Archive for the ‘genetics’ category: Page 483
Aug 3, 2016
Universal cancer vaccine on horizon after genetic breakthrough
Posted by Shailesh Prasad in categories: bioengineering, biotech/medical, genetics, particle physics
A universal cancer vaccine is on the horizon after scientists discovered how to rewire immune cells to fight any type of disease.
The potential new therapy involves injecting tiny particles of genetic code into the body which travel to the immune cells and teach them to recognise specific cancers.
Although scientists have shown previously that is it is possible to engineer immune cells outside the body so they can spot cancer it is the first time it has happened inside cells.
Continue reading “Universal cancer vaccine on horizon after genetic breakthrough” »
Jul 31, 2016
Now there’s an app to help you breathe
Posted by Karen Hurst in categories: biotech/medical, genetics, health, neuroscience
Apple’s new app to help you do deep breathing to improve your mind, intelligence, and over all health.
APPLE is set to launch a new app that aims to make you healthier through just a few minutes a day of deep breathing.
It is based on the growing field of research proving the biological benefits, including genetic changes, of mind-body medicine.
Jul 30, 2016
Scientists’ search for ‘noise-canceling’ gene networks supported
Posted by Karen Hurst in categories: biotech/medical, genetics
New Gene research.
Look closely at the raw materials that make up any group of cells and you’ll notice some “noise,” a term scientists use to describe natural variations in cellular composition.
Continue reading “Scientists’ search for ‘noise-canceling’ gene networks supported” »
Jul 30, 2016
Researchers find a male hormone that reversed cell aging in a clinical trial — “Cellular elixir of youth”
Posted by Shailesh Prasad in categories: biotech/medical, genetics, life extension
Telomerase, an enzyme naturally found in the human organism, is the closest of all known substances to a “cellular elixir of youth.” In a recent study published in The New England Journal of Medicine, Brazilian and US researchers show that sex hormones can stimulate production of this enzyme.
The strategy was tested in patients with genetic diseases associated with mutations in the gene that codes for telomerase, such as aplastic anemia and pulmonary fibrosis.
Jul 29, 2016
Portable bioreactor from MIT produces medications, vaccines on-demand
Posted by Karen Hurst in categories: bioengineering, biotech/medical, genetics
A new method for medicine.
Imagine a cross between one of those multi-color retractable pens and an epi-pen. But instead of colors, the device would have different medications. Now combine this with a tiny, droplet-sized sweatshop full of obedient single-celled organisms genetically engineered to produce those medications, and you’ve got what a team from MIT just published in Nature Communications: A new project, with funding from DARPA, that has demonstrated the ability to synthesize multiple medications on-demand and as-needed using yeast. The discovery could soon revolutionize our ability to deliver medicine after natural disasters or to remote locations.
Let’s stick with the metaphor of an epi-pen. First, the user presses the actuator, which mixes a chemical trigger into a culture of engineered Pichia pastoris cells. Upon exposure to certain chemical triggers, the cells are programmed to produce a protein: in the report, the team used estrogen β-estradiol, which caused the cells to express recombinant human growth hormone (rHGH), and also methanol, which induced the same culture of yeast to make interferon. By controlling the concentration of the chemical trigger and the population of P. pastoris, the team demonstrated that they could make their device produce a dose of either interferon or rHGH on command. To switch between products, they just pushed another button on the microbioreactor, which flushes out the cell culture with clean, sterile fluid.
Continue reading “Portable bioreactor from MIT produces medications, vaccines on-demand” »
Jul 29, 2016
New rare form of hereditary colon cancer identified
Posted by Karen Hurst in categories: biotech/medical, genetics
Researchers have discovered that mutation in a gene can led to a form of hereditary colon cancer which was not identified earlier. The researchers discovered genetic changes in the MSH3 gene in patients and identified a new form of colon cancer.
“The knowledge about molecular mechanisms which lead to cancer is also a precondition for the development of new targeted drugs,” said Stefan Aretz from University of Bonn Hospital in Germany.
The formation of large numbers of polyps in the colon has a high probability of developing into colon cancer, if left untreated.
Continue reading “New rare form of hereditary colon cancer identified” »
Jul 28, 2016
Yale team designs gene modification system
Posted by Karen Hurst in categories: bioengineering, biotech/medical, genetics
A Yale research team has designed a system to modify multiple genes in the genome simultaneously, while also minimizing unintended effects. The gene-editing “toolbox” provides a user-friendly solution that scientists can apply to research on cancer and other disciplines, according to a news release from Yale.
The study was published on July 26 in Nucleic Acids Research.
The news release states that, with modern genetic engineering techniques, researchers can edit genes in experiments. This allows researchers to study important disease-related genes and may ultimately allow them to treat genetic diseases by making edits in specific sites of the human genome. However, progress has been hampered by several challenges, including the editing of unintended sites — referred to as off-target effects.
Continue reading “Yale team designs gene modification system” »
Jul 26, 2016
We’re Understanding How The Brain Functions By Linking Retinas To Chips
Posted by Karen Hurst in categories: biotech/medical, computing, genetics, neuroscience
Many folks are not aware that one of the early detections of GBM is through a person’s weakened eyesight as well as Ophthalmologist examinations.
The retina is essentially part of the brain. Studying them led researchers one step closer to understanding how the brain processes stimuli.
There is a genetically transmitted disease that causes the eyeballs to twitch back and forth, and it’s called Nystagmus. It impacts 1 in 1,500 men. Notably, it has been recently discovered that the twitching is caused by the miscalculations done by the retinal neurons in converting visual stimuli into electrical signals.
Continue reading “We’re Understanding How The Brain Functions By Linking Retinas To Chips” »
Jul 26, 2016
Genetic factors are responsible for creating anatomical patterns in the brain cortex
Posted by Karen Hurst in categories: evolution, genetics, neuroscience
Studies are showing that anatomical patterning found in the brain’s cortex may be controlled by genetic factors.
The highly consistent anatomical patterning found in the brain’s cortex is controlled by genetic factors, reports a new study by an international research consortium led by Chi-Hua Chen of the University of California, San Diego, and Nicholas Schork of the J. Craig Venter Institute, published on July 26 in PLOS Genetics.
The human brain’s wrinkled cerebral cortex, which is responsible for consciousness, memory, language and thought, has a highly similar organizational pattern in all individuals. The similarity suggests that genetic factors may create this pattern, but currently the extent of the role of these factors is unknown. To determine whether a consistent and biologically meaningful pattern in the cortex could be identified, the scientists assessed brain images and genetic information from 2,364 unrelated individuals, brain images from 466 twin pairs, and transcriptome data from six postmortem brains.
They identified very consistent patterns, with close genetic relationships between different regions within the same brain lobe. The frontal lobe, which has the most complexity and has experienced the greatest expansion throughout the brain’s evolution, is the most genetically distinct from the other lobes. Their results also suggest potential functional relationships among different cortical brain regions.
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