Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

Biostatistics provides clues to understanding autism: an interview with Dr Knut M. Wittkowski, The Rockefeller University

The incidence of autism spectrum disorders has increased sharply since it was first described 60 years ago. Today, ASD affects more than 1% of all children in the U.S. and about half of them develop a life-long disability.

3 Mar 2014

RainDance Technologies closes $16.5 million Series E financing round

RainDance Technologies, Inc., an innovative genomics tools company making molecular testing of complex diseases more standardized and readily available, today announced that it has closed a $16.5 million Series E financing round extension. New investors include GE Ventures and Northgate Capital; all existing financial investors also participated in this round of financing.

3 Mar 2014

Photoreactive compounds open new routes to treatment of neurological diseases

Photoreactive compounds developed by scientists of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich directly modulate nerve-cell function, and open new routes to the treatment of neurological diseases, including chronic pain and certain types of visual impairment.

3 Mar 2014

Twin brains reveal similar progressions of neuropathological changes

Despite widespread use of a single term, Alzheimer's disease is actually a diverse collection of diseases, symptoms and pathological changes.

3 Mar 2014

Light-activated drug delivery holds promise for treating cancer

Researchers from UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have developed an innovative cancer-fighting technique in which custom-designed nanoparticles carry chemotherapy drugs directly to tumor cells and release their cargo when triggered by a two-photon laser in the infrared red wavelength.

3 Mar 2014

New web portal to speed discovery of genes responsible for rare disorders

A new web portal - called PhenomeCentral - is being launched today to connect clinicians and scientists worldwide in an effort to speed the discovery of genes responsible for rare disorders.

3 Mar 2014

Research: Beneficial and toxic roles of brain glycogen

In 2007, in an article published in Nature Neuroscience, scientists at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) headed by Joan Guinovart, an authority on glycogen metabolism, reported that in Lafora Disease (LD), a rare and fatal neurodegenerative condition that affects adolescents, neurons die as a result of the accumulation of glycogen-chains of glucose.

3 Mar 2014

Study establishes innovative approaches to improve vision of young children with brain tumor

Robert Avery, DO, MSCE, of Children's National Health System and colleagues are establishing innovative approaches with technology and medication to improve the vision of young children who have visual pathway glioma, a type of brain tumor.

3 Mar 2014

Standard nomenclature of insect brains may improve future research on brain function and disease

When you're talking about something as complex as the brain, the task isn't any easier if the vocabula

3 Mar 2014

Study: Residents of socioeconomically deprived regions suffer from diabetes, obesity

Living in a socioeconomically deprived region is a risk factor for being affected by diabetes mellitus and obesity. This holds true regardless of the individual social status of the inhabitants.

3 Mar 2014

Teen diagnosed with liver cancer explores genetic link to rare cancers

A father-daughter scientific collaboration that began after the daughter was diagnosed with a rare liver cancer has led to an important finding and could have broader implications for many other rare cancers. Their story is being published this week in a top tier journal, Science.

3 Mar 2014

Researchers identify mutations in gene that can reduce risk of developing type 2 diabetes

An international team led by researchers at the Broad Institute and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) has identified mutations in a gene that can reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, even in people who have risk factors such as obesity and old age.

3 Mar 2014

NCI scientist recognized for AACR-American Cancer Society Award for Excellence in Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention

The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) and the American Cancer Society will recognize Curtis C. Harris, M.D., with the 23rd Annual AACR-American Cancer Society Award for Excellence in Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention at the AACR Annual Meeting 2014, to be held in San Diego, Calif., April 5-9.

3 Mar 2014

Researchers develop new web-based tool to unlock genetics behind grapevine development

University of Adelaide researchers have developed a new web-based tool to help unlock the complex genetics and biological processes behind grapevine development.

28 Feb 2014

Study provides novel insight into the impact of genes on Huntington's disease

A study led by researchers at Boston University School of Medicine provides novel insight into the impact that genes may have on Huntington's disease (HD). The study, published online in PLOS Genetics, identified specific small segments of RNA (called micro RNA or miRNA) encoded in DNA in the human genome that are highly expressed in HD.

27 Feb 2014

Vitamin A may play key role in combating TB, says study

Tuberculosis is a major global problem, affecting 2 billion people worldwide and causing an estimated 2 million deaths annually. Western countries are once again tackling the disease, with recent outbreaks in Los Angeles and London.

27 Feb 2014

cfDNA testing lowers false positive rates and higher predictive values in general obstetric population

A study in this week's New England Journal of Medicine potentially has significant implications for prenatal testing for major fetal chromosome abnormalities. The study found that in a head-to-head comparison of noninvasive prenatal testing using cell free DNA (cfDNA) to standard screening methods, cfDNA testing (verifi- prenatal test, Illumina, Inc.) significantly reduced the rate of false positive results and had significantly higher positive predictive values for the detection of fetal trisomies 21 and 18.

From Illumina, Inc. 27 Feb 2014

Second common type of breast cancer appears to be good candidate for personalized treatment approach

The second-most common type of breast cancer is a very different disease than the most common and appears to be a good candidate for a personalized approach to treatment, according to a multidisciplinary team led by University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (UPCI) scientists.

26 Feb 2014

Sinus and Allergy Center receives $8.4M NIH grant to help advance development of new treatments

The Northwestern Medicine- Sinus and Allergy Center has received a grant for more than $8.4 million from the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) to help advance the understanding of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) and the development of new methods for its treatment over the next five years.

26 Feb 2014

Understanding autism: an interview with Roberto Fernández Galán, PhD, Assistant Professor, Case Western Reserve School of Medicine

Autism does not come in just one flavour. It is a spectrum of disorders that share several features: impaired social interactions; impaired verbal and non-verbal communication; and restricted, repetitive behaviours.

25 Feb 2014

Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

Biostatistics provides clues to understanding autism: an interview with Dr Knut M. Wittkowski, The Rockefeller University

RainDance Technologies closes $16.5 million Series E financing round

Photoreactive compounds open new routes to treatment of neurological diseases

Twin brains reveal similar progressions of neuropathological changes

Light-activated drug delivery holds promise for treating cancer

New web portal to speed discovery of genes responsible for rare disorders

Research: Beneficial and toxic roles of brain glycogen

Study establishes innovative approaches to improve vision of young children with brain tumor

Standard nomenclature of insect brains may improve future research on brain function and disease

Study: Residents of socioeconomically deprived regions suffer from diabetes, obesity

Teen diagnosed with liver cancer explores genetic link to rare cancers

Researchers identify mutations in gene that can reduce risk of developing type 2 diabetes

NCI scientist recognized for AACR-American Cancer Society Award for Excellence in Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention

Researchers develop new web-based tool to unlock genetics behind grapevine development

Study provides novel insight into the impact of genes on Huntington's disease

Vitamin A may play key role in combating TB, says study

cfDNA testing lowers false positive rates and higher predictive values in general obstetric population

Second common type of breast cancer appears to be good candidate for personalized treatment approach

Sinus and Allergy Center receives $8.4M NIH grant to help advance development of new treatments

Understanding autism: an interview with Roberto Fernández Galán, PhD, Assistant Professor, Case Western Reserve School of Medicine

eBook: Using iPSCs models for human disease research and drug discovery eBook

Redefining control and consistency in anaerobic microbiome workflows

AI in Healthcare: How generative tools are transforming clinical practice

The future of automation: Machine learning–driven hepatocyte and organoid counting