Genetic defect leads to electrical instability and mechanical pump failure

In genetic mapping of a large family with several members affected by a type of heart failure called dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), the Mayo Clinic team found a defect in a gene on chromosome 3 called SCN5A. By scanning 156 unrelated patients with DCM, they found four additional mutations in the same gene. SCN5A is the gene that encodes the sodium ion channel in the heart, which helps regulate transport of po

Researchers at Columbia University Medical Center have discovered a way to overcome one of the major hurdles in gene therapy for cancer: its tendency to kill normal cells in the process of eradicating cancer cells.

In a new study published in the Jan. 25 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the researchers demonstrated that the technique works by incorporating it into a specially designed virus. The virus eradicated prostate cancer cells in the

Rapid enzyme-free platform allows robust gene identification without gene amplification

Researchers at Nanosphere, Inc. today reported unprecedented benefits in the company’s technology for the medical analysis of human DNA.

Nanosphere’s nanoparticle-based technology allows for rapid, highly-sensitive and specific Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) genotyping, which is the direct detection of a particular gene and the extent to which it is normal or mutated.

Mayo Clinic researchers have identified a previously unknown form of muscular dystrophy, a group of genetic diseases characterized by progressive weakness and muscle degeneration. This newly identified form develops after age 40 and causes heart muscle damage, limb muscle weakness and nerve damage. The researchers have named the newly defined disorder “zaspopathy” (Zas-PO-path-ee).

Some 50,000 Americans have some form of muscular dystrophy, and there are currently no cures. M

At the III International Symposium on Advanced Therapy for Chronic Inflammatory Bowel Disease, held in Madrid, the biotechnological company, Progenika, presented a DNA-chip the purpose of which is the optimisation of the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of patients with inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn’s disease and Ulcerous Colitis).

The project developing the biochip, known as the IBDChip, was carried out with the collaboration of Dr. Miquel Sans of the Gastroenterology Serv

A simple, chemical way to attach electrical contacts to molecular-scale electronic components has been developed by researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The recently patented* method attaches a layer of copper on the ends of delicate molecular components to avoid damage to the components that commonly occurs with conventional techniques.

Molecular electronics–designing carbon-based molecules to act as wires, diodes, transistors and other micr

Supermarket bakery workers are at considerable risk of developing work related asthma according to researchers from Imperial College London and the Royal Brompton Hospital.

Their study reported in the latest edition of the European Respiratory Journal, found that up to nine per cent of bakers, four per cent of bakery managers and three per cent of bakery assistants may have symptoms of asthma caused by working in supermarket bakeries.

Dr Andrew Brant, from Imperial Colle

Many people with fibromyalgia and other chronic pain conditions fear that activity will make their pain worse. But new research suggests they may be able to be more active than they think – without suffering from increased pain.

The study by researchers at the University of Michigan Health System and the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Md., found that fibromyalgia patients have similar average activity levels as people without those conditions. B

A new study by scientists at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center provides insight into why some men develop aggressive prostate cancer that becomes resistant to hormone-withdrawal therapy, a common form of treatment.

Researchers found that certain mutations in a protein called the androgen receptor cause advanced and invasive prostate cancer when put into otherwise healthy mice. The androgen receptor’s normal function is to control growth of the prostate gland in resp

Instant tea, one of the most popular drinks in the United States, may be a source of harmful levels of fluoride, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report. The researchers found that some regular strength preparations contain as much as 6.5 parts per million (ppm) of fluoride, well over the 4 ppm maximum allowed in drinking water by the Environmental Protection Agency and 2.4 ppm permitted in bottled water and beverages by the Food and Drug Administration.

New research on calcium and bone development suggests that efforts to prevent osteoporosis, generally considered a geriatric disease among women, could actually start before puberty.

In the study at The Ohio State University Medical Center, which is the first clinical trial to track calcium’s effects on bone density in girls age 8-13 for as long as seven years, researchers found that calcium supplementation significantly increased bone mass development during a critical childhood

A spin-out company from the University of Nottingham has been awarded around £250,000 of Government funding to develop innovative stem cell therapies that could one day provide new treatments for patients suffering from illnesses including Parkinson’s disease and stroke.

RegenTec, a company at the cutting-edge of regenerative medicine that specialises in the development of stem cell and tissue engineering technology, is a partner in two projects that have attracted a total of £3.7

Our evolutionary ancestors’ lack of choice in the mating game has left modern humans exposed to disease, according to new research published in the journal PLOS Biology tomorrow (Tuesday 25 January 2005).

Key regions of our DNA, that control when genes are switched on and off, have been altered by around 140,000 naturally-occurring mutations over the last six million years, the researchers found. This has left modern humans with ‘sloppy’ gene control mechanisms which can make us s

Temple University researchers have developed a new drug that could potentially treat all forms of Gleevec-resistant chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). Their work is published in this week’s early edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

According to lead researcher, Prem Reddy, Ph.D., professor of biochemistry and Director of the Fels Institute for Cancer Research at Temple University School of Medicine, most patients with advanced CML, a rare but deadly

A group of four-footed mammals that flourished worldwide for 40 million years and then died out in the ice ages is the missing link between the whale and its not-so-obvious nearest relative, the hippopotamus.

The conclusion by University of California, Berkeley, post-doctoral fellow Jean-Renaud Boisserie and his French colleagues finally puts to rest the long-standing notion that the hippo is actually related to the pig or to its close relative, the South American peccary. In doing

Carnegie Mellon University research enables location proteomics

For the first time, researchers have automatically grouped fluorescently tagged proteins from high-resolution images of cells. This technical feat opens a new way to identify disease proteins and drug targets by helping to show which proteins cluster together inside a cell.

The approach, developed by Carnegie Mellon University, outperforms existing visual methods to localize proteins inside cells, says Profe