Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Gut microbe in patients may tip doctors about SCID

Many people recognize "the bubble boy" as an unusual character from a "Seinfeld" episode or a John Travolta movie.

30 Sep 2014

Brain cancer patients can benefit from Rapamycin drug

Every day, organ transplant patients around the world take a drug called rapamycin to keep their immune systems from rejecting their new kidneys and hearts.

30 Sep 2014

TSRI study points way to potential therapies for hereditary spastic paraplegia

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have discovered that a gene mutation linked to hereditary spastic paraplegia, a disabling neurological disorder, interferes with the normal breakdown of triglyceride fat molecules in the brain. The TSRI researchers found large droplets of triglycerides within the neurons of mice modeling the disease.

30 Sep 2014

Study assesses effectiveness of UK-wide screening programme for Lynch Syndrome

Screening families of patients with bowel cancer for a genetic condition would cut their risk of developing bowel, womb, and ovarian cancers, new research has found.

30 Sep 2014

Research: Gut bacteria may cause animals to gain weight

A species of gut bacteria called Clostridium ramosum, coupled with a high-fat diet, may cause animals to gain weight. The work is published this week in mBio-, the online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology.

30 Sep 2014

Three institutions collaborate to study genetics of bipolar disorder, schizophrenia

Researchers at the University of Michigan School of Public Health and Medical School and collaborators at two other institutions will undertake the largest whole genome sequencing study funded to date, as they seek to better understand bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

30 Sep 2014

Finding ways to rejuvenate "immunological age" of the brain

How the brain ages is still largely an open question - in part because this organ is mostly insulated from direct contact with other systems in the body, including the blood and immune systems. In research that was recently published in Science, Weizmann Institute researchers Prof. Michal Schwartz of the Neurobiology Department and Dr. Ido Amit of Immunology Department found evidence of a unique "signature" that may be the "missing link" between cognitive decline and aging.

30 Sep 2014

New approach to solve global challenges in food security, emerging diseases and biodiversity loss

Solving global challenges in food security, emerging diseases and biodiversity loss requires evolutionary thinking, argues a new study published online in Science Express that was co-authored by Bruce Tabashnik of the University of Arizona College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

30 Sep 2014

Targeted combination drug therapy can extend life, halt disease in metastatic melanoma patients

A world-first study in today's New England Journal of Medicine heralds the efficacy of a targeted combination drug therapy after reporting major declines in the risk of disease progression and death in people with metastatic melanoma.

29 Sep 2014

Aptose joins Beat AML research collaboration

Aptose Biosciences Inc., a clinical-stage company developing new therapeutics and molecular diagnostics that target the underlying mechanisms of cancer, the Knight Cancer Institute at Oregon Health & Science University and The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society today announced that Aptose has joined the Beat AML collaboration.

29 Sep 2014

Scientists discover mechanism that resists cancer drugs in estrogen-positive breast cancer

Scientists have discovered a previously unknown mechanism by which estrogen prepares cells to divide, grow and, in the case of estrogen-positive breast cancers, resist cancer drugs. The researchers say the work reveals new targets for breast cancer therapy and will help doctors predict which patients need the most aggressive treatment.

29 Sep 2014

Researchers create new Cas9 animal model for in vivo genome editing experiments

Researchers from the Broad Institute and Massachusetts Institute of Technology have created a new mouse model to simplify application of the CRISPR-Cas9 system for in vivo genome editing experiments.

29 Sep 2014

Study provides support for new understanding of the immune system

A study published in the journal Science provides support for a new-and still controversial-understanding of the immune system. The research was conducted by collaborators in the U.S. and Europe, including Robert Cramer, PhD, an assistant professor of microbiology and immunology at the Geisel School of Medicine and member of the Dartmouth Lung Biology Center, and Kelly Shepherdson, PhD, at the time a graduate student in Cramer's lab.

29 Sep 2014

Crizotinib drug effectively halts growth of ROS1-positive lung tumors

Treatment with the targeted therapy drug crizotinib effectively halts the growth of lung tumors driven by rearrangements of the ROS1 gene. In an article receiving Online First publication in the New England Journal of Medicine to coincide with a presentation at the European Society for Medical Oncology meeting, an international research team reports that crizotinib treatment led to significant tumor shrinkage in 36 of 50 study participants and suppressed tumor growth in another 9.

29 Sep 2014

Fecal occult blood screening increases diagnosis rate of high-risk polyps by 89%

The introduction of biennial colorectal cancer screening in a region of France increased the rate of diagnosis of high risk pre-cancerous adenomas (sometimes called polyps) by 89%, researchers have reported at the ESMO 2014 Congress in Madrid.

29 Sep 2014

Cedars-Sinai to participate in a consortium studying motor neuron disorders

Investigators at the Cedars-Sinai Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute have received a grant from the National Institutes of Health to participate in a consortium taking the study of motor neuron disorders - such as Lou Gehrig's disease and spinal muscular atrophy - to a new, comprehensive perspective.

26 Sep 2014

Scientists discover new clues about drug used in treating blood cancer

Keck Medicine of USC scientists have discovered new clues about a drug instrumental in treating a certain blood cancer that may provide important targets for researchers searching for cures.

26 Sep 2014

BRD4 protein appears to play key role in keeping stem cells in immature "pluripotent" state

A protein implicated in several cancers appears to play a pivotal role in keeping stem cells in an immature "pluripotent" state, according to a new study by NYU Langone Medical Center scientists.

26 Sep 2014

International researchers identify novel causes for severe childhood epilepsies

In the largest collaborative study so far, an international team of researchers, including scientists from VIB and Antwerp University identified novel causes for severe childhood epilepsies.

26 Sep 2014

Researchers awarded $16 million NIMH grant to create genetic resource for psychiatric disorders

A multi-institutional team of researchers studying schizophrenia and bipolar disorder has been awarded a $16 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health to create the most extensive genetic resource to date for these two devastating psychiatric disorders, using data assembled by the University of Southern California.

26 Sep 2014

Gene News and Research

Latest Gene News and Research

Gut microbe in patients may tip doctors about SCID

Brain cancer patients can benefit from Rapamycin drug

TSRI study points way to potential therapies for hereditary spastic paraplegia

Study assesses effectiveness of UK-wide screening programme for Lynch Syndrome

Research: Gut bacteria may cause animals to gain weight

Three institutions collaborate to study genetics of bipolar disorder, schizophrenia

Finding ways to rejuvenate "immunological age" of the brain

New approach to solve global challenges in food security, emerging diseases and biodiversity loss

Targeted combination drug therapy can extend life, halt disease in metastatic melanoma patients

Aptose joins Beat AML research collaboration

Scientists discover mechanism that resists cancer drugs in estrogen-positive breast cancer

Researchers create new Cas9 animal model for in vivo genome editing experiments

Study provides support for new understanding of the immune system

Crizotinib drug effectively halts growth of ROS1-positive lung tumors

Fecal occult blood screening increases diagnosis rate of high-risk polyps by 89%

Cedars-Sinai to participate in a consortium studying motor neuron disorders

Scientists discover new clues about drug used in treating blood cancer

BRD4 protein appears to play key role in keeping stem cells in immature "pluripotent" state

International researchers identify novel causes for severe childhood epilepsies

Researchers awarded $16 million NIMH grant to create genetic resource for psychiatric disorders

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