Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

Closer to deciphering the 'language of the brain'

The moment we open our eyes, we perceive the world with apparent ease. But the question of how neurons in the retina encode what we "see" has been a tricky one. A key obstacle to understanding how our brain functions is that its components-neurons-respond in highly nonlinear ways to complex stimuli, making stimulus-response relationships extremely difficult to discern.

1 Apr 2011

DNA damage can lead to regulation of inflammatory responses

Researchers offer the first evidence that DNA damage can lead to the regulation of inflammatory responses, the body's reaction to injury. The proteins involved in the regulation help protect the body from infection.

1 Apr 2011

World Stem Cell Report to be published in Regenerative Medicine

The Genetics Policy Institute (GPI) and Future Medicine have announced that its 2011/12 World Stem Cell Report will be published as a special supplement to the award- winning, peer-reviewed journal Regenerative Medicine. It was also announced that Regenerative Medicine becomes the platinum media sponsor of the GPI’s 2011 World Stem Cell Summit that will take place in Pasadena, California, October 3-5.

31 Mar 2011

Adeona reports $3,164,512 net revenue for 2010

Adeona Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a developer of innovative medicines for serious central nervous system diseases, reported its financial results for the year ended December 31, 2010, as well as updates since the beginning of the 4th quarter.

31 Mar 2011

First transdisciplinary research center dedicated to identify causes of premature birth

The March of Dimes and Stanford University School of Medicine today launched the nation's first transdisciplinary research center dedicated to identifying the causes of premature birth. Prematurity is the number one reason for newborn death in the United States today, yet in nearly half of the cases of premature birth, there is no identifiable cause.

31 Mar 2011

ACR releases new guidelines for JA treatment

Several Canadian pediatric rheumatologists and health professionals played a prominent role in developing new guidelines for treating juvenile arthritis.

31 Mar 2011

Amyloid plaques in normal older individuals may be early signs of Alzheimer's

Researchers using two brain-imaging technologies have found that apparently normal older individuals with brain deposits of amyloid beta - the primary constituent of the plaques found in the brains of Alzheimer's disease patients - also had changes in brain structure similar to those seen in Alzheimer's patients.

31 Mar 2011

Study provides insight into kidney cancer

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have discovered genetic pathways to starve selectively kidney cancer cells.

31 Mar 2011

Gilead and Yale enter multi-year cancer research collaboration

Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Yale School of Medicine today announced the formation of a multi-year research collaboration focused on the discovery of novel cancer therapies. The research effort will initially span four years with an option to renew for up to ten years.

30 Mar 2011

Roche launces new GS GType HLA Primer Sets for HLA genotyping

454 Life Sciences, a Roche Company, announced today the launch and immediate availability of the new GS GType HLA Primer Sets for high- and medium-resolution genotyping of class I and class II loci of the Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) genes.

30 Mar 2011

Stanford pediatrics receives Genzyme/ACMG award for biochemical genetic research

Anna-Kaisa Niemi, MD, Ph.D., a resident in Medical Genetics in the Department of Pediatrics, Division of Medical Genetics at the Stanford University Medical Center, in Stanford Calif., was honored as the 2011-2012 recipient of the Genzyme/American College of Medical Genetics Foundation Clinical Genetics Fellowship in Biochemical Genetics at the ACMG 2011 Annual Clinical Genetics Meeting in Vancouver, BC, Canada.

30 Mar 2011

SHMT1 gene and folate deficiency increase risk for colon cancer

Offering a likely insight into how such cancers develop in humans - Cornell University researchers report they have identified a gene that increases the risk for colon cancer in laboratory mice when the animals' diets are deficient in folate.

30 Mar 2011

Study: Gene combinations may increase risk of hip osteoporosis in women

Women with osteoporosis in their hip suffer menopause two years earlier than healthy women, a study conducted at the University of Granada says. Additionally, although further study is required, researchers have found at least three genetic markers associated with osteoporosis in the hip in postmenopausal women.

30 Mar 2011

Australian researchers say the search must widen for genes that cause heart defects in babies

Australian scientists have discovered a new group of genes that could be responsible for causing heart defects in children, which affect more than 2000 babies born each year in Australia.

29 Mar 2011

People of all ages and both sexes can have congestive heart failure

Elizabeth Taylor died of congestive heart failure at the age of 79 on March 23. Her death raises awareness of this serious condition that affects an estimated five million Americans.

29 Mar 2011

New schizophrenia research reveals difference in identical twins genetic makeup

Just like snowflakes, no two people are alike, even if they're identical twins according to new genetic research from The University of Western Ontario. Molecular geneticist Shiva Singh has been working with psychiatrist Dr. Richard O'Reilly to determine the genetic sequencing of schizophrenia using identical or monozygotic twins. The study is published in this month's PLoS ONE.

29 Mar 2011

UC San Diego student to make medical imaging available in low-income countries

Benjamin Johnson, a fourth-year student at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine is determined to make medical imaging technology widely available in low-income countries. His journey started in Uganda, where currently just 35 local radiologists serve the needs of 30 million people.

29 Mar 2011

USPTO issues Notice of Allowance to Modular's green surfactant patent application

Modular Genetics, Inc. is a sustainable chemistry company utilizing advanced technology in synthetic biology to produce specialty chemicals that are cost competitive, provide superior performance and are environmentally friendly. Modular's lead product is a "green" surfactant initially targeting the personal care market.

29 Mar 2011

CPRIT awards $36.7 million grant to UT Southwestern for cancer research

The Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas has awarded more than $36.7 million in new grants to investigators at UT Southwestern Medical Center to support cancer-related projects and to recruit pre-eminent cancer investigators.

29 Mar 2011

State laws regarding baby blood samples analyzed

State laws and policies governing the storage and use of surplus blood samples taken from newborns as part of the routine health screening process range from explicit to non-existent, leaving many parents ill-informed about how their babies' left over blood might be used, according to a team led by a member of the Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics, in collaboration with researchers from the University of Utah. A report on their analysis of the subject is published March 28 in the journal Pediatrics.

28 Mar 2011