Body

In an article published online ahead of print on Feb. 19, 2015 in the Journal of Biological Chemistry (JBC), investigators at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) and the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center report findings from in vitro and in vivo studies that elucidate the mechanisms underlying the impaired ciliogenesis and abnormal kidney development characteristic of polycystic kidney disease (PKD).

WASHINGTON -- Rapid testing for the Zika virus is a critical need in the recent Ebola-affected countries of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, says a Georgetown University professor, because of the recent Zika outbreak on nearby Cape Verde and the similarity in symptoms between Zika and early Ebola.

Kansas City, MO. -- As eggs and sperm, or gametes, are formed during meiosis, chromosomes carrying the genetic material from each parent must find their partners, pair, and exchange parts of their DNA. This recombination is an important driving force behind genetic variability and evolution, but most importantly, it ensures that chromosomes move properly during the subsequent divisions that form these gametes. When recombination doesn't go smoothly, it can cause a number of problems in humans, including miscarriages and birth defects.

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. -- March 17, 2016 -- The Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), working with international investigators, have discovered the source of a potential deadly blood infection in more than 50 South American cancer patients.

Turnover is to be expected in the gut--as soon as one bacterium leaves, another is ready to divide and take its place. The question, explored in a Review published March 17 in Trends in Microbiology, part of a special issue on microbial endurance, is how our gut remains healthy under this constantly enacted succession plan. A growing body of research indicates that different species of microbes fulfil the same functions in the gut, ensuring stability in the face of constant disturbance.

The gene-editing tool CRISPR-Cas9 can now be used as a flexible and accessible means to target and track the movement of RNA in living cells. This new method, presented March 17, 2016 in Cell, could eventually be used to study a wide range of disease-related RNA processes and to manipulate gene transcription for disease modeling.

Necrotizing enterocolitis is an intestinal disease that afflicts about one in ten extremely premature infants and is fatal in nearly one-third of cases. The premature infant gut is believed to react to colonizing bacteria, causing damage to the intestinal walls and severe infection. In a study appearing March 17 in Cell Reports, researchers describe an association between necrotizing enterocolitis and a subset of E. coli bacteria, called uropathogenic E. coli, that colonize the infant gut.

Unlike normal cells, cancer cells proliferate uncontrollably, causing their spread throughout the body. This irregular proliferation is often attributed to mutant genes. Prof. Yasuhiro Yamada at the Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, is especially interested in one gene related to bone cancers. "One of our projects is the EWS-FLI1 gene", he said. This oncogene is considered necessary but not sufficient for several bone cancers, which suggests it must partner with other mutations to cause the cancer.

Scientists from the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology (CDB) in Kobe, Japan, have discovered that Zscan4, a protein believed to be involved in the development of pluripotency in stem cells, is actually a repair mechanism triggered by the shortening of telomeres that takes place during cell division.

The genetic code stored in DNA determines everything from the color of our eyes to our susceptibility to disease. This has motivated scientists to sequence the human genome and develop ways to alter the genetic code, but many diseases are linked to a different fundamental molecule: RNA. As the intermediary genetic material that carries the genetic code from the cell's nucleus, scientists have long sought an efficient method for targeting RNA in living cells.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- If you want to harness the full power of stem cells, all you might need is an eraser.

Not an ordinary eraser, of course. More of a drug, really. But if you use it right, it can erase the tiny labels that tell cells where to start reading important chapters in DNA, their inner instruction manual.

And if they can't read that manual, the cells regain their full stem cell power - the power to become any kind of cell in the body.

The objective of genetic medicine is to analyze all the genes that make up the human genome, in order to identify as many genetic diseases as possible. Indeed, each gene variation has the potential to trigger specific defects. Among all genetic conditions, diseases known as "recessive" occur only when both the father and the mother are healthy carriers of the same defective gene which can be passed down to their children. This category includes a disease that combines intellectual disability, epilepsy and hypotonia.

Scientists at Umeå Centre for Microbial Research (UCMR) have discovered chemical compounds which are able to attenuate the virulence of the bacterial human pathogen Listeria monocytogenes. Their findings are published today in the high impact journal Cell Chemical Biology.

(Boston)--A new study provides insight on the potential role played by RNA (ribonucleic acid) editing in cancer.

The findings, which appear online in the journal Scientific Reports, may further our understanding of an emerging mechanism implicated in tumor initiation and progression, and may thus lead to the development of better treatment options in the future.

PHOENIX -- The health benefits of a plant-based diet is well-known, but the question remains: Could vegans be at risk for deficiency of essential nutrients? A retrospective review by Mayo Clinic physicians recently published in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association indicated that vegans should ensure adequate intake of a few nutrients.

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