DNA News and Research

RSS

DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is the hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms. Nearly every cell in a person’s body has the same DNA. Most DNA is located in the cell nucleus (where it is called nuclear DNA), but a small amount of DNA can also be found in the mitochondria (where it is called mitochondrial DNA or mtDNA).

Genetic analysis of American crocodile sheds new light on its population structure

A genetic analysis of the American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) has re-established our understanding of its population structure, aiding its conservation.

14 Jul 2020

Human papilloma viruses may play a causal role in prostate cancer

Human papilloma viruses (HPVs) - a common group of viruses known to cause cervical cancers - may also have a causal role in prostate cancer, according to a literature review published in the open access journal Infectious Agents and Cancer, supporting the case for universal HPV vaccination.

14 Jul 2020

Genomics study in Black Americans could lead to precision prostate cancer therapies

Black men in the United States are known to suffer disproportionately from prostate cancer, but few studies have investigated whether genetic differences in prostate tumors could have anything to do with these health disparities.

13 Jul 2020

Study reveals the key role of adiponectin in muscle regeneration

Mesenchymal stem cells, or MSCs, have the ability to differentiate into an array of different types of cells, such as fat, bone, and muscle cells.

From Osaka University 13 Jul 2020

Study may provide a therapeutically safer strategy for gene editing

The CRISPR gene editing system is a robust tool specifically developed for the targeted editing of genomes. While this tool has considerable therapeutic potential, it is associated with improper editing of “off-target” sites.

13 Jul 2020

X-ray method helps track protein folding

Researchers from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) have employed an X-ray technique to monitor the mechanism of protein folding.

13 Jul 2020

Scientists report detailed proteomic analysis of human lung adenocarcinoma

A team of Chinese scientists from the State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, National Center for Protein Sciences (Beijing), National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, and Shanghai Jiao Tong University, recently reported a comprehensive proteomic analysis based on 103 Chinese patients with lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), a leading cause of death among all types of cancer worldwide.

10 Jul 2020

Study explains why human mitochondrial genomes mutate frequently

One could say that mitochondria, the energy-producing organelles inside every human cell, dance to their own beat.

10 Jul 2020

Study: Deep-sea microbes could have large amounts of available energy

Microbial cells are found in abundance in marine sediments beneath the ocean and make up a significant amount of the total microbial biomass on the planet.

10 Jul 2020

Bioinformaticians reveal previously unknown features of genes involved in brain functioning

In a recent study of genes involved in brain functioning, their previously unknown features have been uncovered by bioinformaticians from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology and the Institute of Mathematical Problems of Biology, RAS. The findings are reported in PLOS One.

10 Jul 2020

New type of molecular editor can make precise changes in mitochondrial DNA

The genome in mitochondria -- the cell's energy-producing organelles -- is involved in disease and key biological functions, and the ability to precisely alter this DNA would allow scientists to learn more about the effects of these genes and mutations.

9 Jul 2020

Report highlights role of genomics in perpetuating racism and inequality

Genomics is crowding out ways of reducing inequality, has thwarted medicine from advancing justice, and is creating new forms of social classification and surveillance.

9 Jul 2020

New spatial mapping method pinpoints new potential therapeutic targets for lupus

A team of researchers from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia used a new method of pinpointing potential disease-causing changes in the genome to identify two new potential therapeutic targets for lupus, while also paving the way for more accurately identifying disease-causing variations in other autoimmune disorders.

9 Jul 2020