Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Researchers engineer stem cell with ‘suicide genes’ to induce cell death in all but beta cells

Researchers have been advancing methods to generate insulin-producing beta cells from pluripotent stem cells for the clinical treatment of type 1 diabetes.

20 Feb 2019

Newly developed gene therapy helps decelerate aging process

Aging is a leading risk factor for a number of debilitating conditions, including heart disease, cancer and Alzheimer's disease, to name a few. This makes the need for anti-aging therapies all the more urgent. Now, Salk Institute researchers have developed a new gene therapy to help decelerate the aging process.

20 Feb 2019

Researchers unlock plant’s secret of producing specialized metabolites

Plants are master chemists, and Michigan State University researchers have unlocked their secret of producing specialized metabolites.

20 Feb 2019

Study suggests new treatment strategy for deadly brain cancer

In a study of mice and human brain tumors researchers at the University of the Michigan, Ann Arbor, searched for new treatments by exploring the reasons why some patients with gliomas live remarkably longer than others.

19 Feb 2019

First molecular test predicts treatment response for kidney cancer

Immunotherapy drugs such as PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitors represent the front-line treatment for kidney cancer. But immunotherapy is expensive, benefits only a subset of patients and is futile in the majority of patients.

19 Feb 2019

Gene therapy restores hearing in mice with congenital genetic deafness

In collaboration with the universities of Miami, Columbia and San Francisco, scientists from the Institut Pasteur, Inserm, CNRS, Collège de France, Sorbonne University and the University of Clermont Auvergne have managed to restore hearing in an adult mouse model of DFNB9 deafness - a hearing disorder that represents one of the most frequent cases of congenital genetic deafness.

19 Feb 2019

Unique gene therapy approach paves new way to tackle rare, inherited diseases

Nonsense mutations are single-letter errors in the genetic code that prematurely halt the production of critical proteins. These unfinished proteins are unable to function normally, and nonsense mutations cause 10-15 percent of all inherited genetic diseases, including Duchenne muscular dystrophy, spinal muscular atrophy, cystic fibrosis and polycystic kidney disease.

19 Feb 2019

Multinational initiative to study familial primary distal renal tubular acidosis

In addition to regulating the body's fluid balance, by excreting greater or smaller amounts of urine, the kidneys also maintain the proper balance of electrolytes (salts) and the pH (an acid-base equilibrium) within our body.

19 Feb 2019

Study shows how 3D organization of genetic material helps perpetuate the species

From fathers to children, the delivery of hereditary information requires the careful packing of DNA in sperm. But just how nature packages this DNA to prepare offspring isn't clear.

19 Feb 2019

Single CRISPR treatment can safely and stably correct genetic disease

Researchers at Duke University have shown that a single systemic treatment using CRISPR genome editing technology can safely and stably correct a genetic disease -- Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) -- for more than a year in mice, despite observed immune responses and alternative gene editing outcomes.

18 Feb 2019

Researchers identify multiple genetic variants associated with body fat distribution

A new breakthrough from the Genetic Investigation of Anthropometric Traits consortium, which includes many public health researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, identifies multiple genetic variants associated with how the body regulates and distributes body-fat tissue.

18 Feb 2019

CRISPR technology creates pluripotent stem cells that are 'invisible' to the immune system

UC San Francisco scientists have used the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing system to create the first pluripotent stem cells that are functionally "invisible" to the immune system, a feat of biological engineering that, in laboratory studies, prevented rejection of stem cell transplants.

18 Feb 2019

Scientists discover trigger that turns strep infections into devastating disease

Houston Methodist infectious disease scientists have discovered a previously unknown trigger that turns a relatively run-of-the-mill infection into a devastatingly ravenous, flesh-eating disease.

18 Feb 2019

Researchers report progress in the treatment of aggressive brain tumors

Cancer researchers at the University of Bonn have reported significant progress in the treatment of glioblastoma. About one third of all patients suffer from a particular variant of this most common and aggressive brain tumor.

18 Feb 2019

Physicists identify simple mechanism used by deadly bacteria to fend off antibiotics

Physicists at McMaster University have for the first time identified a simple mechanism used by potentially deadly bacteria to fend off antibiotics, a discovery which is providing new insights into how germs adapt and behave at a level of detail never seen before.

18 Feb 2019

Activating gene that helps excite neurons reverses depression in male mice

Directly activating a gene important to exciting our excitatory neurons and associated with major depression may help turn around classic symptoms like social isolation and loss of interest, at least for males, scientists report.

18 Feb 2019

Columbia researchers unravel why some glioblastomas respond to immunotherapy

Columbia researchers have learned why some glioblastomas--the most common type of brain cancer--respond to immunotherapy. The findings could help identify patients who are most likely to benefit from treatment with immunotherapy drugs and lead to the development of more broadly effective treatments.

17 Feb 2019

Study finds genetic vulnerability to use of menthol cigarettes

A genetic variant found only in people of African descent significantly increases a smoker's preference for cigarettes containing menthol, a flavor additive.

15 Feb 2019

Vapers develop cancer-related gene deregulation as cigarette smokers

If you think vaping is benign, think again. A small USC study shows that e-cig users develop some of the same cancer-related molecular changes in oral tissue as cigarette smokers, adding to the growing concern that e-cigs aren't a harmless alternative to smoking.

15 Feb 2019

Testosterone is not the only hormone needed for penis development

A new study has revealed that in addition to testosterone, the masculinization process involves a hormone called androsterone, which originates in other tissues.

15 Feb 2019

Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Researchers engineer stem cell with ‘suicide genes’ to induce cell death in all but beta cells

Newly developed gene therapy helps decelerate aging process

Researchers unlock plant’s secret of producing specialized metabolites

Study suggests new treatment strategy for deadly brain cancer

First molecular test predicts treatment response for kidney cancer

Gene therapy restores hearing in mice with congenital genetic deafness

Unique gene therapy approach paves new way to tackle rare, inherited diseases

Multinational initiative to study familial primary distal renal tubular acidosis

Study shows how 3D organization of genetic material helps perpetuate the species

Single CRISPR treatment can safely and stably correct genetic disease

Researchers identify multiple genetic variants associated with body fat distribution

CRISPR technology creates pluripotent stem cells that are 'invisible' to the immune system

Scientists discover trigger that turns strep infections into devastating disease

Researchers report progress in the treatment of aggressive brain tumors

Physicists identify simple mechanism used by deadly bacteria to fend off antibiotics

Activating gene that helps excite neurons reverses depression in male mice

Columbia researchers unravel why some glioblastomas respond to immunotherapy

Study finds genetic vulnerability to use of menthol cigarettes

Vapers develop cancer-related gene deregulation as cigarette smokers

Testosterone is not the only hormone needed for penis development

eBook: Using iPSCs models for human disease research and drug discovery eBook

Real-time Raman monitoring for pharmaceutical hot melt extrusion

Synthetic Psychedelics: A Growing Public Health Concern

How the Vutara VXL simplifies single-molecule imaging