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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 can now inexpensively program the chemical synthesis of entire genes on a single microchip

Devices the size of a pager now have greater capabilities than computers that once occupied an entire room. Similar advances are being made in the emerging field of synthetic biology at the University of Houston, now allowing researchers to inexpensively program the chemical synthesis of entire genes on a single microchip.

23 Dec 2004

Jumping genes help explain immune system's remarkable ability

A team led by Johns Hopkins scientists has found the first clear evidence that the process behind the human immune system's remarkable ability to recognize and respond to a million different proteins might have originated from a family of genes whose only apparent function is to jump around in genetic material.

22 Dec 2004

DNA stool testing is more effective in detecting colon cancer than a widely used stool test

A study in the current issue of the New England Journal of Medicine concludes that DNA stool testing is more effective in detecting colon cancer than a widely used stool test, but a Virginia Commonwealth University family medicine and public health physician argues in the same issue that its superiority is still in doubt.

22 Dec 2004

New DNA sequence translation device

Chemists at New York University have developed a device that allows for the translation of DNA sequences, thereby serving as a factory for assembling the building blocks of new materials.

21 Dec 2004

Major step forward in using saliva to detect oral cancer

Scientists funded by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research reported taking a major step forward in using saliva to detect oral cancer.

21 Dec 2004

New way of viewing genetic variations

Human geneticists can now see which variations on the human genome are inherited together, thanks to a new way of viewing genetic variations in the latest release of the Ensembl genome browser [a joint project between EMBL's EBI and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute].

21 Dec 2004

Eating more tomatoes and watermelons can reduce prostate cancer

A new study by researchers at Curtin University of Technology shows that eating yellow, orange and red fruits such as tomatoes, watermelon and citrus, and vegetables such as red capsicum or sweet pepper, pumpkin and spinach may reduce the risk of developing prostate cancer by up to 50 per cent.

21 Dec 2004

DLX5 gene may play a role in the pathology of Rett Syndrome

A research team led by Terumi Kohwi-Shigematsu of the Life Sciences Division of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has identified a gene, DLX5, that may play a role in the pathology of Rett Syndrome, a devastating neurological disorder diagnosed almost exclusively in girls.

20 Dec 2004

Messenger RNA not only are measurable in saliva but can indicate a developing tumor

Scientists funded by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research reported today taking a major step forward in using saliva to detect oral cancer.

20 Dec 2004

Permanent resistance to antibiotics cannot be prevented

Dutch research has shown that the development of permanent resistance by bacteria and fungi against antibiotics cannot be prevented in the longer-term. The only solution is to reduce the dependence on antibiotics by using these less.

20 Dec 2004

Rett Syndrome, the first identified epigenetic disease - linked to specific defects in the three-dimensional folding of chromatin

Sometime between the age of 6 and 18 months, after a period of seemingly normal development, girls affected with Rett Syndrome lose interest in play; they gradually become withdrawn and anxious, develop autistic-like behaviors, and acquire specific symptoms like repetitive teeth-grinding and hand-wringing.

20 Dec 2004

Discovery of new compound known as SP-4-84 could lead to improved chemotherapy treatments

The discovery of a new compound by Michigan State University researchers could lead to improved chemotherapy treatments for different types of cancers – potentially with fewer side effects.

20 Dec 2004

New theory driving evolutionary changes

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas have used canine DNA to identify a genetic mutation mechanism they believe is responsible for rapid evolutionary changes in the physical appearance of many species.

14 Dec 2004

Revised safety advice on chromium picolinate supplements

The Food Standards Agency has revised its advice on the safety of chromium picolinate supplements. It is no longer advising people to avoid this type of chromium.

14 Dec 2004

New cancer detection technology from Rubicon Genomics

Rubicon Genomics has invented a more effective technology for the diagnosis and prognosis of cancer compared to what hospitals and reference laboratories use today. MethylPlex™ is the most sensitive method in use to detect the patterns of abnormal DNA methylation arising in the serum and urine of patients during tumor formation and progression.

14 Dec 2004

Instead of chemotherapy, drugs that influence the X protein's behavior might become an alternative cancer therapy

Identifying the link between chronic hepatitis B infection and liver cancer may one day help cancer patients sidestep the poison of chemotherapy, a Purdue University study suggests.

13 Dec 2004

Start today of human tests for a preventive vaccine against the respiratory disease SARS

Powerful research tools that speed up vaccine development have led to the start today of human tests for a preventive vaccine against the respiratory disease SARS. The disease killed hundreds of people around the world before it was brought under control in 2003 with aggressive conventional public health measures.

13 Dec 2004

New approach to genomic testing identifies women with low risk of breast cancer recurrence

An initial validation study presented by Exagen Diagnostics at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium suggests it may soon be possible to distinguish good prognosis from poor prognosis in any newly diagnosed breast cancer patient based on DNA changes in the patient's tumor.

13 Dec 2004

Patent issued for generating genetically evolved mammalian cells through the regulation of mismatch repair

Morphotek announced today the issuance of United States Patent 6,825,038 covering the regulation of mismatch repair (MMR), a powerful process for generating functional diversity in mammalian cells, to yield sibs exhibiting desirable phenotypes for target discovery, drug screening and/or product development.

13 Dec 2004

First gene therapy for skin cancer

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas have successfully tested the first gene therapy for skin cancer, using a mouse model for the disease xeroderma pigmentosum, or XP.

13 Dec 2004

DNA News and Research

Further Reading

Researchers can now inexpensively program the chemical synthesis of entire genes on a single microchip

Jumping genes help explain immune system's remarkable ability

DNA stool testing is more effective in detecting colon cancer than a widely used stool test

New DNA sequence translation device

Major step forward in using saliva to detect oral cancer

New way of viewing genetic variations

Eating more tomatoes and watermelons can reduce prostate cancer

DLX5 gene may play a role in the pathology of Rett Syndrome

Messenger RNA not only are measurable in saliva but can indicate a developing tumor

Permanent resistance to antibiotics cannot be prevented

Rett Syndrome, the first identified epigenetic disease - linked to specific defects in the three-dimensional folding of chromatin

Discovery of new compound known as SP-4-84 could lead to improved chemotherapy treatments

New theory driving evolutionary changes

Revised safety advice on chromium picolinate supplements

New cancer detection technology from Rubicon Genomics

Instead of chemotherapy, drugs that influence the X protein's behavior might become an alternative cancer therapy

Start today of human tests for a preventive vaccine against the respiratory disease SARS

New approach to genomic testing identifies women with low risk of breast cancer recurrence

Patent issued for generating genetically evolved mammalian cells through the regulation of mismatch repair

First gene therapy for skin cancer

Arrayed CRISPR Screening for Revolutionizing Target Discovery

Innovations in baculovirus–insect cell expression systems

Compound Management and its Crucial Role in Early Pharmaceutical Research

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