Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Research using human embryonic stem cells reveals earliest step in human development

Researchers at Johns Hopkins have uncovered the molecular underpinnings of one of the earliest steps in human development using human embryonic stem cells.

10 Apr 2008

Variation in CHI3L1 gene increases risk of asthma

A tiny variation in a gene known as CHI3L1 increases susceptibility to asthma, bronchial hyperresponsiveness and decline in lung function, researchers report early online in the New England Journal of Medicine.

10 Apr 2008

Men who develop diabetes in mid-life have increased risk of Alzheimer's

Men who develop diabetes in mid-life appear to significantly increase their risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, according to a long-term study published in the April 9, 2008, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

10 Apr 2008

Too many gene copies stimulate tumor cell growth

New data, generated by Peter Lichter and colleagues, at the German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg, have characterized a molecular pathway underlying low-grade forms of a type of brain tumor known as an astrocytoma.

9 Apr 2008

New technique traces ancestry of disease genes

A team of researchers from Washington University in St. Louis and the Israeli Institute of Technology (Technion) in Haifa has developed a technique to detect the ancestry of disease genes in hybrid, or mixed, human populations.

9 Apr 2008

Hepatitis B virus triggers cell 'suicide' in patients with chronic infection

Scientists from UCL (University College London) have identified a key difference between people who can fight the Hepatitis B virus (HBV) off successfully and those who fail to do so - that a group of cells important in controlling the disease are triggered to 'commit suicide' in patients who are chronically infected.

9 Apr 2008

Gene oppositely controlled by dietary protein, sugar

Researchers have discovered a gene in flies whose activity rises and falls depending upon the amount of protein and sugar in the insects' diets.

9 Apr 2008

Researchers battle against dangerous corn toxin

The spiraling use of corn for food and fuel is creating heightened concerns about contamination of this staple crop with deadly aflatoxin.

9 Apr 2008

Scientists block early step in metastasis of prostate cancer cells

Recent studies have suggested an association between chronic inflammation and cancers of the prostate, colon, stomach and liver.

9 Apr 2008

Angina drug ranolazine potentially useful against heart rhythm disorders

A recently approved angina drug may also represent a powerful new treatment for a rare hereditary syndrome that places teens at risk for sudden cardiac death, according to research presented on April 1st at the 57th Annual Scientific Sessions of the American College of Cardiology (ACC) in Chicago.

9 Apr 2008

A diaphanous control during embryo formation

The research now published in the journal Development shows how Dia mutations in fruit flies embryos result in a serious of defects during morphogenesis (process by which cells differentiate into tissues and structures), including loss of adhesion, abnormal movements and even migration of cells from one tissue to another.

9 Apr 2008

Potential new therapy for myeloproliferative disorders

A unique partnership between industry and academia has led to human clinical trials of a new drug for a rare class of blood diseases called myeloproliferative disorders (MPD), which are all driven by the same genetic mutation and can evolve into leukemia.

8 Apr 2008

Genetic variants of USF1 are associated with the increased risk for cardiovascular disease

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are major contributors to morbidity and mortality worldwide.

8 Apr 2008

Blood pressure enzyme can have tumor-sensing role

By increasing production of a blood pressure-regulating enzyme in mice, researchers have found they can enhance the mouse immune system's ability to sense tumor growth.

8 Apr 2008

Asthma and smoker's lung: dry airways play a key role

Dry airways may not only play a central role in the development of the inherited lung disease cystic fibrosis, but also in much more common acquired chronic lung diseases such as asthma and smoker's lung, the cigarette smoke-induced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

8 Apr 2008

Leaky blood vessels open up nerve cells to toxic assault In Lou Gehrig's disease

Leaky blood vessels that lose their ability to protect the spinal cord from toxins may play a role in the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease, according to research published in the April issue of Nature Neuroscience.

7 Apr 2008

Rare genetic variants have big impact on blood pressure

Yale University researchers report in the journal Nature Genetics that they have discovered that rare genetic variants can be associated with a dramatically lower risk of developing high blood pressure in the general population.

7 Apr 2008

Scientists visualize the machinery of mRNA splicing

Recent research at Yale provided a glimpse of the ancient mechanism that helped diversify our genomes; it illuminated a relationship between gene processing in humans and the most primitive organisms by creating the first crystal structure of a crucial self-splicing region of RNA.

7 Apr 2008

Salivary diagnostics

Accuracy, convenience, and non-invasiveness are the most critical characteristics for any diagnostic tool.

7 Apr 2008

Rare mutations in salt handling genes protect against hypertension

Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) researchers have found that rare mutations in three genes contribute to blood pressure variation in the general population.

7 Apr 2008