Genetic News and Research

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Scientists develop new system to match genetic anomalies with precision medicine treatments

A team of computer scientists from the University of Delaware and Georgetown University has developed a new system to rapidly determine which cancer drugs are likely to work best given a patient's genetic markers.

6 Feb 2018

Next-generation ‘active genetics’ tool opens new horizons

In 2015, University of California San Diego biologists Ethan Bier and Valentino Gantz developed a breakthrough technology known as "active genetics," which results in parents transmitting a genetic trait to most of their offspring (instead of 50 percent receiving the trait under standard inheritance).

6 Feb 2018

Researchers identify potential 'first-line' treatment for rare bone loss disease

A possible 'first-line' treatment for a rare bone loss disease has been identified by a research team led by Tohoku University in Japan. The research findings, published in the journal Molecular Cell, could also provide insight into treating age-related osteoporosis.

6 Feb 2018

Airway-branch variations linked to greater risk of COPD

The internal anatomy of our lungs is surprisingly variable, and some of those variations are associated with a greater risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a new study led by researchers at McGill University and the Columbia University Irving Medical Center has found.

6 Feb 2018

The ‘Gesundheit Machine’ collects campus cooties in race against a fierce flu

It's turning out to be a particularly harsh flu season. The epidemic hasn't hit the University of Maryland College Park yet; students are just getting back from winter break. But in the close quarters of dorm rooms and cafeterias and study groups, the flu will come. And when it does, Dr. Don Milton, a professor of environmental health, will be ready and waiting to learn from it.

6 Feb 2018

Discovery opens new doors to developing vaccines for preventing staph skin infections

After years of investigation, researchers at Johns Hopkins, the University of California, Davis, and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases have discovered how the immune system might protect a person from recurrent bacterial skin infections caused by Staphylococcus aureus (staph).

6 Feb 2018

Babies born to mothers who were prescribed antibiotics tend to get more infections

A new study shows that babies who are born to mothers who were prescribed antibiotics while they were pregnant are at a 20 percent higher risk of getting infections and being hospitalized from them. The study was published in the latest issue of the International Journal of Epidemiology.

5 Feb 2018

Scientists discover rare hypertension disease gene

More than a billion people worldwide suffer from high blood pressure (hypertension). Prolonged hypertension damages blood vessels, which can result in damage to the heart, the kidneys, and the brain. Possible consequences include heart attack, kidney failure, and stroke.

5 Feb 2018

Loved one's experience has impact on woman's cancer prevention decisions

A woman's memories of a loved one's experience with cancer could play a significant role in how she approaches breast cancer prevention in her own life, a new study has found.

5 Feb 2018

Study shows connection between genetic variants for ADHD and educational attainment

A study published in the February 2018 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry reports that five novel genetic variants associated with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have been identified by exploiting genetic overlap between ADHD and educational attainment.

5 Feb 2018

Ribosomes found to be cause of somatic cell pluripotency

In 2012, a Japanese research group discovered that human skin cells acquire pluripotency when introduced to lactic acid bacteria. Now, the same group of researchers have found that the cause of somatic cell conversion into pluripotent stem cells is the ribosome, a protein synthesizing cellular organelle.

5 Feb 2018

Novel method can edit genes with substantially fewer errors

Gene therapy is an emerging strategy to treat diseases caused by genetic abnormalities. One form of gene therapy involves the direct repair of a defective gene, using genome-editing technology such as CRISPR-Cas9. Despite its therapeutic potential, genome editing can also introduce unwanted and potentially harmful genetic errors that limit its clinical feasibility.

5 Feb 2018

Researchers use innovative method to screen kinases for cancer drug's effectiveness

In recent years, a powerful suite of drugs known as kinase inhibitors have been developed to treat cancer and other diseases. Primary targets of such drugs include a family of receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) which protrude from cell surfaces like antennae and can activate cancer-related pathways in virtually all types of cancer when signaling molecules bind with them.

5 Feb 2018

Researchers shine light on ‘molecular butcher’ using neutron beams

Tucked away inside cell membranes, a molecular butcher does the bidding of healthy cells but also of disease agents. It has been operating out of clear view, but researchers just shined a mighty spotlight on it.

2 Feb 2018

Tumor activity found in male rats exposed to radiofrequency radiation

High exposure to radiofrequency radiation in rodents resulted in tumors in tissues surrounding nerves in the hearts of male rats, but not female rats or any mice, according to draft studies from the National Toxicology Program.

2 Feb 2018

Researchers move closer to solving puzzle of 15q13.3 microdeletion syndrome

Researchers are closer to solving the puzzle of a complex neurological condition called 15q13.3 microdeletion syndrome. Individuals with this condition are missing a small piece of chromosome 15 that usually contains six genes, but which one of the genes is responsible for the clinical characteristics of patients has not been clear.

2 Feb 2018

Higher susceptibility of some babies to Zika virus has a genetic origin, study shows

Microcephaly, brain calcification, skeletal alterations, auditory and visual deficits - these are examples of the damage that can be caused by Zika virus in babies born to mothers infected during pregnancy.

2 Feb 2018

Study reveals the mechanism of common DNA mutations

Researchers at The Ohio University have uncovered the mechanism by which thymine and guanine, the most commonly mutated bases in DNA, become damaged.

2 Feb 2018

Researchers identify cause of severe genetic disease

Mutations in the p63 protein lead to a number of disorders, but none is as severe as the AEC syndrome. Scientists at Goethe University Frankfurt in collaboration with a research group from the University of Naples Federico II have now discovered that this syndrome resembles diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's or ALS more closely than it does other p63-based syndromes.

2 Feb 2018

Fight for Sight awards new grants for 13 vital eye research projects

Fight for Sight, the leading eye research charity, has awarded grants totaling over £180,000 for thirteen vital research projects in partnership with nine different organizations.

2 Feb 2018