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Tamed virus wipes out cancer safely

Cancer Research UK scientists have tamed a virus so that it attacks and destroys cancer cells but does not harm healthy cells, according to a paper published in PLoS Pathogens, today.

22 May 2009

Genetic testing for breast or ovarian cancer risk may be greatly underutilized

Although a test for gene mutations known to significantly increase the risk of hereditary breast or ovarian cancer has been available for more than a decade, a new study finds that few women with family histories of these cancers are even discussing genetic testing with their physicians or other health care providers.

22 May 2009

New insights into a new strain of chlamydia

New sequencing and analysis of six strains Chlamydia will result in improved diagnosis of the sexually transmitted infection. This study provides remarkable insights into a new strain of Chlamydia that was identified in Sweden in 2006 after spreading rapidly across the country by evading most established diagnostic tests.

20 May 2009

Junk DNA may not be so ‘junky’ after all

Scientists have called it "junk DNA." They have long been perplexed by these extensive strands of genetic material that dominate the genome but seem to lack specific functions. Why would nature force the genome to carry so much excess baggage?

20 May 2009

New map depicts the spread of HIV in Europe

Those travelling abroad should take seriously advice to pack their condoms and keep their needles to themselves: research published today in the open access journal Retrovirology shows that tourists, travellers and migrants from Greece, Portugal, Serbia and Spain actively export HIV-1 subtype B to other European nations.

19 May 2009

Promising new targets for medications to treat cocaine addiction

Repeated use of addictive drugs such as cocaine causes long-lasting changes in parts of the brain involved in motivation and reward, among others, yet the precise mechanisms by which these changes are maintained are poorly understood.

13 May 2009

Fat capsules carry markers for deadly prostate cancer

Tiny bubbles of fat in urine hold molecules that could predict whether prostate cancer is aggressive, according to research published in the British Journal of Cancer today (Wednesday).

12 May 2009

In retinal disease, sight may depend on second sites

If two people have the same genetic disease, why would one person go blind in childhood but the other later in life or not at all? For a group of genetic diseases - so-called ciliary diseases that include Bardet-Biedl syndrome, Meckel-Gruber syndrome, and Joubert syndrome - the answer lies in one gene that is already linked to two of these diseases and also seems to increase the risk of progressive blindness in patients with other ciliary diseases. The findings are published online this week at Nature Genetics.

12 May 2009

Researchers target telomeres to attack tumors

Hoping to develop more effective long-term attacks on cancer, researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine are conducting the first human tests of a breast cancer drug regimen that includes a compound meant to force cancer cells to grow old and die.

5 May 2009

Small molecules might block mutant protein production in Huntington's disease

Molecules that selectively interfere with protein production can stop human cells from making the abnormal molecules that cause Huntington's disease, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found.

5 May 2009

Small molecules might block mutant protein production in Huntington's disease

3 May 2009

Southampton scientists race to deliver DNA swine flu test

A team of genetics experts in Southampton is working against the clock to produce the world's first DNA test for the Mexican strain of swine flu.

3 May 2009

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia linked to seven different gene variants

A national team of researchers led by Mayo Clinic has found that patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) are more likely to have similar DNA changes or variants in up to six genes, compared to people who do not have the cancer.

21 Apr 2009

Genetic variations in inflammation pathway may predict risk of invasive bladder cancer

Genetic variations in the inflammation pathway may predict who would respond to Bacillus-Calmette-Guerin (BCG) treatment and who might experience a recurrence among patients with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer, according to data presented at the American Association for Cancer Research 100th Annual Meeting 2009.

20 Apr 2009

Key genetic mechanism a potential key to new class of antibiotics

Researchers have determined the structure of a key genetic mechanism at work in bacteria, including some that are deadly to humans, in an important step toward the design of a new class of antibiotics, according to an accelerated publication that appeared online today as a "paper of the week" in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

20 Apr 2009