A new study from the Monell Center and collaborating institutions suggests that a single set of genes accounts for approximately 30 percent of person-to-person variance in sweet taste perception, regardless of whether the sweetener is a natural sugar or a non-caloric sugar substitute.
Study sheds light on the influences of genetics on why some type 2 diabetics are at high risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease.
Since 2007, clinical trials using gene therapy have resulted in often-dramatic sight restoration for dozens of children and adults who were otherwise doomed to blindness. Now, researchers have found evidence that this sight restoration leads to strengthening of visual pathways in the brain.
Salk scientists have created mutation-free lines of stem cells from human patients with mitochondrial diseases.
New research from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health suggests that the protein keratin 17 – the presence of which is used in the lab to detect and stage various types of cancers – is not just a biomarker for the disease, but may play a critical role in tumor growth.
If not for a single genetic mutation, each kernel on a juicy corn cob would be trapped inside a inedible casing as tough as a walnut shell. The mutation switches one amino acid for another at a specific position in a protein regulating formation of these shells in modern corn’s wild ancestor, according to a study published in the July 2015 issue of GENETICS, a publication of the Genetics Society of America.
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego and the School of Medicine have found that the three-dimensional shape of the cerebral cortex – the wrinkled outer layer of the brain controlling many functions of thinking and sensation – strongly correlates with ancestral background. The study opens the door to more precise studies of brain anatomy going forward and could eventually lead to more personalized medicine approaches for diagnosing and treating brain diseases.
In a genome-sequencing study of pancreatic cancers and blood in 101 patients, Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center scientists say they found at least one-third of the patients’ tumors have genetic mutations that may someday help guide precision therapy of their disease. Results of blood tests to detect DNA shed from tumors, they say, also predicted cancer recurrence more than half a year earlier than standard imaging methods.
After generating new brain tumor models, Cedars-Sinai scientists in the Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute identified the role of a family of genes underlying tumor growth in a wide spectrum of high grade brain tumors.
Research with human tissue and cells suggests that genetic variations, in addition to failure to comply with treatment regimens, may account for some failures of an anti-HIV drug to treat and prevent HIV infection.
For most genetic scientists, the lack of access to computer servers and programs can hinder genetic advancements. Now, a group of scientists at the University of Missouri has introduced a game changer in the world of biological research. The online, free service, RNAMiner, has been developed to handle large data sets which could lead to faster medical results.
Using human tumor samples and mouse models, researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and Moores Cancer Center discovered that cancer stem cell properties are determined by epigenetic changes — chemical modifications cells use to control which genes are turned on or off.
The study reports on a newly discovered category of tRNA fragments as well as shows that all tRNAs are rich sources of very diverse short molecules whose characteristics depend on a person’s gender, population, and race and differ according to tissue and disease type.
Other topics include memories and protein, physics and gas mileage, agriculture and food safety, vaccine for Dengue, retinoblastoma proteins in cancer progression, and more.
An international team, led by a University of Adelaide genetics expert, has made a breakthrough discovery which is expected to help thousands of young girls worldwide who are suffering from a rare yet debilitating form of epilepsy.
In the first study of its kind, researchers have shown how an anti-diabetic drug can have variable effects depending on small natural differences in DNA sequence between individuals. They aim to apply this knowledge to develop personalized approaches to treating diabetes and other metabolic disorders.
The first comprehensive analysis of the woolly mammoth genome reveals extensive genetic changes that allowed mammoths to adapt arctic life, including skin and hair development, insulin signaling, fat biology, and even traits such as small ears and short tails. A mammoth gene for temperature sensation was resurrected in the lab as a functional test.
Despite an increasing ease in acquiring genetic information, the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) points out that doing so has consequences, particularly when it comes to children. It is this population, they say, that is the most vulnerable. With this precaution in mind, the ASHG Workgroup on Pediatric Genetic and Genomic Testing has issued guidelines for genetic testing in children and adolescents that are based on a thorough review of studies on ethical, legal, and social implications (ELSI). The recommendations were published in The American Journal of Human Genetics.
A novel synthetic hormone that makes certain skin cells produce more melanin significantly increases pain-free sun exposure in people with erythropoietic protoporphyria, a rare, genetic disorder resulting in excruciating pain within minutes of sun exposure.
Researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have discovered that histones are steadily replaced in brain cells throughout life
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