Oncology researchers studying gene mutations in the childhood cancer neuroblastoma are refining their diagnostic tools to predict which patients are more likely to respond to drugs called ALK inhibitors that target such mutations. Removing some of the guesswork in diagnosis and treatment may lead to more successful outcomes.
UCLA scientists have discovered that statins, a popular class of cholesterol drugs, reverse the learning deficits caused by a mutation linked to a common genetic cause of learning disabilities. Published in the Nov. 10 advance online edition of Nature Neuroscience, the findings were studied in mice genetically engineered to develop the disease, called Noonan syndrome.
After many generations, rats bred for their bad attitude behave differently from those selected for a calm demeanor around humans. Research published November 7 in the journal GENETICS identifies gene regions that contribute to differences between nasty and nice rats in their behavior and the activity of genes in the brain. These results may provide important clues as to which genes make tame animals like dogs behave so differently from their wild ancestors.
A groundbreaking paper from a team of Florida State University biologists could lead to a better understanding of how plants could adapt to and survive environmental swings such as droughts or floods.
Angelina Jolie’s decision to undergo a double mastectomy inspired many other women to seek genetic counseling, too. But for women in rural areas, getting a genetic test can impose its own set of barriers. New research by Anita Kinney, PhD, RN, offers some hope.
Our genetic makeup influences whether we are fat or thin by shaping which types of microbes thrive in our body, according to a Cornell-led study published today in the journal Cell.
A genetically diverse mouse model is able to predict the range of response to chemical exposures that might be observed in human populations, researchers from the National Institutes of Health have found. Like humans, each Diversity Outbred mouse is genetically unique, and the extent of genetic variability among these mice is similar to the genetic variation seen among humans.
UAB epidemiologist Christine Skibola helped lead a search for genetic and environmental links to lymphomas, resulting in the largest epidemiology and genome-wide association studies of non-Hodgkin lymphoma ever conducted.
Asthma may be more harmful than was previously thought, according to UCLA researchers who found that genetic damage is present in circulating, or peripheral, blood. Doctors previously thought that the genetic damage it caused was limited to the lungs.
In an international study, Mayo Clinic researchers and collaborators have identified genetic markers that may help in identifying individuals who could benefit from the alcoholism treatment drug acamprosate. The findings, published in the journal Translational Psychiatry, show that patients carrying these genetic variants have longer periods of abstinence during the first three months of acamprosate treatment.
Biologists at The Scripps Research Institute have described the atomic-level workings of “microRNA” molecules, which control the expression of genes in all animals and plants. The findings add greatly to the understanding of a fundamental system of regulation in biology.
A team of Whitehead Institute scientists has discovered the surprising manner in which an enigmatic protein known as SUUR acts to control gene copy number during DNA replication. It’s a finding that could shed new light on the formation of fragile genomic regions associated with chromosomal abnormalities.
Laboratory contaminants likely explain the results of a recent study claiming that complete genes can pass from foods we eat into our blood, according to a University of Michigan molecular biologist who re-examined data from the controversial research paper.
Two major genetic studies of autism, led in part by UC San Francisco scientists and involving more than 50 laboratories worldwide, have newly implicated dozens of genes in the disorder. The research shows that rare mutations in these genes affect communication networks in the brain and compromise fundamental biological mechanisms that govern whether, when, and how genes are activated overall.
Newfound Genetic Differences Provide Many Hints at Causes
A new study on a large cohort of kidney cancer patients in Europe sheds light on the genetic architecture of the disease -- and reveals an apparent link between exposure to aristolochic acid and incidence of kidney cancer, particularly in Romania.
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have sequenced the genome of enterovirus D68 sampled from patients treated at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. Nationwide, the virus has spread rapidly in recent months and caused severe respiratory illness in young children, with some patients requiring hospitalization.
The development of a new organism from the joining of two single cells is a carefully orchestrated endeavor. But even before sperm meets egg, an equally elaborate set of choreographed steps must occur to ensure successful sexual reproduction. Those steps, known as reproductive cell division or meiosis, split the original number of chromosomes in half so that offspring will inherit half their genetic material from one parent and half from the other.
A new comprehensive analysis of thyroid cancer from The Cancer Genome Atlas Research Network has identified markers of aggressive tumors, which could allow for better targeting of appropriate treatments to individual patients.
New work by a pioneering scientist details how subtle changes in mitochondrial function may cause a broad range of common metabolic and degenerative diseases.
A research team led by investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center has identified an unexpected link between a transcription factor known to regulate speech and language development and metastatic colonization of breast cancer.
Heart attacks are not as connected to family history and genetics as may have been previously believed, according to a new study by researchers at the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute in Salt Lake City.
A research team led by scientists from the National University of Singapore (NUS) has identified several potent inhibitors that selectively target FTO, the common fat mass and obesity-associated gene.
A JAMA study found that sequencing the DNA of children with mystery genetic disorders produced a definitive diagnosis in 40 percent of UCLA’s most complex cases--a quantum leap from the field’s 5-percent success rate 20 years ago.
A team led by researchers at The Rockefeller University and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai has explained the function of key immune protein and solved an international medical mystery, according to a letter published this week in the journal Nature.
Rochester, Minn. – The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) and the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine (AANEM) offer a new guideline on how to determine what genetic tests may best diagnose a person’s subtype of limb-girdle or distal muscular dystrophy. The guideline is published in the October 14, 2014, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the AAN.
Scientists reveal crucial steps and surprising structures in the genesis of the enzyme that divides the DNA double helix during cell replication
SIRT6—a protein that inhibits the growth of liver and colon cancers—can promote the development of skin cancers by turning on an enzyme that increases inflammation, proliferation and survival of sun-damaged skin cells. This suggests that SIRT6 could provide a useful target for cancer prevention.
Research in zebrafish has helped identify the cause of an unknown genetic disorder affecting a boy and two of his uncles, scientists report in the journal GENETICS. The researchers tracked down a mutation carried only by the affected males and their mothers, within a gene called RPL10 . When the equivalent gene was suppressed in zebrafish, the animals developed smaller heads, which is one of the major symptoms of the human disease.
By studying a protein called beta-1,3-glucan recognition protein in the blood of a caterpillar, researchers have found a genetic mechanism that may help trigger an insect's immune system into killing pathogens in the insect's blood.
Slow-healing or non-healing bone fractures in otherwise healthy people may be caused by gene variants that are common in the population, according to Penn State College of Medicine researchers.
A new guideline from the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) and the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine (AANEM) recommends guidance on how doctors should evaluate the full picture—from symptoms, family history and ethnicity to a physical exam and certain lab test results—in order to determine what genetic tests may best diagnose a person’s subtype of limb-girdle or distal muscular dystrophy. The guideline is published in the October 14, 2014, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
A new guideline recommends guidance on how doctors should evaluate the full picture in order to determine what genetic tests may best diagnose a person’s subtype of limb-girdle or distal muscular dystrophy.
The application of a new, precise way to turn genes on and off within cells is likely to lead to a better understanding of diseases and possibly to new therapies, according to UC San Francisco scientists.
Like a marching band falling out of step, muscle cells fail to perform in unison in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Researchers reveal how this breakdown leads to the proliferation of stiff fibrotic tissue within muscles.
UI researchers have found a gene in a soil amoeba that can overcompensate for the specific mutations of a similar gene. In humans, those genetic mutations can often lead to tumor growth. Researchers are now looking for a separate human gene that could overcompensate for mutations in the same way.
The genes children inherit determine everything from their height to their hair color. But sometimes, a child’s genetic code also contains hidden abnormalities that can cause an array of health issues, such as developmental delays or physical or mental illness. Linda Randolph, MD, head of the Division of Medical Genetics at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) explains how a medical geneticist works “like a detective” to diagnose genetic syndromes—and put children on the path to better health.
Scientists have long theorized that the way in which the roughly three meters of DNA in a human cell is packaged to fit within a nuclear space just six microns wide, affects gene expression. Now, Whitehead Institute researchers present the first evidence that DNA structure does indeed have such effects—in this case finding a link between chromosome structure and the expression and repression of key genes.
On the 25th anniversary of discovering the cystic fibrosis gene, more than two-dozen CF innovators and clinicians, including five on the Case Western Reserve campus, took this special occasion to reflect on the discovery and the status of research and treatment during videotaped interviews.
Researchers at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) have described for the first time a specific perceptual learning deficit in mice with a mutation of the same gene as found in children with Fragile X Syndrome (FXS).
A new discovery suggests that the number of human genomic loci that might be coding for tRNAs is nearly double what is currently known.
Dartmouth researchers have identified nine traits that are not dependent on P values to predict single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) reproducibility in genome-wide association studies (GWAS).
A series of detailed genetic studies points scientists to a new way to dramatically increase the accumulation of oil in plant leaves, an abundant source of biomass for fuel production.
It’s like looking for a needle in a haystack. Scientists searching for the gene or gene combination that affects even one plant or animal characteristic must sort through massive amounts of data, according to associate professor Xijin Ge of the mathematics and statistics department at South Dakota State University. He leads a bioinformatics research group, which provides the expertise that plant and animal scientists need to uncover how genes and proteins affect cell functions. Just one experiment to analyze gene expression can produce one terabyte of sequence data, Ge explained. “That’s a little beyond many biologists' comfort zone.”
An obscure swatch of human DNA once thought to be nothing more than biological trash may actually offer a treasure trove of insight into complex genetic-related diseases such as cancer and diabetes, thanks to a novel sequencing technique developed by biologists at Texas A&M University.
The disease, which has been named "Chronic Atrial Intestinal Dysrhythmia syndrome" (CAID), is a serious condition caused by a rare genetic mutation. This finding demonstrates that heart and guts rhythmic contractions are closely linked by a single gene in the human body, as shown in a study published on October 5, 2014 in Nature Genetics.
Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have identified a biomarker living next door to the KLK3 gene that can predict which GS7 prostate cancer patients will have a more aggressive form of cancer.
Sequencing the genomes of monarch butterflies from around the world, scientists have made surprising insights into the insect’s genetics. They identified a single gene that appears central to migration – a behavior generally regarded as complex – and another that controls pigmentation, as well as shed light on the evolutionary origins of the monarch.
– A new genetic finding from Duke Medicine suggests that some people who are prone to hostility, anxiety and depression might also be hard-wired to gain weight when exposed to chronic stress, leading to diabetes and heart disease.
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