Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Researchers reveal cellular foundations of functional brain networks in humans

Rutgers researchers at the Brain Health Institute (BHI) and Center for Advanced Human Brain Imaging Research (CAHBIR) have uncovered how different types of brain cells work together to form large-scale functional networks in the human brain – interconnected systems that support everything from sensory processing to complex decision-making – paving the way for new insights into brain health and disease.

21 Nov 2024

First 'blueprint' of human skeletal development offers new insights into bone formation

The first 'blueprint' of human skeletal development reveals how the skeleton forms, shedding light on the process of arthritis, and highlighting cells involved in conditions that affect skull and bone growth.

21 Nov 2024

Saliva microbes differ in pregnant women with stress and mental health symptoms

Research links oral cavity microbes to maternal mental health, revealing potential interventions during pregnancy to enhance psychological well-being.

21 Nov 2024

New molecule promotes gut healing and suppresses tumor growth in colorectal cancer

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have found a molecule that can both help the intestines to heal after damage and suppress tumor growth in colorectal cancer.

21 Nov 2024

Rare genetic mutations in healthy women may be key to breast cancer origins

Researchers at the University of British Columbia (UBC), BC Cancer, Harvard Medical School and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) have pinpointed what could be the early genetic origins of breast cancer - cancer-like mutations appearing in the cells of healthy women.

21 Nov 2024

Study reveals new genetic explanation for dilated cardiomyopathy

A potentially life-changing heart condition, dilated cardiomyopathy, can be caused by the cumulative influence of hundreds or thousands of genes and not just by a single "aberrant" genetic variant, as was previously thought, finds a new study led by researchers at UCL (University College London), Imperial College London and the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences.

21 Nov 2024

Researchers seek to develop noninvasive diagnostics for chronic fatigue syndrome

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a complex and long-term illness characterized by extreme fatigue that doesn't improve with rest, and can worsen with physical activity.

21 Nov 2024

Pcdh8 gene suppression critical for zebrafish notochord formation

Can a single protein-encoding gene determine whether a vertebrate embryo develops normally? Yes, according to Osaka Metropolitan University researchers, who found that suppression of Pcdh8 is essential for the notochord to elongate properly in zebrafish.

21 Nov 2024

Normal breast tissue cells harbor cancer-like genetic abnormalities

A new study from researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center finds that, in healthy women, some breast cells that otherwise appear normal may contain chromosome abnormalities typically associated with invasive breast cancer. The findings question conventional thinking on the genetic origins of breast cancer, which could influence early cancer detection methods.

20 Nov 2024

Researchers uncover key genes linked to DCIS progression

A team of researchers mapping a molecular atlas for ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) has made a major advance toward distinguishing whether the early pre-cancers in the breast will develop into invasive cancers or remain stable.

20 Nov 2024

CRISPR-based therapy shown to be safe, effective for people with transthyretin amyloidosis

A new type of therapy that 'edits' a gene in patients with a rare heart condition has been shown to be safe and effective, according to research from UCL and the Royal Free Hospital.

20 Nov 2024

Researchers unlock cell density as a tool for building synthetic tissues

Genes aren't the sole driver instructing cells to build multicellular structures, tissues, and organs. In a new paper published in Nature Communications, USC Stem Cell scientist Leonardo Morsut and Caltech computational biologist Matt Thomson characterize the influence of another important developmental driver: cell density, or how loosely or tightly cells are packed into a given space.

20 Nov 2024

Study links GERD to increased cardiovascular risk factors

A recent study published in the Journal of Translational Internal Medicine (https://doi.org/10.1515/jtim-2024-0017) reveals significant insights into the broader impact of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) on cardiovascular health.

20 Nov 2024

Researchers uncover hidden roles of accessory genes in SARS-CoV-2

Viruses are lean, mean, infection machines. Their genomes are tiny, usually limited to a handful of absolutely essential genes, and they shed extra genomic deadweight extremely fast.

20 Nov 2024

Study identifies DNA collisions driving genetic changes in cancer

Cancer researchers at the University of Chicago and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) have discovered that mutations in certain genes can lead to the accumulation of DNA errors, resulting in a specific type of genetic change known as large tandem duplications (TDs) that can arise from the collision of two critical cellular processes: transcription and DNA replication.

20 Nov 2024

Barcoding small extracellular vesicles with new CRISPR-based system

Cell-to-cell communication through nanosized particles, working as messengers and carriers, can now be analyzed in a whole new way, thanks to a new method involving CRISPR gene-editing technology.

20 Nov 2024

New CAR T-cell therapy shows promise against aggressive HER2+ breast cancer

One-third of HER2-positive (HER2+) tumors express the P95HER2 protein, which associates with an aggressive form of breast cancer with a poorer prognosis. Investigators of the Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology's (VHIO) Growth Factors Group, in collaboration with researchers of the Cancer Research Program of Hospital del Mar Research Institute (HMRI), Barcelona, have developed novel chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy that can produce a potent antitumor response against p95HER2-expressing cells.

19 Nov 2024