Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Joslin study could lead to improved anti-aging drugs

In a study published today by Nature, researchers at Joslin Diabetes Center used a microscopic worm (C. elegans) to identify a new path that could lead to drugs to slow aging and the chronic diseases that often accompany it--and might even lead to better cosmetics.

16 Dec 2014

Scientists demonstrate technique for editing genome in sperm-producing adult stem cells

Scientists at Indiana University and colleagues at Stanford and the University of Texas have demonstrated a technique for "editing" the genome in sperm-producing adult stem cells, a result with powerful potential for basic research and for gene therapy.

16 Dec 2014

New MIT study implicates RNA-binding proteins in regulation of cancer

A new study from MIT implicates a family of RNA-binding proteins in the regulation of cancer, particularly in a subtype of breast cancer. These proteins, known as Musashi proteins, can force cells into a state associated with increased proliferation.

16 Dec 2014

Trastuzumab drug improves long-term survival of patients with HER-2 positive breast cancer

VCU Massey Cancer Center physician-researcher Charles E. Geyer, Jr., M.D., was the National Protocol Officer for one component of a large national study involving two National Cancer Institute-supported clinical trials that demonstrated that trastuzumab significantly improves the long-term survival of HER-2 positive breast cancer patients.

16 Dec 2014

Two-drug combination before surgery benefits women with triple-negative breast cancer

A breast cancer specialist and clinical researcher at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island presented research yesterday at the 2014 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium showing that adding either the chemotherapy drug carboplatin or the blood vessel-targeting drug bevacizumab to the standard treatment of chemotherapy before surgery helped women who have the basal-like subtype of triple-negative breast cancer.

15 Dec 2014

UT Southwestern researchers identify possible therapy to treat neurofibromatosis type 1

UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have identified a possible therapy to treat neurofibromatosis type 1 or NF1, a childhood neurological disease characterized by learning deficits and autism that is caused by inherited mutations in the gene encoding a protein called neurofibromin.

15 Dec 2014

ADIPOQ gene variations linked to colorectal cancer risk, new study reveals

Adiponectin, a collagen-like protein secreted by fat cells, derives from the ADIPOQ gene. Variations in this gene may increase risk for type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and various cancers. A new study that links specific variations in the ADIPOQ gene to either higher or lower colorectal cancer risk is published in Genetic Testing and Molecular Biomarkers, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

15 Dec 2014

Maf1 protein that makes other proteins also controls fat levels in the body

Like a smart sensor that adjusts the lighting in each room and a home's overall temperature, a protein that governs the making of other proteins in the cell also appears capable of controlling fat levels in the body.

14 Dec 2014

Environmental factors influence how genetic variants affect the brain, behaviour

Both positive and negative experiences influence how genetic variants affect the brain and thereby behaviour, according to a new study. "Evidence is accumulating to show that the effects of variants of many genes that are common in the population depend on environmental factors.

14 Dec 2014

NTU scientists discover how malaria parasite develops resistance towards front-line drugs

Scientists from Nanyang Technological University have discovered exactly how the malaria parasite is developing resistance towards the most important front-line drugs used to treat the disease.

14 Dec 2014

Experts expose fundamental role of chaos and complexity in biological information processing

The interdisciplinary approach to problems that till recently were addressed in the hermetic framework of distinct disciplines such as physics, informatics, biology or sociology constitutes today one of the most active and innovative areas of science, where fundamental issues meet problems of everyday concern.

14 Dec 2014

Researchers uncover mechanism that helps white fat cells to become browner

White adipose tissue stores excess calories as fat that can be released for use in other organs during fasting. Mammals also have small amounts of brown adipose tissue, which primarily acts as an effective fat burner for the production of heat. Now researchers from the University of Southern Denmark have uncovered the mechanism by which white fat cells from humans gets reprogrammed to become browner.

14 Dec 2014

Researchers assemble first high-resolution, 3-D maps of folded genomes

In a triumph for cell biology, researchers have assembled the first high-resolution, 3-D maps of entire folded genomes and found a structural basis for gene regulation -- a kind of "genomic origami" that allows the same genome to produce different types of cells. The research appears online today in Cell.

14 Dec 2014

Oncotype DX assay linked to decrease in chemotherapy use in younger patients

In what's believed to be one of the largest population-based studies of Oncotype DX ever conducted, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have found that the commercial diagnostic tool, Oncotype DX, was associated with a decrease in chemotherapy use in younger patients, but not in those over 66 years of age.

14 Dec 2014

ALS Association announces research funds to further understand genetic cause of ALS

The ALS Association is pleased to announce the award of $326,662 in research funds to expand ongoing natural history studies in order to further understand the most common genetic cause of ALS, in preparation for clinical trials in those whose disease is affected by this gene.

14 Dec 2014

Metastatic lung cancer outcomes independent of KRAS mutation subtypes

Overall survival in patients with metastatic lung cancer does not correlate with Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homologue mutation subtypes, US researchers report.

12 Dec 2014

New evidence shows how personality affects health and wellbeing

Researchers have found new evidence that explains how some aspects of our personality may affect our health and wellbeing, supporting long-observed associations between aspects of human character, physical health and longevity.

12 Dec 2014

New statistical model enables better identification of different cell types in solid tumors

A new statistical model developed by a research team at Worcester Polytechnic Institute may enable physicians to create personalized cancer treatments for patients based on the specific genetic mutations found in their tumors.

12 Dec 2014

Study finds that K13 gene mutations cause malaria drug resistance in Southeast Asia

Growing resistance to malaria drugs in Southeast Asia is caused by a single mutated gene inside the disease-causing Plasmodium falciparum parasite, according to a study led by David Fidock, PhD, professor of microbiology & immunology and of medical sciences (in medicine) at Columbia University Medical Center.

12 Dec 2014

Research finding could lead to new therapies for malignant glioma

Targeted therapies are a growing and groundbreaking field in cancer care in which drugs or other substances are designed to interfere with genes or molecules that control the growth and survival of cancer cells. Now, scientists at Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center and VCU Institute of Molecular Medicine (VIMM) have identified a novel interaction between a microRNA and a gene that could lead to new therapies for the most common and deadly form of brain tumor, malignant glioma.

12 Dec 2014

Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Joslin study could lead to improved anti-aging drugs

Scientists demonstrate technique for editing genome in sperm-producing adult stem cells

New MIT study implicates RNA-binding proteins in regulation of cancer

Trastuzumab drug improves long-term survival of patients with HER-2 positive breast cancer

Two-drug combination before surgery benefits women with triple-negative breast cancer

UT Southwestern researchers identify possible therapy to treat neurofibromatosis type 1

ADIPOQ gene variations linked to colorectal cancer risk, new study reveals

Maf1 protein that makes other proteins also controls fat levels in the body

Environmental factors influence how genetic variants affect the brain, behaviour

NTU scientists discover how malaria parasite develops resistance towards front-line drugs

Experts expose fundamental role of chaos and complexity in biological information processing

Researchers uncover mechanism that helps white fat cells to become browner

Researchers assemble first high-resolution, 3-D maps of folded genomes

Oncotype DX assay linked to decrease in chemotherapy use in younger patients

ALS Association announces research funds to further understand genetic cause of ALS

Metastatic lung cancer outcomes independent of KRAS mutation subtypes

New evidence shows how personality affects health and wellbeing

New statistical model enables better identification of different cell types in solid tumors

Study finds that K13 gene mutations cause malaria drug resistance in Southeast Asia

Research finding could lead to new therapies for malignant glioma

Genomics - Industry Focus eBook (2nd edition) eBook

Advancing brain microphysiological systems (bMPS)

PhD researcher at LifeArc

Unveiling Hidden Potential: Organoids for Disease Modeling in Neuroscience Research