Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Study shows how mutations in the BRCA1 gene lead to breast cancer

An international team of researchers led by Columbia University Medical Center's Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center and Sweden's Lund University has, for the first time, revealed how mutations in the BRCA1 gene lead to breast cancer.

10 Dec 2007

Mechanism for regulation of growth and differentiation of adult muscle stem cells is revealed

During muscle regeneration, which is a natural response to injury and disease, environmental cues cause adult muscle stem cells (satellite cells) to shift from dormancy to actively building new muscle tissue.

10 Dec 2007

Researchers photograph cystic fibrosis protein interaction

New microscopic pictures show the first-ever physical evidence of interaction between two proteins involved in Cystic Fibrosis (CF) disease.

10 Dec 2007

Antibacterial chemical in bath soaps disrupts hormone activities

A new UC Davis study shows that a common antibacterial chemical added to bath soaps can alter hormonal activity in rats and in human cells in the laboratory - and does so by a previously unreported mechanism.

10 Dec 2007

Chikungunya virus spreads to new vectors

Researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch have discovered how a key protein switch allows Chikungunya Virus (CHIKV) to spread to new vectors.

10 Dec 2007

Reprogrammed stem cells cure sickle cell anaemia

Scientists in the U.S. have made a breakthrough in the fight against sickle cell anaemia, a blood disease caused by a defect in a single gene.

9 Dec 2007

Discovery of potential "getting drunk" gene

A variant of a gene involved in communication among brain cells has a direct influence on alcohol consumption in mice, according to a new study by scientists supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the U.S. Army.

5 Dec 2007

Missing brain protein may be one of the culprits behind autism and other brain disorders

The protein helps synapses develop. Synapses--through which neurons communicate with one other-underlie our ability to learn and remember. Now Li-Huei Tsai, Picower Professor of Neuroscience at MIT, has uncovered an enzyme that is key to that protein's activity.

5 Dec 2007

Genetic markers for mental illness

Researchers have discovered natural genetic differences that might help predict the most effective antipsychotic drugs for particular patients with mental disorders such as schizophrenia, Parkinson's and drug addiction.

4 Dec 2007

Research may lead to more effective sunscreens

Chronic exposure to the sun increases the risk of an individual developing skin cancer because UV light from the sun can cause genetic mutations that enable cells in the skin to grow in an uncontrolled manner.

4 Dec 2007

Lymphatic vessel and lymph node function are restored with growth factor treatment

The frequent spread of certain cancers to lymph nodes often necessitates surgery or radiation therapy that damages the lymphatic system and can cause lymphedema, a condition of localized fluid retention that often increases susceptibility to infections.

4 Dec 2007

Humans not the major target of Shiga toxin

If you've survived Shiga toxin and the after-effects of food poisoning, you may have been the innocent victim of a battle for survival between predator and prey.

4 Dec 2007

Genetic testing for severe type of migraine may help identify new treatment options

People with a severe type of migraine in which one side of the body becomes weak should consider genetic testing, according to research that has found familial genes for this type of migraine in people who did not have family members experiencing the problem.

4 Dec 2007

New genetic markers found that increase a person's risk for schizophrenia

Scientists at the Zucker Hillside Hospital campus of the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research have identified nine genetic markers that can increase a person's risk for schizophrenia.

4 Dec 2007

Molecular technology used to identify unexpected bacteria in cystic fibrosis patients

Molecular technology developed by a University of Colorado at Boulder professor to probe extreme life forms in undersea hydrothermal vents has been used to identify unexpected bacteria strains in the lung fluid of Denver children suffering from cystic fibrosis, findings that may lead to more effective therapies.

4 Dec 2007

Hydrogen sulfide provides clues to a longer life

Hydrogen sulfide, or H2S, the chemical that gives rotten eggs their sulfurous stench - and the same compound that researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center successfully have used to put mice into a state of reversible metabolic hibernation - has now been shown to significantly increase life span and heat tolerance in the nematode worm, or C. elegans.

4 Dec 2007