Chromosome News and Research

Latest Chromosome News and Research

Family and population based approaches sheds new light on the potential roles of common and rare forms of human genetic variation

In one of the first studies of its kind, an international team of researchers has uncovered a single-letter change in the genetic code that is associated with autism. The finding, published in the October 8 issue of the journal Nature, implicates a neuronal gene not previously tied to the disorder and more broadly, underscores a role for common DNA variation.

8 Oct 2009

Daily doses of imatinib mesylate double survival rates in Ph+ ALL affected children

Results of a phase two clinical trial published October 5th in the Journal of Clinical Oncology show that adding continuous daily doses of a targeted drug called imatinib mesylate to regular chemotherapy more than doubled three-year survival rates for children with a high risk type of blood cancer called Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL).

7 Oct 2009

Absence of certain proteins for proper cell duplication can lead to cancer

A Purdue University researcher has discovered that the absence of certain proteins needed for proper cell duplication can lead to cancer.

6 Oct 2009

Molecular biologist receives 2009 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

Molecular biologist Elizabeth H. Blackburn, PhD, 60, of the University of California, San Francisco, today was named to receive the 2009 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

6 Oct 2009

Elizabeth Blackburn, Carol Greider and Jack Szostak receive 2009 Nobel Prize in medicine

The 2009 Nobel Prize in medicine has been awarded to Elizabeth Blackburn, Carol Greider and Jack Szostak for the discovery of how chromosomes are protected by telomeres and the enzyme telomerase.

5 Oct 2009

New genetic alteration can cause familial cancers

Duke University Medical Center and National Cancer Institute scientists have discovered that a novel genetic alteration - a second copy of an entire gene - is a cause of familial chordoma, an uncommon form of cancer arising in bones and frequently affecting the nervous system.

5 Oct 2009

Researchers study the role of CHRNA3 and CHRNA5 genes in lung cancer

A recent study published in the October 2009 issue of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology determined that variations of specific genetic markers identified in previous research, or SNPs, may indicate a greater lung cancer risk in African Americans than in whites. The genes CHRNA3 and CHRNA5 may contribute to lung cancer risk due directly or through their association with nicotine dependence.

3 Oct 2009

PNNL scientist Dick Smith awarded Human Proteome Organization's Discovery Award

Laboratory and Battelle Fellow Dick Smith of the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has been recognized for his many accomplishments in pioneering the development of proteomics tools. Scientists use these instruments to study the array of proteins and related molecules that make up much of human blood and tissues.

3 Oct 2009

61 institutions awarded grants for cancer research from American Cancer Society

The American Cancer Society, the largest non-government, not-for-profit funding source of cancer research in the United States, has awarded 94 new national research and training grants totaling $45,097,000 to 61 institutions nationwide in the second of two grants cycles for 2009. The grants go into effect beginning January 1, 2010.

3 Oct 2009

Public lecture to highlight what causes cell division to go wrong and lead to cancer

University of Leicester research which substantially increases our understanding of what causes cell division to go wrong and lead to cancer will be highlighted in a public lecture at the University on Wednesday 14th October at 5.30-6.30pm.

1 Oct 2009

ARRA stimulus funds fuel research projects across America

The Association of American Universities (AAU), the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU), and The Science Coalition (TSC) today released highlighted examples of the important scientific work happening across the country as a result of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The brief report summarizes just a handful of the thousands of projects benefiting from stimulus dollars.

30 Sep 2009

Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center awards $50,000 to three young investigators

Three young investigators who have taken significant steps toward advancing the understanding of cancer will be the recipients of this year's Paul Marks Prize for Cancer Research, a prize awarded biennially since 2001 to scientists under the age of forty-six by Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

30 Sep 2009

Winners of Paul Marks Prize 2009

29 Sep 2009

Safety profiles of JANUVIA and JANUMET drugs established through clinical development program

Merck has thoroughly reviewed the safety data for sitagliptin, and sitagliptin was not associated with an increase in the incidence of pancreatitis in preclinical studies or in clinical trials of up to two years in duration with more than 6,000 patients.

28 Sep 2009

European CHMP recommends Merck's JANUVIA and JANUMET as add-on to insulin

Merck & Co., Inc., which operates in many countries as Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD), has received a positive opinion from the European Medicines Agency’s (EMEA) Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) for JANUVIA® tablets and JANUMET® tablets recommending their use as add-on to insulin for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.

26 Sep 2009

Researchers discover potential treatment for Friedreich's ataxia

Using clever chemistry, a Scripps Research team has pinpointed the enzyme target of a drug group that stops the progression of the devastating disease Friedreich's ataxia in mice and may do the same for humans. The findings, developed in collaboration with scientists from Repligen Corporation, help advance this treatment approach one step closer toward human clinical trials, which will be a welcome event for disease sufferers who currently have few treatment options.

25 Sep 2009

Gene variant discovery could lead to future glaucoma treatments

An international team, led by researchers from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the National Eye Institute, has discovered gene variants for glaucoma in a black population. The finding could lead to future treatments or a cure for this disease, which leads to blindness in two million Americans each year.

22 Sep 2009

Investigative drug hampers the survival of non-Hodgkin lymphoma cells

An investigative drug deprived non-Hodgkin lymphoma cells of their ability to survive too long and multiply too fast, according to an early study published recently in the journal Experimental Hematology.

22 Sep 2009

Alcoholism may be dependent on IL-1 polymorphisms: Study

Cytokines are small proteins secreted by cells that serve as molecular messengers between cells. Pro-inflammatory cytokines - which function in the immune system - may be involved in alcohol dependence (AD). A study of three polymorphisms of the interleukin-1 gene complex (IL-1) and one of the tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) has found that IL-1 may directly contribute to AD among Spanish Caucasian males.

21 Sep 2009

Four single-letter variations in SNPs increse prostate cancer risk

deCODE genetics (Nasdaq: DCGN) today announced that a team of its scientists and academic colleagues from Finland, Spain, the Netherlands and the United States have today published the discovery of four novel single-letter variations in the sequence of the human genome (SNPs) conferring increased risk of prostate cancer.

21 Sep 2009