Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Scientists identify gene that helps regulate development of central nervous system

Scientists have identified a gene that helps regulate how well nerves of the central nervous system are insulated, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report.

23 Jan 2015

UCLA researchers find new treatment that restores normal social behavior in autism mice model

Among the problems people with Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) struggle with are difficulties with social behavior and communication. That can translate to an inability to make friends, engage in routine conversations, or pick up on the social cues that are second nature to most people. Similarly, in a mouse model of ASD, the animals, like humans, show little interest in interacting or socializing with other mice.

23 Jan 2015

UAB Research Probes Molecular Basis Of Rare Genetic Disorder

An international group co-led by University of Alabama at Birmingham researcher Mary MacDougall, Ph.D., has unraveled the molecular basis for the rare, inherited genetic disorder, Singleton-Merten Syndrome (SMS). Individuals with SMS develop extreme, life-threatening calcification of the aorta and heart valves, early-onset periodontitis and root resorption of the teeth, decreases in bone density, and loss of bone tissue at the tips of fingers and toes.

23 Jan 2015

Researchers find CREB-activated genes in long-term memory-trained worms

A new study has identified genes involved in long-term memory in the worm as part of research aimed at finding ways to retain cognitive abilities during aging.

23 Jan 2015

Study identifies gene that may become resistant to current testicular cancer treatments

A major research study has uncovered several new genetic mutations that could drive testicular cancer - and also identified a gene which may contribute to tumours becoming resistant to current treatments.

22 Jan 2015

Researchers reveal role of epigenetic factors in malignant skin cancer

Melanoma, the most aggressive of all skin cancer strains, is often fatal for patients due to the pronounced formation of metastases. Until now, a melanoma's rampant growth was mainly attributed to genetic causes, such as mutations in certain genes. However, researchers from the University of Zurich now reveal that so-called epigenetic factors play a role in the formation of metastases in malignant skin cancer. This opens up new possibilities for future cancer treatments.

22 Jan 2015

TAU's Yosef Shiloh receives Olav Thon Foundation's first international research award

Norway's largest charitable organization, the Olav Thon Foundation, which invests heavily in medical research, awarded its first international research award in the medical and natural sciences to Tel Aviv University's Prof. Yosef Shiloh and Prof. Judith Campisi of the Buck Institute for Research on Aging, California.

22 Jan 2015

CAP, ASCO University and AMP partner to create Molecular Oncology Tumor Board series

The College of American Pathologists, the American Society of Clinical Oncology's ASCO University, and the Association for Molecular Pathology recently announced their partnership in the creation of the Molecular Oncology Tumor Board series, an online and user-driven resource designed to help cancer care providers with the interpretation and understanding of tumor molecular profiling tests and studies.

22 Jan 2015

Personalized approaches to treating intellectual disability

Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have produced an approach that protects animal models against a type of genetic disruption that causes intellectual disability, including serious memory impairments and altered anxiety levels.

22 Jan 2015

Umbilical cord-derived stem cells from women with gestational diabetes show premature aging

Multipotent cells isolated from the human umbilical cord, called mesenchymal stromal cells (hUC-MSCs) have shown promise for use in cell therapy to treat a variety of human diseases. However, intriguing new evidence shows that hUC-MSCs isolated from women with gestational diabetes demonstrate premature aging, poorer cell growth, and altered metabolic function, as reported in an article in Stem Cells and Development, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

22 Jan 2015

Penn, Spark Therapeutics expand strategic relationship to develop treatment for progressive blindness

The University of Pennsylvania has announced an expanded relationship with Spark Therapeutics, a late-stage gene therapy company developing treatments for debilitating, genetic diseases.

21 Jan 2015

Study: Mutated ATRX gene may serve as much-needed biomarker for rare neuroendocrine tumors

A somatic mutation in the ATRX gene has recently been shown as a potential molecular marker for aggressive brain tumors, such as gliomas, neuroblastomas and pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors. Now, for the first time, researchers at Penn's Abramson Cancer Center have found that the same mutated gene may serve as a much-needed biomarker for the pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas (PCC/PGL) that become malignant.

21 Jan 2015

Long years of diabetes research now ripe for reinterpretation

Years of diabetes research carried out on mice whose DNA had been altered with a human growth hormone gene is now ripe for reinterpretation after a new study by researchers at KU Leuven confirms that the gene had an unintended effect on the mice's insulin production, a key variable in diabetes research.

21 Jan 2015

Researchers reveal key factor in understanding elevated cancer risk linked to gene therapy

National Institutes of Health researchers have uncovered a key factor in understanding the elevated cancer risk associated with gene therapy. They conducted research on mice with a rare disease similar to one in humans, hoping their findings may eventually help improve gene therapy for humans. Researchers at the National Human Genome Research Institute, part of NIH, published their research in the Jan. 20, 2015, online issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

21 Jan 2015

MET amplified in NSCLC irrespective of type, genetic background

A third of non-small-cell lung cancers show low- to high-level amplification of the MET gene, according to a German study, with no significant difference in frequency across different types of cancer and genetic backgrounds.

20 Jan 2015

Researchers identify novel life-preserving circuit responsible for recognizing threats

Our existence depends on a bit of evolutionary genius aptly nicknamed "fight or flight." But where in our brain does the alarm first go off, and what other parts of the brain are mobilized to express fear and remember to avoid danger in the future?

20 Jan 2015

Researchers identify novel signaling pathway that triggers allergic asthma response

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, with collaborators in Korea and Scotland, have identified a novel signaling pathway critical to the immune response of cells associated with the initiation of allergic asthma.

20 Jan 2015

Study unveils genetic architecture that enables parasite to develop antimalarial drug resistance

The largest genome-wide association study to date of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum unveils a complex genetic architecture that enables the parasite to develop resistance to our most effective antimalarial drug, artemisinin. The results could help to improve early detection of emerging artemisinin resistance.

20 Jan 2015

Researchers find genetic mutation that causes glycogen storage disease type IIIa in Inuit

A team of Canadian and Japanese researchers has identified the genetic mutation responsible for glycogen storage disease type IIIa in Inuit in northern Quebec, Canada, in a study published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).

20 Jan 2015

Study leads to discovery of rare genetic disorder

Recently, a grassroots effort initiated by families and clinicians led to the discovery of a human genetic disorder with severe consequences that is linked to a mutation in the human NGLY1 gene. In a big step towards understanding the effects of this mutation, research by scientists at the RIKEN-Max Planck Joint Research Center in Japan implicates the enzyme ENGase as the factor responsible for deficient protein degradation that occurs in the absence of mouse Ngly1 gene expression.

19 Jan 2015

Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Scientists identify gene that helps regulate development of central nervous system

UCLA researchers find new treatment that restores normal social behavior in autism mice model

UAB Research Probes Molecular Basis Of Rare Genetic Disorder

Researchers find CREB-activated genes in long-term memory-trained worms

Study identifies gene that may become resistant to current testicular cancer treatments

Researchers reveal role of epigenetic factors in malignant skin cancer

TAU's Yosef Shiloh receives Olav Thon Foundation's first international research award

CAP, ASCO University and AMP partner to create Molecular Oncology Tumor Board series

Personalized approaches to treating intellectual disability

Umbilical cord-derived stem cells from women with gestational diabetes show premature aging

Penn, Spark Therapeutics expand strategic relationship to develop treatment for progressive blindness

Study: Mutated ATRX gene may serve as much-needed biomarker for rare neuroendocrine tumors

Long years of diabetes research now ripe for reinterpretation

Researchers reveal key factor in understanding elevated cancer risk linked to gene therapy

MET amplified in NSCLC irrespective of type, genetic background

Researchers identify novel life-preserving circuit responsible for recognizing threats

Researchers identify novel signaling pathway that triggers allergic asthma response

Study unveils genetic architecture that enables parasite to develop antimalarial drug resistance

Researchers find genetic mutation that causes glycogen storage disease type IIIa in Inuit

Study leads to discovery of rare genetic disorder

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