Genetics News And Research - November 2011 Archives

Gene impedes recovery from alcoholism (11/30/2011)

People who are alcohol-dependent and who also carry a particular variant of a gene run an increased risk of premature death. This is a recent finding from the interdisciplinary research at the Department of Psychology and the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. ...> Full Article

Study of smoking twins points to growing influence of genetic factors (11/29/2011)

A new study of twins led by the University of Colorado Boulder shows that today's smokers are more strongly influenced by genetic factors than in the past and that the influence makes it more difficult for them to quit. ...> Full Article

Finger (mal)formation reveals surprise function of desert DNA (11/29/2011)

Scientists from the EPFL and the University of Geneva have discovered a genetic mechanism that defines the shape of our members in which, surprisingly, genes play only a secondary role. The research shows the mechanism is found in a DNA sequence that was thought, incorrectly, to play no role. This long string has seven enhancers which, when combined with one another, modulate the activity of the genes responsible for the formation of the fingers. ...> Full Article

Salmon genome in final phases of completion (11/28/2011)

The International Cooperation to Sequence the Atlantic Salmon Genome has awarded the Phase II contract for next-generation sequencing and analysis of the Atlantic salmon genome to the J. Craig Venter Institute in Rockville, Md. This effort is expected to generate a high-quality resource for those responsible for the management of wild salmon stocks and the salmon aquaculture industry, as well as providing a reference genome for work with other salmonids. ...> Full Article

Genome sequence sheds new light on how plants evolved nitrogen-fixing symbioses (11/28/2011)

The genome of Medicago, a close relative of alfalfa and a long-established model for the study of legume biology, has been sequenced by an international team of scientists, capturing around 94 percent of its genes. The research gives new insights into the evolution of nitrogen fixing symbioses. The scientists also found more resistance genes than in any other plant genome to date. ...> Full Article

Chinese genomics giant BGI releases latest bioinformatics software and datasets (11/27/2011)

BGI, the world's largest genomic organization, announces several bioinformatics analysis pipelines and software, including assembly and binning tools, genetic variation software, as well as two cloud-based green solutions for genomic-based research. ...> Full Article

Genetic screening in yeast reveals new candidate gene for Lou Gehrig's disease (11/26/2011)

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a universally fatal neurodegenerative disease. Mutations in two related proteins, TDP-43 and FUS, cause some forms of ALS. Specifically, these two proteins are RNA-binding proteins that connect to RNA to regulate the translation of proteins and other cellular functions such as RNA splicing and editing. Researchers discovered additional human genes with properties similar to TDP-43 and FUS that might also contribute to ALS. ...> Full Article

Tweaking a gene makes muscles twice as strong (11/24/2011)

A team of researchers at EPFL, the University of Lausanne and the Salk Institute created super strong, marathon mice and nematodes by reducing the function of a natural inhibitor, suggesting treatments for age-related or genetically caused muscle degeneration are within reach. ...> Full Article

Non-coding RNA relocates genes when it's time to go to work (11/23/2011)

Cells develop and thrive by turning genes on and off as needed in a precise pattern, a process known as regulated gene transcription. In a paper published in the Nov. 9 issue of the Journal of Neuroscience, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine say this process is even more complex than previously thought, with regulated genes actually relocated to other, more conducive places in the cell nucleus. ...> Full Article

How the fly flies (11/23/2011)

Max Planck scientists discover gene switch responsible for flight muscle formation. ...> Full Article

Psychology professors study gene-culture interaction (11/22/2011)

Two psychologists at UC Santa Barbara have provided a new twist on the old adage that people are products of both nature and nurture, in introducing a framework for understanding how these influences interact. The researchers are studying how genotypes (nature) can express themselves differently as a function of culture (nurture). Their findings appear in the current issue of the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science. ...> Full Article

Galaxy DNA-analysis software is now available 'in the cloud' (11/21/2011)

Galaxy -- an open-source, web-based platform for data-intensive biomedical and genetic research -- is now available as a "cloud computing" resource. The new technology will help scientists and biomedical researchers to harness such tools as DNA-sequencing and analysis software, as well as storage capacity for large quantities of scientific data. ...> Full Article

Forest Service part of team sequencing 1,000 fungal genomes (11/20/2011)

A 79-year-old collection of fungal cultures and the US Forest Service's Northern Research Station are part of a team that will sequence 1,000 fungal genomes in the next 5 years. ...> Full Article

'Noise' tunes logic circuit made from virus genes (11/19/2011)

Scientists are relying on "noise" -- random system fluctuations -- to control a biological logic device made from a network of engineered virus genes. ...> Full Article

Molecular corkscrew (11/18/2011)

Scientists from the universities of Zurich and Duisburg-Essen have discovered a specific function of the protein p97/VCP. They demonstrate that the protein repairs DNA breaks like a corkscrew, a repair mechanism that could also prove significant for cancer therapy. ...> Full Article

UMMS researchers identify epigenetic signatures of autism (11/17/2011)

Scientists at UMass Medical School are the first to map epigenetic changes in neurons from the brains of individuals with autism, providing empirical evidence that epigenetic alterations -- changes in gene expression caused by mechanisms other than changes in the underlying DNA sequence -- may play an important role in the disease. Analysis of these variations revealed hundreds of genetic sites that overlap with many of the genetic regions known to confer risk for Autism Spectrum Disorders. ...> Full Article

ICRISAT-led team cracks pigeonpea genome (11/16/2011)

Once referred to as an "orphan crop" mainly grown by poor farmers, pigeonpea is now set to join the world's league of major food crops with the completion of its genome sequence. ...> Full Article

Biotech start-up brings DNA-sequencing to the medical market (11/15/2011)

What started back in 2004 as a three-person start-up may well be on its way to becoming a multi-million euro success story. Advanced by a team of young Dutch scientists pushing disruptive biotech innovations onto the market, the SME FlexGen is attracting the attention of some key investors and demonstrating the added value that public support can offer to innovative SMES, with the Eurostars funding program leading the way. ...> Full Article

Discovery of therapeutic peptides affecting mitochondria (11/15/2011)

In 2010, after more than 10 years of basic research, Dr. Peter W. Schiller, a world-renowned peptide chemist and Director of the Chemical Biology and Peptide research unit at the Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal, and his international collaborators were the listed inventors on two US patents awarded to the institute and covering different uses of a unique class of peptide compounds initially synthesized in Dr. Schiller's laboratory at the IRCM. ...> Full Article

Researchers create first of its kind gene map of sulfate-reducing bacterium (11/14/2011)

Critical genetic secrets of a bacterium that holds potential for removing toxic and radioactive waste from the environment have been revealed in a study led by Berkeley Lab researchers. The researchers have created a first-of-its-kind gene map of Desulfovibrio vulgaris, which can be used to identify the genes that determine how these bacteria interact with their surrounding environment. ...> Full Article

Gene discovered as cause of fatal condition (11/14/2011)

Medical scientists have for the first time identified a gene responsible for a fatal abdominal condition that afflicts tens of thousands of people across the world. ...> Full Article

Chromosome centromeres are inherited epigenetically (11/13/2011)

The histone protein CenH3 is both necessary and sufficient to trigger the formation of centromeres and pass them on from one generation to the next ...> Full Article

Scientists discover how daughter cells receive the same number of chromosomes (11/12/2011)

Scientists at Warwick Medical School, UK, have uncovered the molecular process of how cells are bypassing the body's inbuilt "health checkpoint" with unequal numbers of chromosomes that have a higher risk of developing cancer. ...> Full Article

Pairing up: How chromosomes find each other (11/11/2011)

After more than a century of study, mysteries still remain about the process of meiosis -- a special type of cell division that helps insure genetic diversity in sexually reproducing organisms. Now, researchers at Stowers Institute for Medical Research shed light on an early and critical step in meiosis. ...> Full Article

Our brains are made of the same stuff, despite DNA differences (11/10/2011)

Despite vast differences in the genetic code across individuals and ethnicities, the human brain shows a "consistent molecular architecture," say researchers. The finding is from a pair of studies that have created databases revealing when and where genes turn on and off in multiple brain regions through development. They reveal that rapid gene expression during fetal development switches to much slower rates after birth, levels off in middle age, and surges in the final decades. ...> Full Article

Easily 're-programmable cells' could be key in creation of new life forms (11/9/2011)

Scientists at the University of Nottingham are leading an ambitious research project to develop an in vivo biological cell-equivalent of a computer operating system. ...> Full Article

New drug targets revealed from giant parasitic worm genome sequence (11/9/2011)

Scientists have identified the genetic blueprint of the giant intestinal roundworm, Ascaris suum, revealing potential targets to control the devastating parasitic disease, ascariasis which affects more than one billion people in China, South East Asia, South America and parts of Africa, killing thousands of people annually and causing chronic effects in young children. ...> Full Article

Discovery of new gene could improve efficiency of molecular factories (11/8/2011)

The discovery of a new gene is helping researchers at Michigan State University envision more-efficient molecular factories of the future. ...> Full Article

Researchers discover complexities of DNA repair (11/8/2011)

An international team of scientists led by UC Davis researchers has discovered that DNA repair in cancer cells is not a one-way street as previously believed. ...> Full Article

UC Davis and BGI announce partnership to establish state-of-the-art genome center in Sacramento (11/7/2011)

UC Davis, and BGI have signed a historic agreement that will change the landscape of genomic sciences in California and the Western states, and foster critical breakthroughs in the areas of food security and human, animal and environmental health. The new partnership will establish a state-of-the-art BGI sequencing facility for immediate use at UC Davis, and initiate planning for a permanent BGI@UC Davis Joint Genome Center. ...> Full Article

Discovery illuminates elusive proton channel gene in dinoflagellates (11/6/2011)

A 40-year search for a gene that causes some one-celled sea creatures to flash at night and is also found in others that produce deadly red tides, has been successfully culminated by a group of scientists led by Thomas E. DeCoursey, PhD, professor of biophysics and physiology at Rush University Medical Center. ...> Full Article

Researchers generate first complete 3-D structures of bacterial chromosome (11/5/2011)

A team of researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Harvard Medical School, Stanford University and the Prince Felipe Research Centre in Spain have deciphered the complete three-dimensional structure of the bacterium Caulobacter crescentus's chromosome. Analysis of the resulting structure -- published this week in Molecular Cell -- has revealed new insights into the function of genetic sequences responsible for the shape and structure of this genome. ...> Full Article

Study confirms males and females have at least 1 thing in common: Upregulating X (11/4/2011)

In a study published today in the journal Nature Genetics, a group of scientists including UNC biologist Jason Lieb, Ph.D., present experiments supporting a longstanding hypothesis that explains how males can survive with only one copy of the X chromosome. The finding provides clarity to a hotly debated topic in science and provides biologists with more information to interpret experiments involving genetic measurements in males and females. ...> Full Article

Liver parasite lacks key genes for fatty acid synthesis: Genome sequencing of Clonorchis sinensis (11/3/2011)

The human liver fluke Clonorchis sinensis affects more than 35 million people in South East Asia and 15 million in China. The complete genome sequence the genome of C. sinensis, published in BioMed Central's open-access journal Genome Biology, has provided insight into the biochemical pathways available to the fluke and shows that they are lacking enzymes required for fatty acid biosynthesis. ...> Full Article

Clearing house for DNA gets a boost (11/2/2011)

Arizona State University's Biodesign Institute is home to DNASU -- a sort of genetic Library of Congress that holds over 147,000 plasmids as well as full genome collections from numerous organisms and proteins associated with many leading human diseases. A new $6.5 million grant from the National Institute of Health will help expand a critical component of this genetic archive known as the Protein Structure Initiative-Materials Repository (PSI:Biology-MR). ...> Full Article

Progeria: Promising results from new gene therapy on animals (11/2/2011)

Huge progress has been made over the last few years in scientific research into Progeria, a disease that leads to premature aging in children. In 2003, a team directed by Nicolas Lévy discovered the gene, and, in 2008, twelve children were able to begin clinical trials in which two molecules were combined to slow down the characteristic effects of the disease: premature aging. ...> Full Article

Pig parasite's genomic sequence provides new clues for parasitic diseases research (11/1/2011)

Pig parasite's genomic sequence provides new clues for parasitic diseases research. ...> Full Article

X-linked mental retardation protein is found to mediate synaptic plasticity in hippocampus (11/1/2011)

Scientists at CSHL have solved part of a puzzle concerning the relationship between changes in the strength of synapses -- the tiny gaps across which nerve cells in the brain communicate -- and dysfunctions in neural circuits that have been linked with drug addiction, mental retardation and other cognitive disorders. ...> Full Article

How major signaling pathways are wired to our genome gives new insight into disease processes (11/1/2011)

Whitehead Institute scientists have determined that master transcription factors determine the genes regulated by key signaling pathways. In this way, signaling pathways are targeted to genes that are most relevant to each cell type and tailor gene expression to control cell state, growth, differentiation, and death. By manipulating signaling pathways, scientists may find new therapies for cancer and other diseases or ways to push cells into more specialized states, such as neurons to treat nerve damage or insulin-producing beta cells for diabetes. ...> Full Article