Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

Low level of neuronal receptor LR11 linked to Alzheimer's disease

Results of a new study indicate a strong link between the loss of the neuronal receptor LR11and onset of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), often a harbinger of Alzheimer's disease.

5 Sep 2007

Lavender oil and tea tree oil may make boy's breasts bigger

A study published in this week's issue of the New England Journal of Medicine suggests that repeated topical use of products containing lavender oil and/or tea tree oil may cause prepubertal gynecomastia, a rare condition resulting in enlarged breast tissue in boys prior to puberty, and for which a cause is seldom identified.

5 Sep 2007

Key differences discovered between avian and human flu

St. Jude scientists have found key features that distinguish influenza viruses found in birds from those that infect humans.

5 Sep 2007

Improved dosing formula for warfarin (Coumadin)

Doctors prescribing blood thinners have had to go through a lengthy trial-and-error process to arrive at the optimal dose for their patients.

5 Sep 2007

3D fruit fly images to benefit brain research

The fragile head and brain of a fly are not easy things to examine but MRC scientists have figured out how to make it a little simpler. And they hope their research will shed light on human disease.

5 Sep 2007

Smoking ups Alzheimer's risk by 50%

According to a new Dutch study people over the age of 55 who are smokers put themselves at a far greater risk of developing dementia than people who do not smoke.

5 Sep 2007

Study identifies osteopontin as a key player in the body's immune response to chronic stress

Osteopontin (OPN), a protein molecule involved in many different cellular processes, plays a significant role in immune deficiency and organ atrophy following chronic physiological stress, resulting in increased susceptibility to illness.

4 Sep 2007

Smoking and Alzheimer's disease

People who smoke are more likely to develop Alzheimer's disease or dementia than nonsmokers or those who smoked in the past, according to a study published in the September 4, 2007, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

4 Sep 2007

Fruit flies have a taste for carbonated water

That fruit fly hovering over your kitchen counter may be attracted to more than the bananas that are going brown; it may also want a sip of your carbonated water.

4 Sep 2007

Mice stressed in simulated weightlessness show organ atrophy

A ground-based, experimental model used to simulate astronaut weightlessness in space has provided Rutgers scientists an opportunity to study the effects of stress on immune organs.

4 Sep 2007

Autoimmune response, triggered by genes, can be a barrier to producing a viable offspring

Plant biologists at the Max Planck Institute of Developmental Biology and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have discovered that an autoimmune response, triggered by a small number of genes, can be a barrier to producing a viable offspring.

4 Sep 2007

Retinoblastoma tumor suppressor may predict chemotherapy effectiveness

A common molecular pathway could help physicians predict which lung cancer patients will benefit from chemotherapy drugs, according to new research from a multidisciplinary team at the University of Cincinnati (UC).

3 Sep 2007

Researchers look at malaria resistance to chloroquine

Funded by a $1.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), scientists at Binghamton University, State University of New York, hope to understand how the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum evolved resistance to the once-effective medication chloroquine.

3 Sep 2007

Interferon alpha revs immune cells but cancer cells ignore it

A new study shows that an important drug used in the treatment of malignant melanoma has little effect on the melanoma cells themselves. Instead, it activates immune-system cells to fight the disease.

3 Sep 2007

First common height gene identified by researchers behind 'obesity gene' finding

Whilst we all know that tall parents are more likely to have tall children, scientists have been unable to identify any common genes that make people taller than others. Now, however, scientists have identified the first gene, known as HMGA2, a common variant of which directly influences height.

3 Sep 2007

Genetic variant linked to human height discovered

It became clear nearly a century ago that many genes likely influence how tall a person grows, though little progress, if any, has followed in defining the myriad genes. Now an international research team brings light to this age-old question by pinpointing a genetic variant associated with human height - the first consistent genetic link to be reported.

3 Sep 2007

Genetic-based dosing in orthopedic patients beginning warfarin therapy

Doctors prescribing blood thinners have had to go through a lengthy trial-and-error process to arrive at the optimal dose for their patients. But now the process can be faster and safer, thanks to research conducted at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

3 Sep 2007

A drug-sensitive 'traffic cop' tells potassium channels to get lost

Our brains are buzzing with electrical activity created by sodium and potassium ions moving in and out of neurons through specialized pores. To prevent the constant chatter from descending into chaos the activity of these ion channels has to be tightly regulated.

3 Sep 2007

Discovery suggests location of genes for breast density, a strong risk factor for breast cancer

Studying the DNA of 889 people, gene hunters at the Mayo Clinic and H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Centers have identified a region on chromosome 5p that is significantly associated with dense breast tissue, a known risk factor for breast cancer.

2 Sep 2007