Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Researchers find cause of severe metabolic disorders

A healthy body stores fat in the form of so-called triglycerides in specialized fatty tissue as an energy reserve.

9 Sep 2008

New drug hope for cystic fibrosis patients

A new drug therapy may represent a tremendous step forward in the treatment of some 70,000 cystic fibrosis (CF) patients worldwide, Dr David Sheppard from the University of Bristol told an audience at the BA Festival of Science in Liverpool today [9 September].

9 Sep 2008

Discovery of gene that could help develop HIV/AIDS vaccine

In an article published in the journal Science on Thursday, researchers announced that they have discovered a gene, called Apobec3, that might help in the development of an HIV/AIDS vaccine, Reuters Health reports.

9 Sep 2008

Physical activity can blunt the effect of obesity genes

People who are concerned that they may have a genetic susceptibility for obesity will find some relief from new research conducted in the U.S.

9 Sep 2008

Egg secretions from a worm may be useful in gene therapy

Egg secretions from a worm that causes a deadly human disease may prove useful in gene therapy, according to research presented at the British Pharmaceutical Conference (BPC) in Manchester.

8 Sep 2008

The Cancer Genome Atlas reports first results

The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) has reported results from its first comprehensive study which focused on the deadly brain cancer glioblastoma.

8 Sep 2008

Rattlesnake-type poisons used by superbug bacteria to beat our defences

Colonies of hospital superbugs can make poisons similar to those found in rattlesnake venom to attack our bodies' natural defences, scientists heard today (Monday 8 September 2008) at the Society for General Microbiology's Autumn meeting being held this week at Trinity College, Dublin.

7 Sep 2008

Framing the concept of a gene

Even scientists define 'a gene' in different ways, so it comes as little surprise that the media also have various ways of framing the concept of a gene, according to a new study appearing in the October 2008 issue of EMBO reports.

4 Sep 2008

Link found between Apobec3 gene and neutralizing antibody response to retrovirus

Scientists have uncovered new evidence that strengthens the link between a host-cell gene called Apobec3 and the production of neutralizing antibodies to retroviruses. Published in the Sept. 5 issue of Science, the finding adds a new dimension to the set of possible explanations for why most people who are infected with HIV do not make neutralizing antibodies that effectively fight the virus.

4 Sep 2008

Invitrogen launches patent licensing program for random prime amplification of nucleic acids

Invitrogen Corporation today announced that it has signed non-exclusive agreements with New England Biolabs, Inc., QIAGEN GmbH, and Kirkegaard & Perry Laboratories, Inc. (KPL), whereby the companies have licensed Invitrogen's patented technology covering the random prime amplification of nucleic acids. Financial terms of the agreements were not disclosed.

4 Sep 2008

Clinical trial advances cystic fibrosis therapy

Axentis Pharma AG has initiated a clinical phase IIa trial to assess the safety and tolerability of a new therapeutic formulation for the treatment of severe pulmonary infection in cystic fibrosis patients. The new formulation allows an established therapeutic agent to be delivered directly to the site of infection. The forthcoming trial will also compare the effects of two different doses of the new drug.

4 Sep 2008

Researchers find genetic proof on how osteoarthritis destroys cartilage

A team of orthopaedic researchers has found definitive, genetic proof of how the most common form of arthritis destroys joint cartilage in nearly 21 million aging Americans, according to a study published online Sept. 2 in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research. The findings serve as an important foundation for the design of new treatments for osteoarthritis (OA), researchers said.

2 Sep 2008

Discovery of novel candidate gene for inflammatory bowel diseases

A study of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis in children has identified a gene that influences whether children get these diseases early in life, and points to a potential new target for treatment.

2 Sep 2008

Hopkins researchers piece together gene "network" linked to schizophrenia

Reporting this week in the Archives of General Psychiatry, researchers at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have uncovered for the first time molecular circuitry associated with schizophrenia that links three previously known, yet unrelated proteins.

2 Sep 2008

Atomic bomb's effect results in adult-onset thyroid cancer

Radiation from the atomic bomb blasts in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, in 1945, likely rearranged chromosomes in some survivors who later developed papillary thyroid cancer as adults, according to Japanese researchers.

1 Sep 2008

Issues on cholesterol: diet, statins and genetics

Genetic lipoprotein disorders are frequently seen in patients with premature coronary artery disease (CAD). An example of strong genetic predisposition is the disorder: familial hypercholesterolemia, where a single gene defect (the low density lipoprotein receptor) contributes to most of the familial expression of CAD.

1 Sep 2008