Chromosome News and Research

Latest Chromosome News and Research

Yoga can improve cognitive functioning and reduce depression in dementia caregivers

For every individual who's a victim of Alzheimer's - some 5.4 million persons in the United States alone - there's a related victim: the caregiver. Spouse, son, daughter, other relative or friend, the loneliness, exhaustion, fear and most of all stress and depression takes a toll.

14 Mar 2012

Human diseases with Drosophila counterparts discussed at annual conference

More than two-thirds of human genes have counterparts in the well-studied fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, so although it may seem that humans don't have much in common with flies, the correspondence of our genetic instructions is astonishing. In fact, there are hundreds of inherited diseases in humans that have Drosophila counterparts.

12 Mar 2012

Salk scientists' discovery explains how a class of chemotherapy drugs works

The well-being of living cells requires specialized squads of proteins that maintain order. Degraders chew up worn-out proteins, recyclers wrap up damaged organelles, and-most importantly-DNA repair crews restitch anything that resembles a broken chromosome. If repair is impossible, the crew foreman calls in executioners to annihilate a cell. As unsavory as this last bunch sounds, failure to summon them is one aspect of what makes a cancer cell a cancer cell.

12 Mar 2012

Two scientists receive The Brain Prize 2012 for pioneering work on hearing and deafness

The Grete Lundbeck European Brain Research Foundation announced today that The Brain Prize 2012 is jointly awarded to Christine Petit and Karen Steel.

12 Mar 2012

Gene that causes aggression in men under stress discovered

Scientists have found that “macho” gene that makes men behave more aggressively than women under stress. They say this one gene could explain why men have a 'fight or flight' response while women are more likely to try and defuse the situation. The study has been published in the journal BioEssays.

11 Mar 2012

Five new genetic mutations linked with Crohn's disease in Ashkenazi Jews

In the largest study of its kind, researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have discovered five new genetic mutations associated with Crohn's disease in Jews of Eastern European descent, also known as Ashkenazi Jews.

9 Mar 2012

Scientists believe that ageing can be programmed in the womb

Ageing is a complex process involving physical, psychological, and environmental factors. Scientists believe that ageing can be programmed in the womb. One example of stress during pregnancy is the administration of glucocorticoids, i. e. synthetic stress hormones to accelerate fetal lung maturation in premature labor to allow breathing after birth. Could exposure to these stress hormones have an effect on health later in life?

8 Mar 2012

Researchers identify mechanism with which cancer cells protect themselves against damage

Although many cancer drugs have already been in use for decades, their mode of action is still unknown. The new research results now challenge a mechanism of action that was previously proposed for a group of drugs and supported with experiments: the Topoisomerase I-inhibitor Camptothecin (Top1 inhibitor for short) and its derivatives used in chemotherapy, Topotecan and Irinotecan.

5 Mar 2012

New APS policy requires reporting of sex and gender in experimental studies

The American Physiology Society (APS) has announced a new policy requiring the reporting of the sex of experimental animals and the sex or gender of humans used in studies submitted for publication in any of the organization's 13 peer-reviewed journals.

3 Mar 2012

Shipment of Fabrazyme commences from Genzyme's FDA-and-EMA-approved Framingham plant

Genzyme, a Sanofi company, today announced that it has begun shipping Fabrazyme (agalsidase beta) produced at its newly approved plant in Framingham, Massachusetts. As previously communicated, patients in the U.S. are now able to return to full dosing in March. In addition, all new patients in the U.S. are eligible to begin Fabrazyme treatment, at full dosing levels.

2 Mar 2012

Review highlights potential strategies for treatment of Down syndrome, AD

Down syndrome (DS) is the most common genetic disorder in live born children arising as a consequence of a chromosomal abnormality. It occurs as a result of having three copies of chromosome 21, instead of the usual two. It causes substantial physical and behavioral abnormalities, including life-long cognitive dysfunction that can range from mild to severe but which further deteriorates as individuals with DS age.

2 Mar 2012

Scientists identify genetic defect responsible for TAR Syndrome

Universitätsmedizin Berlin in collaboration with the Sanger Institute in Cambridge and other cooperation partners in Belgium, the Netherlands and France, were able to identify a genetic defect that is responsible for the development of TAR Syndrome, a congenital malformation of the skeleton and blood.

1 Mar 2012

Flat worms may hold key to immortality

Experts from Nottingham University created a colony of more than 20,000 flatworms from one original by chopping it into pieces and observing each section grow into a new complete worm. They believe that it could help scientists develop new methods to allow humans to stay younger for longer.

1 Mar 2012

ACTB and ACTG1 actin genes cause Baraitser-Winter syndrome

Scientists from Seattle Children's Research Institute and the University of Washington, in collaboration with the Genomic Disorders Group Nijmegen in the Netherlands, have identified two new genes that cause Baraitser-Winter syndrome, a rare brain malformation that is characterized by droopy eyelids and intellectual disabilities.

1 Mar 2012

Researchers discover connection between early humans and Neanderthals' genome

A striking discovery in the study of human genetics was the focus of the most-visited press release posted on EurekAlert! in 2011. Researchers found that part of the non-African human X chromosome came from Neanderthals, confirming that they interbred with early human populations.

28 Feb 2012

Scientists demonstrate how immortal flatworm overcomes aging process

Researchers from The University of Nottingham have demonstrated how a species of flatworm overcomes the ageing process to be potentially immortal.

28 Feb 2012

Aurora-A protein blocks proper functioning of tumor-suppressor p73

A protein abundantly found in treatment-resistant cancers holds an important tumor-suppressor out of the cell nucleus, where it would normally detect DNA damage and force defective cells to kill themselves, a team of scientists reports in the current Cancer Cell.

28 Feb 2012

News briefs from featured presentations at Cardiology 2012

Pediatric cardiology researchers and clinicians from almost 50 centers from across the U.S. and around the world are gathering at the Cardiology 2012 Conference sponsored by The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia on Feb. 22-26 in Orlando, Fla.

27 Feb 2012

Researchers identify elusive gene responsible for TAR syndrome

Researchers have identified an elusive gene responsible for Thrombocytopenia with Absent Radii (TAR), a rare inherited blood and skeletal disorder. As a result, this research is now being transformed into a medical test that allows prenatal diagnosis and genetic counselling in affected families.

27 Feb 2012

Gonadal dysgenesis may also increase risk of gonadal tumors

Pediatric and Developmental Pathology - Gonadal dysgenesis—defective development of the ovaries or testes— may also bring with it an increased risk of gonadal tumors. A recent discovery at the histologic level could help identify cells at risk of conversion into a tumor.

23 Feb 2012