Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

First Edition: December 10, 2103

Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports about how health law advocates are developing new messaging strategies.

10 Dec 2013

New research project to genetically discriminate "identical" monozygotic twins

Eurofins Scientific, a European leader in Genomics Services, Forensics and Paternity Testing, announces a milestone in genetic and forensic research.

10 Dec 2013

Scientists devise method to measure forces in 3D tissues, living embryos

As embryonic tissue develops, cells push and pull on each other, and they must do so correctly for the tissue to develop properly. Now scientists at Harvard University have devised the first method to measure these forces in three-dimensional (3D) tissues and living embryos.

10 Dec 2013

UC Santa Barbara professor finds method for measuring cellular forces that shape tissues, organs

Like tiny construction workers, cells sculpt embryonic tissues and organs in 3D space. This task is complicated and requires constant communication between cells to coordinate their actions and generate the forces that will shape their environment into complex tissue morphologies.

10 Dec 2013

TAU researchers discover gene that may predict human responses to specific antidepressants

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are the most commonly prescribed antidepressants, but they don't work for everyone. What's more, patients must often try several different SSRI medications, each with a different set of side effects, before finding one that is effective.

9 Dec 2013

UCI MIND researchers receive grant to develop and study patient-derived stem cell lines

Researchers at UC Irvine's Institute for Memory Impairments and Neurological Disorders have received a two-year, $600,000 grant from the National Institute on Aging to develop and study patient-derived stem cell lines.

9 Dec 2013

NYSCF, PersonalGenomes.org partner to identify genetic contributions to disease development

Today, the New York Stem Cell Foundation Research Institute and PersonalGenomes.org announced a partnership to identify genetic and environmental contributions to trait and disease development. Cell lines generated by NYSCF will complement genomic data and medical histories contributed by participants in the Harvard Personal Genome Project, creating a unique and powerful resource to help researchers identify causes of disease.

9 Dec 2013

Bonn researchers use reprogrammed neurons for drug testing in Alzheimer patients

Why do certain Alzheimer medications work in animal models but not in clinical trials in humans? A research team from the University of Bonn and the biomedical enterprise LIFE & BRAIN GmbH has been able to show that results of established test methods with animal models and cell lines used up until now can hardly be translated to the processes in the human brain.

9 Dec 2013

Scientists receive 2013 Horwitz Prize for discoveries on how brain calculates location, navigation

Edvard and May-Britt Moser of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), and John O'Keefe, from University College London have been awarded the 2013 Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize for discoveries that have illuminated how the brain calculates location and navigation.

9 Dec 2013

Decreased bacterial diversity in gut linked with CRC risk

Decreased diversity in the microbial community found in the human gut is associated with colorectal cancer, according to a new study published December 6 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

9 Dec 2013

Gene discovered to play a part in one per cent of all cancers

Researchers have identified a gene that drives the development of tumours in over one per cent of all cancer patients. This is the first time that the gene CUX1 has been broadly linked to cancer development.

9 Dec 2013

Scientists identify gene encoding hormone to treat heart diseases

Scientists at A*STAR's Institute of Medical Biology (IMB) and Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology (IMCB) have identified a gene encoding a hormone that could potentially be used as a therapeutic molecule to treat heart diseases.

9 Dec 2013

Saudi Human Genome Program to study genetic basis of all disease in the Kingdom

The King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, Saudi Arabia's national funding agency, and Life Technologies Corporation today announce The Saudi Human Genome Program – a national research project to study the genetic basis of all disease in the Kingdom and throughout the Middle East and use the findings to offer the ultimate personal care in Saudi Arabia.

8 Dec 2013

Novel device may simplify monitoring of patients' response to treatment for ovarian cancer

A microchip-based device developed by Massachusetts General Hospital investigators may greatly simplify the monitoring of patients' response to treatment for ovarian cancer - the most lethal form of gynecologic cancer - and certain other malignancies.

6 Dec 2013

Researchers illuminate inner workings of enzymes placed inside the outer envelopes of cells

For what is believed to be the first time, researchers at The Johns Hopkins University have illuminated the inner workings of an important class of enzymes located inside the outer envelopes of cells. Much to their surprise, they report, these protein cutters, called rhomboid proteases, are entirely different than nearly every other type of enzyme studied, showing no attraction to the proteins they cut and being extremely slow in making their cuts.

6 Dec 2013

Scientists test affected human nerve cells to foretell efficacy of Alzheimer drugs

6 Dec 2013

Scientists receive 2013 Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize for advancements in field of neuroscience

For discoveries about how the brain calculates and remembers where it is—which could be part of the foundation of memory—Columbia University will award the 2013 Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize to Edvard I. Moser, PhD, and May-Britt Moser, PhD, of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Norway, and John Michael O'Keefe, PhD, of University College London in the UK.

6 Dec 2013

Study reveals that brain cancer cells resist therapy by dialing down gene mutation targeted by drugs

A team of scientists, led by principal investigator Paul S. Mischel, MD, a member of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research and professor in the Department of Pathology at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, has found that brain cancer cells resist therapy by dialing down the gene mutation targeted by drugs, then re-amplify that growth-promoting mutation after therapy has stopped.

6 Dec 2013

Tel Aviv University says caffeine and alcohol can change part of DNA linked to aging, cancer

Coffee and beer are polar opposites in the beverage world. Coffee picks you up, and beer winds you down.

6 Dec 2013

Researchers identify gene involved in building circuitry that relays signals via brain

Using a powerful gene-hunting technique for the first time in mammalian brain cells, researchers at Johns Hopkins report they have identified a gene involved in building the circuitry that relays signals through the brain.

5 Dec 2013

Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

First Edition: December 10, 2103

New research project to genetically discriminate "identical" monozygotic twins

Scientists devise method to measure forces in 3D tissues, living embryos

UC Santa Barbara professor finds method for measuring cellular forces that shape tissues, organs

TAU researchers discover gene that may predict human responses to specific antidepressants

UCI MIND researchers receive grant to develop and study patient-derived stem cell lines

NYSCF, PersonalGenomes.org partner to identify genetic contributions to disease development

Bonn researchers use reprogrammed neurons for drug testing in Alzheimer patients

Scientists receive 2013 Horwitz Prize for discoveries on how brain calculates location, navigation

Decreased bacterial diversity in gut linked with CRC risk

Gene discovered to play a part in one per cent of all cancers

Scientists identify gene encoding hormone to treat heart diseases

Saudi Human Genome Program to study genetic basis of all disease in the Kingdom

Novel device may simplify monitoring of patients' response to treatment for ovarian cancer

Researchers illuminate inner workings of enzymes placed inside the outer envelopes of cells

Scientists test affected human nerve cells to foretell efficacy of Alzheimer drugs

Scientists receive 2013 Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize for advancements in field of neuroscience

Study reveals that brain cancer cells resist therapy by dialing down gene mutation targeted by drugs

Tel Aviv University says caffeine and alcohol can change part of DNA linked to aging, cancer

Researchers identify gene involved in building circuitry that relays signals via brain

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