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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).

Panel discussion on personalized medicine at USciences

Advances in fields such as genetics and genomics have created new opportunities for personalized medicine applications in clinical practice and the healthcare delivery. This integration raises important questions about how personalized medicine can best help patients without increasing costs and improving health outcomes.

16 Apr 2012

Changes in thromboxane synthase may lead to hypertension in women with preeclampsia

Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine researchers have discovered that changes in the gene expression of a key enzyme may contribute to high blood pressure and increase susceptibility to forming blood clots in pregnant women with preeclampsia.

16 Apr 2012

$Researchers identify 32 genetic regions associated with osteoporosis, fracture$

Researchers identify 32 genetic regions associated with osteoporosis, fracture

Thirty-two previously unidentified genetic regions associated with osteoporosis and fracture have been identified by a large, worldwide consortium of researchers, including Stanford Prevention Research Center chief John Ioannidis, MD, DSc. Variations in the DNA sequences in these regions confer either risk or protection from the bone-weakening disease. Many, but not all, of the regions encode proteins involved in pathways known to involve bone health.

16 Apr 2012

Two research studies on genetic components of Alzheimer's

Two research studies, co-led by UC Davis neurologist Charles DeCarli and conducted by an international team that included more than 80 scientists at 71 institutions in eight countries, has advanced understanding of the genetic components of Alzheimer's disease and of brain development. Both studies appear in the April 15 edition of the journal Nature Genetics.

16 Apr 2012

New genes may explain individual differences in brain size and intelligence

In the world's largest brain study to date, a team of more than 200 scientists from 100 institutions worldwide collaborated to map the human genes that boost or sabotage the brain's resistance to a variety of mental illnesses and Alzheimer's disease.

16 Apr 2012

Researchers identify new mechanism by which colon cancer develops

A team of researchers at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have identified a new mechanism by which colon cancer develops. By focusing on segments of DNA located between genes, or so-called "junk DNA," the team has discovered a set of master switches, i.e., gene enhancer elements, that turn "on and off" key genes whose altered expression is defining for colon cancers.

16 Apr 2012

The key to treating AML may lie within FTL3 gene mutations

The key to treating one of the most common types of human leukemia may lie within mutations in a gene called FLT3, according to new research led by physician-scientists at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center.

16 Apr 2012

Researchers discover new class of molecular mutation in breast cancer

Mayo Clinic researchers have discovered a new class of molecular mutation in various forms of breast cancer, a finding that may shed new light on development and growth of different types of breast tumors. Called fusion transcripts, the mutated forms of RNA may also provide a way to identify tumor subtypes and offer new strategies to treat them, investigators say.

16 Apr 2012

Missing tool helps sperm and eggs develop exactly 23 chromosomes each

Researchers at the University of California, Davis have discovered a key tool that helps sperm and eggs develop exactly 23 chromosomes each. The work, which could lead to insights into fertility, spontaneous miscarriages, cancer and developmental disorders, is published April 13 in the journal Cell.

16 Apr 2012

Researchers discover intra-cellular function of LOXL2 protein

Researchers at the Hospital de Mar Research Institute (IMIM) have discovered that the protein LOXL2 has a function within the cell nucleus thus far unknown. They have also described a new chemical reaction of this protein on histone H3 that would be involved in gene silencing, one of which would be involved in the progression of breast, larynx, lung and skin tumours.

16 Apr 2012

Toxic plants and animal products found in traditional Chinese medicines

A study has found that some traditional Chinese medicines contain potentially poisonous plants, unlabelled ingredients and bits of endangered animals. This has triggered a bid for routine testing and tighter regulation of complementary medicines.

15 Apr 2012

Niceness is gene deep

Researchers at the University of Buffalo and University of California, Irvine, found a connection between people being nice and versions of receptor genes for two hormones, oxytocin and vasopressin, that have been associated with niceness in past studies.

12 Apr 2012

Hi-C sequencing decodes 3-D structure of DNA folds in chromosomes

Chromosomes are strands of DNA that contain the blueprint of all living organisms. Humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes that instruct how genes are regulated during development of the human body. While scientists have developed an understanding of the one-dimensional structure of DNA, until today, little was known about how different parts of DNA are folded next to each other inside the nucleus.

12 Apr 2012

RiboMed releases multi-marker methylation prognostic test for glioma

RiboMed Clinical Services Laboratory (RCSL), a CLIA-certified subsidiary of RiboMed Biotechnologies, today announced the release of a multi-marker methylation prognostic test for grading gliomas, the most common type of brain cancer.

12 Apr 2012

Transcription factors do not act like an 'on-off' switch

A UNC-led team of scientists has now shown that transcription factors don't act like an 'on-off' switch, but instead can exhibit much more complex binding behavior.

12 Apr 2012

Austrian scientists challenge the clinical relevance of the term “basal-like” breast cancer subtype

Not all breast cancers are the same. Different types can mean different prognoses for the patient, and a different kind of treatment may be adequate. But how to classify tumors? Are molecular classification methods reliable? Mohammad Ali Lavasani and Farid Moinfar from the Unit of Breast and Gynecologic Pathology at the Medical University of Graz, Austria give a critical review of the literature with focus on “basal-like” carcinoma.

11 Apr 2012

Computer modeling supports theory that many dementias spread like prion diseases

A new technique for analyzing brain images offers the possibility of using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to predict the rate of progression and physical path of many degenerative brain diseases, report scientists at the San Francisco VA Medical Center and the University of California, San Francisco.

11 Apr 2012

Researchers determine that bacteria are present in the bladders of healthy women

Researchers have determined that bacteria are present in the bladders of some healthy women, which discredits the common belief that normal urine is sterile. These findings were published in the April issue of the Journal of Clinical Microbiology by researchers at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine.

10 Apr 2012

Two CNVs may increase risk of aggressive prostate cancer

An international research team led by Weill Cornell Medical College investigators have discovered two inherited-genetic deletions in the human genome linked to development of aggressive prostate cancer.

10 Apr 2012

First study to demonstrate link between social status and genetic regulation in primates

The ranking of a monkey within her social environment and the stress accompanying that status dramatically alters the expression of nearly 1,000 genes, a new scientific study reports. The research is the first to demonstrate a link between social status and genetic regulation in primates on a genome-wide scale, revealing a strong, plastic link between social environment and biology.

10 Apr 2012