Genetic News and Research

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New, less invasive genetic test greatly improves pregnancy rates in older women with poor prognosis

A new test examining chromosomes in human eggs a few hours after fertilisation can identify those that are capable of forming a healthy baby, a researcher told the 25th annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology today (Monday 29 June).

29 Jun 2009

Australian swine flu vaccine ready in months

A vaccine developed 'in record time' by Australian scientists to protect against the influenza A H1N1 virus (swine flu) may not be available just yet because this swine flu vaccine, developed by University of Queensland (UQ) scientists, is not yet registered for use in Australia.

28 Jun 2009

Multiparameter computational modeling of tumor invasion

Tumors are complex collections of cells whose behavior has proven difficult to understand, let alone predict. As a result, oncologists are often surprised by how a particular patient responds to a given course of therapy.

28 Jun 2009

First report on cancer incidence and ethnicity

The National Cancer Intelligence Network (NCIN) and Cancer Research UK has today (Thursday) published the first report on cancer incidence and ethnicity.

24 Jun 2009

Smoking provokes migraine attacks

Tobacco acts as a precipitating factor for headaches, specifically migraines. This is indicated in a study which shows that smokers have more migraine attacks and that smoking more than five cigarettes a day triggers this headache. The work has appeared in The Journal of Headache and Pain.

24 Jun 2009

Protein biochips

Biochips carrying thousands of DNA fragments are widely used for examining genetic material. Experts would also like to have biochips on which proteins are anchored. This requires a gel layer which can now be produced industrially.

24 Jun 2009

Research investigates DNA of sleep

The research in the renowned Department of Genetics at the University of Leicester is being carried out by Ms Mobina Khericha and Dr Eran Tauber. It represents a new approach to study the genetics of sleep.

24 Jun 2009

Americans come up with first swine flu vaccine

The company based in Connecticut, Protein Sciences Corporation, won a $35-million government contract to develop an influenza vaccine using insect cell technology and Protein Sciences's director Dan Adams says the first batch of about 100,000 doses were produced last week and the manufacture of the vaccine continues.

24 Jun 2009

ADHD genes found - missing DNA segments may suggest future drug targets

Pediatric researchers have identified hundreds of gene variations that occur more frequently in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) than in children without ADHD. Many of those genes were already known to be important for learning, behavior, brain function and neurodevelopment, but had not been previously associated with ADHD.

24 Jun 2009

The pursuit of genetic happiness

The pursuit of happiness characterizes the human condition. But for those suffering from stress, money trouble or chronic illness, a positive outlook on life can be difficult to find. Now, a Tel Aviv University researcher says we should look to our genes.

24 Jun 2009

Scientists block Ebola infection in cell-culture experiments - could lead to first therapy

Researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston have discovered two biochemical pathways that the Ebola virus relies on to infect cells.

23 Jun 2009

Strong link between high body mass index, pancreatic cancer

In reviewing the weight history of pancreatic cancer patients across their life spans, researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center have determined that a high body mass index in early adulthood may play a significant role in an individual developing the disease at an earlier age.

23 Jun 2009

Scientists unearth the roots of human genetic variation

A new study at the University of Leicester is using advanced single molecule methods to explore processes that lie at the very core of DNA variation in humans.

23 Jun 2009

Migraines with aura in middle age associated with late-life brain lesions

Women who suffer from migraine headaches in middle age accompanied by neurological aura (visual disturbances, dizziness or numbness that can precede migraines) are more likely to have damage to brain tissue in the cerebellum later in life, according to a study by researchers at the National Institute on Aging (NIA) of the National Institutes of Health, the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences and the Icelandic Heart Association in Reykjavik.

23 Jun 2009

Alterations in brain's white matter key to schizophrenia

Schizophrenia, a chronic and debilitating disorder marked in part by auditory hallucinations and paranoia, can strike in late adolescence or early adulthood at a time when people are ready to stand on their own two feet as fully independent adults.

23 Jun 2009

Search for prostate cancer biomarkers continues

Collaboration in prostate cancer translational research in Europe is not only vital to sustain the progress achieved in recent years but also to streamline current efforts between researchers and clinicians and avoid duplication or overlaps. This was amongst the goals of the two-day Prostate Cancer Translational Research in Europe (PCTRE) Meeting which opened today in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

23 Jun 2009

Cryo-electron tomography shows immature HIV in 3D

Scientists at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) and the University Clinic Heidelberg, Germany, have produced a three-dimensional reconstruction of HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), which shows the structure of the immature form of the virus at unprecedented detail. Immature HIV is a precursor of the infectious virus, which can cause AIDS.

23 Jun 2009

DNA template could explain evolutionary shifts

Rearrangements of all sizes in genomes, genes and exons can result from a glitch in DNA copying that occurs when the process stalls at a critical point and then shifts to a different genetic template, duplicating and even triplicating genes or just shuffling or deleting part of the code within them, said researchers from Baylor College of Medicine in a recent report in the journal Nature Genetics.

22 Jun 2009

Goby fish may bring new drugs for high blood pressure

Medical scientists at the University of Leicester are investigating how a species of fish from the Pacific Ocean could help provide answers to tackling chronic conditions such as hereditary high blood pressure and kidney disease.

22 Jun 2009