Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

'Mismatch repair' genetic defects drive cancer patient's response to immunotherapy drugs

In an expanded, three-year clinical trial of 86 patients with colorectal and 11 other kinds of cancer that have so-called 'mismatch repair' genetic defects, scientists at Johns Hopkins Medicine and its Bloomberg~Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy have found that half of the patients respond to an immunotherapy drug called pembrolizumab.

9 Jun 2017

Radiation therapy critical to treating brain tumors, but linked to significant adverse effects

Radiation therapy using high-energy particles, like x-rays or electron beams, is a common and critical component in successfully treating patients with brain tumors, but it is also associated with significant adverse effects, such as neuronal loss in adjacent healthy tissues.

9 Jun 2017

Study finds evidence that genes influence empathy

New research has found empathy may have a genetic component that also influences personality, cognition, and psychiatric conditions. Further, although not a novel finding, researchers noted women generally performed better on a test used to gauge empathy than their male counterparts.

9 Jun 2017

Salk researchers analyze how neurons in the brain respond to natural scenes

If you think self-driving cars can't get here soon enough, you're not alone. But programming computers to recognize objects is very technically challenging, especially since scientists don't fully understand how our own brains do it.

9 Jun 2017

Salk scientist uses mathematical framework to better understand how cell types divide work

Despite advances in neuroscience, the brain is still very much a black box--no one even knows how many different types of neurons exist.

7 Jun 2017

UM SOM scientists identify mutated gene that may be key player in heart disease

Heart disease kills more than 600,000 Americans every year, which translates to more than one in every four deaths. Although lifestyle choices contribute to the disease, genetics play a major role.

7 Jun 2017

Focus on single sex threatens to limit impact of research findings, says Tulane endocrinologist

Over the last decade, many drugs that have been pulled from the market due to toxicity were withdrawn because they affected women more than men.

7 Jun 2017

New protocol offers faster and more effective way to obtain astrocytes from stem cells

Neurons have long enjoyed the spotlight in neuroscience--and for good reason: they are incredibly important cellular actors. But, increasingly, star-shaped support cells called astrocytes are being seen as more than bit players in the brain's rich pageant.

6 Jun 2017

Studies offer hope for developing new biomarker and drug for neurodegenerative diseases

Two new studies of progressive, neurodegenerative diseases linked to defects in cells' mitochondria offer hope for developing a new biomarker for research and diagnostics, and a drug for treating such diseases, report researchers at the University of California, Davis.

6 Jun 2017

UIC to open new center dedicated for stem cell and regenerative medicine

The University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine will launch a new center that will focus on understanding tissue regeneration and pioneering future developments in stem cell biology as a means to repair diseased organs and tissues.

6 Jun 2017

Positive results for AstraZeneca’s PARP inhibitor Lynparza in advanced breast cancer

A new study has shown that AstraZeneca's Lynparza (olaparib) can significantly slow the progress of breast cancer that is caused partially due to mutations of the culprit gene called BRCA. BRCA gene mutations are responsible for around 3% of all breast cancers. These cases of the disease that have a basis in the gene are notoriously difficult to treat and women who are tested positive for this gene may even opt for removal of their breasts before even the cancer strikes. Noted actress Angelina Jolie went for a similar prophylactic mastectomy.

5 Jun 2017

Genetic sequencing could help direct treatment for 72% of advanced cancer patients

A new analysis finds that nearly three-quarters of 500 patients with advanced cancer could be referred to a potential targeted treatment based on the results of a comprehensive analysis of their tumor's genetic landscape.

2 Jun 2017

Researchers find way to attack sleeper cells that cause breast cancer recurrence

Though researchers have made tremendous strides in saving the lives of patients diagnosed with breast cancer, the disease still comes back after treatment in 30 percent of women.

2 Jun 2017

Follistatin plays key role in embryo implantation

Looking to improve the success rate of assisted reproductive technologies, researchers at Baylor College of Medicine investigated in more detail the mechanism involved in successful embryo implantation, an essential component of female fertility.

2 Jun 2017

Tumorigenesis may be induced from neighboring tissues, study suggests

Current view is that cancer development is initiated from cells that acquire initial DNA mutations. These in turn provoke additional defects, and ultimately the affected cells begin to proliferate in an uncontrolled manner to develop primary tumors.

2 Jun 2017

Study: Child's gut bacteria appears to be influenced by ethnicity and breastfeeding

The bacteria in a child's gut appears to be influenced as early as its first year by ethnicity and breastfeeding, according to a new study from McMaster University.

1 Jun 2017

New study establishes link between prenatal stress and onset of eating disorders

Stress affects the body and can trigger illness -- from psychiatric disorders to heart disease. Humans are exposed to stress at different intensities throughout life -- as children, in adolescence, and in old age. But when is the impact of stress on our systems most powerful? Many researchers maintain that the critical effect occurs prenatally, inside the womb.

1 Jun 2017

Differences in uptake of toxins, nutritional elements during late pregnancy and early life linked to ASD risk

Using evidence found in baby teeth, researchers from The Senator Frank R. Lautenberg Environmental Health Sciences Laboratory and The Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment at Mount Sinai found that differences in the uptake of multiple toxic and essential elements over the second and third trimesters and early postnatal periods are associated with the risk of developing autism spectrum disorders (ASD), according to a study published June 1 in the journal Nature Communications.

1 Jun 2017

Scientists identify 100 genes that provide new entry points into understanding human memory

Scientists have identified more than 100 genes linked to memory, opening new avenues of research to better understand memory processing in the human brain.

1 Jun 2017

Brain's immune cells may play roles in neurodegenerative, psychiatric illnesses

Scientists have, for the first time, characterized the molecular markers that make the brain's front lines of immune defense--cells called microglia--unique.

31 May 2017

Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

'Mismatch repair' genetic defects drive cancer patient's response to immunotherapy drugs

Radiation therapy critical to treating brain tumors, but linked to significant adverse effects

Study finds evidence that genes influence empathy

Salk researchers analyze how neurons in the brain respond to natural scenes

Salk scientist uses mathematical framework to better understand how cell types divide work

UM SOM scientists identify mutated gene that may be key player in heart disease

Focus on single sex threatens to limit impact of research findings, says Tulane endocrinologist

New protocol offers faster and more effective way to obtain astrocytes from stem cells

Studies offer hope for developing new biomarker and drug for neurodegenerative diseases

UIC to open new center dedicated for stem cell and regenerative medicine

Positive results for AstraZeneca’s PARP inhibitor Lynparza in advanced breast cancer

Genetic sequencing could help direct treatment for 72% of advanced cancer patients

Researchers find way to attack sleeper cells that cause breast cancer recurrence

Follistatin plays key role in embryo implantation

Tumorigenesis may be induced from neighboring tissues, study suggests

Study: Child's gut bacteria appears to be influenced by ethnicity and breastfeeding

New study establishes link between prenatal stress and onset of eating disorders

Differences in uptake of toxins, nutritional elements during late pregnancy and early life linked to ASD risk

Scientists identify 100 genes that provide new entry points into understanding human memory

Brain's immune cells may play roles in neurodegenerative, psychiatric illnesses

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