Genes News and Research

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Cell-of-origin for prostate cancer identified

UCLA scientists have identified for the first time a cell-of-origin for human prostate cancer, a discovery that could result in better predictive and diagnostics tools and the development of new and more effective targeted treatments for the disease.

31 Jul 2010

Scientists reveal origins of second heart field in vertebrates

Using the model organism Ciona intestinalis, commonly known as the sea squirt, researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have uncovered the origins of the second heart field in vertebrates.

31 Jul 2010

Scientists identify enzyme to prevent beta-amyloids formation in Alzheimer patients

The brains of Alzheimer patients have high accumulations of the material beta-amyloid, which appear in the form of plaques. The precursors of these plaques are believed to be the underlying cause of the nerve cell loss that leads to the disruptions in memory that characterize Alzheimer's disease. The main aim of many Alzheimer therapies is therefore to inhibit the formation of beta-amyloid. Since beta-amyloid is cleaved from the so-called amyloid precursor protein (APP), scientists have focused on stopping the two enzymes that attack the precursor protein. These act like molecular scissors and cut out the beta-amyloid fragment. Blocking these scissors precludes the formation of beta-amyloid.

31 Jul 2010

Genetics research team discovers new recurrent translocations

A genetics research team based at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia continues to discover recurrent translocations—places in which two chromosomes exchange pieces of themselves. As many as 1 in 600 persons carry balanced chromosome translocations, which involve no loss or gain of DNA. Most such people appear healthy, but may have a child with abnormal chromosome composition and disabilities resulting from disrupted, extra or missing copies of genes.

30 Jul 2010

Families with male breast cancer perceive as being at higher risk: Study

People with a family history of male breast cancer perceive themselves to be at higher risk of developing the disease than do patients with a family history of female breast cancer; however those with male breast cancer in their families are less likely to know about or seek genetic testing than those with a family history of female breast cancer, according to a study led by researchers at the University of Louisville's James Graham Brown Cancer Center.

30 Jul 2010

New discovery may lead to effective targeted treatments for prostate cancer: UCLA

30 Jul 2010

Researchers discover tumor suppressor lincRNAs

The recent discovery of more than a thousand genes known as large intergenic non-coding RNAs (or "lincRNAs") opened up a new approach to understanding the function and organization of the genome. That surprising breakthrough is now made even more compelling with the finding that dozens of these lincRNAs are induced by p53 (the most commonly mutated gene in cancer), suggesting that this class of genes plays a critical role in cell development and regulation. Furthermore, the researchers identify one lincRNA in particular (lincRNA-p21), and demonstrate its critical role in suppressing the reading of many genes across the genome following p53 activation.

30 Jul 2010

Study on link between SNP and concentrations of serum creatinine

Scientists at deCODE genetics and colleagues at Radboud University in the Netherlands today describe how the impact of a single letter variation in the sequence of the human genome conferring risk of kidney disease varies with age and with the onset of other diseases. The study provides independent confirmation of the association made in an earlier study between a version of the the SNP, located on chromosome 16p12, and risk of chronic kidney disease. It also confirmed the link between the SNP and concentrations of serum creatinine, a key indicator of kidney function.

30 Jul 2010

Researchers discover three disease-causing genes in Salmonella

Researchers have discovered a novel mechanism in Salmonella that affects its virulence and its susceptibility to antibiotics by changing its production of proteins in a previously unheard of manner. This allows Salmonella to selectively change its levels of certain proteins to respond to inhospitable conditions.

30 Jul 2010

Researchers identify genetic mutation for Uner Tan Syndrome

A team of researchers from leading universities in Turkey and the United States have reported that they have identified the genetic mutation responsible for the Uner Tan Syndrome (UTS) using advanced genetic capture and sequencing technologies from Roche. The combined genomic technologies enabled the team of scientists to identify the causative mutation of this debilitating disease after years of mystery.

30 Jul 2010

Researchers discover enzyme crucial for DNA repair

Researchers have discovered an enzyme crucial to a type of DNA repair that also causes resistance to a class of cancer drugs most commonly used against ovarian cancer.Scientists from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and the Life Sciences Institute of Zhejiang University in China report the discovery of the enzyme and its role in repairing DNA damage called cross-linking in the Science Express advance online publication of Science.

30 Jul 2010

Prostate basal cell can spawn tumors in prostate gland: Research

A type of prostate cell that has been largely ignored by cancer researchers can, in fact, trigger malignant prostate cancer, according to new studies by Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) scientists and their colleagues.

30 Jul 2010

AVEO second-quarter total revenues increase to $15.6 million

AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing cancer therapeutics, today provided an update on recent research and development (R&D) and business accomplishments, and announced financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2010.

29 Jul 2010

Genetic interaction with diet causes variations in metabolic traits

Ever notice some people seem to eat anything they want and never gain a pound, while others seem to gain weight just by looking at fattening foods. You may be seeing things correctly after all. According to research published in the July 2010 issue of Genetics, this may have a biological cause. Using fruit flies, researchers have found that genes interacting with diet, rather than diet alone, are the main cause of variation in metabolic traits, such as body weight. This helps explain why some diets work better for some people than others, and suggests that future diets should be tailored to an individual's genes rather than to physical appearance.

29 Jul 2010

CPRIT awards UH $2.4 million for new multidisciplinary research

The University of Houston (UH) received a $2.4 million grant to fund the most promising young cancer researchers who are working at the cutting-edge of a new multidisciplinary approach to fighting cancer.The award is part of the latest round of grant disbursements from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT), which oversees the state's new billion-dollar war on cancer. It is UH's second CPRIT grant, and the first in the science and engineering fields.

28 Jul 2010

Research findings provide new insight into skeletal development

Too little of a protein called neogenin results in a smaller skeleton during development and sets the stage for a more fragile bone framework lifelong, Medical College of Georgia researchers report.

28 Jul 2010

Scientists identify genetic variants for breast cancer

Women with higher risk scores that consisted of having certain genetic variants most strongly linked to breast cancer had an associated higher risk of breast cancer, with these scores also highly predictive of estrogen receptor-positive disease, according to a study in the July 28 issue of JAMA.

28 Jul 2010

Affymetrix to develop, commercialize Axiom Chinese myDesign Genotyping Array

Affymetrix, Inc. today announced that it will develop and commercialize the Axiom Chinese myDesign Genotyping Array, the first product that provides maximum power for genome-wide association studies specifically on Chinese populations.

28 Jul 2010

Iverson Genetic Diagnostics receives CMS approval for Warfarin clinical study

Iverson Genetic Diagnostics today announced the company has received approval from CMS to conduct a WARFARIN Clinical Study. The two-year (2) study will assess the impact of genetic information in calculating doses and the changes in the rate of adverse events when initiating Warfarin drug therapy. These changes will be compared against doses initiated without genetic data. The randomized and blinded, multi-center study will involve more than 7000 participants at over 50 sites nationwide.

27 Jul 2010

Affymetrix releases new data for rapid design of custom arrays

Affymetrix, Inc.today announced that it has released an unparalleled data set based on extensive validation of novel SNPs from the 1000 Genomes Project. This data will give researchers access to more rare mutations for genome-wide association studies and will enable the rapid design of custom arrays for a variety of applications, including the validation of sequencing results.

27 Jul 2010