Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

Study discovers pathways that govern instability of GAA/TTC repeats

A study of more than 6,000 genes in a common species of yeast has identified the pathways that govern the instability of GAA/TTC repeats. In humans, the expansions of these repeats is known to inactivate a gene - FXN - which leads to Friedreich's ataxia, a neurodegenerative disease that is currently incurable. In yeast, long repeats also destabilize the genome, manifested by the breakage of chromosomes.

11 Sep 2012

Researchers identify genetic variations linked with onset of Barrett's oesophagus

Genetic variations that are linked with the onset of Barrett's oesophagus (BE), a pre-cancerous condition of the lower end of the gullet, have been identified for the first time. The discovery of variations in regions on two chromosomes makes it possible to develop screening tests for people at high risk of developing the disease.

10 Sep 2012

Scientists characterize the lung squamous cell carcinoma genome

In the September 9, 2012 early online edition of Nature, scientists with The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) report that they have characterized the lung squamous cell carcinoma genome.

10 Sep 2012

Researchers identify three genetic regions associated with primary biliary cirrhosis

Researchers have newly identified three genetic regions associated with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC), the most common autoimmune liver disease, increasing the number of known regions associated with the disorder to 25.

10 Sep 2012

CWRU honors academic and environmental activist with Inamori Ethics Prize

Case Western Reserve University President Barbara R. Snyder yesterday announced that the Inamori Foundation has committed an additional $1 million to advance the work of the university's Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellence. The news came as the university honored academic and environmental activist David Suzuki as the fifth recipient of the annual Inamori Ethics Prize.

10 Sep 2012

Scientists report first comprehensive genetic analysis of lung squamous cell carcinoma

A nationwide consortium of scientists has reported the first comprehensive genetic analysis of squamous cell carcinoma of the lung, a common type of lung cancer responsible for about 400,000 deaths each year.

10 Sep 2012

Leukemia & Lymphoma Society awards SCOR program grant to Walter and Eliza Hall Institute team

Research into the natural process of cell death, its role in the development of blood cancers and harnessing cell death to improve cancer therapies has seen a Walter and Eliza Hall Institute research team from Melbourne, Australia, awarded a grant of more than $6 million by the US-based Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

7 Sep 2012

BCAA supplementation may treat autism and/or epilepsy

An international team of researchers, led by scientists at the University of California, San Diego and Yale University schools of medicine, have identified a form of autism with epilepsy that may potentially be treatable with a common nutritional supplement.

7 Sep 2012

Lack of Atoh1 master gene can lead to sudden infant death syndrome

When mice are born lacking the master gene Atoh1, none breathe well and all die in the newborn period. Why and how this occurs could provide new answers about sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), but the solution has remained elusive until now.

7 Sep 2012

GENCODE Consortium uncovers staggering array of genes in human genome

The GENCODE Consortium expects the human genome has twice as many genes than previously thought, many of which might have a role in cellular control and could be important in human disease. This remarkable discovery comes from the GENCODE Consortium, which has done a painstaking and skilled review of available data on gene activity.

7 Sep 2012

Interleukin-18 plays a key role in inflammation

The naturally occurring cytokine interleukin-18, or IL-18, plays a key role in inflammation and has been implicated in serious inflammatory diseases for which the prognosis is poor and there are currently limited treatment options.

7 Sep 2012

Absence of Puma and Bim protein leads to autoimmune diseases

Researchers at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute have discovered that a pair of molecules work together to kill so-called 'self-reactive' immune cells that are programmed to attack the body's own organs.

7 Sep 2012

Small weight gain enough to increase a college student's systolic blood pressure

As a college student, you may be happy simply not to have gained the "Freshman 15." But a University of Illinois study shows that as little as 1.5 pounds per year is enough to raise blood pressure in that age group, and the effect was worse for young women.

7 Sep 2012

Researchers discover genetic cause of hereditary spastic ataxia

Researchers from the Guy Rouleau Laboratory affiliated with the CHUM Research Centre and the CHU-Sainte-Justine Research Centre have discovered the genetic cause of a rare disease reported only in patients originating from Newfoundland: hereditary spastic ataxia (HSA).

7 Sep 2012

Scientists complete comprehensive map of genetic mutations linked to small cell lung cancers

Scientists have completed a comprehensive map of genetic mutations linked to an aggressive and lethal type of lung cancer.

6 Sep 2012

New approach can help researchers study genetic variations associated with disease

With the ability to sequence human genes comes an onslaught of raw material about the genetic characteristics that distinguish us, and wading through these reserves of data poses a major challenge for life scientists. Researchers at Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) and the Center for Human Genome Variation at Duke University Medical Center (DUMC) have developed an approach for analyzing data that can help researchers studying genetic factors in disease to quickly cull out relevant genetic patterns and identify variants that lead to particular disorders.

6 Sep 2012

Study sheds light on why women gain fat following menopause

A high-fat diet triggers chemical reactions in female mice that could explain why women are more likely than men to gain fat in the abdomen after eating excess saturated fat, new research suggests. The study also sheds light on why women gain fat following menopause.

6 Sep 2012

CSHL publishes genome-wide analysis of transcripts produced within human cells

Most people understand genes to be specific segments of DNA that determine traits or diseases that are inherited. Textbooks suggest that genes are copied into RNA molecules, which are then used as templates for making protein - the highly diverse set of molecules that act as building blocks and engines of our cells. The truth, it now appears, is not so simple.

6 Sep 2012

Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals performs 500th Whipple procedure

Thomas Jefferson University Hospital continues to be the leader in the region in fighting the deadliest of cancers—pancreatic cancer. In August, Charles J. Yeo, MD, FACS, the Samuel D. Gross Professor and Chair of Surgery, and a co-director of the Jefferson Pancreas, Biliary and Related Cancer Center, performed his 500th Whipple procedure at Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals, a life-saving surgery for those suffering with the disease.

6 Sep 2012

UEA, IFR to study protective effects of broccoli consumption against prostate cancer

The Prostate Cancer Foundation is providing $1M of funding to the Institute of Food Research and the University of East Anglia (UEA) to study the protective effects of broccoli consumption against prostate cancer.

6 Sep 2012

Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

Study discovers pathways that govern instability of GAA/TTC repeats

Researchers identify genetic variations linked with onset of Barrett's oesophagus

Scientists characterize the lung squamous cell carcinoma genome

Researchers identify three genetic regions associated with primary biliary cirrhosis

CWRU honors academic and environmental activist with Inamori Ethics Prize

Scientists report first comprehensive genetic analysis of lung squamous cell carcinoma

Leukemia & Lymphoma Society awards SCOR program grant to Walter and Eliza Hall Institute team

BCAA supplementation may treat autism and/or epilepsy

Lack of Atoh1 master gene can lead to sudden infant death syndrome

GENCODE Consortium uncovers staggering array of genes in human genome

Interleukin-18 plays a key role in inflammation

Absence of Puma and Bim protein leads to autoimmune diseases

Small weight gain enough to increase a college student's systolic blood pressure

Researchers discover genetic cause of hereditary spastic ataxia

Scientists complete comprehensive map of genetic mutations linked to small cell lung cancers

New approach can help researchers study genetic variations associated with disease

Study sheds light on why women gain fat following menopause

CSHL publishes genome-wide analysis of transcripts produced within human cells

Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals performs 500th Whipple procedure

UEA, IFR to study protective effects of broccoli consumption against prostate cancer

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