Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Novel technique rapidly identifies and tracks location of diseased proteins inside cells

A research team led by the University of Melbourne, Australia, has developed a novel technique that tracks diseased proteins behaving badly by forming clusters in brain diseases such as Huntington's and Alzheimer's.

19 Mar 2012

Maryland DHMH awards CSC contract to replace state's Medicaid Management Information System

The Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene awarded CSC a contract to replace the state's Medicaid Management Information System (MMIS) and provide fiscal agent services for selected DHMH programs. The contract has a five-year base period with three two-year options, bringing the estimated total value to $297 million.

19 Mar 2012

Alnylam commences dosing in ALN-TTR02 Phase I clinical trial for TTR-mediated amyloidosis

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading RNAi therapeutics company, announced today that it has initiated dosing in its Phase I clinical trial with ALN-TTR02, an RNAi therapeutic targeting the transthyretin (TTR) gene for the treatment of TTR-mediated amyloidosis (ATTR). The study is aimed at evaluating the safety and tolerability of ALN-TTR02 in healthy volunteers.

19 Mar 2012

Researchers show how errant form of LYP can disrupt the immune system

Autoimmune diseases, such as Type I diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis, are caused by an immune system gone haywire, where the body's defense system assaults and destroys healthy tissues. A mutant form of a protein called LYP has been implicated in multiple autoimmune diseases, but the precise molecular pathway involved has been unknown.

19 Mar 2012

East Asian BIM gene variant contributes to drug resistance in cancer

A multi-national research team led by scientists at Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School has identified the reason why some patients fail to respond to some of the most successful cancer drugs.

19 Mar 2012

Paper describes results of BMT in models of Rett Syndrome

A paper published online today in Nature describes the results of using bone marrow transplant (BMT) to replace faulty immune system cells in models of Rett Syndrome. The procedure arrested many severe symptoms of the childhood disorder, including abnormal breathing and movement, and significantly extended the lifespan of Rett mouse models.

19 Mar 2012

Study reveals how Bdnf gene mutation contributes to severe obesity

Researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center have revealed how a mutation in a single gene is responsible for the inability of neurons to effectively pass along appetite suppressing signals from the body to the right place in the brain. What results is obesity caused by a voracious appetite.

19 Mar 2012

Klf4 protein an important regulator of inflammation: HNK study

Microglia are the first line defence of the brain and are constantly looking for infections to fight off. Overactive microglia can cause uncontrolled inflammation within the brain, which can in turn lead to neuronal damage. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Journal of Neuroinflammation shows that, honokiol (HNK) is able to down-regulate the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and inflammatory enzymes in activated microglia via Klf4, a protein known to regulate DNA.

19 Mar 2012

Study of genes may hold the key to improved skin care

Ever wonder why two people who are the same age may look years apart? While extrinsic factors such as sun exposure and smoking can contribute to skin aging, intrinsic factors - namely the genes inherited from our parents - can have an even greater influence on how our skin ages.

17 Mar 2012

Exposure to MEHP shortens reproductive life of female mice

Female mouse fetuses exposed to very high doses of a common industrial chemical that makes plastics more pliable develop significant reproductive alterations and precancerous lesions as they grow up, according to a new toxicology study conducted at Brown University.

17 Mar 2012

ESTRO 31 and the World Congress of Brachytherapy

The 31st ESTRO congress and the World Congress of Brachytherapy

17 Mar 2012

ApoE4 gene could cause early loss of synapses in Alzheimer's disease

Today, researchers at the Blanchette Rockefeller Neurosciences Institute (BRNI) at West Virginia University in Morgantown, West Virginia reported a significant advance in understanding how different forms of the ApoE gene raise the risk for Alzheimer's disease.

17 Mar 2012

HGF/C-MET signaling pathway plays a key role in gestational diabetes development

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine have identified a cell-signaling pathway that plays a key role in increasing insulin secretion during pregnancy and, when blocked, leads to the development of gestational diabetes.

17 Mar 2012

Repligen total revenue increases to $7,165,000 for quarter ended December 31, 2011

Repligen Corporation today reported financial results for the quarter and nine-month fiscal year ended December 31, 2011.

17 Mar 2012

BRG1 gene loss implies lack of response of cells to retinoic acid and steroids

Retinoic acid (vitamin A) and steroids are hormones found in our body that protect against oxidative stress, reduce inflammation and are involved in cellular differentiation processes. One of the characteristics of tumours is that their cells have lost the ability to differentiate; therefore these hormones have useful properties to prevent cancer. Currently, retinoic acid and steroids are being used to treat some types of leukaemia.

16 Mar 2012

Study reveals why development of HIV treatments has been difficult

A new research report appearing in the March 2012 issue of the journal Genetics shows why the development of a cure and new treatments for HIV has been so difficult. In the report, an Australian scientist explains how he used computer simulations to discover that a population starting from a single human immunodeficiency virus can evolve fast enough to escape immune defenses.

16 Mar 2012

PCP signaling restricts neural growth during regeneration, homeostasis and development

The genetic pathway that regulates the way cells align themselves relative to each other has been found to act as a "stop sign" that signals organisms when to halt cell growth, according to new research published by biologists at the Center for Regenerative and Developmental Biology in Tufts University's School of Arts and Sciences.

16 Mar 2012

CCN1 protein orchestrates cellular antiviral response in the extracellular matrix

Brain-tumor cells that are infected with a cancer-killing virus release a protein "alarm bell" that warns other tumor cells of the impending infection and enables them to mount a defense against the virus, according to a study led by researchers at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute.

16 Mar 2012

Combination therapy may improve life span and motor function of infants with Batten disease

Infants with Batten disease, a rare but fatal neurological disorder, appear healthy at birth. But within a few short years, the illness takes a heavy toll, leaving children blind, speechless and paralyzed. Most die by age 5.

16 Mar 2012

New technique can sensitize cancer cells to radiation

Researchers at Winship Cancer Institute are developing a technique to remove cancer cells' defenses against radiation.

16 Mar 2012

Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Novel technique rapidly identifies and tracks location of diseased proteins inside cells

Maryland DHMH awards CSC contract to replace state's Medicaid Management Information System

Alnylam commences dosing in ALN-TTR02 Phase I clinical trial for TTR-mediated amyloidosis

Researchers show how errant form of LYP can disrupt the immune system

East Asian BIM gene variant contributes to drug resistance in cancer

Paper describes results of BMT in models of Rett Syndrome

Study reveals how Bdnf gene mutation contributes to severe obesity

Klf4 protein an important regulator of inflammation: HNK study

Study of genes may hold the key to improved skin care

Exposure to MEHP shortens reproductive life of female mice

ESTRO 31 and the World Congress of Brachytherapy

ApoE4 gene could cause early loss of synapses in Alzheimer's disease

HGF/C-MET signaling pathway plays a key role in gestational diabetes development

Repligen total revenue increases to $7,165,000 for quarter ended December 31, 2011

BRG1 gene loss implies lack of response of cells to retinoic acid and steroids

Study reveals why development of HIV treatments has been difficult

PCP signaling restricts neural growth during regeneration, homeostasis and development

CCN1 protein orchestrates cellular antiviral response in the extracellular matrix

Combination therapy may improve life span and motor function of infants with Batten disease

New technique can sensitize cancer cells to radiation

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