A new study shows that the risk for prostate cancer is significantly elevated in men who are part of families with a hereditary form of breast and ovarian cancer. Researchers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center have determined that men in families carrying BRCA genetic mutations have a three- to five-fold increased risk of prostate cancer.
“While the association between hereditary breast and prostate cancer has been suspected, this is the first study of its type to confirm the link,”
Researchers from Yale University, University of Pittsburgh and University of Georgia have reported new data on how the fundamental arrangement of water molecules is affected by the presence of protons. The work appears in Sciencexpress.
This research is about the surprising flexibility of water molecules that makes water the medium of choice for biological systems. The study examines the 50-year-old question of how many water molecules share a proton, a crucial issue in the transportation o
Mayo Clinic researchers have created a method for measuring the growth of new spinal cord nerve fibers in rats, an advance that allows them to quickly determine nerve regeneration rate and what variables in the nerve-growth environment best support it.
The finding is important because it is a first step in laboratory animal models that will help scientists refine and improve nerve repair and regrowth in spinal cord injuries. While much basic science remains to be completed, this path of discove
By watching mice “dance” and comparing the DNA of the dancers to their flat-footed siblings, scientists have discovered a genetic cause of cleft lip and palate in mice, a finding that is already being used to search for a similar genetic defect in humans.
A team led by Rulang Jiang of the Center for Oral Biology at the University of Rochester Medical Center found that a gene known as Tbx10 is responsible for causing cleft lip and palate in mice. The group, which reported its results April 2
A quick new technique able to identify genes that evolve rapidly as well as those that change slowly already has pinpointed new targets for researchers developing drugs against tuberculosis and malaria, and it could do the same for other infectious diseases, according to a paper in this week’s Nature.
The technique, reported in the April 29 issue of the journal, was developed by researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, Harvard and Princeton universities, and the Nationa
Scientists have unraveled the behavior of one key component of bacteria, a finding that may lead to better, more effective antibiotics.
The researchers studied a mechanism of action they call the “magic spot” – an important regulator of gene expression. They describe their results in the current issue of the journal Cell.
Researchers know that the magic spot – a molecule known as guanosine-tetraphosphate or ppGpp – is involved in how bacteria respond to amino acid starvation.
Compound could be used to prevent biofilm formation
A Center for Behavioral Neuroscience research team led by Georgia State University biologist Charles Derby has identified the genetic sequence of an anti-microbial protein called Escapin found in the ink of the common Aplysia sea slug or hare. The finding could have implications for the development of new anti-bacterial industrial compounds to prevent the formation of damaging biofilms on marine materials such as ship hulls, fishing
Saint Louis University researchers have discovered the cause of one form of retinitis pigmentosa, a type of genetically inherited blindness. The research, which will be published Tuesday in the April 27 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), opens the door to the development of new treatments.
The research was based on genetic information provided by several blind members of a South African family. The laboratory of William Sly, M.D., chair of the department of biochemistry
A UCLA-led team of chemists has developed a unique new coating for inorganic particles at the nanoscale that may be able to disguise the particles as proteins — a process that allows particles to function as probes that can penetrate the cell and light up individual proteins inside, and create the potential for application in a wide range of drug development, diagnostic tools and medications.
The findings will be published in the May 19 edition of the Journal of the American Chemical Socie
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Researchers are beginning to see the potential for breakthrough in healthcare through glycomics, which studies carbohydrates, proteins and their interactions. In fact, these carbohydrates are moving beyond their regular roles as sugar storage bins. Carbohydrate-binding proteins are becoming extremely useful in curing various illnesses.
“The rapid evolution of glycomics as a natural extension of proteomics provides a be
The Zoological Museum of the Universiteit van Amsterdam (ZMA), Netherlands, is now presenting 3D images of part of the bird collection on the internet. This is a completely new technology and never before a part of the collection has been presented in this way. The database contains 151 images of 50 species.
By using the mouse, the 3D images can be rotated on the computer screen and in this way the characteristic plumages of the various bird species can be studied from all angles and in dif
Since the advent of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) nearly 20 years ago, scientists have been trying to overturn this method for analyzing DNA with something better. The “holy grail” in this quest is a simple method that could be used for point-of-care medical diagnostics, such as in the doctor’s office or on the battlefield.
Now chemists at Northwestern University have set a DNA detection sensitivity record for a diagnostic method that is not based on PCR — giving PCR a legitimate ri
Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center researchers have identified a gene that, when altered makes cells and animals age prematurely and die. The findings, reported in the May 1 edition of Genes and Development, may provide a new target for therapies that force cancer cells to an early death.
The gene, called PASG (Proliferation Associated SNF2-like Gene), normally works by decreasing the activity of other genes in two different ways: helping to add chemical groups to DNA, in a process known as
New Saint Louis University research sheds light on how obesity occurs
Saint Louis University researchers believe they’ve won a major skirmish in the battle of the bulge, and their findings are published in the May issue of Diabetes.
“We figured out how obesity occurs,” says William A. Banks, M.D., professor of geriatrics in the department of internal medicine and professor of pharmacological and physiological science at Saint Louis University School of Medicine. “The next st
Scientists studying the adhesive properties of the neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM) – a protein that helps bind the nervous system together – have found that two opposing models of cell adhesion are both correct.
“Our extremely sensitive technique allows us to directly measure how these proteins bind to one another, and to further explore the relationship between their structure and function,” said Deborah Leckband, a professor and head of chemical and biomolecular engineering at the Uni
Process shows how mounds of data can be effectively managed
Johns Hopkins scientists have successfully used new techniques to search the yeast genome for genes that help keep copied chromosomes together, protecting the integrity of the organism’s genetic material during cell division.
By combining two genome-wide screens, the researchers were able to narrow down the dozens of genes identified by the first screen to just 17 that made both cut-offs — a number small enough
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