Chromosome 4 News and Research

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Humans normally have 46 chromosomes in each cell, divided into 23 pairs. Two copies of chromosome 4, one copy inherited from each parent, form one of the pairs. Chromosome 4 spans more than 191 million DNA building blocks (base pairs) and represents more than 6 percent of the total DNA in cells.

Identifying genes on each chromosome is an active area of genetic research. Because researchers use different approaches to predict the number of genes on each chromosome, the estimated number of genes varies. Chromosome 4 likely contains between 1,300 and 1,600 genes.

Genes on chromosome 4 are among the estimated 20,000 to 25,000 total genes in the human genome.

Researchers identify gene linked to Lesch-Nyhan disease

In humans, inherited mutations in a gene called HPRT1 lead to very specific self-destructive behavior. Boys with Lesch-Nyhan disease experience uncontrollable urges to bite their fingers, slam their arms into doorways and otherwise harm themselves.

28 Jul 2011

Insect virus holds key to safer stem cell therapy: Singapore scientists

The future of regenerative medicine lies in harnessing the potential of the human body to renew and repair itself. Now, scientists at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN), the world's first bioengineering and nanotechnology research institute, have developed a new genetic engineering technique that promises safer stem cell therapy for cancer patients. Using an insect virus, the team of researchers successfully inserted a therapeutic gene into a safe site in the DNA of human embryonic stem cells without compromising the functionality of the engineered cells.

28 Jul 2011

Carcinogenesis is just another form of speciation, proposes new theory

Cancer patients may view their tumors as parasites taking over their bodies, but this is more than a metaphor for Peter Duesberg, a molecular and cell biology professor at the University of California, Berkeley.

27 Jul 2011

Scientists identify possible genetic variations linked to eating disorders

A substantial number of people with eating disorders, such as anorexia nervosa have a chronic course. They are severely underweight and have a high likelihood of dying from malnutrition. No treatment has been found that helps people who are chronically ill. Now, a new study sheds light on the reason that some people have poor outcome.

27 Jul 2011

Two genetic variations can identify children at higher risk of radiation-induced second cancers

A genome-wide association study published in the August issue of Nature Medicine has found two tiny genetic variations that can predict which patients with Hodgkin's lymphoma are most likely to develop radiation-induced second cancers years after treatment.

25 Jul 2011

First high-resolution genetic maps for African American populations

UCLA life scientists and colleagues have produced one of the first high-resolution genetic maps for African American populations. A genetic map reveals the precise locations across the genome where DNA from a person's father and mother have been stitched together through a biological process called "recombination." This process results in new genetic combinations that are then passed on to the person's children.

25 Jul 2011

Health Canada approves SPRYCEL as first-line treatment for life-threatening blood cancer

Canadians newly diagnosed with a life-threatening blood cancer, chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) in chronic phase, now have a new treatment option available to them. Health Canada has granted a notice of compliance with conditions for SPRYCEL (dasatinib) as first-line treatment in patients with chronic phase CML.

22 Jul 2011

UCSF, Kaiser Permanente achieve first major milestone in genomics project

One of the nation's largest and most diverse genomics projects has reached its first major milestone in just 15 months. Scientists have genotyped the DNA and analyzed the length of chromosome tips in more than 100,000 Kaiser Permanente members who agreed to be part of the research.

22 Jul 2011

Researchers develop mouse model of rare human birth defect

A team of researchers from the University of Utah and Brigham Young University has developed a mouse model of focal dermal hypoplasia, a rare human birth defect that causes serious skin abnormalities and other medical problems. This animal model not only provides insight into studying the cause of focal dermal hypoplasia (FDH), but also offers a novel way to study a signaling pathway that is crucial for embryonic development.

21 Jul 2011

Nuclear Factor I/B appears to drive progression of small cell lung cancer

A major challenge for cancer biologists is figuring out which among the hundreds of genetic mutations found in a cancer cell are most important for driving the cancer's spread.

20 Jul 2011

Short telomeres may increase risk of emphysema

Telomeres, the body's own cellular clocks, may be a crucial factor underlying the development of emphysema, according to research from Johns Hopkins University.

15 Jul 2011

Two studies on childhood leukemia

A difficult-to-treat form of childhood leukemia relies on changes in the structure of DNA - so-called epigenetic changes - to wreak genomic havoc within white blood cells, according to one of two studies conducted by a research team at Children's Hospital Boston and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

12 Jul 2011

Illumina, Sequenom sign three-year supply agreement

Sequenom, Inc., a life sciences company providing innovative genetic analysis solutions, today announced it has signed a three-year supply agreement with Illumina, Inc., a leading developer and manufacturer of life sciences tools for the large-scale analysis of genetic variation and function.

From Illumina, Inc. 11 Jul 2011

Scientists discover seven new gene variants that increase risk of prostate cancer

Cancer Research UK-funded scientists have taken a further step to identifying men at a greater risk of prostate cancer with the discovery of seven new variants in the human genome that increase the chances of developing the disease.

11 Jul 2011

Primary function of sex is not to promote diversity, but to maintain a species' identity

Biology textbooks maintain that the main function of sex is to promote genetic diversity. But Henry Heng, Ph.D., associate professor in WSU's Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, says that's not the case.

8 Jul 2011

New strategy may combat age-associated infertility and birth defects

A strategy that has been shown to reduce age-related health problems in several animal studies may also combat a major cause of age-associated infertility and birth defects.

8 Jul 2011

Cumulus cells can provide information about genetic and chromosomal status of eggs

At present, when a woman undergoes preimplantation genetic screening (PGS) in a fertility clinic, doctors are trying to select an egg or an embryo that is healthy and doesn't have a chromosome abnormality such as an extra copy of chromosome 21, which causes Down's syndrome. In order to establish this, they either have to biopsy a part of the egg called the polar body or remove a cell from the embryo for screening. Both procedures are expensive, invasive and can damage the egg or embryo.

6 Jul 2011

Review of non-smoker patient with lung cancer to be presented at IASLC conference

A first-of-its-kind study of a patient with lung cancer who never smoked will be presented today by TGen and the Virginia G. Piper Cancer Center at Scottsdale Healthcare at the 14th World Conference on Lung Cancer, July 3-7 in Amsterdam.

6 Jul 2011

Cleavage stage embryo with aneuploidy can undergo genetic normalisation process

Professor William G. Kearns told the annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology that a three-day-old embryo with an incorrect number of chromosomes was capable of undergoing "a dynamic process of genetic normalisation" so that by day five, when it had developed to the blastocyst stage, it had become euploid, with the correct number of chromosomes.

5 Jul 2011

Fruit flies with poor posture help scientists understand human intellectual disability

Clumsy fruit flies with poor posture are helping an international team of scientists understand inherited intellectual disability in humans - and vice versa.