Genetics News

Research on a "brain-eating tribe" may hold the key to understanding and even treating mad cow disease, according to The Daily Telegraph.

Scientists have long known that the offspring of two inbred strains tend to be superior to both their parents.

Main Category: Genetics Also Included In: Neurology / Neuroscience Article Date: 20 Nov 2009 - 1:00 PST An analysis of patients with a syndrome similar to the genetic disorder, neurofibromatosis type 1, indicates that diagnosis may be difficult because of shared clinical findings, such as certain pigmentary characteristics, according to a study in ...

Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center and VCU Institute of Molecular Medicine researchers have identified a gene that may play a pivotal role in two processes that are essential for tumor development, growth and progression to metastasis.

For the first time, scientists have successfully used a method called exome sequencing to quickly discover a previously unknown gene responsible for a mendelian disorder.

A new study of maize has identified thousands of diverse genes in genetically inaccessible portions of the genome.

Iceland's Decode Genetics Inc, a pioneer in genetic research, has filed for bankruptcy protection, weighed down by debts after 13 years of failing to make a profit.

Context Autosomal dominant inactivating sprouty-related EVH1 domain-containing protein 1 mutations have recently been described in individuals presenting mainly with caf au lait macules , axillary freckling, and macrocephaly.

Risk of bladder cancer for smokers has increased since the mid-1990s, with a risk progressively increasing to a level five times higher among current smokers in New Hampshire than that among nonsmokers in 2001-2004, according to a new study published online November 16 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute .

Gene mutations linked to inherited Parkinson's disease also appear to be connected to the more common form of the disease that strikes people whose relatives don't have it, researchers now say.

In the largest, most comprehensive genetic analysis of childhood-onset inflammatory bowel disease , an international research team has identified five new gene regions, including one involved in a biological pathway that helps drive the painful inflammation of the digestive tract that characterizes the disease.

Investigators at Burnham Institute for Medical Research , the University of British Columbia's Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics and the University of California, San Diego have found that normal synaptic activity in nerve cells protects the brain from the misfolded proteins associated with Huntington's disease.

Main Category: Infectious Diseases / Bacteria / Viruses Also Included In: Genetics ; Biology / Biochemistry Article Date: 14 Nov 2009 - 2:00 PST Cooperation is seen in every corner of life from microbes to humans, many times with no obvious advantages to those that provide it at high costs.

Myriad Pharmaceuticals Inc. on Friday reported a smaller fiscal first-quarter loss on lower research costs after the company was spun off from Myriad Genetics Inc.

Main Category: Cancer / Oncology Also Included In: Genetics ; Conferences ; Biology / Biochemistry Article Date: 12 Nov 2009 - 5:00 PST Phillip A. Sharp, a world leader of research in molecular biology and biochemistry and an institute professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has been named winner of the American Society for ...

The seeming invincibility of cancerous tumors may be crumbling, thanks to a promising new gene therapy that eliminates the ability of certain cells to repair themselves.

While normal human ACVR1 can rescue the altered developmental pattern of a zebrafish embryo lacking the zebrafish ACVR1 gene, the mutated FOP version of ACVR1 over-compensates for the lack of... PHILADELPHIA - An international team of scientists, led by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, is taking the first step in ...

Main Category: Cancer / Oncology Also Included In: Genetics ; Biology / Biochemistry ; Breast Cancer Article Date: 11 Nov 2009 - 6:00 PST Researchers at Queen's University have found a link between two genes involved in cancer formation in humans, by examining the genes in worms.

When mutated, FOXP2 can disrupt speech and language in humans. Now, a UCLA/Emory study reveals major differences between how the human and chimp versions of FOXP2 work, perhaps explaining why language is unique to humans.

The Academy of Medical Sciences has launched a new study to examine the use of animals containing human material in scientific research.