Genetics News And Research - April 2009 Archives

Researcher helps develop new technique for modifying plant genes (4/30/2009)

New tool could help provide sustainable food, fuel and fiber ...> Full Article

SUMO protein guides chromatin remodeler to suppress genes (4/28/2009)

Researchers have uncovered a mechanism involved in ensuring that only certain genes are expressed in a specific cell type. This discovery advances the understanding of cancer and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's. ...> Full Article

New cow genome sequence released (4/27/2009)

Scientists from the University of Maryland have published their assembly of the domestic cow (Bos taurus), an important new resource for the genetics community. The new version of the cow genome improves considerably on other assemblies, in terms of both completeness and accuracy. The article describing their research is freely available in BioMed Central's open-access journal Genome Biology. ...> Full Article

Using combinatorial libraries to engineer genetic circuits advances synthetic biology (4/26/2009)

The process of selecting and blending genes to create artificial networks -- synthetic biology -- holds promise for many applications. But developing artificial networks takes time and is often frustrating. A Boston University research team has found a way to speed up the construction process by assembling a library of 20 versions of two gene promoters and a simple synthesis technique to create component libraries for synthetic library. This accessible method using combinatorial libraries removes the "tweaking" of gene network engineering. ...> Full Article

A genomic CluE for cloud computing (4/26/2009)

University of Maryland computer science researchers recently received a grant from the National Science Foundation Cluster Exploratory Program to fund research aimed at discovering how remote cluster computers, computer networks available over the internet, might be used to process DNA sequence data. ...> Full Article

eBay Genome Auction to Benefit The X PRIZE Foundation (4/25/2009)

Charity auction will allow individuals to bid for a whole genome sequencing, analysis, and interpretation service on eBay. ...> Full Article

Research team wins funds to unravel a DNA mystery (4/25/2009)

An international research team headed by two researchers from the University of Adelaide, Australia, has been awarded a $900,000 grant to help unravel the phenomenon of "DNA looping." ...> Full Article

Learning how the pieces responsible for interpreting the human genome work (4/24/2009)

The human genome complete sequencing project in 2003 revealed the enormous instruction manual necessary to define a human being. However, there are still many unanswered questions. There are few indications on where the functional elements are found in this manual. ...> Full Article

New study reveals the protein that makes phosphate chains in yeast (4/24/2009)

Phosphate chains store energy and have many more different functions in a cell ...> Full Article

New insights into how cells change gears (4/23/2009)

Bioinformatics researchers from UC San Diego just moved closer to unlocking the mystery of how human cells switch from "proliferation mode" to "specialization mode." This computational biology work from the Jacobs School of Engineering's bioengineering department could lead to new ideas for curbing unwanted cell proliferation -- including some cancers. This research, published in Nature Genetics, could also improve our understanding of how organs and other complex tissues develop. ...> Full Article

DNA of uncultured organisms sequenced using novel single-cell approach (4/23/2009)

Scientists from the US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute and the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences have assembled high quality, contamination-free draft genomes of uncultured biodegrading microorganisms using a novel single cell genome sequencing approach. This proof of principle study, published in the April 23 edition of the journal PLoS One, offers researchers a new method to access and decipher the information embedded in genomes of interest with only minute quantities of DNA. ...> Full Article

The genetic X-factor (4/22/2009)

Nine new X chromosome genes associated with learning disabilities ...> Full Article

International team cracks mammalian gene control code (4/21/2009)

An international consortium of scientists, including researchers from the University of Queensland, have probed further into the human genome than ever before. ...> Full Article

Chemists' DNA biosynthesis discovery could lead to better antibiotics (4/20/2009)

Combating several human pathogens, including some biological warfare agents, may one day become a bit easier thanks to research reported by a University of Iowa chemist and his colleagues in the April 16 issue of the journal Nature. ...> Full Article

Scientists use RNA to reprogram 1 cell type into another (4/20/2009)

Implications for cell-based personalized therapies for neurodegenerative diseases ...> Full Article

New nucleotide could revolutionize epigenetics (4/19/2009)

The discovery of a new nucleotide in the mouse brain opens the door to a new domain of epigenetic DNA modification ...> Full Article

New book, 'Untangling the Double Helix,' explores enzymes responsible for maintaining genome integrity (4/19/2009)

If it were not for a group of enzymes called topoisomerases, DNA would become a knotted, coiled, dysfunctional mess inside of a cell as it gets twisted, rolled, unzipped and pulled by the cellular machinery that reads and copies its sequence. James C. Wang, the discoverer of the first topoisomerase, has written a book that discusses the history of topoisomerases, their mechanisms of action and their use and potential as therapeutic targets. ...> Full Article

Researchers study signaling networks that set up genetic code (4/18/2009)

In a new study, researchers at the University of Illinois have identified and visualized the signaling pathways in protein-RNA complexes that help set the genetic code in all organisms. The genetic code allows information stored in DNA to be translated into proteins. ...> Full Article

Scientists discover new chemical reaction for DNA production in bacteria and viruses (4/18/2009)

Findings could help lead to development of new antibacterial and antiviral drugs ...> Full Article

The new 'epigenetics:' Poor nutrition in the womb causes permanent genetic changes in the offspring (4/17/2009)

New research explains how poor maternal nutrition passes health risk across generations ...> Full Article

Researchers create novel technique to sequence human genome (4/17/2009)

Physicists at Brown University have developed a novel procedure to map a person's genome. They report in the journal Nanotechnology the first experiment to move a DNA chain through a nanopore using magnets. The approach is promising because it allows multiple segments of a DNA strand to be read simultaneously and accurately. ...> Full Article

Scientists uncover mimicry at the molecular level that protects genome integrity (4/16/2009)

Mimicry is common in nature, where it is used as a key survival mechanism. Now scientists from the Scripps Research Institute have discovered molecular mimicry in a genetic integrity pathway, which is implicated in many human diseases, from cancer to neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Huntington's diseases. ...> Full Article

Cloud computing brings cost of protein research down to Earth (4/15/2009)

Medical College of Wisconsin researchers have developed a set of free tools called ViPDAC (virtual proteomics data analysis cluster), for use in combination with Amazon's inexpensive "cloud computing" service, providing the option to rent processing time on its powerful servers; and free software from the NIH and the University of Manitoba, to put this very expensive and promising field within reach of scientists everywhere. Their paper appears online today, in the Journal of Proteomic Research ...> Full Article

Team identifies key decision-point at which cells with broken DNA repair themselves or die (4/14/2009)

Cells that undergo potentially catastrophic damage must make a decision: either to fix the damage or program themselves for death, a process called apoptosis. CSHL scientists led by Professor Nicholas Tonks have found that the protein Eyes Absent regulates intracellular signals at this decision point to allow the formation of specialized microenvironments on DNA, called gamma-H2A.X foci, which let the cell to summon repair enzymes to the site of broken DNA strands. ...> Full Article

Biologists discover how 'silent' mutations influence protein production (4/13/2009)

University of Pennsylvania biologists have revealed a hidden code that determines the expression level of a gene, providing a way to distinguish efficient genes from inefficient ones. The research involved creating hundreds of synthetic green-glowing genes and provides an explanation for how a cell "knows" how much of each protein to make. ...> Full Article

Researchers explain process by which cells 'hide' potentially dangerous DNA segments (4/13/2009)

Heterochromatin is the super-condensed portion of the cell's genetic material that hides unneeded genes and potentially dangerous DNA sequences such as transposons from the cell's DNA-activating machinery. CSHL scientists led by Dr. Leemor Joshua-Tor have now identified a critical requirement for heterochromatin assembly. They show that it depends on the strength with which a protein called Chp1 binds to a specific site on a histone protein that is attached to the DNA double helix. ...> Full Article

Small RNAs can play critical roles in male infertility/contraception (4/12/2009)

University of Nevada School of Medicine researcher leads important discovery ...> Full Article

Scientists control complex nucleation processes using DNA origami seeds (4/11/2009)

The construction of complex man-made objects -- a car, say, or a pizza -- almost invariably entails "top-down" processes, with the structure of the thing being built imposed from outside. Biological objects instead use a "bottom-up" approach, with order imposed from within the object being made, so it "grows" according to a built-in design. Caltech researchers are now combining bottom-up approaches with molecular fabrication processes to construct nanometer-scale objects from DNA "origami seeds" that essentially assemble themselves. ...> Full Article

Scientists develop method for comprehensive proteome analysis (4/10/2009)

Investigators at Burnham Institute for Medical Research have deciphered a large percentage of the total protein complement (proteome) in Schizosaccharomyces pombe (S. pombe) fission yeast. ...> Full Article

Rhythmic genomics - the yeast metronome and the walk of life (4/9/2009)

New genome sequence information from the humble baker's yeast has revealed surprising variation in a set of genes that can be thought of as nature's oldest clock. In a paper published in Genome Research scientists show how ribosomal RNA genes that are essential to all Earth's organisms provide insight into how genomes maintain their integrity on their evolutionary journey. ...> Full Article

Researchers develop new way to see single RNA molecules inside living cells (4/8/2009)

Biomedical engineers have developed a new type of probe that allows them to visualize single ribonucleic acid molecules within live cells more easily than existing methods. The tool will help scientists learn more about how RNA operates within living cells. ...> Full Article

Scientists to explore deepest mysteries of symbiosis in legumes (4/7/2009)

Scientists from the University of Minnesota hope to better understand the genetics of symbiosis, the process that produces the nitrogen that feeds plants, through a new three-year $5.7 million National Science Foundation grant. ...> Full Article

Chemists create bipedal, autonomous DNA walker (4/6/2009)

Device mimics role of cell's transportation system ...> Full Article

Gene discovery could lead to male contraceptive (4/6/2009)

A newly discovered genetic abnormality that appears to prevent some men from conceiving children could be the key for developing a male contraceptive, according to University of Iowa researchers reporting their findings in the April 2 online edition of the American Journal of Human Genetics. ...> Full Article

Virus battery could power cars, electronic devices (4/5/2009)

For the first time, MIT researchers have shown they can genetically engineer viruses to build both the positively and negatively charged ends of a lithium-ion battery. ...> Full Article

Redefining what it means to be a prion (4/4/2009)

Whitehead Institute researchers have found a large number of new prions, greatly expanding scientists' notion of how important prions might be in normal biology and demonstrating that they play many and varied roles in the inheritance of biological traits. Prions are misfolded proteins that clump together in cells. The most infamous known prion -- PrP -- causes bovine spongiform encephalitis, also known as "mad cow" disease. ...> Full Article

New national genome center to underpin food security and animal health (4/3/2009)

A new national centre to analyse plant, animal and microbial genomes has been announced today by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council. The Genome Analysis Centre will be based on the Norwich Research Park and will provide genome sequencing to underpin advances to improve food security, to protect UK agriculture from exotic animal disease and exploit weaknesses in microbes to develop new ways to kill superbugs. ...> Full Article

Lice genomes: Pieces of a new puzzle (4/2/2009)

Parents and school nurses take note. Lice are a nuisance and vectors of serious diseases, such as epidemic typhus, in developing regions. New research indicates that lice may be quite unique in the animal world. In a study published online in Genome Research, scientists analyzed the mitochondrial genome of the human body louse and discovered that it is fragmented into pieces -- a remarkable finding in animals that will spark discussion about how it evolved. ...> Full Article