Genetic News and Research

RSS

Researchers use epigenetic signatures to advance diagnosis for neurodevelopmental disorders

Greenwood Genetic Center researchers in collaboration with scientists from Canada have identified unique epigenetic signatures for nine neurodevelopmental disorders lending to a better method of diagnosis for disorders with much clinical overlap.

23 Jan 2018

Personality changes occur early on during development of Alzheimer's disease, research finds

A key feature of Alzheimer's disease is memory loss and losing one's ability to think and make decisions (also called "cognitive ability"). Those changes can begin slowly, during a phase called "mild cognitive impairment" (or MCI). A variety of diseases can cause MCI, but the most common is Alzheimer's disease.

23 Jan 2018

Experts issue updated guidelines for molecular diagnostic testing of patients with lung cancer

A panel of leading experts in molecular pathology has issued new recommendations and updates to guidelines for molecular diagnostic testing of patients with lung cancer.

23 Jan 2018

Metabolic shift can result in congestive heart failure

The heart derives its energy primarily from fatty acids. However, if a metabolic shift to other energy sources takes place, this can result in congestive heart failure, scientists from the German Cancer Research Center and Heidelberg University Hospital have now discovered.

23 Jan 2018

Curcumin could provide meaningful cognitive benefits, study suggests

Lovers of Indian food, give yourselves a second helping: Daily consumption of a certain form of curcumin -- the substance that gives Indian curry its bright color -- improved memory and mood in people with mild, age-related memory loss, according to the results of a study conducted by UCLA researchers.

23 Jan 2018

Scientists identify molecular key that opens up compacted genome

News article describing the recent discovery of pax7, a protein which opens up compacted DNA for access by transcription factors.

23 Jan 2018

New family of FFPE reagent kits launched by Beckman Coulter Life Sciences

BCLS launched a family of FormaPure reagent kits for extracting nucleic acid often-challenginging formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues.

From Beckman Coulter Life Sciences - Automation and Genomics 23 Jan 2018

JAX researcher receives grant for retinal disease research

The National Eye Institute has awarded Jackson Laboratory Professor Juergen Naggert, Ph.D., a five-year grant totaling $2,187,500 to study genetically controlled breaks in an eye structure known as the external limiting membrane, which could hold the key to understanding and treating enhanced S-cone syndrome and other diseases of the retina.

22 Jan 2018

Chinese researchers develop multifunctional vehicle to transport gene therapeutics

Gene editing is one of the hottest topics in cancer research. A Chinese research team has now developed a gold-nanoparticle-based multifunctional vehicle to transport the "gene scissors" to the tumor cell genome.

22 Jan 2018

Findings provide better understanding of cognitive inflexibility in Fragile X Syndrome

Mice with the genetic defect that causes Fragile X syndrome (FXS) learn and remember normally, but show an inability to learn new information that contradicts what they initially learned, shows a new study by a team of neuroscientists.

22 Jan 2018

New genomic tools provide better understanding of the human immune system

When the body is under attack from pathogens, the immune system marshals a diverse collection of immune cells to work together in a tightly orchestrated process and defend the host against the intruders.

22 Jan 2018

Epilepsy associated with volume and thickness differences in brain matter

Epilepsy is associated with thickness and volume differences in the grey matter of several brain regions, according to new research led by UCL and the Keck School of Medicine of USC.

22 Jan 2018

DNA study sheds light on longstanding puzzle of cell division

Scientists have solved a longstanding puzzle of how cells are able to tightly package DNA to enable healthy cell division.

19 Jan 2018

Researchers develop single blood test that screens for 8 cancer types

Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center researchers developed a single blood test that screens for eight common cancer types and helps identify the location of the cancer.

19 Jan 2018

Researchers describe atom-by-atom changes in ALS-linked protein

For the first time, researchers have described atom-by-atom changes in a family of proteins linked to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a group of brain disorders known as frontotemporal dementia and degenerative diseases of muscle and bone.

19 Jan 2018

Scientists identify protein biomarkers to track patients with Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome

Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome (HGPS) is an extremely rare fatal genetic disorder which causes sufferers to age prematurely.

19 Jan 2018

Researchers develop new mathematical tool to solve genetics challenge

Researchers developed a new mathematical tool to validate and improve methods used by medical professionals to interpret results from clinical genetic tests. The work was published this month in Genetics in Medicine.

19 Jan 2018

Study reveals key role of macrophages in systemic sclerosis

A new international study has made an important discovery about the key role of macrophages, a type of immune cell, in systemic sclerosis (SSc), a chronic autoimmune disease which currently has no cure.

19 Jan 2018

Children born with Down's syndrome have superior genome that compensates for disability

Down's syndrome - also known as trisomy 21 - is a genetic disorder caused by an additional third chromosome 21. Although this genetic abnormality is found in one out of 700 births, only 20% of foetuses with trisomy 21 reach full term.

19 Jan 2018

Novel robot can aid treatment of rare birth defect

Researchers at the University of Sheffield and Boston's Children Hospital, Harvard Medical School have created a robot that can be implanted into the body to aid the treatment of esophageal atresia, a rare birth defect that affects a baby's esophagus.

19 Jan 2018