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Genetics and Health

Archive for the ‘Genes’ Category

May 29th, 2008

Gene therapy increases survival for head and neck cancer

Thank you to Jennifer Texada at MD Anderson for bringing this great cancer treatment discovery to my attention….
(Image courtesy Introgen Therapeutics)
A gene therapy invented at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center is the first to succeed in a U.S. phase III clinical trial for cancer.  Introgen Therapeutics, Inc a spin out from MD […]

By Elaine -- 1 comment

May 24th, 2008

Infertility, heart disease, osteoporosis and genetic mutations

Mutations in a gene called FIGLA cause premature ovarian failure in at least 1% of women who suffer from the disorder, said researchers from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and Shandong University in China in a report that appears online in the American Journal of Human Genetics. Premature ovarian failure, which means that the ovaries […]

By Elaine -- 1 comment

May 23rd, 2008

Allergies - first born at increased risk

(Image credit www.about.com) 
A University of Carolina study monitoring 1200 newborns from the ‘Isle of Wight cohort’ found that first borns were more likely to carry a gene variant which raised their risk of developing an allergy before the age of 10.  The study suggested that a first born experienced different conditions in the uterus from subsequent siblings.
The […]

By Elaine -- 2 comments

May 21st, 2008

Extinct Tasmanian Tiger DNA ‘resurrected’

 (Tasmanian Tiger - photo credit www.bbc.co.uk/news)
Using transgenic mice, Australian and American researchers have shown that they can “resurrect” a snippet of DNA from the genome of an extinct animal — the Tasmanian tiger — and test its biological function in a living animal.   The last Tasmanian Tiger died in an Australian zoo in 1936 having […]

By Elaine -- 0 comments

May 18th, 2008

Insomnia - body clock ‘reset button’ found

Cambridge University researchers have identified a small molecule that appears to play a major role in making our body clocks tick.  Studies in mice have shown cAMP - a common signalling molecule - is involved in keeping the body clock “rhythms” going (circadian rhythms).
The body’s internal clock is a highly sensitive mechanism able to anticipate changes in the […]

By Elaine -- 0 comments

May 7th, 2008

CFS and ME, Chronic fatigue syndrome - genetic origin not only psychological

(Image source:  www.livingwithcfs.wordpress.com) 
Researchers from St George’s Hospital, University of London have identified a biological basis for 7 different genetic types of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS).
The St George’s study looked at 55 patients from the US and UK with the condition, and carried out a genetic analysis of them and 75 healthy blood donors.
It identified the seven […]

By Elaine -- 0 comments

May 4th, 2008

Osteoporosis - finding the genetic fingerprint

 
Osteoporosis 
(Image source: www.soylabs.com) 
An extensive genome-wide search has been undertaken to find the genes linked to osteoporosis and fracture. Five regions of interest have been identified that appear to warrant further scientific investigation.
The Garvan Institute for Medical Research collaborated with the Icelandic genetics company, deCode, in a project that looked at 1500 women from Garvan’s Dubbo Osteoporosis […]

By Elaine -- 1 comment

April 22nd, 2008

Doggie DNA used to look into human psychiatric problems

 
KQED Public Broadcasting in San Francisco recently did a radio story about the UC San Francisco Canine Behavioral Genetics Project run in collaboration with the University of Pennsylvania. The aims of the project are:
1. To explore the relationship between genes and behavior, both normal and abnormal, in domestic dogs.
2. To assess the amount and nature […]

By Elaine -- 1 comment

April 20th, 2008

Flies get ’sex swap’ from a pulse of light

 Drosophila flies
I just loved this article along with accompanying videos appearing in the BBC news website.
Scientists have managed to give genetically modified fruit flies a sex-change just from a pulse of light to group of 2,000 brain cells responsible for directing courtship displays.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7350403.stm
Oh that it was so easy in humans!
Elaine Warburton  www.geneticsandhealth.com
Tags: , Drosophila, Genes, Genetic […]

By Elaine -- 1 comment

April 20th, 2008

Genetic breakthrough for migraine sufferers

  MRI of a migraine
Migraine is the most common cause of episodic headache, and by far the most common neurological cause of a doctor’s visit. It affects some 15% of the world’s population.
Researchers from Helsinki University, Finland and the Sanger Institute, UK were able for the first time to convincingly demonstrate a genomic locus to be linked to […]

By Elaine -- 0 comments