Genetics News And Research - August 2011 Archives

Scientists receive grant to develop new DNA sequencing method (8/31/2011)

A new method of single molecule DNA sequencing is being developed by scientists at the University of Southampton. ...> Full Article

At last, a reason why stress causes DNA damage (8/30/2011)

For years, researchers have published papers that associate chronic stress with chromosomal damage. Now researchers at Duke University Medical Center have discovered a mechanism that helps to explain the stress response in terms of DNA damage. ...> Full Article

Physicist helps uncover new data on adenine, a crucial building block of life (8/29/2011)

A University of Georgia physicist and a collaborator in Germany have shown that one of the building blocks of DNA and RNA, adenine, has an unexpectedly variable range of ionization energies along its reaction pathways. ...> Full Article

Biomedical research gets its head into cloud computing (8/28/2011)

Cloud computing is a term used to describe a system that allows easy access to a shared pool of resources. The "cloud" acts like a virtual supercomputer that can pull together a cluster of other computers to work together to perform certain tasks. The system works well when the data that are being stored, accessed and shared are in common formats that are universally "recognized" by end user tools. But research data are often not captured or stored in formats that are compatible. ...> Full Article

23andMe replicates over 180 genetic associations with Web-based research platform (8/27/2011)

23andMe Inc. has replicated over 180 genetic associations from a list of 400 curated by the National Human Genome Research Institute's Office of Population Genomics ("GWAS Catalog") demonstrating that self-reported medical data is effective and reliable to validate known genetic associations. The results, available online in the journal PLoS ONE reported genetic associations for 50 different conditions in more than 20,000 individuals of European descent. ...> Full Article

Fishing games gone wrong (8/26/2011)

When an egg cell is being formed, the cellular machinery which separates chromosomes is extremely imprecise at fishing them out of the cell's interior, scientists at EMBL Heidelberg have discovered. The findings, published in Cell, could explain why errors in the number of chromosomes in the egg cell are the leading cause of miscarriages and severe congenital diseases like Down's syndrome, as well as causing female infertility. ...> Full Article

Mutant gene identified that causes abnormal chromosome count, leading to cancer (8/26/2011)

Cells with too few or too many chromosomes have long been known to be a hallmark of cancer -- but the cause of this abnormal number of chromosomes has been little understood. Now, in the Aug. 19 issue of Science, researchers at the Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, a part of Georgetown University Medical Center, have identified a gene that is commonly mutated in human cancers and have demonstrated its direct role in causing aneuploidy, an abnormal number of chromosomes. ...> Full Article

B chromosomes affect sex determination in cichlid fishes (8/25/2011)

B chromosomes have a functional effect on sex determination in a species of cichlid fishes from Lake Victoria, according to a study by Japanese researchers to be published in open-access journal PLoS Genetics on Aug. 18, 2011. The researchers found sex-ratio distortions caused by B chromosomes in the breeding line of the cichlids, as well as several protein-coding genes in the B chromosomes. The resultant ratio was female biased, suggesting a role for B chromosomes in female sex determination. ...> Full Article

The first kangaroo genome sequence (8/24/2011)

Kangaroos form an important niche in the tree of life, but until now their DNA had never been sequenced. In an article newly published in BioMed Central's open access journal Genome Biology, an international consortium of researchers present the first kangaroo genome sequence -- that of the tammar wallaby species -- and find hidden in their data the gene that may well be responsible for the kangaroo's characteristic hop. ...> Full Article

DNA construction software saves time, resources and money (8/24/2011)

Berkeley Lab scientists have developed the first software package for automating DNA construction that not only makes the process faster and more efficient but -- with an eye on the economics of scientific discovery -- also identifies which construction strategy would be the most cost-effective. ...> Full Article

Biologists' discovery may force revision of biology textbooks (8/23/2011)

Basic biology textbooks may need a bit of revising now that biologists at UC San Diego have discovered a never-before-noticed component of our basic genetic material. ...> Full Article

Stress can affect future offspring (8/23/2011)

Rats exposed to stress during early development inherit the effects of that stress to their offspring, largely expressed in behavior impairments but also characteristics of resilience, shows a new study from the University of Haifa, published in "Developmental Psychobiology". Providing environmental enrichment to the future mother rats had a remedial role on some of the negative effects. "The similarities between rats and humans raise the question of whether similar effects might transpire in humans." ...> Full Article

Single, key gene discovery could streamline production of biofuels (8/22/2011)

A team of researchers at the Department of Energy's BioEnergy Science Center (BESC) have pinpointed the exact, single gene that controls ethanol production capacity in a microorganism. This discovery could be the missing link in developing biomass crops that produce higher concentrations of ethanol at lower costs. ...> Full Article

Researchers reveal a new mechanism of genomic instability (8/22/2011)

Researchers at NYU School of Medicine have discovered the cellular mechanisms that normally generate chromosomal breaks in bacteria such as E. coli. The study's findings are published in the August 18 issue of the journal Cell. ...> Full Article

Researchers first to discover new genetic clue in the development of rheumatoid arthritis (8/21/2011)

Scientists at Mount Sinai Hospital, in collaboration with researchers at the University of Toronto, University Health Network and McGill University have obtained significant new insights into the causes of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and other autoimmune disorders including type 1 diabetes, lupus and Graves disease. The findings represent a key initial step in realizing the full potential of genomics and personalized medicine. The study was published Aug. 14 in Nature Genetics. ...> Full Article

Scientists copy the ways viruses deliver genes (8/20/2011)

Scientists at the National Physical Laboratory have mimicked the ways viruses infect human cells and deliver their genetic material. The research hopes to apply the approach to gene therapy -- a therapeutic strategy to correct defective genes such as those that cause cancer. ...> Full Article

National Center for Systems Biology to be established at Medical College (8/19/2011)

The Medical College of Wisconsin has received a five-year, $13 million grant to establish a National Center for Systems Biology. Daniel Beard, Ph.D., professor of physiology and member of the Biotechnology and Bioengineering Center, is the Principal Investigator for the grant. ...> Full Article

Genomewide mapping reveals developmental and environmental impacts (8/19/2011)

Complex traits that help plants adapt to environmental challenges are likely influenced by variations in thousands of genes that are affected by both the plant's growth and the external environment, reports a team of researchers at UC Davis. ...> Full Article

New resource to unlock the role of microRNAs (8/18/2011)

The first mammalian microRNA knockout resource -- mirKO -- will be released. This research toolbox of mutant mouse ES cells, in which individual or clustered groups of microRNA genes have been deleted, will help researchers define the role of microRNAs in health and disease. Using these tools researchers can create cells or mice lacking specific microRNAs, study expression using fluorescent markers, or inactivate the gene in specific tissues or at specific times in development. ...> Full Article

How yeast chromosomes avoid the bad breaks (8/17/2011)

Whitehead Institute researchers have discovered how yeast cells protect themselves against a novel type of chromosome fragility that occurs in repeated DNA during meiosis -- the cell division that produces spores in fungi or eggs and sperm in plants and animals. ...> Full Article

NASA researchers: DNA building blocks can be made in space (8/16/2011)

NASA-funded researchers have evidence that some building blocks of DNA, the molecule that carries the genetic instructions for life, found in meteorites were likely created in space. The research gives support to the theory that a "kit" of ready-made parts created in space and delivered to Earth by meteorite and comet impacts assisted the origin of life. ...> Full Article

The complete sequencing of genomes of 4 important representative species in Inner Mongolia, China (8/15/2011)

Inner Mongolia Agricultural University and BGI, the world's largest genomics organization, jointly announced the complete sequencing of genomes of four important representative species in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China. They are Mongolian sheep, Alxa Bactrian camel, Mongolian horse and Mongolian cattle. ...> Full Article

Scholar leads effort to reform genetics instruction (8/14/2011)

Most middle-schoolers struggle to grasp the introductory concepts of genetics, a field of study considered crucial to advancing solutions to health problems and disease such as cancer, according to a study led by a Michigan State University researcher. ...> Full Article

Disappearance of genetic material allows tumor cells to grow (8/13/2011)

Scientists in Germany have succeeded in proving a specific gene loss in a certain human lymphoma, the genesis of which is largely unexplained to date. They investigated the Sezary syndrome, an aggressive cancer disease from the group of primary skin lymphomas. The results of the study, provide fundamentally new insights into the genesis and development of Sezary syndrome and possibly other human lymphomas as well. ...> Full Article

Elsevier introduces Genome Viewer (8/12/2011)

Elsevier, a world-leading provider of scientific, technical and medical information products and services, introduces the Genome Viewer, a new interactive feature on SciVerse ScienceDirect for applicable life sciences journals. The Genome Viewer is a SciVerse application that displays detailed gene or genomic sequence information on the genes mentioned in an article. ...> Full Article

Breakthrough lights way for RNA discoveries (8/11/2011)

The ability to tag proteins with a green fluorescent light to watch how they behave inside cells so revolutionized the understanding of protein biology that it earned the scientific teams who developed the technique Nobel Prizes in 2008. Now, researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College have developed a similar fluorescent tool that can track the mysterious workings of the various forms of cellular RNA. ...> Full Article

Genetically engineered spider silk for gene therapy (8/11/2011)

Genetically engineered spider silk could help overcome a major barrier to the use of gene therapy in everyday medicine, according to a new study that reported development and successful initial laboratory tests of such a material. It appears in ACS' journal Bioconjugate Chemistry. ...> Full Article

Scripps Research scientist identifies critical role for night blindness gene (8/11/2011)

A scientist from the Florida campus of the Scripps Research Institute has determined how a particular gene makes night vision possible ...> Full Article

The machinery for recombination is part of the chromosome structure (8/10/2011)

During the development of gametes, such as egg and sperm cells in humans, chromosomes are broken and rearranged at many positions. Using state of the art technology, the research group of Franz Klein, professor for genetics at the Max F. Perutz Laboratories of the University of Vienna, has analyzed this process at high resolution. The surprising observations regarding the mechanism of meiosis are now published in the scientific top journal, Cell. ...> Full Article

Elusive prey (8/10/2011)

New research by scientists at the University of Massachusetts Medical School published this week in Current Biology offers evidence that for the first time illuminates a biological and ecological path that links genes to molecule to neural circuit to behavior to environment. ...> Full Article

Researchers create more powerful 'lab-on-a-chip' for genetic analysis (8/9/2011)

UBC researchers have invented a silicone chip that could make genetic analysis far more sensitive, rapid, and cost-effective by allowing individual cells to fall into place like balls in a pinball machine. The device -- about the size of a nine-volt battery -- allows scientists to simultaneously analyze 300 cells individually by routing fluid carrying cells through microscopic tubes and valves. By facilitating such "single-cell analysis," the device could accelerate genetic research and hasten the use of far more detailed tests for diagnosing cancer. ...> Full Article

Illuminating life: How RNA, after a century in the shadows, emerged into the spotlight (8/8/2011)

In a new book, "RNA: Life's Indispensable Molecule," James Darnell provides the first comprehensive account of the history of RNA research from the perspective of his own distinguished, 50-year career at the forefront of the field. This new book will appeal not only to working RNA biologists but also to students and their teachers. The book has just been released by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press. ...> Full Article

Mitochondrial genome mutates when reprogrammed (8/7/2011)

Max Planck researchers encounter genetic changes in the genome of the cellular power plants of human induced pluripotent stem cells. ...> Full Article

Refocusing the boom in biomarker research (8/6/2011)

An article in the current edition of Chemical & Engineering News, ACS's weekly news magazine, describes the trials, tribulations, and triumphs of one of the hottest pursuits in modern biomedical science -- the search for "biomarkers" that could greatly improve the diagnosis of disease and efforts to monitor the effectiveness of treatment. ...> Full Article

New strategy to uncover structural variations of human genomes (8/5/2011)

The study on single-nucleotide resolution structural variations of an Asian and African genome was published online in Nature Biotechnology. This study was performed by BGI (previously known as the Beijing Genomics Institute), the largest genomics organization in the world, and demonstrates that whole genome de novo assembly could serve as a new solution for developing a more comprehensive SV map of individuals. ...> Full Article

Some plants duplicate their DNA to overcome adversity (8/5/2011)

Whatever does not kill a plant may actually make it stronger. After being partially eaten by grazing animals, for example, some plants grow bigger and faster and reproduce more successfully than they otherwise would. In a new study, researchers report that one secret to these plants' post-traumatic triumph lies in their ability to duplicate their chromosomes -- again and again -- without undergoing cell division. ...> Full Article

Pocket chemistry: DNA helps glucose meters measure more than sugar (8/4/2011)

Glucose meters aren't just for diabetics anymore. Thanks to University of Illinois chemists, they can be partnered with functional DNA sensors as simple, portable, inexpensive meters for a number of target molecules in blood, serum, water or food. The researchers demonstrated using functional DNA with glucose meters to detect cocaine, the disease marker interferon, adenosine and uranium. The two-step method could be used to detect any kind of molecule that a functional DNA or RNA can bind. ...> Full Article

Chromosome number changes in yeast (8/3/2011)

Researchers from Trinity College Dublin have uncovered the evolutionary mechanisms that have caused increases or decreases in the numbers of chromosomes in a group of yeast species during the last 100-150 million years. The study, to be published on July 21 in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics, offers an unprecedented view of chromosome complement (chromosome number) changes in a large group of related species. ...> Full Article

Software helps synthetic biologists customize protein production (8/2/2011)

A software program developed by a Penn State synthetic biologist could provide biotechnology companies with genetic plans to help them turn bacteria into molecular factories, capable of producing everything from biofuels to medicine. ...> Full Article

Gene therapy delivered once to blood vessel wall protects against atherosclerosis in rabbit studies (8/2/2011)

Using a gene delivery vehicle called HDAd researchers induced prolonged, stable expression of a therapeutic gene in the carotid artery wall in rabbits. The transgenes' production of apoA-1 in the cells lining the artery wall significantly retards atherosclerosis. ApoA-1 pumps bad cholesterol out of cells that form plaques. The vector didn't produce an immune response, and was placed in long-living arterial wall cells. Both account for longevity of apoA-1 production. ...> Full Article

Scientists identify molecular basis for DNA breakage (8/1/2011)

Scientists from the Hebrew University have identified the molecular basis for DNA breakage, a hallmark of cancer cells. The findings of this research have just been published in the journal Molecular Cell. ...> Full Article