DNA Methyltransferases News and Research

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Spicing up the fight: Saffron's powerful impact on prostate cancer revealed

Saffron-treated prostate cancer (PCa) cells.

3 Jan 2024

Research opens the door to a potential treatment strategy for certain advanced prostate cancers

Epigenetic changes can cause prostate cancer to resist treatment by switching genes on or off. One epigenetic mechanism tags genes with DNA methylation marks.

15 Nov 2023

Unlocking the potential of melatonin: A promising epigenetic weapon against cancer

Melatonin, a hormone derived from the pineal gland, has diverse effects on cellular processes. This review explores its potential role as an epigenetic regulator, particularly in modulating DNA methylation, and suggests its use in combination therapy as a novel anticancer strategy.

30 May 2023

Scientists discover how a "poisoned" form of protein could spur cancer formation

Scientists at Scripps Research, with collaborators in Japan, have discovered how a "poisoned" form of a protein could set off a cascade of events that encourage the growth of some cancers.

17 Feb 2023

Exploring epigenetic modifications and the use of vitamin D therapy in COVID-19

Researchers examined the role of epigenetic modifications of the host cell gene expression in determining the pathophysiology of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and explored the use of vitamin D as a therapeutic agent against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

19 Oct 2022

Researchers present a possible therapeutic approach for severe congenital myopathy

The diagnosis is rare, but devastating – children with congenital muscle disorders often never learn to walk. Until now, there was no chance of recovery, but researchers at the University of Basel and University Hospital Basel are now presenting a possible therapeutic approach for the first time.

29 Mar 2022

Folic acid-like drug reprograms DNA methylome of aggressive brain tumors

A folic acid-like drug, L-methylfolate, when administered alongside the standard therapy for patients with recurrent glioblastoma, changed aDNA process within their brain tumors, according to results from a phase 1 clinical trial.

5 Jan 2022

Researchers identify specific target sites for DNA methylases

DNA methylation performs an essential function in mammalian ontogeny. It is also known that abnormalities in this process cause the development of cancers such as leukemia.

22 Jul 2020

Study reveals mechanism behind eye loss in blind cavefish

Blind cavefish lose critical eye tissues within a few days after their eyes begin to develop.

7 Jun 2018

New study shows that epigenetic silencing of genes limits eye development of cave fish

Loss of eye tissue in blind cavefish (Astyanax mexicanus), which occurs within a few days of their development, happens through epigenetic silencing of eye-related genes, according to a study led by the National Institutes of Health. Epigenetic regulation is a process where genes are turned off or on, typically in a reversible or temporary manner.

29 May 2018

New findings point to potential therapeutic avenues for leukemia

Scientists have known for decades that the Hox family of transcription factors are key regulators in the formation of blood cells and the development of leukemia.

9 May 2018

Research shows how viruses inactivate immune system, causing cancer

It's no new news that viruses cause cancer. For example, human papillomavirus causes almost all of the more than 500,000 annual worldwide cases of cervical cancer.

2 Mar 2018

Clinical study seeks to examine new combination therapy for treating AML patients

A pair of drugs that may be a one-two punch needed to help combat acute myeloid leukemia (AML), an aggressive blood cancer that kills nearly three-fourths of patients within five years of diagnosis, is the focus of a new multi-center clinical trial that will enroll patients at three sites across the U.S.

7 Mar 2017

DNA methylation changes that alter excitability may be involved in neuropsychiatric diseases

Diseases such as epilepsy, neuropathic pain, anxiety, depression, drug addiction and Alzheimer's are all associated with changes in the excitability of brain neurons.

24 Aug 2016

Extra-coding RNA modulates neuronal DNA methylation patterns

The creation of memories in the brain involves addition or removal of methyl groups at precise spots on chromosomal DNA. But what controls the careful targeting of these neuronal DNA methylation dynamics?

8 Jul 2016

Research brings scientists closer to understanding mechanisms underlying genomic imprinting process

Research led by Dr. Keiji Tanimoto from the University of Tsukuba, Japan, has brought us closer to understanding the mechanisms underlying the phenomenon of genomic imprinting.

25 Nov 2015

Novel long non-coding RNA has potential to stymie growth of tumor cells in colon cancer

Genetics researchers from Case Western Reserve School of Medicine have identified a novel long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), dubbed DACOR1, that has the potential to stymie the growth of tumor cells in the second-most deadly form of cancer in the U.S. — colorectal cancer.

14 Sep 2015

Joslin researcher identifies molecular pathway that causes neural tube defects in diabetic pregnancies

Mary R. Loeken, Ph.D., Investigator in the Section on Islet Cell and Regenerative Biology at Joslin Diabetes Center and Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, has discovered a molecular pathway responsible for neural tube defects in diabetic pregnancies. Her latest research findings in this pathway were published in the October issue of Diabetes.

6 Nov 2014

FoundationOne Heme identifies clinically actionable genomic alterations in multiple myeloma cases

Foundation Medicine today announced new data from a pilot study demonstrating that its fully informative genomic profile for hematologic malignancies, FoundationOne Heme, identified both novel and previously reported clinically actionable genomic alterations in multiple myeloma cases. These data were presented in an oral presentation titled Pilot Study To Evaluate The Prevalence Of Actionable Oncogenic Mutations In Patients With Relapsed Refractory Multiple Myeloma (abstract number 755) by Alexander Lesokhin, M.D., medical oncologist, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, at the 55th American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting in New Orleans.

10 Dec 2013

Chronic inflammation combines with DNA methylation to promote development of colorectal cancer

Chronic inflammation combines with DNA methylation, a process that shuts down cancer-fighting genes, to promote development of colorectal cancer, scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center report today in the advance online publication of the journal Nature Medicine.

23 Jan 2012