Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Researchers reveal mutation's role in blood cancers

A genetic mutation that disrupts how DNA sends messages to the rest of a cell has been linked to a large number of blood cancers.

3 Feb 2020

UTHSC researchers receive $1.98 million grant for novel approach to studying diabetes

A team of researchers in the University of Tennessee Health Science Center's College of Medicine has been awarded a $1.98 million grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease, a division of the National Institutes of Health, for a novel approach to studying diabetes.

3 Feb 2020

Sperm microbiome revealed with RNA sequencing

A new study reports the first-ever detailed description of the human sperm microbiome, using newer RNA sequencing techniques that are capable of discriminating between sperm RNA and that of bacterial contamination or colonization.

2 Feb 2020

Plant flavonols significantly reduce Alzheimer’s risk

A new study published in the journal Neurology in January 2020 concludes that increasing the intake of plant flavonols steeply reduces the risk of Alzheimer’s dementia (AD) by up to a half. In other words, AD could be prevented in many people simply by regularly eating more of foods containing these compounds such as tea, oranges and broccoli.

2 Feb 2020

Daily alcohol consumption ages brain

There are several studies looking at the effects of alcohol intake on the brain. Anew study adds to the existing knowledge. The large study with around 11,651 participants from United Kingdom shows that each gram of alcohol consumed could lead to around a week of aging of the brain.

2 Feb 2020

Multimodal analysis of tumors could give new insights into treating cancer patients

Melding the genetic and cellular analysis of tumors with how they appear in medical images could give physicians and other cancer therapy specialists new insights into how to best treat patients, especially those with brain cancer, according to a new study led by the Translational Genomics Research Institute, an affiliate of City of Hope.

31 Jan 2020

Researchers locate specific mutation in the gene responsible for Chédiak-Higashi syndrome

Humans and animals are made up of trillions of cells, and each cell contains DNA specific to that individual. Therefore, identifying DNA that causes genetic disorders gives researchers and clinicians a better understanding of how to treat inherited diseases and possibly prevent the diseases from being passed down to future generations.

30 Jan 2020

First in-depth analysis of primate ovarian aging at single-cell resolution

Due to the modern tendency to postpone childbirth until later in life, a growing number of women are experiencing issues with infertility.

30 Jan 2020

Researchers use new technique to improve the ability to model lung diseases

Using a combination of pluripotent stem cells (cells that can potentially produce any cell or tissue type) and machine learning (artificial intelligence that allows computers to learn automatically), researchers have improved how they generate lung cells.

30 Jan 2020

Advances in tuberculosis research yield immune responses

A new study published in January 2020 in the journal Science Translational Medicine depicts for the first time ever a beautifully detailed map of the way three different species reacts to tuberculosis, based on their genetic and immune differences.

30 Jan 2020

Gene-editing taken to advanced levels in human stem cells

A new study published in the journal Stem Cell Reports in January 2020 reports the use of an adaptation to a commonly used gene editing technology to achieve a more than 900% increase in efficiency.

30 Jan 2020

New genetic screen for Huntington’s disease

Huntington’s disease is a genetic disease that is debilitating and progressive leading to severe brain damage and eventual death. In patients with this autosomal dominant disease, there is presence of a protein called the Huntingtin protein that forms clumps within the brain leading to the symptoms of the disease.

30 Jan 2020

Regulating neuronal lipid metabolism helps axon regeneration after injury, study finds

Typical examples include paralysis due to a spinal cord injury and visual field atrophy or even complete blindness due to optic nerve atrophy in glaucoma patients.

30 Jan 2020

Study maps immune responses to tuberculosis across 3 species

Tuberculosis is one of the world's most vexing public health problems. About 1.5 million people died from this bacterial lung infection in 2018, and the World Health Organization estimates that one-quarter of the world's population -- some 2 billion people, mostly in developing countries -- are infected with the bacteria that causes TB.

30 Jan 2020

Death receptor pathway drives resistance to CAR T cell therapy

Some cancer cells refuse to die, even in the face of powerful cellular immunotherapies like CAR T cell therapy, and new research from the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania is shedding light on why.

30 Jan 2020

Defective ATP13A2 gene can lead to Parkinson's disease, shows study

Biomedical scientists at KU Leuven have discovered that a defect in the ATP13A2 gene causes cell death by disrupting the cellular transport of polyamines.

30 Jan 2020

Researchers discover new target for repairing heart after heart attack

Billions of cardiac muscle cells are lost during a heart attack. The human heart cannot replenish these lost cells, so the default mechanism of repair is to form a cardiac scar.

30 Jan 2020

Group A streptococcus strains that are less susceptible to commonly used antibiotics identified

Infectious disease scientists identified strains of group A streptococcus that are less susceptible to commonly used antibiotics, a sign that the germ causing strep throat and flesh-eating disease may be moving closer to resistance to penicillin and other related antibiotics known as beta-lactams.

30 Jan 2020

Researchers examine abnormal neuron activity in Rett syndrome

The brain undergoes dramatic change during the first years of life. Its circuits readily rewire as an infant and then child encounters new sights and sounds, taking in the world and learning to understand it. As the child matures and key developmental periods pass, the brain becomes less malleable--but certain experiences create opportunities for parts of the adult brain to rewire and learn again.

29 Jan 2020

Study: 25% of pathogenic bacteria can spread antibiotic resistance directly to peers

Biomedical engineers at Duke University have demonstrated that at least 25 percent of antibiotic-resistant pathogenic bacteria found in clinical settings are capable of spreading their resistance directly to other bacteria.

29 Jan 2020