21 independent labs quantified a rare single nucleotide variant using digital PCR (dPCR) with high reproducibility between labs, demonstrating the method’s potential for routine clinical testing, according to a study published in Analytical Chemistry. The research study is the first to examine the reproducibility of digital PCR between such a large number of laboratories at… Continue reading Digital PCR found effective and reproducible in a research study
Tag: DNA-research
Novel and unique DNA vaccine to fight effectively against cancer antigen
Scientists at The Wistar Institute and Inovio pharmaceuticals, Inc. have devised a unique deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) vaccine approach through molecular design to boost the immune responses induced against one of the most important cancer antigen targets. Research results were published in the journal Molecular Therapy. Cancer immunotherapy approaches, designed to harness the body’s natural immune… Continue reading Novel and unique DNA vaccine to fight effectively against cancer antigen
Obesity genes: role of foraging gene in fruit fly
A University of Toronto study on fruit flies has uncovered a gene that could play a key role in obesity in humans. The paper published online this month in Genetics examines a “foraging gene” humans share in common with the flies, which plays multiple roles and is found in similar places, such as the nervous… Continue reading Obesity genes: role of foraging gene in fruit fly
New approach to treating dementia using antisense oligonucleotides
In a study of mice and monkeys, NIH funded researchers showed that they could prevent and reverse some of the brain injury caused by the toxic form of a protein called tau. Scientists used a designer compound to prevent and reverse brain damage caused by tau in mice.Credit: Miller lab, Washington University, St. Louis, MO The results,… Continue reading New approach to treating dementia using antisense oligonucleotides
Obesity related Epigenetic changes in DNA
Obesity has been linked to “letter” changes at many different sites in the genome, yet these differences do not fully explain the variation in people’s body mass index (BMI) or why some overweight people develop health complications while others don’t. A large study from Boston Children’s Hospital, the University of Edinburgh, the Harvard School of… Continue reading Obesity related Epigenetic changes in DNA
Role of retroviruses in evolution of human brain
Over millions of years, retroviruses have been incorporated into our human DNA, where they today make up almost 10 percent of the total genome. A research group at Lund University in Sweden has now discovered a mechanism through which these retroviruses may have an impact on gene expression. This means that they may have played… Continue reading Role of retroviruses in evolution of human brain
Effects of telomeres length on stem cells
Ever since researchers connected the shortening of telomeres the protective structures on the ends of chromosomes to aging and disease, the race has been on to understand the factors that govern telomere length. Now, Scientists at the Salk Institute have found that a balance of elongation and trimming in stem cells results in telomeres that… Continue reading Effects of telomeres length on stem cells
New approach to treating Obesity with fat burning molecule ABX300
A small molecule ABX300 could provide valuable help in combating the global epidemic of obesity. When it was fed to obese mice, the animals’ metabolism sped up and their excess weight was shed. It is doing so by recruiting the help of a body’s own genes in countering the effects of a high-fat diet. The… Continue reading New approach to treating Obesity with fat burning molecule ABX300
Dutch universities collaborate on big data in health to understand disease process
Patients with the same illness often receive the same treatment, even if the cause of the illness is different for each person. This represents a new step towards ultimately being able to offer every patient more personalized treatment. Six Dutch universities are combining forces to chart the different disease processes for a range of common… Continue reading Dutch universities collaborate on big data in health to understand disease process
Pandemic strain blamed for re-emergence of Syphilis
Syphilis has plagued humankind for over 500 years. After the first reported outbreaks struck Europe in 1495, the disease spread rapidly to other continents and swelled to a global pandemic. When treatment with the antibiotic penicillin became available in the mid-twentieth century, infection rates started to decrease dramatically. Strikingly, however, infection with the bacteria Treponema… Continue reading Pandemic strain blamed for re-emergence of Syphilis
