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DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is the hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms. Nearly every cell in a person’s body has the same DNA. Most DNA is located in the cell nucleus (where it is called nuclear DNA), but a small amount of DNA can also be found in the mitochondria (where it is called mitochondrial DNA or mtDNA).

NIH researchers identify genetic mutation responsible for vibratory urticaria

Scientists at the National Institutes of Health have identified a genetic mutation responsible for a rare form of inherited hives induced by vibration, also known as vibratory urticaria. Running, hand clapping, towel drying or even taking a bumpy bus ride can cause temporary skin rashes in people with this rare disorder.

4 Feb 2016

U.S. panel endorses “three-parent” IVF technique

An expert committee have recommended that the U.S. government allows the clinical investigation of mitochondrial replacement techniques (MRT) to go ahead.

4 Feb 2016

UC Davis researchers develop Hepatitis virus-like particles to target breast cancer

UC Davis researchers have developed a way to use the empty shell of a Hepatitis E virus to carry vaccines or drugs into the body. The technique has been tested in rodents as a way to target breast cancer, and is available for commercial licensing through UC Davis Office of Research.

4 Feb 2016

AstraZeneca’s TAGRISSO (osimertinib) approved in EU for metastatic EGFR T790M mutation-positive NSCLC

AstraZeneca today announced that the European Commission (EC) has granted conditional marketing authorisation for TAGRISSO™ (AZD9291, osimertinib) 80mg once-daily tablets for the treatment of adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) T790M mutation-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

4 Feb 2016

New research identifies key enzyme linked to age-related increases in cancer and inflammation

For the first time, researchers have shown that an enzyme key to regulating gene expression -- and also an oncogene when mutated -- is critical for the expression of numerous inflammatory compounds that have been implicated in age-related increases in cancer and tissue degeneration, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

4 Feb 2016

Genetic variants associated with preference to mornings or nights

23andMe, Inc., the leading personal genetics company, today announced the results of a genome-wide association study (GWAS) identifying genetic variants associated with being a morning person.

3 Feb 2016

Prenatal stress affects babies' health in war-torn areas

Children from war-torn areas of the globe are affected by trauma even before they are born, according to a new University of Florida study.

3 Feb 2016

Study sheds light on mechanisms linked to formation of healthy egg cells in humans

Congenital disorders such as Down's syndrome could be better understood, following new insights into how healthy cells are formed.

3 Feb 2016

New gene cut-and-paste methods help correct disease-causing mutation in animal model

For the first time, researchers have treated an animal model of a genetic disorder using a viral vector to deliver genome-editing components in which the disease- causing mutation has been corrected.

3 Feb 2016

UAB research explores neurofibromatosis type 1

It is easy to tell a medical research story that has a simple and dramatic moment. But disease is often much more complex, and the work to understand it can be painstaking. A vivid example of that is seen in the University of Alabama at Birmingham Medical Genomics Laboratory, headed by Ludwine Messiaen, Ph.D., professor of genetics. This lab offers clinical genetic testing for a broad array of common and rare genetic disorders.

3 Feb 2016

MYB-QKI fusion gene that drives pediatric low-grade gliomas poses a triple threat

Oncology researchers have discovered that an abnormal fused gene that drives pediatric brain tumors poses a triple threat, operating simultaneously through three distinct biological mechanisms—the first such example in cancer biology.

2 Feb 2016

'Junk' DNA suppresses breast cancer

Supposed "junk" DNA, found in between genes, plays a role in suppressing cancer, according to new research by Universities of Bath and Cambridge.

2 Feb 2016

New way to more efficiently deliver CRISPR/Cas9 therapeutic to mice with Tyrosinemia type I

University of Massachusetts Medical School researchers have found a way to more efficiently delivery a CRISPR/Cas9 therapeutic to adult mice with the metabolic disease Tyrosinemia type I that may also prove to be safer for use in humans.

2 Feb 2016

Maternal diet during pregnancy and lactation leads to epigenetic changes in offspring

As the study shows, a high-fat diet during pregnancy and lactation leads to epigenetic changes in the offspring. These changes affect metabolic pathways regulated by the gut hormone GIP, whereby the adult offspring are more susceptible to obesity and insulin resistance, the precursor to type 2 diabetes. Similar mechanisms cannot be ruled out in humans, according to Pfeiffer.

2 Feb 2016

Biochemical compound demonstrates increasing potential for use in cancer imaging

In the paper, an international team reviewed studies conducted over the past 30 years on a particular tracer, called “18F-FLT,” and found that it has the potential to improve diagnostic imaging, and thus treatment, of some cancers.

2 Feb 2016

Mount Sinai researchers report new method to restore microbiome of newborns delivered via C-section

Scientists from the Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, collaborating with NYU Langone Medical Center and a multi-center team of researchers, demonstrated for the first time that the microbiome of newborn babies delivered via cesarean section (C-section) can be partially restored to resemble that of vaginally delivered infants.

2 Feb 2016

Researchers identify definitive genetic defect in angiocentric gliomas

Diagnosis and treatment decisions for a recently recognized type of children's brain tumor should be improved by the discovery of the genetic mechanism that causes it, say researchers who identified the unusual DNA abnormality in angiocentric gliomas.

2 Feb 2016

Radiation could increase responses to innovative immune-based therapeutic approaches to fight cancer

A team of Georgia State University researchers is fighting cancers using a combination of therapies and recently found ways that radiation could maximize responses to novel immune-based therapeutic approaches to fight cancer.

1 Feb 2016

New study lays foundation for future gene replacement therapies to treat ALS patients

Scientists have demonstrated for the first time that it is possible to specifically modify gene expression in diseased upper motor neurons, brain cells that break down in ALS.

1 Feb 2016

Researchers show how bacterial colony protects itself against toxic substances

Bacterial populations move over surfaces in coordinated way known as swarming, which allows them to spread further over organs and tissues and increases the virulence of the infection. This movement is driven by the action of the flagella and the chemoreceptors, the systems responsible for identifying chemical compounds in the environment and which are anchored at the poles of their cells, forming highly organised structures, of which the protein CheW forms part.

1 Feb 2016

DNA News and Research

Further Reading

NIH researchers identify genetic mutation responsible for vibratory urticaria

U.S. panel endorses “three-parent” IVF technique

UC Davis researchers develop Hepatitis virus-like particles to target breast cancer

AstraZeneca’s TAGRISSO (osimertinib) approved in EU for metastatic EGFR T790M mutation-positive NSCLC

New research identifies key enzyme linked to age-related increases in cancer and inflammation

Genetic variants associated with preference to mornings or nights

Prenatal stress affects babies' health in war-torn areas

Study sheds light on mechanisms linked to formation of healthy egg cells in humans

New gene cut-and-paste methods help correct disease-causing mutation in animal model

UAB research explores neurofibromatosis type 1

MYB-QKI fusion gene that drives pediatric low-grade gliomas poses a triple threat

'Junk' DNA suppresses breast cancer

New way to more efficiently deliver CRISPR/Cas9 therapeutic to mice with Tyrosinemia type I

Maternal diet during pregnancy and lactation leads to epigenetic changes in offspring

Biochemical compound demonstrates increasing potential for use in cancer imaging

Mount Sinai researchers report new method to restore microbiome of newborns delivered via C-section

Researchers identify definitive genetic defect in angiocentric gliomas

Radiation could increase responses to innovative immune-based therapeutic approaches to fight cancer

New study lays foundation for future gene replacement therapies to treat ALS patients

Researchers show how bacterial colony protects itself against toxic substances

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