DNA News and Research

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DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is the hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms. Nearly every cell in a person’s body has the same DNA. Most DNA is located in the cell nucleus (where it is called nuclear DNA), but a small amount of DNA can also be found in the mitochondria (where it is called mitochondrial DNA or mtDNA).

Researchers find cause of frontotemporal dementia

Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) is the second major form of dementia.

17 Jul 2006

Potential new diagnostic test and treatment for lung cancer

University of York spinout company, Cizzle Biotechnology, has secured venture capital funding from the White Rose Technology Seedcorn Fund to continue its development of a potential new diagnostic test and treatment for lung cancer.

17 Jul 2006

FoxM1 regulates the expression of oestrogen receptors in breast cancer

Research just published online in the "Journal of Biological Chemistry" identifies a new molecule involved in the regulation of oestrogen receptors (ER) expression in breast cancer.

12 Jul 2006

Study shows high survival for patients with torn aortas who get surgery

Nearly three years ago, actor John Ritter collapsed on the set of his sitcom, the victim of a rare but often deadly condition called aortic dissection - a tear in the largest blood vessel in the body.

11 Jul 2006

Scientists unravel breast cancer risk gene mystery

The risk of developing breast cancer is doubled in women who inherit a damaged version of a gene called ATM, according to a study published by Cancer Research UK funded scientists and collaborators in Nature Genetics.

10 Jul 2006

Functionalized carbon nanotubes are non-cytotoxic and preserve the functionality of primary immune cells

Various types of carbon-based nanomaterials, such as buckyballs and nanotubes, have shown promise as drug delivery tools and imaging agents, but reports of toxicity associated with some of these materials have raised questions about their ultimate utility in clinical oncology.

10 Jul 2006

Brits to trial bird flu vaccine on humans

The British drug company PowderMed has applied for permission to conduct the first trial in Britain of a vaccine against the avian flu virus.

10 Jul 2006

Cell survival depends on chromosome integrity

UCLA researchers report that thousands of genes behave differently in the same organs of males and females - something never detected to this degree.

9 Jul 2006

Dog DNA provides clues to combating diseases such as diabetes and multiple sclerosis in humans

Melbourne researchers are examining the DNA of dogs in a research project aiming at determining the genetic causes of common pet diseases - and to provide a model for combating diseases such as diabetes and multiple sclerosis in humans.

5 Jul 2006

Grandma was right again, a hot water bottle helps ease the pain

Researchers in Britain say that the old fashioned idea that heat relieves pain does have some truth in it and hugging a hot-water bottle can have a similar effect to a painkiller.

5 Jul 2006

New diagnostic approach for carriers of recessive genetic disorders

Scientists Vivian Cheung and Warren Ewens from the University of Pennsylvania have developed a new approach for the diagnosis of medical disorders that are inherited in a recessive manner.

3 Jul 2006

Potential permanent genetic cure for hemophilia A

A discovery by Medical College of Wisconsin and BloodCenter of Wisconsin researchers in Milwaukee may be a key to a permanent genetic cure for hemophilia A patients, including a subset who do not respond to conventional blood transfusions.

3 Jul 2006

Multiple cancer biomarkers detected simultaneously

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology revolutionized diagnostic medicine and basic research through its ability to amplify and detect minute amounts of specific DNA sequences.

3 Jul 2006

New gene amplification findings could benefit cancer research

Gene amplification plays an important role in causing cancers via activation of oncogenes.

29 Jun 2006

New screening model for colon cancer may improve survival rates

Scottish researchers have come up with a method of identifying people who are at risk of certain types of hereditary colon cancer.

29 Jun 2006

Researchers discover new cell structures

New breakthrough for children suffering from an extremely rare disease that accelerates the aging process by about seven times the normal rate.

28 Jun 2006

Genetically-engineered antivenom to improve the treatment of snake bite

Important breakthrough in using DNA sequencing rather than actual snake venom as the means to generate antivenom.

27 Jun 2006

Revolutionary dissolvable scaffold for growing new areas of skin

A revolutionary dissolvable scaffold for growing new areas of skin could provide a safer, more effective way of treating burns, diabetic ulcers and similar injuries.

27 Jun 2006

Researchers identify gene used to recognize pathogens

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health have identified a gene in the Anopheles gambiae mosquito's DNA that is central to the insect's ability to defend against infectious pathogens, including Plasmodium, the parasite that causes malaria in humans.

27 Jun 2006