Genetics News and Research

Latest Genetics News and Research

Do regulatory T cells have a role in human ocular Chlamydia trachomatis infection?

Trachoma, which is caused by ocular infection with Chlamydia trachomatis, remains the leading infectious cause of blindness and in 2002 was responsible for 3.6% of total global blindness.

8 Aug 2006

Scientists find new lead in hunt for a SARS vaccine

SARS coronavirus protein called "nsp1" causes the breakdown of biochemical messages that normally prompt the production of a protein critical to defending the body against viruses.

8 Aug 2006

Gene amplification links growth controlling pathway from Drosophila to human cancers

Researchers at Harvard Medical School (HMS) and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have discovered a new cancer-promoting role for a gene potentially involved in breast, liver, and other kinds of cancers.

8 Aug 2006

Scientists identify gene involved in stem cell self-renewal in planaria

No matter how you slice it, the freshwater planarian possesses an amazing ability to regenerate lost body parts.

7 Aug 2006

Scientists discover two proteins responsible for detecting sour tastes

A team led by Duke University Medical Center researchers has discovered two proteins in the taste buds on the surface of the tongue that are responsible for detecting sour tastes.

7 Aug 2006

Gene defects in young present serious risk from environmental tobacco smoke

The dangers of passive smoking are even more pronounced among young people carrying common gene defects, researchers at the University of Dundee have found.

7 Aug 2006

Researchers discover a cellular signal that aggravates the symptoms of multiple sclerosis

Depression, coordination and speech problems, muscle weakness and disability are just a few of the symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis (MS).

6 Aug 2006

Leukemia gene changes genetic packaging

A signaling system involved in many forms of leukemia and lymphoma is more powerful than scientists have thought, exerting control over our genes by affecting whole swaths of chromosomes in global fashion.

6 Aug 2006

For the first time, scientists watch neurons change in response to experience

Thanks to a new imaging system, researchers at MIT's Picower Institute for Learning and Memory have gotten an unprecedented look into how genes shape the brain in response to the environment.

6 Aug 2006

Actual meal time activates genes in specific brain area

Giving up your regular late-night snack may be hard, and not just because it's a routine.

6 Aug 2006

New way of delivering corrective genes holds promise for hereditary diseases of the heart

A new way of delivering corrective genes with a single injection into a vein holds promise for long-lasting treatments of hereditary diseases of the heart, University of Florida researchers report.

6 Aug 2006

New research may solve problem of vessels re-closing after angioplasty

Through studying pigeons with genetic heart disease, researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine have discovered a clue about why some patients' heart vessels are prone to close back up after angioplasty.

6 Aug 2006

Gene family expansion can begin even before a gene is duplicated

Theoretical biologist Stephen Proulx studies gene families to explore how genomes become diverse and evolve.

6 Aug 2006

Genetics is a very strong component of obesity

Nearly 6 percent of morbidly obese children and adults have a genetic defect that keeps them feeling like their stomach is running on empty, no matter how much they have eaten.

6 Aug 2006

DNA of human embryonic stem cells is chemically modified in a characteristic, predictable pattern

Embryonic stem cells are derived from embryos that are undergoing a period of intense cellular activity, including the chemical addition of methyl groups to specific DNA sequences in a process known as DNA methylation.

6 Aug 2006

Txr1 gene that affects human cancer cells' sensitivity to chemotherapy

Gene that affects human cancer cells' sensitivity to chemotherapy - an important finding in the effort to increase the effectiveness of chemotherapy.

6 Aug 2006

Almost half of kids with ADHD are not being treated

In contrast to claims that children are being overmedicated for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a team of researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has found that a high percentage of kids with ADHD are not receiving treatment.

4 Aug 2006

Researchers identify how molecules of microRNA are responsible for the growth of blood vessels in a model for human colon cancer

The process, called angiogenesis, results in ability of ravenous cancer cells to recruit blood vessels and receive a steady supply of nutrients and oxygen.

4 Aug 2006

Federally approved human embryonic stems inferior to those donated for research

Neural stem cells grown from one of the federally approved human embryonic stem cell lines proved to be inferior to neural stem cells derived from fetal tissue donated for research, a UCLA study has found.

4 Aug 2006

Turning the immune system against cancer

Medicine can now prevent a host of diseases with a mere shot of vaccine. Polio and smallpox are almost non-existent, and mumps and chicken pox are rarely seen nowadays.

4 Aug 2006