Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

Genetic testing of prostate tumors could identify likely responders to immunotherapy

Scientists have identified a pattern of genetic changes that could pick out men with advanced prostate cancer who are likely to benefit from immunotherapy.

14 Jun 2018

Researchers produce snapshots of the cell's 'protein factories'

Berlin-based researchers have produced snapshots of the 'protein factories' of the cell. Their findings could set us on the path towards a new class of antibiotics.

14 Jun 2018

Scientists discover unique feature in the 'antennae' of light-sensing neurons

Scientists at Baylor College of Medicine and Radboud University Medical Center in the Netherlands have discovered that the antennae-like structures on light-sensing neurons, called photoreceptors, have a unique feature not observed in the 'antennae' or cilia of other types of cells.

14 Jun 2018

People with type 2 diabetes may have increased risk of Parkinson's disease, shows study

People with type 2 diabetes may have an increased risk of having a diagnosis of Parkinson's disease later in life, according to a large study published in the June 13, 2018, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

14 Jun 2018

Extensive lipidomics studies reveal signatures of metabolic health and disease

Scientists from EPFL and the University of Wisconsin-Madison have carried out one of the most extensive lipidomics studies to date, connecting almost 150 different lipid species to their respective genetic regulators, revealing signatures of metabolic health and disease.

13 Jun 2018

OGT increases NGS cancer panel content to provide more flexibility for customization

Oxford Gene Technology, The Molecular Genetics Company, has expanded its SureSeq myPanel™ NGS Custom Cancer Panel content - now covering 120 fully optimized cancer related genes.

From Oxford Gene Technology 13 Jun 2018

Researchers discover genomic characteristics that define testicular germ cell cancer

Testicular germ cell cancer, a disease that is rare but growing in incidence in men in the United States, is considered to be among the most curable of solid tumors. Now researchers from the University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center and a consortium of institutions have discovered the genetic and genomic characteristics that define the disease.

12 Jun 2018

UNC study provides insight into mechanism of CHD4-related heart defects

Heart defects are the most common type of birth defect, and can be caused by mutations in the gene CHD4. Researchers at the UNC School of Medicine have now revealed key molecular details of how CHD4 mutations lead to heart defects.

12 Jun 2018

Research identifies new genetic variations that could indicate higher prostate cancer risk

As the result of a six-year long research process, Fredrick R. Schumacher, PhD, a cancer epidemiology researcher at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and an international team of more than 100 colleagues have identified 63 new genetic variations that could indicate higher risk of prostate cancer in men of European descent.

12 Jun 2018

Immune response in RA patients linked to inflammation and joint damage

To diagnose rheumatoid arthritis, antibodies to the amino acid citrulline are commonly measured. A new study from Uppsala University shows that a broad mix of different antibodies in the joints is the dominant factor that can be associated with severe inflammation and joint damage.

12 Jun 2018

New DNA test identifies men at highest risk of prostate cancer

A major new study of more than 140,000 men has identified 63 new genetic variations in the DNA code that increase the risk of prostate cancer.

11 Jun 2018

Researchers isolate bacteria that pose triple threat from a patient in the U.S.

Researchers from the Emory Antibiotic Resistance Center describe the first strain of carbapenem-resistant, hypermucoviscous Klebsiella pneumoniae exhibiting colistin heteroresistance and enhanced virulence isolated from a patient in the United States.

11 Jun 2018

Researchers identify enzyme that controls cell’s collagen secretion

Researchers at Tokyo Institute of Technology have identified an enzyme that controls how much our cells secrete collagen.

11 Jun 2018

Study: Small RNA chains could regulate the genes involved in salmonella's virulence

A series of small RNA fragments are the regulator factors involved in a new control mechanism for salmonella virulence, a pathogenic bacterium which causes bacterial gastroenteritis with a high incidence -more than 100,000 cases per year- in Europe

8 Jun 2018

Study reveals new genetic causes of non-syndromic cleft lip and palate

A study conducted by an international research team, which included investigators from Seattle Children's Research Institute, implicates variants in four genes as a primary cause of non-syndromic cleft lip and palate in humans.

8 Jun 2018

Collaborative research team seeks to collapse a tiny pocket between cardiac cells

A collaborative research team is on a quest to collapse a tiny pocket between cardiac cells that can cause big problems. Called the perinexus, the structure spans only tenths of a millimeter -- all the space it needs to disrupt a person's heartbeat.

7 Jun 2018

Mucus appears to protect flu virus when it becomes airborne, shows study

Mucus and other airway secretions that are expelled when a person with the flu coughs or exhales appear to protect the virus when it becomes airborne, regardless of humidity levels, a creative experiment conducted by the University of Pittsburgh and Virginia Tech discovered.

7 Jun 2018

Colorado researchers suggest new combination therapy for advanced head and neck cancer

The five-year survival rate for locally-advanced head and neck cancer is only 46 percent, even with treatments including surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and/or genetically targeted treatments such as cetuximab.

7 Jun 2018

Researchers look for deeper explanations into causes of Alzheimer's disease

For more than 20 years, much of the leading research on Alzheimer's disease has been guided by the "amyloid hypothesis."

7 Jun 2018

Overload of zinc in muscles leads to cachexia in cancer patients

It's estimated that nearly one-third of all cancer deaths are caused not by the cancer itself but by cachexia - a debilitating muscle-wasting syndrome that affects an estimated 80 percent of advanced cancer patients. Cachexia is linked to reduced tolerance for cancer therapy, poor quality of life, and accelerated death, but there are no effective treatments and its cause is still largely unknown.

6 Jun 2018