All Articles Tagged As: medicine

Evolutionary Intricacies Of Rickettsia Pathogens Revealed (5/7/2008)

Scientists have unveiled some of the evolutionary intricacies of rickettsial pathogens by analyzing over a decade's worth of genomic data ...> Full Article

Mouse can do without man's most treasured genes (5/7/2008)

The mouse is a stalwart stand-in for humans in medical research, thanks to genomes that are 85 percent identical. But identical genes may behave differently in mouse and man ...> Full Article

Study Shows How Rare Genes Have Big Impact on Blood Pressure (4/11/2008)

Researchers report that they have discovered that rare genetic variants can be associated with a dramatically lower risk of developing high blood pressure in the general population. ...> Full Article

Gene mutation begins vicious heat-sensitivity cycle (4/6/2008)

A mutation in a gene controlling calcium flux in skeletal muscle cells links the rare condition malignant hyperthermia to enhanced susceptibility to heat stroke and sudden death ...> Full Article

Genetic Counselors Turn to Unconventional Counseling To Meet Explosive Demand for Genetic Testing (3/18/2008)

Imagine receiving genetic test results for a disease you could develop later in life without having anyone with whom to discuss your options for managing the risk. That's becoming a common occurrence as people turn to the Internet and other outlets for genetic testing without genetic counseling. In an effort to broaden accessibility to genetic counseling, researchers are exploring non-conventional counseling methods that challenge traditional approaches. ...> Full Article

Genes that protect against atherosclerosis identified (3/17/2008)

One way of combating atherosclerosis is to reduce levels of "bad cholesterol" in the blood. Scientists at the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet have now identified the genes that bring about this beneficial effect. ...> Full Article

Structural Genomic Variation and Personalized Medicine (2/24/2008)

The ultimate goal of personalized medicine is to comprehensively identify genetic differences among persons and to correlate specific genetic features (or combinations of genetic features) with the differential risk of human diseases or the efficacy of certain therapeutic interventions. "This goal is likely to be achieved when we are able to identify all relevant forms of genetic variation in each person and are able to interpret this information in a clinically meaningful manner," said researchers from Harvard Medical School in their article recently published in The New England Journal of Medicine. ...> Full Article

Genetic Difference Predicts Antidepressant Response (1/28/2008)

Researchers have identified subtle genetic variations that predict the efficacy of two widely used antidepressant drugs ...> Full Article

Major European Project to Create New Knowledge Base of Gene-Disease Relationships (1/23/2008)

12M Euro project will provide improved access to information connecting genes with diseases such as diabetes, obesity, heart disease and cancer ...> Full Article

Report Urges Development of Genomic Technologies for Identifying Toxic Chemicals and Understanding Individual Vulnerabilities (10/9/2007)

A new report from the National Research Council recommends that government agencies enhance their efforts to incorporate genomic data into risk assessments of chemicals and medicines, and calls for a concerted effort to fully develop these methods' potential to protect public health. Chemicals and drugs often cause health problems by altering gene expression and other cell activity, and research on these processes -- called toxicogenomic research -- could eventually lead to more-sensitive toxicity tests that can supplement current tests, the report says. Toxicogenomic tests can also pinpoint individuals with genetic vulnerabilities and help them avoid chemicals or medications that might make them ill. ...> Full Article

'Genes and Environment' grant funds close look at nature-nurture overlap in common diseases (9/25/2007)

Johns Hopkins' McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine is one of two gene-hunting facilities in the nation to win a new $11.7 million four-year federal grant to rigorously sort out how such environmental factors as diet, exercise, stress and addictions interact with people's individual genetic makeup to affect their risk for disorders as wide-ranging as cancer, diabetes, tooth decay and heart disease. ...> Full Article