Genetics News And Research - February 2010 Archives

Genome analysis of marine microbe reveals a metabolic minimalist (2/28/2010)

Flightless birds, blind cave shrimp, and other oddities suggest a "use it or lose it" tendency in evolution. In the microbial world, an unusual marine microorganism appears to have ditched several major metabolic pathways, leaving it with a remarkably reduced set of genes. ...> Full Article

Aphid's genome reflects its reproductive, symbiotic lifestyle (2/27/2010)

The International Aphid Genomics consortium has sequenced the genome of the pea aphid, said Dr. Stephen Richards, assistant professor in the Baylor College of Medicine Human Genome Sequencing Center and leader of the sequencing effort. The consortium released the 464 megabyte draft genome of the pea aphid in the current issue of PLoS Biology . ...> Full Article

The impact of genomics (2/26/2010)

Working with worms may not be your average person's idea of a good time. The benefit to working with the simple creatures is that half the 20,000 genes in a worm are similar to humans, and the way those genes work together also share some similarities with us, says Dr. Fraser. But researchers are able to carry out experiments in worms that they would never be able to attempt in people, he says. ...> Full Article

Study reveals how genes interact with their environment to cause disease (2/25/2010)

A UCLA study reveals how human genes interact with their environment to boost disease risk. Published in the Feb. 18 online edition of the American Journal of Human Genetics, the findings shed light on why the search for specific gene variants linked to human diseases can only partly explain common disorders. ...> Full Article

Researchers chart genomic map spanning over 2 dozen cancers (2/24/2010)

An international team of researchers has created a genome-scale map of 26 different cancers, revealing more than 100 genomic sites where DNA from tumors is either missing or abnormally duplicated compared to normal tissues. The study, the largest of its kind, finds that most of these genetic abnormalities are not unique to one form of cancer, but are shared across multiple cancers. ...> Full Article

Researchers find key interaction that controls telomeres (2/23/2010)

In the dominoes that make up human cells, researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center have traced another step of the process that stops cells from becoming cancerous. ...> Full Article

Southern African genomes sequenced: Benefits for human health expected (2/23/2010)

Human genomes from Southern African Bushmen and a Bantu individual, Archbishop Tutu, have been sequenced by scientists seeking a greater understanding of human genetic variation and its effect on human health. Knowing the full range of human genetic variation is needed in order to learn how genes affect health. The study revealed that, on average, there are more genetic differences between any two Bushmen in the study than between a European and an Asian. ...> Full Article

Random fluctuations give rise to odd genetic phenomenon (2/22/2010)

A team of MIT biophysicists has demonstrated that some cases of incomplete penetrance are controlled by random fluctuations in gene expression. ...> Full Article

Genome sequencing of 3 parasitoid wasp species (2/22/2010)

An international consortium of scientists, including Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona researcher Deodoro Oliveira, have sequenced the genome of three species of parasitoid wasps of the genus Nasonia. The research offers new basic information on the genetic mechanisms of evolution. It is also of great importance for the control of agricultural pests and of insect-borne diseases. ...> Full Article

Low-cost DNA test to pinpoint risk of inherited diseases (2/21/2010)

An inexpensive, fast accurate DNA test that reveals a person's risk of developing certain diseases is expected to become a reality, thanks to technology developed at the University of Edinburgh. ...> Full Article

Genomic warfare to counter malaria drug resistance (2/20/2010)

Scientists battling malaria have earned a major victory. According to a Nature Genetics study, an international group of researchers has used genomics to decode the blueprint of Plasmodium falciparum -- a strain of malaria most resistant to drugs that causes the most deaths around the world. The discovery may lead to advanced pharmaceuticals to fight the disease and prevent drug resistance among the 250 million people infected by malaria each year. ...> Full Article

A common thread links multiple human cognitive disorders (2/19/2010)

A new study reveals that a common underlying mechanism is shared by a group of previously unrelated disorders which all cause complex defects in brain development and function. Now, research, published by Cell Press in the February 16th issue of the journal Developmental Cell, helps to explain why these different chromatin abnormalities all interfere with proper gene expression patterns necessary for normal development and mature brain function. ...> Full Article

Epigenetic signals differ across alleles (2/18/2010)

Researchers from the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, have identified numerous novel regions of the genome where the chemical modifications involved in controlling gene expression are influenced by either genetic variation or the parental origin of that particular stretch of DNA. This contradicts previous assumptions that epigenetic signals are generally equal across both copies of a given region of the genome, except at a small number of known imprinted genes. ...> Full Article

Researchers map all the fragile sites of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae's genome (2/17/2010)

Dr. François Robert, a researcher at the Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal, in collaboration with the team of Dr. Daniel Durocher (Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute and University of Toronto) accomplished a technical breakthrough: they mapped all the fragile sites of a living organism, the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The method used by the researchers can be applied to humans. This study has been published online today Nature Structural and Molecular Biology. ...> Full Article

Scientists develop universal DNA reader to advance faster, cheaper sequencing efforts (2/16/2010)

Arizona State University scientists have come up with a new twist in their efforts to develop a faster and cheaper way to read the DNA genetic code. They have developed the first, versatile DNA reader that can discriminate between DNA's four core chemical components -- the key to unlocking the vital code behind human heredity and health. ...> Full Article

New gene discovery could help to prevent blindness (2/15/2010)

Scientists have uncovered a new gene that could help save the sight of patients with a type of inherited blindness. ...> Full Article

Method of the future uses single-cell imaging to identify gene interactions (2/14/2010)

Cellular imaging offers a wealth of data about how cells respond to stimuli, but harnessing this technique to study biological systems is a daunting challenge. In a study published online in Genome Research, researchers have developed a novel method of interpreting data from single-cell images to identify genetic interactions within biological networks, offering a glimpse into the future of high-throughput cell imaging analysis. ...> Full Article

Comprehensive study using bioinformatics predicts the molecular causes of many genetic diseases (2/13/2010)

It is widely known that genetic mutations cause disease. What are largely unknown are the mechanisms by which these mutations wreak havoc at the molecular level, giving rise to clinically observable symptoms in patients. Now a new study using bioinformatics, led by scientists at the Buck Institute for Age Research, reports the ability to predict the molecular cause of many inherited genetic diseases. These predictions have led to the creation of a web-based tool available to academic researchers who study disease. ...> Full Article

First member of the wheat and barley group of grasses is sequenced (2/12/2010)

A few grass species provide the bulk of our food supply and new grass crops are being domesticated for sustainable energy and feedstock production. However there are significant barriers limiting crop improvement, such as a lack of knowledge of gene function and their large and complex genomes. Now an international consortium present an analysis of the complete genome sequence of the wild grass Brachypodium distachyon. ...> Full Article

Researchers complete the world's first in-depth study of the malaria parasite genome (2/9/2010)

Groundbreaking research done at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University's School of Biological Sciences could lead to the development of more potent drugs or a vaccine for malaria. Assistant Professor Zbynek Bozdech and his team of researchers, including graduate students and post-doctorals from SBS' Division of Genomics & Genetics, have scored a world first in successfully using transcriptional profiling to uncover hitherto unknown gene expression (activity) patterns in malaria. ...> Full Article

Scientists ID a protein that splices and dices genes (2/8/2010)

The discovery reveals that the protein MRG15, which previously had been known to affect cell growth and aging, also directs the gene-splicing machinery. As people or animals age, this machinery can go awry, producing nonsense proteins. The finding thus has potential implications for therapies to treat both cancer and aging. ...> Full Article

Nuclear pore complexes harbor new class of gene regulators (2/7/2010)

Nuclear pore complexes are best known as the communication channels that regulate the passage of all molecules to and from a cell's nucleus. Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, however, have shown that some of the pores' constituent proteins, called nucleoporins, pull double duty as transcription factors regulating the activity of genes active during early development. ...> Full Article

Scientists map epigenome of human stem cells during development (2/6/2010)

Singapore and US scientists have mapped major components of the epigenome and DNA methylation for the entire human DNA sequence, and compared three cell types representing three stages of human development. ...> Full Article

Mechanical forces could affect gene expression (2/5/2010)

University of Michigan researchers have shown that tension on DNA molecules can affect gene expression -- the process at the heart of biological function that tells a cell what to do. ...> Full Article

Epigenetics could help researchers determine any risks associated with low-dose radiation (2/4/2010)

There remains a lack of consensus amongst the medical and scientific communities about any cancer risk from low level radiation, particularly low-dose radiation delivered from computed tomography (CT) scans. However, the study of epigenetics may play a role in determining whether or not future trends of diseases can in fact be linked to utilization of CT, according to an article in the February issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology. ...> Full Article

Gene function discovery: Guilt by association (2/3/2010)

Scientists have created a new computational model that can be used to predict gene function of uncharacterized plant genes with unprecedented speed and accuracy. The network, dubbed AraNet, has over 19,600 genes associated to each other by over 1 million links and can increase the discovery rate of new genes affiliated with a given trait tenfold. It is a huge boost to fundamental plant biology and agricultural research. ...> Full Article

Researchers decode transcriptome for gray mullet (2/2/2010)

The Cell Biology in Environmental Toxicology research team at the Department of Zoology and Animal Cell Biology at the University of the Basque Country has decoded the transcriptome for the gray mullet. The director of the research project was Mr Ibon Cancio. ...> Full Article

Are new genes always better? (2/1/2010)

Revegetation seems like a beneficial strategy for conserving and restoring damaged ecosystems, and using a variety of species can help increase biodiversity in these systems. But what risks are involved with introducing seeds from other locations to plants located near the damaged site? When new, foreign genes are introduced to a damaged site, neighboring populations may experience initial negative effects; however, over time, the negative effects may diminish and the maladapted foreign genes will decrease. ...> Full Article