Skip to main content

Syndicate contentHuman Genome

Researchers discover evolutionary event underlying the origin of dachshunds, dogs with short legs

A single evolutionary event appears to explain the short, curved legs that characterize all of today's dachshunds, corgis, basset hounds and at least 16 other breeds of dogs, a team led by the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), part of the National Institutes of Health, reported today.

Disclosing genetic risk for Alzheimer's disease does not cause psychological distress

(Boston) -- Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have shown that disclosing genetic risk information to adult children of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) who request this information does not result in significant short-term psychological distress.

New map of genomic variations will enable disease research

Genetics researchers have unveiled a powerful new resource for scientists and health providers studying human illnesses--a reference standard of deletions and duplications of DNA found in the human genome.

Genomes of parasitic flatworms decoded

Two international research teams have determined the complete genetic sequences of two species of parasitic flatworms that cause schistosomiasis, a debilitating condition also known as snail fever.

Personalized Genomic Medicine: Are We and Our Doctors Ready?

July 15, 2009 by Pearl Duncan

Pearl Duncan's picture

Entangled with the national debate about the future of healthcare, there’s a personal debate about the future of medicine. Futuristic medicine will rely on personal genomics, because as consumer-patients, we will demand more integrated – more holistic -- less segmented medical care from our doctors. Personalized genomic medicine is not only our pipe dream for future, it is here, now. But, are we ready? Are our doctors ready? Are healthcare policy makers ready?

LincRNAs serve as genetic air-traffic controllers

BOSTON -- Earlier this year, a scientific team from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and the Broad Institute identified a class of RNA genes known as large intervening non-coding RNAs or "lincRNAs," a discovery that has pushed the field forward in understanding the roles of these molecules in many biological processes, including stem cell pluripotency, cell cycle regulation, and the innate immune response.

Researchers map how staph infections alter immune system

DALLAS -- July 14, 2009 -- Infectious disease specialists at UT Southwestern Medical Center have mapped the gene profiles of children with severe Staphylococcus aureus infections, providing crucial insight into how the human immune system is programmed to respond to this pathogen and opening new doors for improved therapeutic interventions.

Researchers gain insight into mechanism underlying Huntington's

LEXINGTON, Ky. (July 13, 2009) -- Researchers at the University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center and Graduate Center for Toxicology (GCT) have gained new insight into the genetic mechanisms underlying Huntington's disease and other neurodegenerative or neuromuscular disorders caused by trinucleotide repeats (or TNRs) in DNA.

Leading pathogen in newborns can suppress immune cell function

Group B Streptococcus (GBS), a bacterial pathogen that causes sepsis and meningitis in newborn infants, is able to shut down immune cell function in order to promote its own survival, according to researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.

American Chemical Society praises nomination of Collins as NIH Director

WASHINGTON, July 9, 2009 -- The President of the American Chemical Society, Thomas H.

AACR applauds nomination of Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., to be the new NIH director

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The American Association for Cancer Research applauds President Obama's nomination of Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., to be the 16th director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

New gene discovery links obesity to the brain

June 26, 2009 - (BRONX, NY) - A variation in a gene that is active in the central nervous system is associated with increased risk for obesity, according to an international study in which Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University played a major role. The research adds to evidence that genes influence appetite and that the brain plays a key role in obesity.

DNA template could explain evolutionary shifts

HOUSTON -- (June 21, 2009) -- Rearrangements of all sizes in genomes, genes and exons can result from a glitch in DNA copying that occurs when the process stalls at a critical point and then shifts to a different genetic template, duplicating and even triplicating genes or just shuffling or deleting part of the code within them, said researchers from Baylor College of Medicine in a recent rep

DNA template could explain evolutionary shifts

HOUSTON -- (June 21, 2009) -- Rearrangements of all sizes in genomes, genes and exons can result from a glitch in DNA copying that occurs when the process stalls at a critical point and then shifts to a different genetic template, duplicating and even triplicating genes or just shuffling or deleting part of the code within them, said researchers from Baylor College of Medicine in a recent rep

Same-sex behavior seen in nearly all animals, review finds

RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- Same-sex behavior is a nearly universal phenomenon in the animal kingdom, common across species, from worms to frogs to birds, concludes a new review of existing research.



About us

Science Blog was started in August 2002. It lives, breathes and eats press releases from research organizations around the globe. Most of what you read here are press releases from the outfits named in the stories themselves. Got a news story you think belongs here? Let's talk. The other half of the equation is blog posts from readers like you. So if you have an interest in science, please register and join others like you in an ongoing, vibrant dialog about what makes the world tick. Meantime, please take a minute to read our Privacy Policy and Site Disclaimer.


Premium Drupal Themes by Adaptivethemes