Humans normally have 46 chromosomes in each cell, divided into 23 pairs. Two copies of chromosome 6, one copy inherited from each parent, form one of the pairs. Chromosome 6 spans about 171 million base pairs (the building blocks of DNA) and represents between 5.5 percent and 6 percent of the total DNA in cells.
Identifying genes on each chromosome is an active area of genetic research. Because researchers use different approaches to predict the number of genes on each chromosome, the estimated number of genes varies. Chromosome 6 likely contains between 1,100 and 1,600 genes.
Genes on chromosome 6 are among the estimated 20,000 to 25,000 total genes in the human genome.
When a dividing cell duplicates its genetic material, a molecular machine called a sliding clamp travels along the DNA double helix, tethering the proteins that perform the replication.
Genetics researchers have identified two novel gene locations that raise the risk of type 1 diabetes. As they continue to reveal pieces of the complicated genetic puzzle for this disease, the researchers expect to improve predictive tests and devise preventive strategies.
Scientists have discovered that 1 in 7 men have a genetic risk for baldness. Researchers at Canada's McGill University and King's College London along with scientists at drug company GlaxoSmithKline have solved the mystery of male pattern baldness but say treating it will require more research.
Researchers at McGill University, King's College London and GlaxoSmithKline Inc. have identified two genetic variants in caucasians that together produce an astounding sevenfold increase the risk of male pattern baldness. Their results will be published Oct. 12 in the journal Nature Genetics.
Scientists at the world-leading Department of Genetics at the University of Leicester - where the revolutionary technique of genetic fingerprinting was invented by Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys- are developing techniques which may one day allow police to work out someone's surname from the DNA alone.
American researchers have created a prenatal blood test which can be used to determine if an unborn baby has Down's syndrome and the new test is safer for the fetus.
Scientists at The University of Nottingham have isolated three important genes involved in the development of a type of childhood brain cancer. The breakthrough is revealed in a study published in the British Journal of Cancer.
Scientists at Johns Hopkins schools of Public Health and Medicine have, for the first time, identified variants in the gene MYH9 that are associated with increased risk for non-diabetic end stage renal disease (ESRD,) which is the near-loss of kidney function leading to either dialysis of transplant. MYH9, located on the 22 chromosome, is the first gene identified for common forms of kidney disease.
Scientists at deCODE genetics and colleagues at Radboud University Medical Center in the Netherlands today report the discovery of two common single-letter variants in the human genome (SNPs) that confer increased risk of urinary bladder cancer.
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine report in the July issue of Neuron how nerve cells in the brain ensure that Arc, a protein critical for memory formation, is made instantly after nerve stimulation. Paradoxically, its manufacture involves two other proteins - including one linked to mental retardation - that typically prevent proteins from being made.
Scientists have isolated three important genes involved in the development of a type of childhood brain cancer- reveals a study published in the British Journal of Cancer.
Axentis Pharma AG has initiated a clinical phase IIa trial to assess the safety and tolerability of a new therapeutic formulation for the treatment of severe pulmonary infection in cystic fibrosis patients. The new formulation allows an established therapeutic agent to be delivered directly to the site of infection. The forthcoming trial will also compare the effects of two different doses of the new drug.
Parents expect to pass on their eye or hair color, their knobby knees or their big feet to their children through their genes. But they don't expect to pass on viruses through those same genes.
Researchers have discovered two new genes that increase the risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in childhood.
A brain chemical that plays a role in long term memory also appears to be involved in regulating how much people eat and their likelihood of becoming obese, according to a National Institutes of Health study of a rare genetic condition.
Novartis has announced that Gleevec (imatinib mesylate) tablets, (known as Glivec (imatinib) outside the US, Canada and Israel), has been granted priority review status by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as the first therapy to be reviewed for use after surgery in kit-positive gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST).
Researchers at Duke University Medical Center and at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) have shown how broken sections of chromosomes can recombine to change genomes and spawn new species.
University of Manchester scientists have uncovered the 3D structure of Mps1 - a protein that regulates the number of chromosomes during cell division and thus has an essential role in the prevention of cancer - which will lead to the design of safer and more effective therapies.
Scientists at the University of Liverpool have identified an enzyme that could be responsible for a condition called endometriosis - the most common cause of pelvic pain in women.
Researchers at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center have found that the reflux and swallowing problems that are common symptoms in patients with Rett syndrome and other neurological impairments, may be caused by a different mechanism than they are in healthy individuals. The finding leaves researchers to wonder if these patients truly benefit from anti-reflux surgery commonly performed in these children.
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