Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

New C. elegans model will accelerate study of a rare disease

The model will permit to accelerate and reduce the price of the research, which is studying the mechanisms and the possible pharmacological targets for the neuronal alterations of this disease.

20 Feb 2020

An enriched environment helps heal young, injured brains

An enriched environment--with increased opportunities for physical activity, socialization and exploring novel stimuli--helped lessen functional, anatomical and cellular deficits in an experimental model of brain damage caused by oxygen deprivation at birth.

19 Feb 2020

BIA Separations signs agreement with University of Zagreb to commercialize technology for viral vector purification

BIA Separations, a leading bio-chromatography development and manufacturing company, announced it has signed a licensing agreement with the University of Zagreb to commercialize a novel elution method that helps preserve the integrity, infectivity and potency of viruses during immunoaffinity purification.

19 Feb 2020

Time of day influences brain’s global signal fluctuation

As the day progresses, the strength of the brain’s global signal fluctuation shows an unexpected decrease, according to a study published on February 18 in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by Csaba Orban and a multi-disciplinary team of scientists from the Faculty of Engineering, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine and N.1 Institute of Health at the National University of Singapore.

From PLOS ONE 19 Feb 2020

Random pulsing of gene expression contributes to pattern formation during development

A team of Cambridge scientists working on the intersection between biology and computation has found that random gene activity helps patterns form during development of a model multicellular system.

19 Feb 2020

Researchers identify possible new therapy for concussion-related headaches

As she jumped to head a soccer ball during her junior year of college, Kelly Farrell collided skulls with a teammate. She later was diagnosed with a concussion, which proved to be severely debilitating.

19 Feb 2020

Pancreatic cancer 'time machine' reveals tumor development and invasion

Pancreatic cancer has one of the worst survival rates among cancers. Patients can expect as low as a 9% chance to live for at least five years after being diagnosed.

18 Feb 2020

Study identifies new CoV responsible for the Wuhan outbreak

The 2019 novel coronavirus causes fatal pneumonia that has claimed over 1300 lives, with more than 52000 confirmed cases of infection by February 13, 2020, all in the span of just over a month.

18 Feb 2020

IU researcher identifies new genomic regions that increase skin cancer risk

An Indiana University cancer researcher has identified eight new genomic regions that increase a person's risk for skin cancer.

18 Feb 2020

Study reveals underlying mechanism for life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias

Low oxygen levels in the heart have long been known to produce life-threatening arrhythmias, even sudden death. Until now, it was not clear how.

18 Feb 2020

Study reveals how cells remove misfolded proteins from tissues

Researchers in Japan have identified a new quality control system that allows cells to remove damaged and potentially toxic proteins from their surroundings.

18 Feb 2020

Study reveals how overexposure to fluoride causes defects in tooth enamel

Exposing teeth to excessive fluoride alters calcium signaling, mitochondrial function, and gene expression in the cells forming tooth enamel- a novel explanation for how dental fluorosis, a condition caused by overexposure to fluoride during childhood, arises.

18 Feb 2020

Potential method for better treatment of premature babies

A new study published in the journal Immunology in February 2020 reports the discovery of a process that occurs in the body naturally, but which enhances the production of type 3 innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) in the lung alveoli of premature babies. These are sentinel cells that keep the mucosal surfaces clean and healthy. They are crucial to building resistance to infection within the human body.

18 Feb 2020

Fruit flies have a new defense strategy to deal with oxidative stress

Oxidative stress affects all living organisms, and the damage it causes is believed to play a part in cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease and a number of other health conditions.

18 Feb 2020

Statins could reduce ovarian cancer risk, study suggests

A genetic study has found evidence to suggest that women who take statins in the long term could be less likely to develop ovarian cancer, according to new research funded by Cancer Research UK published today (Tuesday 18 February).

18 Feb 2020

Slightly increased risk of death for babies conceived by IVF

A new study published in the journal Fertility and Sterility in February 2020 reports a higher risk for mortality in children who were conceived by the in vitro fertilization (IVF) technique followed by freezing of the embryos, compared to those naturally conceived, but only in the first few weeks of life.

18 Feb 2020

Study provides insight into link between cancer driver gene and alternative splicing changes

A multi-institutional group of researchers led by Children's Hospital of Philadelphia has linked a strong cancer driver gene to changes in proteins that regulate alternative splicing.

17 Feb 2020

Increased risk of uterine cancer linked to 24 gene variants

The risk of uterine endometrial cancer is increased by 24 gene variants that code for different cellular processes such as cell growth and death, gene regulation, and estrogen metabolism, according to a comprehensive review published in the Journal of Medical Genetics.

17 Feb 2020

Research suggests new approach to block tau pathology in FTLD, Alzheimer's

The protein β-arrestin-2 increases the accumulation of neurotoxic tau tangles, a cause several forms of dementia, by interfering with removal of excess tau from the brain, a new study by the University of South Florida Health Morsani College of Medicine found.

17 Feb 2020

Targeting regulatory T cells could boost the effects of cancer immunotherapy

A Ludwig Cancer Research study has identified a mechanism by which regulatory T cells, which suppress immune responses, adapt their metabolism to thrive in the harsh microenvironment of the tumor.

17 Feb 2020