Genetics & Molecular Biology

'Chromosome Shattering' Seen In Plants...And Cancer

Plants can undergo the same extreme 'chromosome shattering' seen in some human cancers and developmental syndromes, UC Davis researchers have found. Chromosome shattering, or 'chromothripsis,' has until now only been seen in animal cel ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 14 2015 - 8:30am

Underpinnings Of Drought Tolerance In Plants Revealed

Regions all over the globe are suffering from severe drought, which threatens crop production worldwide. This is especially worrisome given the need to increase, not just maintain, crop yields to feed the increasing global population. Over the course of e ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 16 2015 - 6:52pm

Women With Lupus At Risk Of Reduced Fertility And Pregnancy Complication

New recommendations by EULAR for women's health and pregnancy in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and/or antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) were presented last week at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress (EULAR 2015). ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 15 2015 - 12:38pm

Transgenic Pest Control: Modified Mosquitoes Put A Stop To Dengue Fever

Dengue is a virus spread via the Aedes aegypti mosquito that infects as many as 100 million people annually in more than 100 tropical countries worldwide. It causes fevers, extreme headaches, and muscle and joint pains. In a few extreme cases, leakage of ...

Article - The Conversation - Jun 12 2015 - 9:47am

Most Heart Muscle Cells Formed As Children

New human heart muscle cells can be formed, but this mainly happens during the first ten years of life, according to a new study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. Other cell types, however, are replaced more quickly. The study, which is published in t ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 15 2015 - 8:07am

Manipulate Biological Circuits To Set The Circadian Clock

Often referred to as the "body clock", circadian rhythm controls what time of day people are most alert, hungry, tired or physically primed due to a complex biological process that is not unique to humans. Circadian rhythms, which oscillate over ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 19 2015 - 7:57am

Rare Autoimmune Syndrome May Have A Common Form

A hereditary autoimmune disease that was thought to be exceedingly rare may have a less severe form that affects one in 1,000 people or even more. The results suggest that a number of different autoimmune diseases and syndromes may be tied to mutations in ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 17 2015 - 3:54pm

New Mechanism For Male Infertility Discovered

A new study in Sweden links male infertility to autoimmune prostatic inflammation.   Infertility- involuntary childlessness- is common, and in half of all cases attributable to infertility in the man. Although male infertility has many possible causes, it ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 24 2015 - 1:30pm

The Simple Beauty Of A Free Radical

Nitric oxide (NO) is a highly stable molecule that is also highly reactive and a free radical, meaning a single, unpaired electron is present in its molecule. NO plays the role of a mediator between elements and helps them combine. Radicals are regularly ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 24 2015 - 7:48am

GlaxoSmithKline Gene Discovery In Poppies Paves Way For Better Painkillers

A long sought after gene that is a critical gateway step in the synthesis of the morphinan class of alkaloids, which include the painkiller drugs morphine and codeine, has been discovered.  The gene, called STORR, is only found in poppy species that produc ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 29 2015 - 10:00am