A common gene mutation that causes sperm to lose its protective protein coat so it falls prey to the female immune system on its journey to the egg, may be the main reason for infertility in men worldwide, writes an international team of researchers in a paper published in the journal Science...
The Berlin Institute for Medical Systems Biology (BIMSB) of the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) in Berlin, Germany, will be the first academic research institution in Continental Europe to acquire a novel DNA sequencer enabling the sequencing of single DNA molecules in real...
With the white-hot focus on Ohio State, Oregon and North Carolina lately, it's easy to think of The Scandal of the 2010 season as ancient history, if you think of it at all. True, the charges that Auburn quarterback/übermensch Cam Newton was shopped by his father to the highest bidder as the...
Until recently, migration patterns, such as those adopted by birds all across the Amazonian rainforest, have not been thought to play an important role in the spreading of beneficial genes through a population. Researchers have now, for the first time, been able to predict the chance of a gene...
Scientists have shed light on why it is easier to learn about things related to what we already know than it is to learn about unfamiliar things, according to a new study. The team says this is a paradox, as very different things are arguably more novel, yet adding to what we already know is so...
Foxp2, a gene involved in speech and language, helps regulate the wiring of neurons in the brain, according to a study which was published on July 7th in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics. The researchers identified this functional link by first identifying the major targets of Foxp2 in...
Imagine two flat screen televisions tuned to the same channel and sitting side-by-side. From a distance, their pictures are virtually the same, however up close, you can see subtle variations in the pixels - one blurred here, another dropped out there. Suppose some of these 'bad pixels' are...
How do genes control us? This fundamental question of life still remains elusive despite decades of research. Genes are blueprints for proteins, but it is the proteins that actually carry out vital functions in the body for maintaining life. Diseases such as cancer are not only characterized by...
What if you were told you carried a gene that increases your risk for Alzheimer's disease? And what if you were told this gene starts to do its damage not when you're old but when you're young? Brace yourself. Scientists know there is a strong genetic component to the development of late-onset...
Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE: DGX), the world's leading provider of diagnostic testing, information and services, today announced the availability of its AccuType® IL28B test for aiding in the prediction of patient response to peginterferon alpha-based therapy for hepatitis C virus (HCV)...
Is the gay gene secretive meaning, you think your straight all your life and then all of a sudden you have interest in the same sex. I ask because normally gays and lesbians know from childhood what gender they prefer. Bisexuals tend to have difficulty identifying with what gender they like. So...
Some people say he's from New York, some people say he's from the United Kingdom, and some people say that he's from AFRICA! Somebody please tell me the truth. Where is this guy really from?
Cancer researchers have identified six gene markers present in early stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that show promise in helping oncologists better identify which tumors will relapse after curative surgery, according to a study presented at the 2010 Chicago Multidisciplinary Symposium...
Obesity is highly heritable, but so far genetic association studies have only explained a small fraction of this heritability. Now, in a study published in BioMed Central's open access journal Genome Biology, researchers have identified DNA variants in two nervous system genes that are...
Purdue University scientists have found the last undiscovered gene responsible for the production of the amino acid phenylalanine, a discovery that could lead to processes to control the amino acid to boost plants' nutritional values and produce better biofuel feedstocks. Natalia Dudareva, a...