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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).

Ancient hepatitis B may hold clues to viral evolution, spread

The evolution of the hepatitis B virus and its possible migration have become clearer with the sequencing of the oldest sample of the virus, isolated from a mummified 16th-century Korean child, say scientists.

6 Jun 2012

Phase III study of AFOLIA, a biosimilar r-FSH meets its endpoint

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6 Jun 2012

VGXI, OncoSec partner to produce interleukin-12 plasmid DNA

OncoSec Medical Inc., which is developing its advanced-stage OncoSec Medical System (OMS) ElectroOncology therapies to treat solid tumors, announced today that the Company has entered into an exclusive cGMP manufacturing agreement with VGXI Inc. (VGXI) for the production of interleukin-12 plasmid DNA.

6 Jun 2012

UCSD researchers receive $4M NIMH grant to study accelerated biological aging in schizophrenia

Researchers at the Stein Institute for Research on Aging at the University of California, San Diego have received a $4 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), part of the National Institutes of Health, to study accelerated biological aging in schizophrenia.

6 Jun 2012

Transgenomic introduces ICE COLD-PCR mutation detection technology

Transgenomic, Inc. today announced the commercial launch of its ICE COLD-PCR mutation detection technology, a breakthrough technology enabling unmatched sensitivity and complete DNA mutation detection using the standard sequencing equipment already installed in laboratories around the world.

6 Jun 2012

Novel assay accurately detects trisomy 21 or 18 from maternal blood samples

Current screening strategies for Down syndrome, caused by fetal trisomy 21 (T21), and Edwards syndrome, caused by fetal trisomy 18 (T18), have false positive rates of 2 to 3%, and false negative rates of 5% or higher. Positive screening results must be confirmed by amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling, which carry a fetal loss rate of approximately 1 in 300 procedures. Now an international, multicenter cohort study finds that a genetic test to screen for trisomy 21 or 18 from a maternal blood sample is almost 100% accurate.

6 Jun 2012

Religious practices more successful at promoting certainty about paternity

Religious practices that strongly control female sexuality are more successful at promoting certainty about paternity, according to a study published in the current issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

5 Jun 2012

New region on the X chromosome plays a role in migraine

New hope has arrived for migraine sufferers following a Griffith University study with the people of Norfolk Island. Led by Professor Lyn Griffiths from the University's Griffith Health Institute, the team has identified a new region on the X chromosome as playing a role in migraine.

5 Jun 2012

ViroPharma initiates maribavir Phase 2 program for CMV infections

ViroPharma Incorporated today announced the initiation of a Phase 2 program to evaluate maribavir for the treatment of cytomegalovirus infections in transplant recipients.

4 Jun 2012

Variation in microRNAs may explain survival differences in breast cancer

Researchers and doctors at the North Shore-LIJ Health System and the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research have discovered a potential explanation for why breast cancer is not experienced the same way with African American and Caucasian patients.

4 Jun 2012

New evidence of important role of next-generation sequencing in cancer treatment

Foundation Medicine, Inc., a molecular information company that brings comprehensive cancer genomic analysis to routine clinical care, today announced results from two studies using next-generation sequencing (NGS) to provide actionable information about genomic tumor alterations in individual patients' cancers across all solid tumor types.

2 Jun 2012

UH CNRCS students achieve significant milestones in cancer therapy research

Four University of Houston (UH) students are well on their way to emerging cancer research careers upon achieving significant milestones this spring in their work toward new therapies for prostate and breast cancer.

2 Jun 2012

Distinctive protein pathways in certain leukemia patients

Scientists at Rice University and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have successfully profiled protein pathways found to be distinctive to leukemia patients with particular variants of the disease.

1 Jun 2012

Mothers who smoke during pregnancy increase risk of asthma in children

African-American and Latino children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy are more likely to suffer from acute asthma symptoms in their teens than asthma sufferers whose mothers did not smoke, according to a new study led by a research team at UCSF.

1 Jun 2012

Scientists discover genetic basis for CLOVES syndrome

Using advanced technologies for rapidly sequencing and analyzing DNA from clinical and pathologic samples, a multidisciplinary research team consisting of geneticists, pathologists and surgeons at Boston Children's Hospital has identified the genetic basis for CLOVES syndrome, a rare congenital malformation and overgrowth disorder.

1 Jun 2012

Personalized medicine and the Human Genome Project

It’s nearly a decade since the completion of the Human Genome Project, (1) which aimed to sequence the complete human genome.

1 Jun 2012

Beta-carotene safe to use during radiation therapy for prostate cancer

Despite past safety concerns, the antioxidant supplement beta-carotene, is safe to use during radiation therapy treatments for prostate cancer and does not increase the risk of prostate cancer death or metastases, according to a study in the May issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology•Biology•Physics, the official scientific journal of the American Society for Radiation Oncology.

1 Jun 2012

Illumina launches Nextera XT DNA Sample Preparation Kits

Illumina today introduced the Nextera XT DNA Sample Preparation Kit, the easiest way for researchers to prepare and sequence small genomes, PCR amplicons, and plasmids.

From Illumina, Inc. 1 Jun 2012

Verinata Health to present two key studies on verifi prenatal test at ISPD conference

Verinata Health, Inc., a privately-held company dedicated to maternal and fetal health, today announced that physicians across the country are now using the verifi prenatal test.

1 Jun 2012

Life Technologies, OpGen enter collaboration on Whole Genome Mapping and Ion Torrent sequencing

Life Technologies Corporation and OpGen, Inc., a commercial stage whole genome analysis company, today announced that they have signed a collaboration agreement to develop systems, technologies and applications intended to improve the management and surveillance of microbial outbreaks in the public health and infectious disease markets.

31 May 2012