Scientists at the University of Sheffield have identified a protein, involved in the development of the human placenta, may also help embryos implant in the womb - something which could improve treatments for recurrent miscarriages and pre-eclampsia.
Babies born to mothers with gestational diabetes have more body fat at two months of age compared to babies born to healthy mothers, says a new study.
Scientists from Imperial College London used MRI scanning to measure body fat in 86 babies - they took these readings shortly after birth, and again when the babies were 8-12 weeks old.
Women with early-stage breast cancer for whom chemotherapy was indicated and who used dietary supplements and multiple types of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) were less likely to start chemotherapy than nonusers of CAM, according to a new study published online by JAMA Oncology.
An analysis of the ultraviolet A (UV-A) light protection in the front windshields and side windows of automobiles finds that protection was consistently high in the front windshields while lower and highly variable in side windows, findings that may in part explain the reported increased rates of cataract in left eyes and left-sided facial skin cancer, according to a study published online by JAMA Ophthalmology.
This week, two important papers addressing pressing challenges and the best path forward for interpreting results from clinical genome and exome sequencing will appear in the American Journal of Human Genetics.
Ryohei Yasuda, Ph.D. and his team at the Max Planck Florida Institute of Neuroscience (MPFI) are working to understand the way cells in our brains change as we learn and form memories. But research in this area has been limited due to a lack of techniques allowing scientists to locate and visualize individual proteins within a single neuron. Current imaging methods do not provide specificity, contrast, and resolution powerful enough to see distinct proteins. Plus, they are time consuming and expensive; it can take a year or two to develop the engineered models.
Gene expression is the process by which genetic information is used to produce proteins, which are essential for cells to function properly and fulfil their many purposes. It takes place in two distinctive steps: first the transcription, which takes place in the nucleus, then the translation, in the cytoplasm. Control of gene expression is vital for cells to produce the exact proteins that are needed at the right moment. Until now, gene transcription and translation into proteins were thought to be two independent processes.
Two new studies from a group at North Carolina State University give researchers new strategies for connecting environmental exposures to human health effects.
Having analyzed the data collected for more than three decades, scientists managed to show that the effects of climate changes in the Arctic may come out on a completely different continent, a few thousand kilometers away from the Arctic ice. One of the authors, Eldar Rahimberdiev, researcher at the Biological faculty of MSU, says that the work is unique, as earlier scholars did not consider these problems so complex.
MADISON, Wis. -- A single defect in a gene that codes for a histone -- a "spool" that wraps idle DNA -- is linked to pediatric cancers in a study published today in the journal Science.
"Unlike most cancers that require multiple hits, we found that this particular mutation can form a tumor all by itself," says Peter W. Lewis, an assistant professor of biomolecular chemistry in the School of Medicine and Public Health at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Women with early-stage breast cancer for whom chemotherapy was indicated and who used dietary supplements and multiple types of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) were less likely to start chemotherapy than nonusers of alternative therapies, according to latest research led by Heather Greenlee, ND, PhD, associate professor of Epidemiology at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. This is one of the first studies to evaluate how complementary and alternative medicine use affects decisions regarding chemotherapy. Findings are available in JAMA Oncology.
Vampire mania aside, bats don't go for a diet that would make for an exciting Hollywood blockbuster. Most are insectivores, chomping on insects. Some large species prefer fruit. And yes, a few like blood.
But over the 52-million-year history of these flying mammals, a few have evolved a taste for their fellow vertebrates. Now biologists at the University of Washington and the Burke Museum of History and Culture are shedding light on how these so-called "carnivorous bats" adapted to the daunting task of chowing down their backboned prey.
Made up of a four-letter DNA code*, genes are the 'recipes' cells use to make molecules such as proteins, which are the building blocks of life. Changes in a gene can affect the characteristics of an organism. For example, genetic variations linked to pigmentation genes affect eye or hair colour in humans, while other changes can cause diseases such as cystic fibrosis or cancer. On a grander scale, genetic changes are the fuel for evolution, leading to big and small differences between species over time.
Washington, D.C.; 12 May 2016 - The International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR), the world's largest professional organization of stem cell scientists, today released newly updated guidelines for stem cell research and the development of new clinical therapies. The new guidance comes at a time when rapidly evolving technologies like gene editing in human embryos and emerging areas of stem cell discovery and its applications are providing unprecedented opportunities to understand human biology and disease, but also raising questions that have social and ethical implications.
Hospitalization for rotavirus infections decreased by > 70% following the introduction of a vaccine program in Ontario, Canada, according to a study published May 11, 2016 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Sarah Wilson from Public Health Ontario and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, Canada, and colleagues.