Molecular secrets behind halofuginone's power

For roughly two thousand years, Chinese herbalists have treated Malaria using a root extract, commonly known as Chang Shan, from a type of hydrangea that grows in Tibet and Nepal. More recent studies suggest that halofuginone, a compound derived from this extract's bioactive ingredient, could be used to treat many autoimmune disorders as well. Now, researchers from the Harvard School of Dental Medicine have discovered the molecular secrets behind this herbal extract's power.

13 Feb 2012

Cognitive impairment affects majority of non-demented Swedish elderly

Both subjective and objective cognitive impairment are highly common among non-demented elderly Swedes, with an overall prevalence of 39 percent and 25 percent respectively, according to a nation-wide twin-study by researchers at the Aging Research Center of Karolinska Institutet, Sweden. The study confirms higher education as a major protective factor and stresses the importance of environmental aspects over genes in mild cognitive disorders in old age.

13 Feb 2012

KSU, St. Michael's receive U.S. patent to use BRCA1 gene for cardiovascular disease

St. Michael's Hospital and King Saud University have received their first joint U.S. patent to use the BRCA1 gene as a therapy for cardiovascular disease.

13 Feb 2012

Study reveals how SAMHD1 works to protect dendritic cells from HIV virus

A novel discovery by researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center and colleagues reveals a mechanism by which the immune system tries to halt the spread of HIV. Harnessing this mechanism may open up new paths for therapeutic research aimed at slowing the virus' progression to AIDS. The study appears online ahead of print today in Nature Immunology.

12 Feb 2012

Y chromosome may be the link that passes heart disease risk from father to son

The study, published in The Lancet, focused on genetic markers on the Y chromosome — which is present only in male DNA (women have two X chromosomes) — and found that men with a certain genetic variant were 50% more likely to have coronary artery disease than those without it. The increased risk was independent of other contributors to heart disease such as age, weight, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and smoking.

12 Feb 2012

Study identifies new gene variants linked with risk of T2D

The largest genetics study to date of type 2 diabetes (T2D) has identified new gene variants associated with risk for the common metabolic disease. An international scientific consortium, studying multiethnic populations, uncovered genes that may point to biological targets for developing more effective drugs for T2D.

10 Feb 2012

New cERD method can detect RNAi activity in biological fluids

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading RNAi therapeutics company, announced today that its scientists have discovered a novel method for monitoring RNAi activity in blood samples, representing a potential major advance for future development of RNAi therapeutics, other therapeutic modalities, and diagnostics.

10 Feb 2012

Parkinson’s disease gene - parkin explored: Study

Researchers at the University at Buffalo have discovered how mutations in the parkin gene cause Parkinson's disease, which afflicts at least 500,000 Americans and for which there is no cure. The results are published in the current issue of Nature Communications.

9 Feb 2012

Gene therapy succeeds in the second blind eye for three patients

Three people have now have reported a dramatic improvement in vision after having gene therapy in both eyes after having lost their eyesight as children.

9 Feb 2012