Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Researchers develop mouse models of leukemia that predict response to chemotherapy

Being able to accurately predict how a given cancer will respond to chemotherapy would spare patients with non-responsive tumors the burden of undergoing toxic and ultimately unhelpful treatment.

1 Apr 2009

Bad mix of bacterial remnants and NOD2 gene lead to arthritis

Here's another reason to hate leftovers. A research study appearing in the April 2009 issue of the Journal of Leukocyte Biology sheds light on one cause of arthritis: bacteria.

1 Apr 2009

Amniotic fluid may be a new source of stem cells

For the first time, scientists have shown that amniotic fluid (the protective liquid surrounding an embryo) may be a potential new source of stem cells for therapeutic applications. The study was prepublished online on February 12, 2009, in Blood, the official journal of the American Society of Hematology.

31 Mar 2009

Moonlighting immune molecules found in the brain

Molecules assumed to be in the exclusive employ of the immune system have been caught moonlighting in the brain - with a job description apparently quite distinct from their role in immunity.

30 Mar 2009

Genetic engineering breakthrough

In a genetic engineering breakthrough that could help everyone from bed-ridden patients to elite athletes, a team of American researchers - including 2007 Nobel Prize winner Mario R. Capecchi - have created a "switch" that allows mutations or light signals to be turned on in muscle stem cells to monitor muscle regeneration in a living mammal

30 Mar 2009

A genetic technique to distinguish benign moles from malignant melanomas

A UCSF research team has developed a technique to distinguish benign moles from malignant melanomas by measuring differences in levels of genetic markers.

30 Mar 2009

Hundreds of published studies on natural selection may have drawn incorrect conclusions

Scientists at Penn State and the National Institute of Genetics in Japan have demonstrated that several statistical methods commonly used by biologists to detect natural selection at the molecular level tend to produce incorrect results.

30 Mar 2009

New cancer genomics web-based tools provide researchers a powerful new to visualize and analyze data

A Cancer Genomics Browser developed by researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, provides a new way to visualize and analyze data from studies aimed at improving cancer treatment by unraveling the complex genetic roots of the disease.

30 Mar 2009

Gene scan shows body's sleep cycle influences numerous physical functions

The pineal gland - integral to setting the body's sleep and wake cycles - may be involved in a broad range of bodily functions, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions.

30 Mar 2009

Gene linked to lupus might explain gender difference in disease risk

In an international human genetic study, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have identified a gene linked to the autoimmune disease lupus, and its location on the X chromosome might help explain why females are 10 times more susceptible to the disease than males.

30 Mar 2009

Targeted drug therapy prevents exercise-induced arrhythmias

A 12-year-old Dutch boy - bedridden for three years because of an inherited cardiac arrhythmia syndrome - can now join his friends on the soccer field thanks to a discovery made by Vanderbilt University Medical Center researchers.

30 Mar 2009

Slow-growing tuberculosis bacteria point the way to new drug development

The discovery of a large number of slow-growing Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria, which cause tuberculosis (TB), in the lungs of TB patients could be an important step forward in the design of new anti-TB drugs.

30 Mar 2009

Discovery of new tumor suppressor gene

National Institutes of Health (NIH) researchers have identified a gene that suppresses tumor growth in melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer.

30 Mar 2009

Gene linked to lupus might explain why females are 10 times more susceptible to the disease

30 Mar 2009

Discovery of new cancer gene

Researchers have identified a new cancer gene - one that is common to many cancers and affects the most basic regulation of our genes.

29 Mar 2009

Amicus Therapeutics presents positive results from phase 2 extension study of Amigal for Fabry disease

Amicus Therapeutics has announced positive results from its ongoing Phase 2 extension study of its investigational drug, Amigal (migalastat HCL) for Fabry disease.

29 Mar 2009

'Gene hunters' find two new breast cancer genes

Cancer Research UK scientists have found two new regions of the genome that alter a woman's risk of breast cancer, according to a study in Nature Genetics.

29 Mar 2009

Discovery of protein that reactivates latent herpes simplex virus

Research in Public Library of Science (PLoS) Pathogens appears to solve a long standing medical mystery by identifying a viral protein, VP16, as the molecular key that prompts herpes simplex virus (HSV) to exit latency and cause recurrent disease.

29 Mar 2009

Scientists create vector, exotic genes from induced stem cells

A team of University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers reports that it has created induced human pluripotent stem (iPS) cells completely free of viral vectors and exotic genes.

29 Mar 2009

Researchers reveal mechanism that regulates cancer-causing gene

Two University of Rhode Island scientists have revealed how a cancer causing protein is regulated by reactive oxygen species (ROS) -- a type of stress signal.

29 Mar 2009