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).

Stem cell research updates

Two studies have been published this Wednesday in the journal Nature that show that work remains before so-called induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells are ready for use in laboratory studies or clinical therapies. These iPS cells are body cells that are programmed to unwind back into an embryonic state. Like embryonic stem cells, they have potential to develop into any other type of cell in the body. However researchers are showing that these cells do not reprogram perfectly.

3 Mar 2011

DNA methylation patterns can accurately detect early bowel cancer

Cancer Research UK scientists have discovered for the first time that DNA methylation patterns - a key process in cell development - could accurately detect early bowel cancer, according to research published in Gut, today.

3 Mar 2011

New study provides fascinating insight into genetic basis of bipolar disorder

A new study provides fascinating insight into the genetic basis of bipolar disorder, a highly heritable mood disorder characterized by recurrent episodes of mania and depression.

3 Mar 2011

Feet first? Old mitochondria might be responsible for neuropathy in the extremities

The burning, tingling pain of neuropathy may affect feet and hands before other body parts because the powerhouses of nerve cells that supply the extremities age and become dysfunctional as they complete the long journey to these areas, Johns Hopkins scientists suggest in a new study. The finding may eventually lead to new ways to fight neuropathy, a condition that often accompanies other diseases including HIV/AIDS, diabetes and circulatory disorders.

3 Mar 2011

Novel study deepens understanding of how chromosome replication works

A novel study from the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet has deepened the understanding of how chromosome replication, one of life's most fundamental processes, works.

3 Mar 2011

Groundbreaking discovery in lymphoma research

BC Cancer Agency scientists have discovered that a single gene, CIITA, is implicated in almost 40 per cent of primary mediastinal B-cell lymphomas and 15 per cent of all Hodgkin lymphoma cases.

3 Mar 2011

CTI meets officials of FDA's OND to support pixantrone NDA

Cell Therapeutics, Inc. today announced that it has met with officials of the FDA's Office of New Drugs in Maryland and presented its arguments supporting the Company's belief that the data contained in its New Drug Application 22-481 support the conclusion that pixantrone is effective for its planned use.

3 Mar 2011

Vical receives EMA Scientific Advice for Phase 3 trial of TransVax therapeutic CMV vaccine

Vical Incorporated announced today the receipt of Scientific Advice from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) recommending practical efficacy endpoints for a Phase 3 trial of the company's TransVax™ therapeutic cytomegalovirus (CMV) vaccine.

3 Mar 2011

International consortium of researchers genetically characterise Spanish Fanconi anaemia patients

A consortium of thirty-two researchers worldwide, led by Dr Jordi Surrallés, professor of the Department of Genetics and Microbiology at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) and member of the Centre for Biomedical Network Research on Rare Diseases (CIBERER), genetically and clinically characterised almost all Spanish patients suffering from Franconi anaemia, a rare disease affecting one in every 500,000 persons and which is characterised by severe anaemia in children, congenital malformations and a high predisposition to cancer.

3 Mar 2011

Study identifies key gene mutation responsible for type 2 diabetes in nearly 10% of patients

A multinational study has identified a key gene mutation responsible for type 2 diabetes in nearly 10 percent of patients of white European ancestry.

2 Mar 2011

FDA clears Meridian's illumigene C. difficile molecular amplification test

Meridian Bioscience, Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio today announced that it has received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for a new pediatric claim for its illumigene C. difficile molecular amplification test. C. difficile is a bacterium that is frequently associated with antibiotic therapy often causing diarrhea and, in severe cases, a life-threatening inflammation of the colon.

2 Mar 2011

Viruses that are natural part of human genome may retrovirus culprit

A retrovirus that inserted itself into the human genome thousands of years ago may be responsible for some cases of the neurodegenerative disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gherig’s disease. The finding, made by Johns Hopkins scientists, may eventually give researchers a new way to attack this universally fatal condition.

2 Mar 2011

Research: Blocking two cell DNA repair routes at once can provide new way to treat bowel cancer

Cancer Research UK-funded scientists have discovered that blocking two cell DNA repair routes at once could provide a completely new way to treat bowel cancer and potentially other cancers, according to research published in Cancer Research, today.

2 Mar 2011

WARFARIN study to explore impact of genetic testing on individualized dosing

Iverson Genetic Diagnostics, Inc. announced today that the WARFARIN Study was initiated in major hospital systems nationwide to assess the utility of genetic testing to determine a personalized warfarin dose for individual patients to reduce their risk of serious bleeding or clotting events.

2 Mar 2011

GenMark announces dismissal of microfluidic technology patent lawsuit against Caliper Life Sciences

GenMark Diagnostics Inc. announced today that it has dismissed a lawsuit in the Northern District of California pending since November 2010 that requested declaratory relief that it does not infringe three U.S. patents on microfluidic technology allegedly owned by Caliper Life Sciences, Inc.

2 Mar 2011

NCI sponsors multi-center phase 2 study of entinostat-anastrozole combination in triple negative breast cancer

Syndax Pharmaceuticals, a clinical-stage epigenetics oncology company, announced the National Cancer Institute (NCI) will sponsor a multi-center phase 2 study of Syndax's lead product entinostat, a novel inhibitor of histone deacetylases (HDAC), and anastrozole, an aromatase inhibitor, in postmenopausal women with operable triple negative breast cancer to evaluate biomarkers and surrogates for response.

2 Mar 2011

New research finds link between genomic variants in neurological processes and autism

New research on the genomics of autism confirms that the genetic roots of the disorder are highly complicated, but that common biological themes underlie this complexity. In the current study, researchers have implicated several new candidate genes and genomic variants as contributors to autism, and conclude that many more remain to be discovered.

2 Mar 2011

Researchers discover three genes that contribute to abnormal growth

By working with Canadians of French ancestry who suffer a rare genetic disease, researchers have discovered how three genes contribute to abnormal growth, making a breakthrough that will improve our understanding of many disorders such as foetal and childhood growth retardation, abnormal development of body parts and cancer.

2 Mar 2011

Bayhill's BHT-3034 receives FDA IND clearance for treatment of myasthenia gravis

Bayhill Therapeutics Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company utilizing its proprietary BHT-DNA™ platform to develop novel and targeted autoimmune and immune-mediated disease treatments, today announced the successful clearance of an IND with the US FDA for BHT-3034, a disease-modifying DNA plasmid vaccine immunotherapy for patients with the autoimmune neuromuscular junction disease myasthenia gravis.

1 Mar 2011

European Commission approves BMY's BARACLUDE(r) to treat CHB in adult patients with liver disease

Bristol-Myers Squibb announced today that BARACLUDE(R) has been approved by the European Commission on February 28th 2011 to treat chronic hepatitis B in adult patients with evidence of decompensated liver disease.

1 Mar 2011

DNA News and Research

Further Reading

Stem cell research updates

DNA methylation patterns can accurately detect early bowel cancer

New study provides fascinating insight into genetic basis of bipolar disorder

Feet first? Old mitochondria might be responsible for neuropathy in the extremities

Novel study deepens understanding of how chromosome replication works

Groundbreaking discovery in lymphoma research

CTI meets officials of FDA's OND to support pixantrone NDA

Vical receives EMA Scientific Advice for Phase 3 trial of TransVax therapeutic CMV vaccine

International consortium of researchers genetically characterise Spanish Fanconi anaemia patients

Study identifies key gene mutation responsible for type 2 diabetes in nearly 10% of patients

FDA clears Meridian's illumigene C. difficile molecular amplification test

Viruses that are natural part of human genome may retrovirus culprit

Research: Blocking two cell DNA repair routes at once can provide new way to treat bowel cancer

WARFARIN study to explore impact of genetic testing on individualized dosing

GenMark announces dismissal of microfluidic technology patent lawsuit against Caliper Life Sciences

NCI sponsors multi-center phase 2 study of entinostat-anastrozole combination in triple negative breast cancer

New research finds link between genomic variants in neurological processes and autism

Researchers discover three genes that contribute to abnormal growth

Bayhill's BHT-3034 receives FDA IND clearance for treatment of myasthenia gravis

European Commission approves BMY's BARACLUDE(r) to treat CHB in adult patients with liver disease

Sensing a Healthier Future

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

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