DNA Damage News and Research

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Researchers show why mutations in a certain few genes, such as the p53 tumor suppressor gene, are found in different cancers

Scientists have identified some of the first genetic triggers for cancer as mutations in specific oncogenes or tumor suppressor genes. Full-blown tumors and metastatic cancers, however, often exhibit many genetic mutations, sometimes dozens in a given tumor. An important scientific question, and one with significant clinical implications, has been what happens after the initial mutation that leads to dangerous later-stage cancers with multiple damaged genes.

13 Apr 2005

Research tool for turning off genes may eventually have therapeutic application

A research team based at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) has identified 80 new genes essential to the process of RNA interference (RNAi), a powerful new research tool for inactivating genes in plants or animals.

28 Mar 2005

Traffic fumes can damage our DNA

A research team in Taiwan studied the effects of exposure to traffic fumes at 20 toll booths located on a motorway 10 km south of Taipei, Taiwan, which has the highest traffic density of any toll station in the country.

21 Mar 2005

DNA sabotage may alleviate need for chemotherapeutic medication

Johns Hopkins chemists have discovered a new way to sabotage DNA's ability to reproduce, a finding that could eventually lead to the development of new anti-cancer drugs and therapies.

14 Mar 2005

Finding may open new horizons for understanding the initiation of chemically induced cancers

A team from the chemistry and biology departments of New York University, in collaboration with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), has uncovered a conformational switch - a change in shape in a carcinogen-damaged DNA site - in tumor suppressor genes altered by a known cancer-causing chemical found in cigarette smoke.

9 Mar 2005

Scientists have identified a key network that prevents damage by oxygen radicals

Reactive oxygen species (ROS), or 'oxygen radicals', have been identified as major contributors to signs of premature aging, increased cancer prevalence linked to inflammation-associated syndromes and a variety of human diseases.

6 Mar 2005

Discovery gives clinicians new targets for making existing therapies more effective and developing drugs to inhibit the growth of cancers

A team of researchers at the University of Alberta in Edmonton and the Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute in Toronto have discovered how a key enzyme involved in repairing DNA is put together and how it works--a development that opens up new therapies for making cancer cells more vulnerable to attack.

3 Mar 2005

Pollution exposure during pregnancy can cause chromosomal abnormalities in fetal tissues

A new study of newborns in New York City reveals that prenatal exposure to combustion-related urban air pollutants alters the structure of chromosomes (the carriers of genes) of babies in the womb.

23 Feb 2005

Evolutionarily ancient enzyme-repair system used to identify type of DNA damage responsible for the onset of skin-tumor development

In a finding that broadens our insight into the cause of certain kinds of UV-induced skin cancer, researchers at Erasmus University Medical Center (Rotterdam, The Netherlands) have employed an evolutionarily ancient enzyme-repair system to identify the principal type of DNA damage responsible for the onset of skin-tumor development.

26 Jan 2005

Elsevier to launch journal devoted to nanomedicine

Elsevier has announced plans to launch a peer-reviewed journal devoted to nanomedicine - the emerging science of using molecular machines to treat human disease. Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology, and Medicine, the official publication of the American Academy of Nanomedicine, will be published quarterly, with the first issue to appear in March 2005.

18 Jan 2005

Discovery shows how embryonic stem cells perform 'quality control' inspections

Biologists at the University of California, San Diego have found a fundamental mechanism used by embryonic stem cells to assure that genetically damaged stem cells do not divide and pass along the damage to daughter stem cells.

26 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

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

Gauging the risk from prolonged low-level radiation

Everyone knows that high doses of radiation are dangerous, but the effects of long-term exposure to low-level radiation is poorly understood. RISC-RAD, a new European Union backed research project, seeks to identify our tolerance threshold so as to optimise protective measures.

7 Dec 2004

Stress affects molecules believed to play a key role in cellular aging

There have been many studies that have shown that your health is greatly affected by how you react to stressful events in life-setbacks or deadlines at work, conflicts and losses at home.

29 Nov 2004

Five advanced tests provide answers to couples with unexplained infertility

For couples struggling with infertility, "all routine tests came back negative" are not the words they want to hear. With up to 15% of couples with "unexplained infertility" and another 3% struggling with recurrent pregnancy loss, advanced tests help doctors find answers for their most challenging cases.

16 Nov 2004

DNA Damage News and Research

Researchers show why mutations in a certain few genes, such as the p53 tumor suppressor gene, are found in different cancers

Research tool for turning off genes may eventually have therapeutic application

Traffic fumes can damage our DNA

DNA sabotage may alleviate need for chemotherapeutic medication

Finding may open new horizons for understanding the initiation of chemically induced cancers

Scientists have identified a key network that prevents damage by oxygen radicals

Discovery gives clinicians new targets for making existing therapies more effective and developing drugs to inhibit the growth of cancers

Pollution exposure during pregnancy can cause chromosomal abnormalities in fetal tissues

Evolutionarily ancient enzyme-repair system used to identify type of DNA damage responsible for the onset of skin-tumor development

Elsevier to launch journal devoted to nanomedicine

Discovery shows how embryonic stem cells perform 'quality control' inspections

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

First gene therapy for skin cancer

Gauging the risk from prolonged low-level radiation

Stress affects molecules believed to play a key role in cellular aging

Five advanced tests provide answers to couples with unexplained infertility

Allopurinol, a common gout drug may also offer some protection against colorectal cancer

Blocking gene opens avenues for treating prostate cancer

Studies reveal complex molecular choreography with implications for human health and disease

Researcher looks for clues to degenerative, deadly disease called Ataxia-telangiectasia

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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