Mutation News and Research

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Advances in RNA research

RNA, the transporter of genetic information within the cell, has emerged from the shadow of DNA to become one of the hottest research areas of molecular biology, with implications for many diseases as well as understanding of evolution. But the field is complex, requiring access to the latest equipment and techniques of imaging, gene expression analysis and bioinformatics, as well as cross-pollination between multiple scientific disciplines.

10 Jul 2008

Researchers measure movements smaller than one-billionth of a meter in ion channels

Each thought or action sends a million electrical signals pulsing through your body. At the heart of the process of generating these electrical impulses is the ion channel.

10 Jul 2008

Researcher develops method for early detection of leukemia relapse

Researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have developed a method that allows for the early detection of a common mechanism of resistance on drug treatment for chronic myeloid leukemia.

10 Jul 2008

Novel drug ionophore shows potential for Alzheimer's

Scientists report a remarkable improvement in Alzheimer's transgenic mice following treatment with a new drug. The study, published by Cell Press in the July 10th issue of the journal Neuron, provides the first demonstration that an ionophore, a compound that transports metal ions across cell membranes, can elicit rapid and pronounced improvement in neuropathology and cognitive function in mouse models of Alzheimer's Disease (AD).

10 Jul 2008

An analysis of food's affect on the brain

In addition to helping protect us from heart disease and cancer, a balanced diet and regular exercise can also protect the brain and ward off mental disorders.

9 Jul 2008

Circulating tumor cells can reveal genetic signature of dangerous lung cancers

Using a miniature laboratory-on-a-chip device, a team of investigators at the Massachusetts General Hospital, led by Daniel Haber, M.D., Ph.D., and Mehmet Toner, Ph.D., both members of the MIT-Harvard Center for Cancer Nanotechnology Excellence (CCNE), has developed a method that detects and analyzes the genetic signature of rare tumor cells in the bloodstream.

9 Jul 2008

Young women's breast cancers more aggressive and less responsive to treatment

Young women's breast cancers tend to be more aggressive and less responsive to treatment than the cancers that arise in older women, and researchers at the Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Duke Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy may have discovered part of the reason why: young women's breast cancers share unique genomic traits that the cancers in older women do not exhibit.

9 Jul 2008

Enzymes are the way to a virus' 'heart'

The arrival of bluetongue virus (BTV) in the UK last year posed a major threat to the economy and the increasing temperatures of our changing climate mean it is here to stay.

9 Jul 2008

Genetic change in dopamine transporter supports a role for dopamine signaling in ADHD

A genetic change in the dopamine transporter - one of the brain's dopamine-handling proteins - makes it behave as if amphetamine is present and "run backward," Vanderbilt University Medical Center investigators report this week in The Journal of Neuroscience.

9 Jul 2008

Study shows H5N1 virus is adapting each time it infects a human

Scientists have discovered how bird flu adapts in patients, offering a new way to monitor the disease and prevent a pandemic, according to research published in the August issue of the Journal of General Virology.

8 Jul 2008

Specific gene may make women more susceptible to alcoholism

A particular gene variant might make women more susceptible to alcoholism. At least, a study carried out by the Universities of Bonn and Sweden's Karolinska Institute makes this a plausible conclusion.

8 Jul 2008

A paradigm shift for targeted cancer therapy

We already know that recycling benefits our planet; and now new research suggests that the cellular version might be useful for battling cancer.

8 Jul 2008

New method to evaluate variations identified in breast cancer susceptibility genes

Using mouse embryonic stem cells, researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, have developed a new method to evaluate which mutations, or changes, in a gene known to increase breast cancer susceptibility, may lead to cancer. The new test, called a functional assay, is more comprehensive and reliable than most current methods.

7 Jul 2008

Protein thought to promote cancer instead functions as a tumor suppressor

A protein previously thought to promote colorectal cancer instead suppresses the growth of human cancer cells in culture, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found.

7 Jul 2008

Gene change sheds light on sex development disorder

One in 4,500 people suffer from a group of conditions known as sex development disorders (DSD) which occur when the sex chromosomes do not match the genitalia.

7 Jul 2008

Funding boost in fight against leukaemia

University of Manchester researchers have been awarded £1.6 million to study a group of genes identified as playing a key role in leukaemia.

From The University of Manchester 3 Jul 2008

Microchip-based device determines the genetic signature of lung tumors

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators have shown that an MGH-developed, microchip-based device that detects and analyzes tumor cells in the bloodstream can be used to determine the genetic signature of lung tumors, allowing identification of those appropriate for targeted treatment and monitoring genetic changes that occur during therapy. A pilot study of the device called the CTC-chip will appear in the July 24 New England Journal of Medicine and is receiving early online release.

3 Jul 2008

New clues to the biological basis of migraines

Fifteen percent to 20 percent of people worldwide suffer from migraines - excruciating headaches often presaged by dramatic sensations, or "auras." By studying a rare, inherited form of migraine, researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have found clues to the biological basis of the painful, debilitating disorder.

1 Jul 2008

Children's Brain Tumor Foundation's tissue bank consortium may solve dire problem in pediatric cancer research

In a major effort to speed treatment and cures for pediatric brain tumors and cancer, the Children's Brain Tumor Foundation (CBTF) today launched the initial phase of a tissue bank consortium designed to jump-start meaningful analyses that could lead to treatment and cures for these types of cancer, where survival rates are unacceptably low and neurocognitive and other damage is posed by today's treatment options.

1 Jul 2008

Electrostatic-based RNA assays technique could revolutionize medical diagnostics

The dream of personalized medicine - in which diagnostics, risk predictions and treatment decisions are based on a patient's genetic profile - may be on the verge of being expanded beyond the wealthiest of nations with state-of-the-art clinics.

30 Jun 2008