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Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a biologically important type of molecule that consists of a long chain of nucleotide units. Each nucleotide consists of a nitrogenous base, a ribose sugar, and a phosphate.

Study shows effects of maternal obesity on fetuses

In a study to be presented on February 15 between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. PST, at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting -, in San Francisco, California, researchers from Tufts Medical Center will present findings showing the effects of maternal obesity on a fetus, specifically in the development of the brain.

11 Feb 2013

Researchers identify miR-506 as potential therapeutic candidate for metastatic ovarian cancer

Researchers employed an extensive analysis of genomic information to identify a new, high-risk cohort of ovarian cancer patients, characterize their tumors, find a potential treatment and test it in mouse models of the disease.

11 Feb 2013

Researchers discover miR-27b that regulates lipid levels in the blood

Researchers have identified a microRNA liver gene, miR-27b, which regulates lipid (cholesterol or fat) levels in the blood. This regulator gene controls multiple genes involved in dyslipidemia-abnormal blood cholesterol levels that can contribute to heart disease.

11 Feb 2013

MicroRNA can be used to define four subtypes of triple-negative breast cancer

A new, large-scale study of triple-negative breast cancer shows that small molecules called microRNA can be used to define four subtypes of this aggressive malignancy.

11 Feb 2013

UPC develops new system for electroporation of cell cultures

Researchers from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia have developed a technique that improves and cuts the cost of a technique called electroporation, which involves opening pores in cell membranes using an electric field to introduce substances like drugs and DNA. Current methods are aggressive and expensive whereas the new system manages to apply low voltage electroporation with a small printed circuit board, which costs less than a Euro per unit and does not damage cells.

11 Feb 2013

CtBP may play a key role in aggressive forms of breast cancer

A protein associated with conditions of metabolic imbalance, such as diabetes and obesity, may play a role in the development of aggressive forms of breast cancer, according to new findings by researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, and their colleagues.

9 Feb 2013

Tumor necrosis factor receptor 2 involved in renal decline in diabetes

Researchers have found that circulating levels of tumor necrosis factor receptor 2 are independently associated with the development of chronic kidney disease in nonobese Japanese patients with Type 2 diabetes.

8 Feb 2013

Investigators discover two new genes associated with severe early-onset disorders of heart rhythm

A team led by Vanderbilt University investigators has discovered two new genes - both coding for the signaling protein calmodulin - associated with severe early-onset disorders of heart rhythm.

7 Feb 2013

Liver gene found to regulate cholesterol and fat blood levels

Researchers have identified a microRNA liver gene, miR-27b, which regulates lipid (cholesterol or fat) levels in the blood. This regulator gene controls multiple genes involved in dyslipidemia—abnormal blood cholesterol levels that can contribute to heart disease.

7 Feb 2013

Researchers assess complete landscape of kinome expression in cancer

When it comes to gene sequencing and personalized medicine for cancer, spotting an aberrant kinase is a home run. The proteins are relatively easy to target with drugs and plenty of kinase inhibitors already exist.

6 Feb 2013

Non-coding RNA MALAT1 influences lung cancer metastasis

The vast majority - approximately 80 percent - of our DNA does not code for proteins, yet it gets transcribed into RNA. These RNA molecules are called non-coding and fulfill multiple tasks in the cell. Alongside a well-studied group of small RNAs, there is also a class of so-called long non-coding RNAs consisting of more than 200 nucleotides.

6 Feb 2013

Scientists identify specific cellular events that appear key to lupus

A team led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) has identified specific cellular events that appear key to lupus, a debilitating autoimmune disease that afflicts tens of millions of people worldwide. The findings suggest that blocking this pathway in lupus-triggering cells could be a potent weapon against the disease.

5 Feb 2013

Researchers identify gene variants that influence lifespan

By broadly comparing the DNA of children to that of elderly people, gene researchers have identified gene variants that influence lifespan, either by raising disease risk or by providing protection from disease.

5 Feb 2013

Gilead Sciences fourth quarter total revenues increase 18% to $2.59 billion

Gilead Sciences, Inc. announced today its results of operations for the fourth quarter and full year 2012.

5 Feb 2013

Topline results from Gilead’s FISSION and NEUTRINO Phase 3 studies on HCV infection

Gilead Sciences today announced topline results from two Phase 3 studies, FISSION and NEUTRINO, evaluating a 12-week course of the once-daily nucleotide sofosbuvir in combination with ribavirin (FISSION) and in combination with ribavirin and pegylated interferon (NEUTRINO) among treatment-naïve patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection.

5 Feb 2013

Hope against dangerous form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia

After an intensive three-year hunt through the genome, medical researchers have pinpointed mutations that leads to drug resistance and relapse in the most common type of childhood cancer-the first time anyone has linked the disease's reemergence to specific genetic anomalies.

4 Feb 2013

Cells lose ability to defend against transposons as they age

Even in our DNA there is no refuge from rogues that prey on the elderly. Parasitic strands of genetic material called transposable elements - transposons - lurk in our chromosomes, poised to wreak genomic havoc. Cells have evolved ways to defend themselves, but in a new study, Brown University researchers describe how cells lose this ability as they age, possibly resulting in a decline in their function and health.

4 Feb 2013

Brandeis University researchers to receive Wiley Prize in Biomedical Sciences

Deborah E. Wiley, Chair of The Wiley Foundation, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., announced today that the twelfth annual Wiley Prize in Biomedical Sciences will be awarded to Dr. Michael Young, Rockefeller University, Dr. Jeffrey Hall, Brandeis University (Emeritus), and Dr. Michael Rosbash, Brandeis University.

1 Feb 2013

Endothelial cells can trigger changes in cancer cells without direct contact

Blood vessels that supply oxygen and nutrients to tumors can also deliver something else - a signal that strengthens nearby cancer cells, making them more resistant to chemotherapy, more likely to spread to other organs and more lethal, scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center report online in Cancer Cell.

1 Feb 2013

Bioelectric signals can identify cells that are likely to develop into tumors

Biologists at Tufts University School of Arts and Sciences have discovered a bioelectric signal that can identify cells that are likely to develop into tumors. The researchers also found that they could lower the incidence of cancerous cells by manipulating the electrical charge across cells' membranes.

1 Feb 2013