Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

UMDNJ biochemist to research into mechanisms that control gene expression in mitochondria

Dmitry Temiakov, PhD, a biochemist at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-School of Osteopathic Medicine, has received a five-year, $1.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to fund research into the molecular mechanisms that control gene expression in mitochondria, the organelles that are the "power plants" of cellular activity.

1 Mar 2013

Amyloid plaques take about 15 years to build up and then plateau: Study

Researchers have identified a possible treatment window of several years for plaques in the brain that are thought to cause memory loss in diseases such as Alzheimer's. The Mayo Clinic study is published in the Feb. 27 online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

28 Feb 2013

Friedreich's Ataxia costs between £11,000 and £19,000 per person per year

What is the cost of rare diseases such as Friedreich's Ataxia? By analyzing direct and indirect costs of care research in BioMed Central's open access journal Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases calculated that conservatively this rare disease costs between £11,000 and £19,000 per person per year.

28 Feb 2013

Blocking aPKC activity can stop growth of transplanted skin tumors resistant to vismodegib

Hailed as a major step forward in the effort to develop targeted cancer therapies, a recently approved drug for the most common type of skin cancer has been a mixed blessing for patients. Although the initial response is usually dramatic, the tumors often recur as the cancer becomes resistant to treatment.

28 Feb 2013

Autism, ADHD, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder and schizophrenia share common genetic risk factors

For the first time, scientists have discovered that five major psychiatric disorders—autism, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder and schizophrenia—share several common genetic risk factors.

28 Feb 2013

Two antagonistic proteins help keep leukemia at bay

Two proteins that scientists once thought carried out the same functions are actually antagonists of each other, and keeping them in balance is key to preventing diseases such as cancer, according to new findings published in the February 25 issue of Developmental Cell by scientists at Fox Chase Cancer Center.

27 Feb 2013

Molecular effects of insufficient sleep uncovered

Results from a sleep laboratory study show striking changes in gene expression associated with sleep deprivation.

27 Feb 2013

Calcium channel risk allele linked to executive function in bipolar disorder

Researchers have found an allele in a voltage-gated calcium gene that is associated with an increased risk for poor executive function in patients with bipolar disorder.

27 Feb 2013

New findings could help develop treatments for inherited disorders

Fresh insights into the protective seal that surrounds the DNA of our cells could help develop treatments for inherited muscle, brain, bone and skin disorders.

27 Feb 2013

AHRF to present free symposium on dizziness and balance disorders

The American Hearing Research Foundation will present a free, day-long educational symposium on dizziness and balance disorders on Saturday, April 6 at the Hilton Suites Chicago/Oakbrook in Oakbrook, Illinois.

27 Feb 2013

Promyleocytic leukemia gene goes up significantly in post treatment of mTOR inhibitors

Glioblastoma, the most common and lethal form of brain tumor in adults, is challenging to treat because the tumors rapidly become resistant to therapy. As cancer researchers are learning more about the causes of tumor cell growth and drug resistance, they are discovering molecular pathways that might lead to new targeted therapies to potentially treat this deadly cancer.

27 Feb 2013

Surgical site infections appear to have significant genetic connections

An estimated 300,000 U.S. patients get surgical site infections every year, and while the causes are varied, a new University of Utah study suggests that some who get an infection can blame it partly on their genes.

27 Feb 2013

Research roundup: Patients hesitant to focus on costs; Increase in primary care demand is uneven

One way to contain health care spending is to get patients involved in weighing costs of treatment options with their doctors. Researchers recruited 211 medically insured participants to assess their willingness to consider costs when choosing treatments. The authors found that participants generally "preferred better care, even when the relative benefit it offered was marginal, and even when told that the second-best choice still met the threshold of 'good enough' care from a clinician's perspective.

26 Feb 2013

Insight into cellular operations that give extraordinary staying power to S. mansoni

From the point of view of its ultimate (human) host, the parasitic flatworm Schistosoma mansoni has a gruesome way of life. It hatches in feces-tainted water, grows into a larva in the body of a snail and then burrows through human skin to take up residence in the veins. Once there, it grows into an adult, mates and, if it's female, starts laying eggs. It can remain in the body for decades.

26 Feb 2013

HDAC-mediated mechanisms play critical role in regulating lung repair and regeneration

Lung diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are on the rise, according to the American Lung Association and the National Institutes of Health.

26 Feb 2013

Distinct bone marrow niches can nurture different types of blood stem cells

In research that could one day improve the success of stem cell transplants and chemotherapy, scientists have found that distinct niches exist in bone marrow to nurture different types of blood stem cells.

25 Feb 2013

Genetic testing strategy for familial high cholesterol questioned

Current testing strategies for the families of patients with familial hypercholesterolemia may not be an efficient use of health resources, suggest study results published in The Lancet.

25 Feb 2013

Individuals with psychogenic disease do have brains that function differently

Psychogenic diseases, formerly known as 'hysterical' illnesses, can have many severe symptoms such as painful cramps or paralysis but without any physical explanation. However, new research from the University of Cambridge and UCL (University College London) suggests that individuals with psychogenic disease, that is to say physical illness that stems from emotional or mental stresses, do have brains that function differently.

25 Feb 2013

Study shows how pseudogenes can regulate activity of PTEN cancer-related gene

Small stretches of DNA in the human genome are known as "pseudogenes" because, while their sequences are nearly identical to those of various genes, they have long been thought to be non-coding "junk" DNA.

25 Feb 2013

Researchers identify new pseudogene that regulates tumour-suppressing PTEN

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have identified a new so-called pseudogene that regulates the tumour-suppressing PTEN gene. They hope that this pseudogene will be able to control PTEN to reverse the tumour process, make the cancer tumour more sensitive to chemotherapy and to prevent the development of resistance.

25 Feb 2013

Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

UMDNJ biochemist to research into mechanisms that control gene expression in mitochondria

Amyloid plaques take about 15 years to build up and then plateau: Study

Friedreich's Ataxia costs between £11,000 and £19,000 per person per year

Blocking aPKC activity can stop growth of transplanted skin tumors resistant to vismodegib

Autism, ADHD, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder and schizophrenia share common genetic risk factors

Two antagonistic proteins help keep leukemia at bay

Molecular effects of insufficient sleep uncovered

Calcium channel risk allele linked to executive function in bipolar disorder

New findings could help develop treatments for inherited disorders

AHRF to present free symposium on dizziness and balance disorders

Promyleocytic leukemia gene goes up significantly in post treatment of mTOR inhibitors

Surgical site infections appear to have significant genetic connections

Research roundup: Patients hesitant to focus on costs; Increase in primary care demand is uneven

Insight into cellular operations that give extraordinary staying power to S. mansoni

HDAC-mediated mechanisms play critical role in regulating lung repair and regeneration

Distinct bone marrow niches can nurture different types of blood stem cells

Genetic testing strategy for familial high cholesterol questioned

Individuals with psychogenic disease do have brains that function differently

Study shows how pseudogenes can regulate activity of PTEN cancer-related gene

Researchers identify new pseudogene that regulates tumour-suppressing PTEN

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