Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

Study examines community-based HIV testing programs in Africa, Southeast Asia

If you want to improve HIV testing rates in remote rural areas, get the community involved, says UCLA's Thomas Coates, who has directed a new study examining HIV testing programs in communities in Africa and Southeast Asia.

6 May 2011

Study finds clear link between children conceived during winter and risk of autism

An examination of the birth records of the more than 7 million children born in the state of California during the 1990s and early 2000s has found a clear link between the month in which a child is conceived and the risk of that child later receiving a diagnosis of autism.

6 May 2011

Researchers solve mysteries of chikungunya's emergence in Asia

What causes a virus to suddenly begin infecting large numbers of people? Scientists have long known that the process they call "viral emergence" involves a wide variety of factors. Some are changes in the environment, either generated by natural causes or human activity. Others are internal, arising from accidental changes - mutations -in the virus' genetic code.

6 May 2011

How to choose a microarray service provider

Oxford Gene Technology (OGT), provider of innovative clinical genetics and diagnostic solutions to advance molecular medicine, has recently published a whitepaper entitled “10 essential questions to ask your microarray service provider”.

From Oxford Gene Technology 5 May 2011

Virginia Tech receives NIH grant to develop new systems biology approaches for cell study

The National Institutes of Health has awarded Virginia Tech researchers a $2.13 million grant to develop new systems biology approaches to study cells, one of the most basic units of life.

5 May 2011

New genetic discovery in megalencephalic leukoencephalopathy with subcortical cysts

White matter disease covers a large group of disorders that affect the white matter, or myelin. In children these disorders are commonly genetic and often go undiagnosed. In new research, a team led by Raúl Estévez, a lecturer from the Department of Physiological Sciences II, based at the UB's Bellvitge Health Sciences Campus, working with the researcher Marjo van der Knaap, from the University Medical Centre at VU University Amsterdam, have identified mutant GLIALCAM as responsible for 25% of cases of megalencephalic leukoencephalopathy with subcortical cysts, a rare genetic disease affecting cerebral myelin.

4 May 2011

New book on the myth of junk DNA

Forty years ago scientists discovered that more than 95% of our DNA does not encode proteins. Since then the non-protein-coding portion was labeled "junk" and attributed to molecular accidents that have accumulated in the course of evolution.

4 May 2011

Fat-loss leads to earlier death in mice

Since the 1930s scientists have proposed food restriction as a way to extend life in mice. Though feeding a reduced-calorie diet has indeed lengthened the life spans of mice, rats and many other species, new studies with dozens of different mouse strains indicate that food restriction does not work in all cases.

4 May 2011

Brazilian researchers develop hES cell line for therapeutic transplantation

Brazilian researchers, reporting in the current issue of Cell Transplantation, discovered difficulties in establishing a genetically diverse line of human embryonic stem cells to serve the therapeutic stem cell transplantation needs of the diverse ethnic and genetic Brazilian population.

3 May 2011

Mirror neuron system in individuals with autism is not actually broken, but simply delayed

Developmental abnormalities in the mirror neuron system may contribute to social deficits in autism. The mirror neuron system is a brain circuit that enables us to better understand and anticipate the actions of others. These circuits activate in similar ways when we perform actions or watch other people perform the same actions.

3 May 2011

Belly fat predicts heart-disease risk better than BMI: Study

According to the latest study the fat around the belly is the chief culprit in the link between obesity and cardiovascular disease. This study raises the possibility that people can be overweight without significantly raising their heart risk, so long as they carry the extra fat in places other than their belly. In fact, a few extra pounds may even lower the risk of death from heart disease, researchers found.

3 May 2011

Scientists discover new gene underlying angle-closure glaucoma

Jackson Laboratory researchers and their collaborators have reported their discovery of a gene implicated in an acute and severe form of glaucoma known as angle-closure glaucoma.

3 May 2011

Case Western Reserve launches new scientific and computational programs in Ohio

The Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine is pleased to announce it has established the first PhD and MS program in Systems Biology and Bioinformatics in the State of Ohio. Based in the School of Medicine, with the Center for Proteomics and Bioinformatics as its administrative home, the faculty cohort will include faculty from multiple departments and schools, and the fundamental core competencies for this program will include: genes and proteins; bioinformatics; and quantitative analysis and modeling.

3 May 2011

FDA accepts SGEN's brentuximab vedotin BLAs for Hodgkin lymphoma, ALCL treatment

Seattle Genetics, Inc. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has accepted for filing two Biologics License Applications for brentuximab vedotin, including one for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin lymphoma and one for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory systemic anaplastic large cell lymphoma.

2 May 2011

ARVO announces 2011 award recipients in retinal research

The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology is pleased to announce its 2011 ARVO Award recipients. These award recipients will be acknowledged at the ARVO 2011 Annual Meeting, May 1 - 5, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

2 May 2011

Researchers discover two mutations responsible for neurological condition

Mayo Clinic researchers have discovered two mutations responsible for a devastating neurological condition they first identified 15 years ago. The researchers say their study -- appearing in Nature Genetics -- has revealed a new neural pathway that may help understand a variety of similar conditions.

2 May 2011

Study finds association between ERBB4 gene, LVOT malformations

A gene known to be important in cardiac development has been newly associated with congenital heart malformations that result in obstruction of the left ventricular outflow tract. These are the findings from a study conducted by Nationwide Children's Hospital and appearing in the journal Birth Defects Research Part A.

30 Apr 2011

IMPAKT 2011 conference to highlight new breast cancer studies

"The presentations at this year's IMPAKT reveal the innovative and diverse approaches that investigators are taking to identify the most encouraging new agents both before clinical evaluation and in early clinical studies. These range from ideas for novel clinical designs to the development of more sensitive and specific biomarkers and to data sharing that allows a more objective assessment of compounds prior to commitment of major clinical resources."

30 Apr 2011

Gene therapy approach using CD59 shows promise against AMD: Study

A gene therapy approach using a protein called CD59, or protectin, shows promise in slowing the signs of age-related macular degeneration, according to a new in vivo study by researchers at Tufts University School of Medicine.

30 Apr 2011

Researchers discover possible role of SCCA in breast cancer progression

In an analysis of more than 1,300 human breast tissue samples, a team of Stony Brook University School of Medicine researchers discovered a possible role of the squamous cell carcinoma antigen in the progression of breast cancer.

29 Apr 2011