Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Researchers reveal important role of estrogen in neuroblastoma

The female sex hormone estrogen can perform an important role in neuroblastoma, a form of cancer mainly affecting young children.

29 Jan 2018

Leiden researcher makes new breakthrough in nanotherapy

Nanoparticles that transport medicines to a specific part of the human body are usually broken down in the liver prematurely. Jeroen Bussmann from Leiden University has discovered a new method to prevent this from happening. Publication in ACS Nano.

29 Jan 2018

Scientists decipher molecular mechanism of the cell with relevance for cancer development

Achievement in the field of cancer research: Biologists and chemists at the University of Konstanz decipher a molecular mechanism of the cell with relevance for the development of cancer and the fight against that disease.

27 Jan 2018

Discovery may offer new therapeutic approach for kids with Prader-Willi syndrome

Stem cell researchers at UConn Health have reversed Prader-Willi syndrome in brain cells growing in the lab, findings they recently published in the Human Molecular Genetics.

27 Jan 2018

Small tweak to mammal's DNA can cause significant physical changes, study finds

The difference between webbed toes and distinct digits may be the result of not just genetic information, but of how the genes regulate that information. Researchers at the National Institute of Genetics, Research Organization of Information and Systems in Japan found that a small, non-specific tweak to a mammal's DNA can potentially cause specific and significant physical changes.

27 Jan 2018

Researchers uncover key protein that rescues progression of adult spinocerebellar ataxia

Spinocerebellar ataxia is a group of neurodegenerative diseases characterized by progressive incoordination of gait, and is often associated with poor coordination of hands, speech, and eye movements.

27 Jan 2018

Scientists identify role of Mesp1 gene in earliest step of cardiovascular lineage segregation

Researchers at the Université libre de Bruxelles and University of Cambridge identified the role of key gene Mesp1 in the earliest step of cardiovascular lineage segregation. This discovery may help to better understand congenital heart defects.

27 Jan 2018

Study sheds light on key protein involved in memory formation and brain growth

Ask a nonscientist what memories are made of and you'll likely conjure images of childhood birthday parties or wedding days. Charles Hoeffer thinks about proteins.

27 Jan 2018

Researchers discover new source of botulinum neurotoxin

A new source of the botulinum neurotoxin was discovered by Canadian and American scientists in a strain of animal gut bacteria known as Enterococcus faecium.

27 Jan 2018

Study reveals existence of previously unknown immune defense mechanisms in bacteria

Until a decade ago, scientists were not aware that bacteria had complex immune systems – ones that could keep up with the pace of evolution in viruses called phages that infect bacteria.

27 Jan 2018

CureMatch’s co-founder is co-author of new article in Cancer Discovery journal

Igor F. Tsigelny, Ph.D., Co-founder and Chief Strategic Officer at CureMatch and research professor at University of California, San Diego, is a co-author of “Genomic landscape of cell-free DNA in patients with colorectal cancer” in Cancer Discovery along with group of colleagues from Duke University Medical Center, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, San Francisco, Caris Life Sciences, and Guardant Health, Inc. organized by the Drs. Ryan B. Corcoran and Scott Kopetz.

27 Jan 2018

Polio labs equipped to tackle neglected tropical diseases

Researchers from LSTM have investigated the possibility of utilizing the Polio network of 145 labs set up around the world to help tackle neglected tropical diseases which impact on the lives of about a billion of people.

27 Jan 2018

Researchers identify potential enzyme as therapeutic target for type 2 diabetes

Abnormalities in glucose uptake by the liver (or hepatic glucose uptake; HGU) cause elevations in blood glucose levels following meals, a state that is known as postprandial hyperglycemia.

27 Jan 2018

Scientists test new tactic for controlling motor complications in Parkinson's disease

Standard drug treatment for Parkinson's disease can over time induce motor complications that reduce the effectiveness of restoring mobility.

27 Jan 2018

Microbiome research offers new clues to increased HIV risk in women

Drawing from data collected for years by AIDS researchers in six African nations, scientists have pinpointed seven bacterial species whose presence in high concentrations may significantly increase the risk of HIV infection in women.

27 Jan 2018

Scientists uncover genes responsible for drug resistance in Leprosy bacterium

In a new study, scientists have uncovered the genes responsible for antibiotic resistance in strains of M. leprae, the bacterium that causes leprosy.

26 Jan 2018

Researchers identify promising new drug target for Ewing sarcoma

Screening a class of recently-developed drug compounds -- so-called "CDK inhibitors" capable of blocking CDK7/12/13 proteins -- against hundreds of different human cancer cell lines, researchers at Dana-Farber/Boston Children's Cancer and Blood Disorders Center have found that CDK12 inhibitors pack a particularly lethal punch to Ewing sarcoma, a rare cancer typically affecting children and young adults.

25 Jan 2018