Genetics & Molecular Biology

Flying Bears – Molecular Genetics Evidence For An Unusual Dispersal Mode

A genetic study of brown bears (Ursus arctos) in Bulgarian mountain regions showed they originated in Carpathia. So how did they get to Bulgaria? It wasn't natural dispersal.  Bulgarian and Romanian NGOs, the Frankfurt Zoological Society, and scientis ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 5 2014 - 11:31pm

MiR-25 Shuts Down The Overworked Heart

Cardiovascular disease often causes the heart to work harder than usual, a condition that triggers the chronic buildup of cardiac pressure and the onset of heart failure. ...

Article - Jennifer Wong - Apr 15 2014 - 5:18pm

CHRONO: The Missing Piece In The Mammalian Circadian Clock Puzzle

All organisms, from mammals to fungi, have daily cycles controlled by a tightly regulated internal clock called the circadian clock. The circadian clock is influenced by exposure to light and dictates the wake-sleep cycle. At the cellular level, the clock ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 15 2014 - 6:00pm

Genetic Anticipation: Bad News Is Good News For Familial Amyloid Polyneuropathy

In biology, anticipation is the term for genetic diseases caused by an abnormal repeat in DNA that becomes more severe with each new generation. Now there is a twist. A study has found the existence of anticipation in diseases caused by different errors- n ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 20 2014 - 1:24pm

Genetic Factors Suggest Link For Pain Tolerance

Chronic pain is an unknown issue with unknown causes and a subjective definition but some people clearly have it. Researchers recently analyzed 2,721 people, all taking prescription opioid pain medications, for genes COMT, DRD2, DRD1 and OPRK1. The partic ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 20 2014 - 8:46pm

When Bad News Is Good News For Neurodegenerative Diseases

Some genetic diseases caused by an abnormal repeat in the DNA are known to become more severe with each new generation- this dreadful trait is called anticipation. Now a study by Portuguese researchers from Porto University has proved for the first time t ...

Article - Catarina Amorim - Apr 21 2014 - 9:03pm

You Now Have Billions And Billions Of Good Reasons For Being Out Of Shape

While our chromosomes are relatively stable within our lifetimes, the genetic material found in our mitochondria is highly variable across individuals and may impact upon human health, say researchers at the University of Montreal and its affiliated CHU S ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 27 2014 - 6:30am

Survey Shows Genomics Research Is A Popularity Contest Too

The genomics revolution has been going on for decades, but half of known eukaryote lineages remain unstudied at the genomic level. A new survey, with results published in of Trends in Ecology and Evolution, concludes that this is simply a popularity conte ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 30 2014 - 9:14am

Bio-Engineers Grow Functional Human Cartilage In Vitro

Biomedical engineers at Columbia Engineering have successfully grown fully functional human cartilage in vitro from human stem cells derived from adult stem cells in bone marrow tissue.  ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 30 2014 - 4:51pm

Stem Cells From Teeth Resemble Brain Cells

S tem cells taken from teeth can grow to resemble brain cells. Perhaps one dau they could be used in the brain as a therapy for stroke, say researchers at the University of Adelaide Centre for Stem Cell Research, who believe that although these cells have ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 30 2014 - 4:58pm