by Bob Shepard, University of Alabama at Birmingham It was a pretty simple e-mail. Just a couple of lines. “It looks like low-dose ketamine is an up-regulator for ADNP. Do you think this makes sense for ADNP patients?” Matt Might sent that e-mail to Matt Davis on Feb. 18, 2019. Might is the director of...
Category: <span>Genetics</span>
Scientists uncover a gene that doubles the risk of developing several neurodegenerative diseases
by HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology Richard M. Myers, PhD, and Nicholas Cochran, PhD, in the Myers Lab at HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology. Credit: HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology Scientists at the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), and the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), have identified a new risk factor...
Scientists recreate DNA damage caused by toxins from smoking
CREDIT: PHIL ROBERTS Researchers from the University of York have recreated how toxins from smoking cause unique patterns of DNA damage. The discovery could help scientists better understand the cause of bladder cancer and the link to smoking. The causes of bladder cancer remain largely unknown, however smoking is seen as the main risk factor...
Scientists explore links between genetics, gut microbiome and memory
A new study is among the first to trace the molecular connections between genetics, the gut microbiome and memory in a mouse model bred to resemble the diversity of the human population. While tantalizing links between the gut microbiome and brain have previously been found, a team of researchers from two U.S. Department of Energy...
New MDS subtype proposed based on presence of genetic mutation
In a special report published today in the journal Blood, an international working group of experts in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) proposes – for the first time – the recognition of a distinct subtype of MDS based on the presence of a nonheritable genetic mutation that causes the disease. The mutation is found in approximately one...
Researchers uncover genetic cause behind glaucoma
by Queen Mary, University of London Acute angle closure glaucoma of the right eye (intraocular pressure was 42 in the right eye). Credit: James Heilman, MD/Wikipedia New research has identified a genetic mutation linked to a type of glaucoma, known as primary angle-closure glaucoma (PACG), which could open up new avenues for the early detection...
New approach to curing HIV
New treatment method being tested in clinical study. Hamburg-based researchers are seeking to improve future treatment of HIV patients using a new gene and cell method. Under the umbrella of Hamburg biotech startup Provirex, they are developing a new therapeutic approach that uses ‘gene scissors’ to cut out the blueprint of the AIDS pathogen HIV...
A small piece of genetic material could be key to diagnosing, treating high blood pressure
by University of Glasgow A small piece of genetic material could hold the key to diagnosing and treating high blood pressure earlier, according to new research by scientists at the University of Glasgow, who found that a small piece of genetic material could explain why arteries become increasingly stiff (which happens in high blood pressure)...
Specific gene predicts higher chance of surviving prostate cancer
by Johannes Angerer, Medical University of Vienna According to Statistics Austria about 5,600 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer in Austria every year, meaning it accounts for roughly a quarter of all cancers in men. For some the cancer develops slowly and requires minimal treatment, but others have aggressive forms of the disease which progress...
High-Throughput Method Speeds Discovery of Improved Vectors For Gene Delivery To Diverse Brain Cell Types
by Lori Dajose Viruses are nature’s Trojan horses: They gain entrance to cells, smuggle in their genetic material, and use the cell’s own machinery to replicate. For decades, scientists have studied how to minimize their deleterious effects and even repurpose these invaders to deliver not their own viral genome, but therapeutics for treating disease and...