Chromosome News and Research

Latest Chromosome News and Research

Liverpool scientists complete genomics studies on multidrug resistant Typhoid fever in Africa

The team has completed two genomics studies on the tropical disease, a condition that is estimated to cause up to 30 million illnesses and over a quarter of a million deaths globally each year.

27 May 2015

Mayo Clinic scientists create mouse model of ALS, FTD caused by mutations in C9ORF72 gene

Scientists at Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida created a novel mouse that exhibits the symptoms and neurodegeneration associated with the most common genetic forms of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, Lou Gehrig's disease), both of which are caused by a mutation in the a gene called C9ORF72.

24 May 2015

Researchers uncover mechanism behind common mutation that helps cancer cells replicate limitlessly

More than 500,000 people in the United States die each year of cancer-related causes. Now, emerging research has identified the mechanism behind one of the most common mutations that help cancer cells replicate limitlessly.

19 May 2015

Researchers discover how and where chromosome fragile sites occur in human DNA

Using a novel method they developed to map chromosome breaks in a model organism, the budding yeast, Wenyi Feng, Ph.D., of Upstate Medical University and her colleagues have discovered new information as to how and where chromosome fragile sites can occur in human DNA. These sites are frequently observed in cancer cells and are responsible for causing genomic rearrangements.

15 May 2015

CNIO researchers identify new strategy to combat cancer

Scientists from the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre have discovered a new strategy to fight cancer, which is very different from those described to date. Their work shows for the first time that telomeres -- the structures protecting the ends of the chromosomes -- may represent an effective anti-cancer target: by blocking the TRF1 gene, which is essential for the telomeres, they have shown dramatic improvements in mice with lung cancer.

14 May 2015

TGen-led study associates 'X-linked' syndromes to genetic origins

A study led by the Translational Genomics Research Institute has for the first time matched dozens of infantile diseases and syndromes involving muscle weakness and stiff joints to their likely genetic origins.

14 May 2015

Misperceptions about miscarriage are widespread, survey finds

A survey of more than 1,000 U.S. adults has found that misperceptions about miscarriage and its causes are widespread. Results of the survey, conducted by researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University and Montefiore Health System, show that feelings of guilt and shame are common after a miscarriage and that most people erroneously believe that miscarriages are rare.

12 May 2015

Researchers identify three genes involved in choroid plexus carcinoma

Researchers have identified three genes that play a pivotal role in the brain tumor choroid plexus carcinoma (CPC), a discovery that lays the groundwork for more effective treatment of this rare, often fatal cancer. St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists led the study, which appears today in the journal Cancer Cell.

12 May 2015

MD Anderson researchers discover link between telomere degeneration and MDS

A study revealing fresh insight about chromosome "tails" called telomeres may provide scientists with a new way to look at developing treatments or even preventing a group of blood cell disorders known as myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS).

12 May 2015

Leicester research team identifies potential new targets for cancer treatments

An international consortium of scientists led by a group from the University of Leicester has announced a new advance in understanding the mechanisms of cancer and how to target it more effectively with new treatments...

12 May 2015

Study highlights potential new targets for development of novel cancer therapy

12 May 2015

Scientists identify gene that causes hereditary hypertension and brachydactyly type E

Individuals with this altered gene have hereditary hypertension (high blood pressure) and at the same time a skeletal malformation called brachydactyly type E, which is characterized by unusually short fingers and toes. The effect on blood pressure is so serious that -- if left untreated -- it most often leads to death before age fifty.

11 May 2015

Study finds link between PTSD and accelerated aging

In recent years, public health concerns about post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have risen significantly, driven in part by affected military veterans returning from conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere. PTSD is associated with number of psychological maladies, among them chronic depression, anger, insomnia, eating disorders and substance abuse.

10 May 2015

Overexpression of cyclin E protein could lead to breast cancer, leukemia

A new study led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute sheds light on the cause of some cancers, including breast cancer and leukemia.

8 May 2015

AbbVie's venetoclax granted FDA Breakthrough Therapy Designation for CLL patients with 17p deletion

AbbVie today announced its investigational medicine venetoclax, an inhibitor of the B-cell lymphoma-2 (BCL-2) protein that is being developed in partnership with Genentech and Roche, has been granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation by the FDA for the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) in previously treated (relapsed/refractory) patients with the 17p deletion genetic mutation.

6 May 2015

St. Jude scientists develop new computer tool to find DNA duplications and deletions in tumors

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have developed a significantly better computer tool for finding genetic alterations that play an important role in many cancers but were difficult to identify with whole-genome sequencing.

5 May 2015

New understanding of how Huntington's disease gene works

Huntington's disease is caused by a mutation in the Huntington's disease gene, but it has long been a mystery why some people with the exact same mutation get the disease more severely and earlier than others. A closer look at the DNA around the Huntington's disease (HD) gene offers researchers a new understanding of how the gene is controlled and how this affects the disease.

5 May 2015

Findings provide glimmer of hope for treating diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas

Using brain tumor samples collected from children in the United States and Europe, an international team of scientists found that the drug panobinostat and similar gene regulating drugs may be effective at treating diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas (DIPG), an aggressive and lethal form of pediatric cancer.

5 May 2015

Mutations in PARN and RTEL1 associated with familial pulmonary fibrosis, telomere shortening

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have identified mutations in two genes that cause a fatal lung scarring disease known as familial pulmonary fibrosis.

5 May 2015

New discovery may change the principles for treating cancer

Danish researchers from the University of Copenhagen and Herlev Hospital have made a discovery that may change the principles for treating certain types of cancer.

30 Apr 2015