Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

New research suggests link between PFAS chemicals and hyperthyroidism in pet cats

New research suggests that there may be a link between higher levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in the environment and higher levels of hyperthyroidism in pet cats as they age. The findings are published in

20 Sep 2018

New study focuses on two-way gene switches controlling gene activity

Led by ICREA research professors at the Centre for Genomic Regulation, Luciano Di Croce and Marc A. Marti-Renom, the study focused on a set of genes with what's known as bivalent promoters - two-way genetic 'control switches' that are poised either to turn on in early development and rapidly drive high levels of gene activity, or to switch off and shut down the gene completely.

20 Sep 2018

UNC scientists reveal new approach to prevent obesity and diabetes

Scientists from the UNC School of Medicine discovered that the anti-inflammatory protein NLRP12 normally helps protect mice against obesity and insulin resistance when they are fed a high-fat diet.

19 Sep 2018

Young children's oral microbiota could serve as early indicator for obesity

Weight gain trajectories in early childhood are related to the composition of oral bacteria of two-year-old children, suggesting that this understudied aspect of a child's microbiota -- the collection of microorganisms, including beneficial bacteria, residing in the mouth -- could serve as an early indicator for childhood obesity.

19 Sep 2018

Penn researchers find common thread linking almost all TNR expansion diseases

In a class of roughly 30 neurological disorders that includes ALS, Huntington's Disease and Fragile X Syndrome, the relevant mutant gene features sections of repeating base pair sequences known as short tandem repeats, or STRs. Healthy people have STRs of normal lengths distributed across their DNA.

19 Sep 2018

Tweaking nuclear pores could provide new avenue to battle against cancer

If the cell nucleus is like a bank for DNA, nuclear pores are the security doors around its perimeter. Yet more security doors aren't necessarily better: some cancer cells contain a dramatic excess of nuclear pores.

19 Sep 2018

Research shows enlarged genotype-phenotype correlation for three-base pair deletion in NF1

International collaborative research led by Ludwine Messiaen, Ph.D., shows that while a three-base pair, in-frame deletion called p.Met992del in the NF1 gene has a mild phenotype for people with the genetic disorder neurofibromatosis type 1, or NF1, the mutation does cause complications.

18 Sep 2018

First gut bacteria in newborns may have lasting effect on ability to ward off chronic diseases

New research showing that the first bacteria introduced into the gut have a lasting impact may one day allow science to adjust microbiomes--the one-of-a-kind microbial communities that live in our gastrointestinal tracts--to help ward off serious chronic diseases.

18 Sep 2018

Researchers find way to map mysterious content of non-coding RNA

Researchers from the University of North Carolina have found a way of categorising long non-coding RNAs (lnc-RNAs) by their probable function.

18 Sep 2018

Researchers identify key step in how plant cells respond to pathogens

Just like humans, plants have an immune system that helps them fight off infections. Plant immunity has some important differences: they don't make antibodies and can't fight off the same bug more quickly months or years later.

18 Sep 2018

Brigham Genomic Medicine program unravels 30 medical mysteries

A table in a recently published paper tells the story of 30 families who have, sometimes after years of searching, finally received an answer about the condition that has plagued one or more family members.

18 Sep 2018

Salk research in yeast leads to serendipitous finding about hypomyelinating leukodystrophy

Studying the fundamental aspects of biology can sometimes lead to unexpected findings that directly relate to human disease. In one of the latest examples of scientific serendipity, researchers from the Salk Institute found that an important quality control mechanism in baker's yeast is closely connected to hypomyelinating leukodystrophy, a debilitating disease found in children.

17 Sep 2018

KKH develops new test to enable faster diagnosis of critically ill children with rare diseases

A multi-disciplinary team at KK Women's and Children's Hospital has developed a test to enable faster diagnosis of rare diseases to help critically ill children.

17 Sep 2018

Case Western Reserve professor wins $2 million grant to study colorectal cancer

Lan Zhou, MD, PhD, associate professor of pathology at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, has received a five-year, $2 million grant from the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health to study human colorectal cancer.

14 Sep 2018

Twice-a-year MRI more effective than mammograms for women with genetic breast cancer risk

Getting magnetic resonance imaging scans twice a year instead of one annual mammogram is far more effective at detecting early breast cancers in young women with a high-risk genetic profile than mammograms alone, according to a research team based at the University of Chicago Medicine and the University of Washington, Seattle.

14 Sep 2018

Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

New research suggests link between PFAS chemicals and hyperthyroidism in pet cats

New study focuses on two-way gene switches controlling gene activity

UNC scientists reveal new approach to prevent obesity and diabetes

Young children's oral microbiota could serve as early indicator for obesity

Penn researchers find common thread linking almost all TNR expansion diseases

Tweaking nuclear pores could provide new avenue to battle against cancer

Research shows enlarged genotype-phenotype correlation for three-base pair deletion in NF1

First gut bacteria in newborns may have lasting effect on ability to ward off chronic diseases

Researchers find way to map mysterious content of non-coding RNA

Researchers identify key step in how plant cells respond to pathogens

Brigham Genomic Medicine program unravels 30 medical mysteries

Salk research in yeast leads to serendipitous finding about hypomyelinating leukodystrophy

KKH develops new test to enable faster diagnosis of critically ill children with rare diseases

Case Western Reserve professor wins $2 million grant to study colorectal cancer

Twice-a-year MRI more effective than mammograms for women with genetic breast cancer risk

UTA scientist to provide new insights on the role of 'jumping genes'

US Department of Defense offers three-year grant for UIC study on prostate cancer

Differences in mitochondrial DNA determine severity of heart disease caused by nDNA mutation

Scientists develop first DNA-based test for predicting risk of leukemia relapse

New screening strategy identifies novel inhibitors that may help develop cure for Parkinson's

Genetics & Genomics - Second Edition 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