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Clinical genetics news

False alarm in newborn screening: How zebrafish can prevent unnecessary spinal muscular atrophy therapies

A positive newborn screening for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is currently considered a medical emergency. Without early treatment, severe disability or death in infancy are likely. However, research findings from Germany ...

Cell and gene therapy across 35 years—a bibliometric analysis of global advances

Cell and gene therapies, or CGT, have come a long way since they were first introduced. In the last few decades, both cell therapy—the transplantation of living cells—and gene therapy—the use of genetic material to ...

Eye cancer genes predetermine liver metastasis, study finds

Cells from cancerous tumors can spread, or metastasize, throughout the body. Researchers have long sought to understand what determines where those cells will go and thrive in order to more effectively treat the cancer and ...

Genetic testing in sports: Fairness, human rights and the law

Testing the biological sex of an athlete is becoming more common in sport, with governing bodies defending the practice as safeguarding fairness for women. But as the introduction of mandatory genetic testing raises questions ...

Overlooked layer of DNA may explain disease risk, severity

Scientists at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) have revealed a previously overlooked layer of genetic variation that could help explain why people experience disease differently, and why some treatments work better ...

Genes may predict suicide risk in depression

Depression in young adulthood has a stronger hereditary component and is associated with a higher risk of suicide attempts than depression that begins later in life, according to a new study published in Nature Genetics by ...

Why do some people with depression struggle to get better?

Depression is one of the most common mental health conditions, and some people recover with medications or therapies. However, for some individuals, treatment does not work, even after several attempts. This harder-to-treat ...

Congenital heart disease mutation linked to kidney damage

Biomedical engineers at Duke University have shown that a genetic mutation that causes congenital heart disease also contributes to kidney damage and developmental defects. Identifying this early cause of kidney damage could ...