Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

How genetic abnormalities transform normal cells into leukemic cells

Cancer scientists led by Dr. John Dick at the Ontario Cancer Institute (OCI) and collaborators at St Jude Children's Research Hospital (Memphis) have found that defective genes and the individual leukemia cells that carry them are organized in a more complex way than previously thought.

21 Jan 2011

MGH Bipolar CHOICE trial to evaluate effectiveness of new medications compared to lithium

The Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Bipolar Clinic and Research Program with the Bipolar Trials Network is launching Bipolar CHOICE, a 10-site nationwide trial evaluating the real-world advantages and disadvantages of quetiapine, a widely prescribed second generation antipsychotic mood stabilizing medication, compared to lithium, the gold standard mood stabilizer, for the treatment of outpatients with bipolar disorder.

21 Jan 2011

IMDx enters multi-year agreement with Abbott Molecular for m2000 instrument system

IMDx today announced that they have signed a multi-year agreement with Abbott whereby IMDx will design, develop, regulatory clear, and manufacture assays for the Abbott Molecular FDA cleared, m2000 instrument system to be distributed worldwide. Financial terms have not been disclosed.

21 Jan 2011

Researchers believe driver mutations promote development, growth of prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is known to occur typically in older men. Yet some patients are younger than 50 years at the time of diagnosis. Scientists assume that these cases might be the key to understanding the biology of this disease. Early prostate cancer might be a subtype which is characterized by a relatively small number of genetic modifications.

21 Jan 2011

Scientists decipher genetic code for a pancreatic cancer type

Scientists at Johns Hopkins have deciphered the genetic code for a type of pancreatic cancer, called neuroendocrine or islet cell tumors. The work, described online in the Jan. 20 issue of Science Express, shows that patients whose tumors have certain coding "mistakes" live twice as long as those without them.

21 Jan 2011

Message of health benefits of moderate drinking are hazardous and extremely dangerous

A Letter to the Editor entitled "What should we advise about alcohol consumption?" was recently published by Maurizio Ponz de Leon in Intern Emerg Med.1 Dr. de Leon argues that the message of health benefits of moderate drinking "seems to me hazardous and extremely dangerous to diffuse in the general population."

20 Jan 2011

OSC and RINCH offer support to speed discovery techniques of childhood diseases

Worried about her high fever and severe abdominal pain, a young couple rushed their baby daughter to the emergency department of Nationwide Children's Hospital. Physicians there found a lump in her belly, and, after examining X-rays and blood work, confirmed the parents' worst fear: their 18-month-old little girl had neuroblastoma, a rare pediatric cancer that involves the adrenal glands.

20 Jan 2011

Swiss HIV Cohort Study identifies simple method to determine time of infection

Identifying the time of HIV infection. Researchers of the Swiss HIV Cohort Study have identified a simple method to establish when a patient contracted the virus causing . The time of infection can be of importance for the treatment of the illness and it contributes to the understanding of the course of the epidemic.

20 Jan 2011

Autism Speaks Autism Treatment Network adds 17 sites in Canada and the U.S

Autism Speaks and Autism Speaks Canada who together form North America's largest autism science and advocacy organization, is pleased to announce the expansion of its Autism Treatment Network to include 17 leading children's hospitals and academic medical centers in the Canada and the U.S.

20 Jan 2011

Researchers identify PBRM1 gene mutation in one in three patients with common form of renal cancer

In a collaborative project involving scientists from three continents, researchers have identified a gene that is mutated in one in three patients with the most common form of renal cancer.

20 Jan 2011

Small molecules may inhibit entry of Ebola into human cells

Ebola, a virus that causes deadly hemorrhagic fever in humans, has no known cure or vaccine. But a new study by University of Illinois at Chicago scientists has uncovered a family of small molecules which appear to bind to the virus's outer protein coat and may inhibit its entry into human cells.

20 Jan 2011

Salk Institute uncovers presenilin's productive side

Mutant presenilin is infamous for its role in the most aggressive form of Alzheimer's disease-early-onset familial Alzheimer's-which can strike people as early as their 30s. In their latest study, researchers at the Salk Institute uncovered presenilin's productive side: It helps embryonic motor neurons navigate the maze of chemical cues that pull, push and hem them in on their way to their proper targets.

19 Jan 2011

New patented technique offers unprecedented view of DNA damage

New technology providing the first view of DNA damage throughout the entire human genome developed by Cardiff University scientists could offer a valuable new insight into the development and treatment of conditions like cancer.

19 Jan 2011

Cancer cells brought back under normal control

Scientists at The University of Nottingham have brought cancer cells back under normal control — by reactivating their cancer suppressor genes. The discovery could form a powerful new technology platform for the treatment of cancer of the breast and other cancers.

19 Jan 2011

Study shows new cardio-pulmonary resuscitation technique increases long-term survival of patients

A study led by Dr. Tom P. Aufderheide, professor of emergency medicine at The Medical College of Wisconsin, shows an alternative method of cardio-pulmonary resuscitation increases long-term survival of patients.

19 Jan 2011

Scientists create GM chicken that does not spread bird flu to other chickens

"Scientists have developed genetically modified [GM] chickens that don't transmit bird flu [H5N1] to other chickens," HealthDay News/Bloomberg Businessweek reports.

18 Jan 2011

Clinical studies by expert HIV clinicians suggest that HIV-TRePS may have clinical and economic benefits

Two multinational clinical studies indicate that the RDI’s system for predicting how HIV and AIDS patients will respond to different drugs could be a useful tool with potential clinical and economic benefits. The studies, published in the January issue of AIDS Patient Care and STDs, involved highly experienced physicians in the USA, Canada and Italy who used the system to help them select the optimum combination of HIV drugs for patients whose therapy was failing.

18 Jan 2011

Inflammation “master switch” found: Study

According to the latest medical discovery a protein that acts as a “master switch” has been found to determine whether certain white blood cells will boost or dampen inflammation. This may open new avenues in rheumatoid arthritis research. Rheumatoid arthritis or RA is an inflammatory disease that causes severe progressive crippling of the joints.

17 Jan 2011

Why minor details of an episode are linked to long-term memories

Neuroscientists at MIT's Picower Institute of Learning and Memory have uncovered why relatively minor details of an episode are sometimes inexplicably linked to long-term memories. The work is slated to appear in the Jan. 13 issue of Neuron.

14 Jan 2011

MGH researchers discover massive overexpression of DNA sequences in cancer cells

Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center researchers have discovered a previously unknown feature of common tumor cells - massive overexpression of certain DNA sequences that do not code for proteins.

14 Jan 2011

Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

How genetic abnormalities transform normal cells into leukemic cells

MGH Bipolar CHOICE trial to evaluate effectiveness of new medications compared to lithium

IMDx enters multi-year agreement with Abbott Molecular for m2000 instrument system

Researchers believe driver mutations promote development, growth of prostate cancer

Scientists decipher genetic code for a pancreatic cancer type

Message of health benefits of moderate drinking are hazardous and extremely dangerous

OSC and RINCH offer support to speed discovery techniques of childhood diseases

Swiss HIV Cohort Study identifies simple method to determine time of infection

Autism Speaks Autism Treatment Network adds 17 sites in Canada and the U.S

Researchers identify PBRM1 gene mutation in one in three patients with common form of renal cancer

Small molecules may inhibit entry of Ebola into human cells

Salk Institute uncovers presenilin's productive side

New patented technique offers unprecedented view of DNA damage

Cancer cells brought back under normal control

Study shows new cardio-pulmonary resuscitation technique increases long-term survival of patients

Scientists create GM chicken that does not spread bird flu to other chickens

Clinical studies by expert HIV clinicians suggest that HIV-TRePS may have clinical and economic benefits

Inflammation “master switch” found: Study

Why minor details of an episode are linked to long-term memories

MGH researchers discover massive overexpression of DNA sequences in cancer cells

Sequencing & Genomics: Elevating Science and Healthcare 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