Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Up to 500,000 Americans will develop lupus-related kidney disease

According to the Lupus Foundation of America, an estimated 300,000 to 500,000 Americans with the autoimmune disease lupus eventually will develop lupus-related kidney disease, known as lupus nephritis. Lupus nephritis is one of the most serious manifestations of lupus and can lead to serious health problems, kidney failure, disability or death.

27 Feb 2005

Caution against FDA approval of race-based pharmaceutical

New York University Sociologist Troy Duster concludes that a pharmaceutical to combat heart disease among blacks is based on faulty research and urges the Food and Drug Administration to obtain more reliable data before approving the drug.

27 Feb 2005

Novel mutation in the recently identified LRRK2 gene causes parkinsonism

Neuroscientists at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., leading a team of researchers in the United States and Europe, have discovered that a novel mutation in the recently identified LRRK2 gene causes parkinsonism in several North American and European families.

27 Feb 2005

Importance of Fbw7 as an emerging tumor suppressor

The DNA tumor virus simian virus 40 produces the Large T antigen which inactivates two of the cell's most important cancer-preventing proteins, p53 and pRb.

27 Feb 2005

Early Alzheimer's disease may be precipitated by a neuron traffic jam

Early Alzheimer's disease may be precipitated by a “traffic jam” within neurons that causes swelling and prevents proper transport of proteins and structures in the cells, according to new studies by Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers.

27 Feb 2005

Differences in how HIV virus infects males and females

A genetic analysis of viral RNA from 10 heterosexual couples, in which one partner has sexually transmitted HIV to the other, provides the first documentation of some differences in how the virus infects males and females.

27 Feb 2005

Common epigenetic problem doubles cancer risk

In experiments with mice, a team of scientists from the United States, Sweden and Japan has discovered that having a double dose of one protein is sufficient to change the normal balance of cells within the lining of the colon, thereby doubling the risk that a cancer-causing genetic mutation will trigger a tumor there.

27 Feb 2005

Genzyme begins gene transfer trial for peripheral arterial disease

Genzyme Corporation announced today that the first patient has been treated in a new phase 2 clinical trial examining the safety and effectiveness of locally delivered gene transfer for patients with peripheral arterial disease.

24 Feb 2005

Scientists have regenerated a damaged optic nerve

This achievement, which occurred in laboratory mice and is described in the March 1, 2005 issue of the Journal of Cell Science, holds great promise for victims of diseases that destroy the optic nerve, and for sufferers of central nervous system injuries.

24 Feb 2005

Protein called CK2 plays a deadly role in colorectal carcinoma

A protein called CK2 plays a deadly role in colorectal carcinoma by blocking the ability of these tumors to activate a natural self-destruct mechanism that would clear this cancer from the body. This finding, by researchers at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, is currently published in the online edition of Oncogene.

24 Feb 2005

Cutting edge technology identifies genes that are involved in the development of Alzheimer's disease

Phoenix-Researchers at the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) and Kronos Science Laboratories, an affiliate of Phoenix-based Kronos Optimal Health Company, have initiated a study with unprecedented power to identify genes that are involved in the development of Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of disabling memory and thinking problems in older persons.

24 Feb 2005

Researchers have identified a protein called HIF-2a, which is important in retina formation

Hoping to prevent blindness in premature babies, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have identified a protein that responds to oxygen levels in cells and tissues and also affects the developing eye.

22 Feb 2005

Scientists have replicated hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the laboratory

For the first time, scientists have replicated hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the laboratory. The ability to replicate HCV in cell culture will allow researchers to better study the life cycle and biology of this virus and to test potential antiviral compounds, which may lead to new therapies for the liver disease that results from infection with HCV.

22 Feb 2005

Differing forms of taste genes mean that we all live in our own unique taste world

A study published in the February 22 issue of Current Biology confirms the influential role of genetics in determining the wide range of human sensitivity to taste, ultimately impacting how we each perceive the world in a slightly different way.

22 Feb 2005

Secreted signaling protein called Wnt10b secret to new drugs for preventing or treating osteoporosis

Leaping tall buildings in a single bound may be out of the question, but the genetically engineered "supermice" in Ormond MacDougald's laboratory at the University of Michigan Medical School are definitely stronger than average.

22 Feb 2005

Why some lung cancers stop responding to the drugs erlotinib (Tarceva) and gefitinib (Iressa)

Researchers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) have found an explanation for why some lung cancers stop responding to the drugs erlotinib (Tarceva) and gefitinib (Iressa).

22 Feb 2005

Crystallized molecular machine reveals possible new paths for treating diseases

The crystallized form of a molecular machine that can cut and paste genetic material is revealing possible new paths for treating diseases such as some forms of cancer and opportunistic infections that plague HIV patients.

21 Feb 2005

New clues to amyloidoses

Familial amyloid polyneuropathy (FAP), a hereditary disease characterised by abnormal deposits of insoluble protein in the organs, results from a mutation in a single gene (the transthyretin or TTR gene). Nevertheless, disease incidence and age of onset can vary significantly between patients what have always puzzled scientists.

21 Feb 2005

Lack of collagen increases likelihood of osteoarthritis

Duke University Medical Center researchers have found that joints whose cartilage lacks a specific type of collagen will develop osteoarthritis – the so-called "wear-and-tear" form of the disease – at a greatly accelerated rate.

20 Feb 2005

Americans support appropriate use of reproductive genetic testing

A majority of Americans believes it is appropriate to use reproductive genetic testing to avoid having a child with a life-threatening disease, or to test embryos to see if they will be a good match to provide cells to help a sick sibling, a new report of the Genetics and Public Policy Center reveals.

20 Feb 2005