Human Genome
New genes identified linked to lung cancerWorking as part of a multi-institutional collaboration, scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have assembled the most complete catalog to date of the genetic changes underlying the most common form of lung cancer.
Gene found responsible for smoking habitAnyone who has ever tried smoking probably remembers that first cigarette vividly. For some, it brought a wave of nausea or a nasty coughing fit. For others, those first puffs also came with a rush of pleasure or "buzz."
Chromosomal changes increase schizophrenia riskPeople with schizophrenia (mental illness variously affecting behavior, thinking, and emotion) have an increased number of unusual chromosomal changes, particularly structural changes that have the potential to alter the function of the genes.
International Cancer Genome Consortium sets sights on cancerThe International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC), which includes the Wellcome Trust and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in the UK, will generate a valuable resource enabling the development of new and better ways of diagnosing, treating and preventing cancer.
Gene variant CHI3L1 increases risk of asthmaA tiny variation in a gene known as CHI3L1 increases susceptibility to asthma, bronchial hyperresponsiveness and decline in lung function, researchers report early online in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Conservation of genes may stop agingA study published online in Genome Research provides new insight into the evolutionary conservation of the genes and pathways associated with aging. This report describes the identification of conserved aging-related genes in simple model organisms that may lead to the characterization of similar genes playing a role in human aging and age-associated diseases.
Race differences affect response to drugs and infectionsDifferences in gene expression levels between people of European versus African ancestry can affect how each group responds to certain drugs or fights off specific infections, report researchers from the University of Chicago Medical Center and the Expression Research Laboratory at Affymetrix Inc. of Santa Clara, CA.
New chemical tool kit reveals insights into drug toxicityWhy do nearly 1 million people taking cholesterol-lowering statins often experience muscle cramps? Why is it that in the rare case when a diabetic takes medication for intestinal worms, his glucose levels improve? Is there any scientific basis for the purported health effects of green tea?
Improving the safety testing of chemicalsTesting the safety of chemicals ranging from pesticides to household cleaners will benefit from new technologies and a plan for collaboration, according to federal scientists from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), who announced a new toxicity testing agreement.
7 new prostate cancer genetic risk factors identified7 new sites in the human genome identified that are linked to men's risk of developing prostate cancer, revealed by Cancer Research UK funded scientists at the Institute of Cancer Research and University of Cambridge.
Genes linked with lupus giving hope for new treatmentsScientists have identified a number of genes involved in Lupus, a devastating autoimmune disease, in new research published today in the journal Nature Genetics. In an international genetic study of more than 3,000 women, researchers found evidence of an association between Lupus (systemic lupus erythematosus or SLE) and mutations in several different genes.
1000 Genomes Project to support disease studiesAn international research consortium announced the 1000 Genomes Project, an ambitious effort that will involve sequencing the genomes of at least a thousand people from around the world to create the most detailed and medically useful picture to date of human genetic variation.
Studies highlight MRSA evolution and resilienceCommunity-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) infections are caused primarily by a single strain-USA300-of an evolving bacterium that has spread with "extraordinary transmissibility" throughout the United States during the past five years, according to a new study led by National Institutes of Health (NIH) scientists. CA-MRSA, an emerging public health concern, typically causes readily treatable soft-tissue infections such as boils, but also can lead to life-threatening conditions that are difficult to treat.