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Genetics news

Genetics

Genes, personality, and family may predict alcohol drinking in teens

Examining genetic, family, and personality characteristics may help identify those who are at high risk for drinking and drinking problems as teenagers. A study, published in Alcohol: Clinical and Experimental Research, found ...

Genetics

New clue to ALS and FTD: Faulty protein disrupts brain's 'brake' system

A new Northwestern University study using patient nervous tissue and lab-grown human neurons has uncovered how a key disease protein, TDP-43, drives overactive nerve cells in the neurodegenerative diseases amyotrophic lateral ...

Oncology & Cancer

Mutation yields hot new clues for treating immune 'cold' tumors

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) emerged in the US about 15 years ago as an exciting class of cancer treatments that have achieved complete and durable remissions for thousands of people with end-stage metastatic cancers. ...

Genetics

Common genetic causes across motor neuron diseases identified

Motor neuron diseases, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP), share physical similarities but have been largely viewed as genetically distinct. However, an analysis led by investigators ...

Genetics

MAGIC: AI-assisted 'laser tag' illuminates cancer origins

The human body relies on precise genetic instructions to function, and cancer begins when these instructions get scrambled. When cells accumulate genetic errors over time, they can break free of the normal controls on their ...

Genetics

3D genome mapping tool reveals hidden complexity in DNA

Standard laboratory tests can fail to detect many disease-causing DNA changes. Now, a novel 3D chromosome mapping method can reliably reveal these hidden structural variants and lead to new discoveries.

Genetics

Previously unknown genetic cause of microcephaly identified

Microcephaly is a congenital malformation that leads to a significantly reduced brain size and is often accompanied by developmental delay. An international research team led by Dr. Tran Tuoc from the Department of Human ...

Genetics

Double trouble: Epigenetic duo shapes cell fate and disease

Shedding light on what determines how cells become what they are meant to be—nerves, bone, muscles, etc.—can also help researchers understand how diseases develop when these biological programs break down. Now, researchers ...

Genetics

A genetic twist that sets human brains apart

Research from scientists at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine has shed new light on an age-old question: what makes the human brain unique? The study is published online in Science Advances.

Genetics

A mutation linked to ALS and dementia miswires gene expression

It may be time to rethink certain genetic mutations associated with two devastating neurodegenerative disorders—amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD)—according to a new Nature Neuroscience ...

Genetics

How genetics and lifestyle drive dilated cardiomyopathy

An international team, led by scientists from the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, has studied around 3,000 people affected by the heart disease dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM)—a driver of heart failure and sudden ...

Genetics

What you should know about spinal muscular atrophy

Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a genetic neuromuscular disease affecting specialized nerve cells that control voluntary muscle movement, according to the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA). It can lead to severe physical ...

Genetics

Genes reveal why some older people suffer from frailty

A new study has identified genetic variants linked to brain function, immune defense and metabolism that contribute to the development of frailty in older people. The study, published in Nature Aging by researchers from Karolinska ...