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Brain and tissue sample repository to help advance understanding and treatment of psychiatric diseases

Johns Hopkins Children's Center neurovirologist Robert Yolken, M.D., and collaborators from the Stanley Medical Research Institute have developed a large repository of brain and tissue samples to advance the understanding and treatment of bipolar disorder, major depression and schizophrenia.

20 Feb 2010

Animal study shows calcineurin enzyme is critical for normal heart function

Scientists are reporting the first-ever data to show that the enzyme calcineurin is critical in controlling normal development and function of heart cells, and that loss of the protein leads to heart problems and death in genetically modified mice.

20 Feb 2010

Variations among individual organisms attributed to differences in genes, environment or chance

Biologists attribute variations among individual organisms to differences in genes or environment, or both. But a new study of nematode worms with identical genes, raised in identical environments, has revealed another factor: chance.

19 Feb 2010

Cancer genomes: Distinguishing between 'driver' and 'passenger' mutations

A new study of mutations in cancer genomes shows how researchers can begin to distinguish the 'driver' mutations that push cells towards cancer from the 'passenger' mutations that are a by-product of cancer cell development. The study also shows that at least one in nine genes can be removed without killing human cells.

19 Feb 2010

Most genetic abnormalities shared across multiple cancers

An international team of researchers has created a genome-scale map of 26 different cancers, revealing more than 100 genomic sites where DNA from tumors is either missing or abnormally duplicated compared to normal tissues. The study, the largest of its kind, finds that most of these genetic abnormalities are not unique to one form of cancer, but are shared across multiple cancers. The work appears in the February 18 issue of the journal Nature.

19 Feb 2010

Simple molecular kit to reprogram any cell of the body into another

In an effort to sidestep the ethical dilemma involved in using human embryonic stem cells to treat diseases, scientists are developing non-controversial alternatives: In particular, they are looking for drug-like chemical compounds that can transform adult skin cells into the stem cells now obtained from human embryos. That's the topic of a fascinating article in Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), ACS' weekly newsmagazine.

19 Feb 2010

Emerging concepts from gene regulation studies in immune cells

The seventh meeting in the “Emergence and Convergence” series jointly organized by La Fondation IPSEN and Nature brings together today in San Antonio (Texas, USA) leading experts to discuss concepts emerging from gene regulation studies in immune cells that have led to insights into the initiation and maintenance of epigenetic chromatin marks necessary for proper differentiation and function of these cells in the immune system.

19 Feb 2010

Mechanism by which Plasmodium replicates itself in human blood to spread disease identified

Malaria remains one of the most deadly infectious diseases. Yet, how Plasmodium, the malaria parasite, regulates its infectious cycle has remained an enigma despite decades of rigorous research.

19 Feb 2010

Study shows how genes and environmental factors influence common human diseases

A UCLA study reveals how human genes interact with their environment to boost disease risk. Published in the Feb. 18 online edition of the American Journal of Human Genetics, the findings shed light on why the search for specific gene variants linked to human diseases can only partly explain common disorders.

19 Feb 2010

Steroids and weight loss products can accelerate hair loss, says hair loss expert

In a study due to be released next month, the world's leading hair transplant and hair loss expert Dr. Larry Shapiro will show that men and women have been losing their hair from using popular weight loss and work out products that contain whey protein isolate- and it's not just their genes that are to blame.

19 Feb 2010

RainDance Technologies enters into strategic agreement with Applied Biosystems

RainDance Technologies, Inc., a leading provider of innovative microdroplet-based solutions for human health and disease research, and Applied Biosystems, part of Life Technologies Corporation, announced today they have entered into a strategic agreement to co-market the first solution that combines microdroplet PCR-based sequence enrichment with next-generation sequencing.

19 Feb 2010

Six states to study sickle cell disease and thalassemias in national pilot project

Medical researchers are developing a new surveillance system to determine the number of patients diagnosed with a family of inherited blood disorders known as hemoglobinopathies, including sickle cell disease, thalassemias, and hemoglobin E disease.

19 Feb 2010

Researchers find gene mutations that may provide clues for treating AML patients

Although leukemia is one of the best studied cancers, the cause of some types is still poorly understood. Now, a newly found mutation in acute myeloid leukemia patients could account for half of the remaining cases of adult acute leukemia with an unknown origin.

19 Feb 2010

Scottish scientists identify link between deprivation and breast cancer survival

Scottish scientists have shed light on the connection between deprivation and breast cancer survival, confirming that the link is mirrored at a genetic level.

19 Feb 2010

febit introduces new HybSelector instrument for next-generation resequencing solutions

febit today announced the launch of its HybSelector, a new instrument for high throughput targeted resequencing, at the 11th annual Advances in Genome Biology and Technology (AGBT) meeting on February 24-27, 2010, in Marco Island, Florida.

18 Feb 2010

Gene study could pave way for novel methods for plagues and other infectious diseases

An international consortium of scientists, including Universitat Aut-noma de Barcelona (UAB) researcher Deodoro Oliveira, have sequenced the genome of three species of parasitoid wasps of the genus Nasonia.

18 Feb 2010

New research units established for Japanese-German research collaboration

With its ten new Research Units, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) is intensifying interdisciplinary and multiple-location collaboration among researchers pursuing specific scientific questions and new avenues of research.

17 Feb 2010

Research on mosquito genes could be used for disease control measures

By unraveling the mysteries that exist within the molecular composition of mosquitoes, a team of Kansas State University researchers is trying to discover how the insects survive a parasite that causes malaria in humans.

17 Feb 2010

Researchers discover new strategy to overcome drug resistance in breast cancer

Combining tamoxifen, the world's most prescribed breast cancer agent, with a compound found in the flowering plant feverfew may prevent initial or future resistance to the drug, say researchers at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center.

17 Feb 2010

Belatacept costimulation blocker can prevent rejection of new organs by the immune system

Initial results of a study conducted at 100 centers worldwide indicate that belatacept, a first-in-class costimulation blocker can prevent the immune system rejecting new organs. The results also suggest that it may provide similar patient and graft survival to cyclosporine but with fewer side effects and superior kidney function after 12 months. The study, published today in the American Journal of Transplantation, provides the first findings to come from BENEFIT (Belatacept Evaluation of Nephroprotection and Efficacy as First-line Immunosuppression Trial).

17 Feb 2010

Genes News and Research

Brain and tissue sample repository to help advance understanding and treatment of psychiatric diseases

Animal study shows calcineurin enzyme is critical for normal heart function

Variations among individual organisms attributed to differences in genes, environment or chance

Cancer genomes: Distinguishing between 'driver' and 'passenger' mutations

Most genetic abnormalities shared across multiple cancers

Simple molecular kit to reprogram any cell of the body into another

Emerging concepts from gene regulation studies in immune cells

Mechanism by which Plasmodium replicates itself in human blood to spread disease identified

Study shows how genes and environmental factors influence common human diseases

Steroids and weight loss products can accelerate hair loss, says hair loss expert

RainDance Technologies enters into strategic agreement with Applied Biosystems

Six states to study sickle cell disease and thalassemias in national pilot project

Researchers find gene mutations that may provide clues for treating AML patients

Scottish scientists identify link between deprivation and breast cancer survival

febit introduces new HybSelector instrument for next-generation resequencing solutions

Gene study could pave way for novel methods for plagues and other infectious diseases

New research units established for Japanese-German research collaboration

Research on mosquito genes could be used for disease control measures

Researchers discover new strategy to overcome drug resistance in breast cancer

Belatacept costimulation blocker can prevent rejection of new organs by the immune system

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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