Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Scientists create worm model of back-up telomere repair strategy

Rapidly dividing cancer cells are skilled at patching up damage that would stop normal cells in their tracks, including wear and tear of telomeres, the protective caps at the end of each chromosome.

22 Mar 2012

CBSM intervention can alter tumor-promoting processes in women with breast cancer

A team of researchers led by Michael H. Antoni, director of the Center for Psycho-Oncology Research at the University of Miami (UM) has shown that a stress management program tailored to women with breast cancer can alter tumor-promoting processes at the molecular level. The new study recently published in the journal Biological Psychiatry is one of the first to link psychological intervention with genetic expression in cancer patients.

22 Mar 2012

TGA clears Bioline's illumigene Group B Streptococcus test

Bioline, The PCR Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Meridian Bioscience, Inc., today announced that it has received clearance from the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) for its illumigene Group B Streptococcus (GBS) test, the newest molecular product on the illumigene platform.

22 Mar 2012

Link between autism risk gene and changes in brain structure and connectivity

Healthy individuals who carry a gene variation linked to an increased risk of autism have structural differences in their brains that may help explain how the gene affects brain function and increases vulnerability for autism.

22 Mar 2012

TACT believes that Halo's HT-100 may effectively treat DMD

Halo Therapeutics, LLC, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics for rare fibrotic diseases, announced today that the TREAT-NMD Advisory Committee on Therapeutics (TACT) has reviewed HT-100, Halo's drug candidate for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), and believes the compound has potential based on the proposed mechanism.

21 Mar 2012

Early disruptions in serotonin signaling may contribute to ASD

Early disruptions in serotonin signaling in the brain may contribute to autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and other "enduring effects on behavior," Vanderbilt University researchers report.

21 Mar 2012

Issues and treatments of chronic skin wounds

The skin is the body's largest organ and an indispensable part of the immune system. As the body's outermost line of defense against microbes, the skin provides important protection against potentially toxic environmental elements. One subset of immune cells, thymus-derived T-cells play an important role in the skin's response to injury, particularly with respect to wound healing.

21 Mar 2012

OriGene releases UltraMAB Antibodies for IHC applications

OriGene Technologies today announced the release of a new line of ultra specific and extensively validated monoclonal antibodies under the UltraMAB brand.

21 Mar 2012

DIAN-TTU to receive $4.2M Alzheimer's Association research grant

The Alzheimer's Association announced today the awarding of its largest ever research grant – nearly $4.2 million dollars over four years – to the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer's Network–Therapeutic Trials Unit (DIAN-TTU), based at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, to enable the program to move forward more quickly with innovative drug and biomarker trials in people with genetically-based, young-onset Alzheimer's disease.

21 Mar 2012

Alzheimer's Association awards $4.2M grant to DIAN-Therapeutic Trials Unit

Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has received nearly $4.2 million from the Alzheimer's Association to accelerate the launch of the first clinical trials to prevent the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease.

21 Mar 2012

FPS acquires Psych Support

Family Preservation Services (FPS) of North Carolina, Inc., a leading provider of mental health services for at-risk and disadvantaged youth and adults with severe and persistent mental illness, today announced it has acquired substantially all of the assets of Psych Support Inc., a Raleigh-based Critical Access Behavioral Health Agency.

21 Mar 2012

NCCN issues first ever clinical practice guidelines for ALL

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network has issued its first ever NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology for Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

21 Mar 2012

Cardium commences Generx Phase 3 registration study in myocardial ischemia

Cardium Therapeutics today announced the initiation of the ASPIRE Phase 3 registration study to evaluate the therapeutic effects of Cardium's lead product candidate, Generx (Ad5FGF-4) in patients with myocardial ischemia.

21 Mar 2012

Lexicon receives FDA Orphan Drug designation for telotristat etiprate to treat carcinoid syndrome

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc., announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted its request for Orphan Drug designation for telotristat etiprate (LX1032) for the treatment of carcinoid syndrome.

21 Mar 2012

Obesity gene mutation identified in mice

A new study has found why a mutation in a particular gene can lead to obesity. Mouse experiments suggested the body's message to “stop eating” was blocked if the animals had the mutation. The study, published in Nature Medicine, said the brain's response to appetite hormones was being disrupted.

20 Mar 2012

Jennerex initiates JX-594 plus irinotecan Phase 1/2 trial in metastatic colorectal cancer

Jennerex, Inc., a private clinical-stage biotherapeutics company focused on the development and commercialization of first-in-class targeted oncolytic virus products for cancer, today announced that the first patient has been treated in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial of JX-594 in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer who have become refractory to chemotherapy and are either refractory to or ineligible for cetuximab.

20 Mar 2012

Study identifies function of GlialCAM gene in brain edema

A study of the pathophysiology of this rare disease has uncovered one mechanism that destabilizes the homeostatic balance of brain cells causing edema.

20 Mar 2012

Study determines why blood oranges develop anthocyanin pigments

The anthocyanin pigments that provide the "blood" color of blood oranges are not produced in significant amounts unless the fruit is exposed to cold conditions during its development or post-harvest. No cold exposure means poor anthocyanin production and the loss of the entire crop. This means that blood oranges can be grown in many areas of the world, but they are most likely to be exposed to the correct temperature conditions in only a few regions, including their major area of production in Sicily.

20 Mar 2012

Circadian rhythms control production of metabolites

By analyzing the hundreds of metabolic products present in the liver, researchers with the UC Irvine Center for Epigenetics & Metabolism have discovered that circadian rhythms - our own body clock - greatly control the production of such key building blocks as amino acids, carbohydrates and lipids.

20 Mar 2012

iPSYCH project to study five specific mental disorders

Is it possible to prevent the development of schizophrenia? Can certain patients develop autism if they carry a specific gene and have been exposed to a viral fetal infection? Should all ADHD patients take the same type of medication? This unique research project will try to answer these questions. The project is based at Aarhus University and will be known as 'The Lundbeck Foundation's Initiative for Integrative Psychiatric Research.'

20 Mar 2012