Gene Network Sciences Announces Broad Cancer Collaboration With UCSF And Initial Results

Gene Network Sciences, Inc. (GNS) announced that it has entered into a research collaboration with the University of California San Francisco Cancer Center (UCSF) aimed at accelerating cancer research and drug development across several therapeutic areas. This collaboration will combine the clinical and research oncology expertise of UCSF with the computational expertise and supercomputer-driven REFS(TM) platform of GNS. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Gene Network Sciences Announces Broad Cancer Collaboration With UCSF And Initial Results

Gene Network Sciences, Inc. (GNS) announced that it has entered into a research collaboration with the University of California San Francisco Cancer Center (UCSF) aimed at accelerating cancer research and drug development across several therapeutic areas. This collaboration will combine the clinical and research oncology expertise of UCSF with the computational expertise and supercomputer-driven REFS(TM) platform of GNS. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Gene Signature Predicts Good Outcome In Breast Cancer

Researchers have identified a genetic signature that can predict an improved clinical outcome in patients with breast cancer, and which could help in the development of new targeted therapies.

By analysing the expression of different genes induced by a specific mutation in a molecule called PIK3CA, a critical part of the pathway commonly deregulated in breast cancer, they found that these genes were correlated with an improved clinical outcome in over 1500 women with the disease.

Gene Variation Found To Help Predict Surgical Outcomes Of Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery Patients

A study with far-reaching implications for patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery has identified human genetic variants that could help doctors predict the potential for certain patients to suffer poor heart function.

Amanda A. Fox, M.D., and her co-investigators from the Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Division of Cardiovascular Anesthesiology at the Texas Heart Institute, identified variants in two sets of genes that, when added into a clinical model for predicting heart function, offer significant improvement in the ability to anticipate heart problems after surgery.

Too Much Of A Good Thing: Extra Copies Of A Gene Carry Extra Risk

Is more of a good thing better? A gene known as LIS1 is crucial for ensuring the proper placement of neurons in the developing brain. When an LIS1 gene is missing, brains fail to develop the characteristic folds; babies with lissencephaly or ‘smooth brain’ are born severely mentally retarded. But new research by Prof. Orly Reiner of the Institute’s Molecular Genetics Department, which recently appeared in Nature Genetics, shows that having extra LIS1 genes can cause problems as well.

Too Much Of A Good Thing: Extra Copies Of A Gene Carry Extra Risk

Is more of a good thing better? A gene known as LIS1 is crucial for ensuring the proper placement of neurons in the developing brain. When an LIS1 gene is missing, brains fail to develop the characteristic folds; babies with lissencephaly or ‘smooth brain’ are born severely mentally retarded. But new research by Prof. Orly Reiner of the Institute’s Molecular Genetics Department, which recently appeared in Nature Genetics, shows that having extra LIS1 genes can cause problems as well.

Fighting Gum Disease With Gene Therapy

Scientists at the University of Michigan have shown that gene therapy can be used to successfully stop the development of periodontal disease, the leading cause of tooth loss in adults.

The findings will be published online Dec 11 in advance of print publication in Gene Therapy.

Using gene transfer to treat life threatening conditions is not new, but the U-M group is the first known to use the gene delivery approach to show potential in treating chronic conditions such as periodontal disease, said William Giannobile, professor at the U-M School of Dentistry and principal investigator on the study.

Decreased Levels Of Binding Gene Affect Memory And Behavior

Reducing the activity of a gene called FKBP12 in the brains of mice affected neuron-to-neuron communication (synapse) and increased both fearful memory and obsessive behavior, indicating the gene could provide a target for drugs to treat diseases such as autism spectrum disorder, obsessive-compulsive disease and others, said researchers from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston in a report in the current issue of the journal Neuron.

Genetic Ancestry Of African Americans Reveals New Insights About Gene Expression

The amount of proteins produced in cells-a fundamental determinant of biological outcomes collectively known as gene expression-varies in African American individuals depending on their proportion of African or European genetic ancestry. These findings, by researchers based in Boston, Philadelphia and Oxford, are published December 5 in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics.

Gene expression is known to vary among individuals and to be influenced by both genetic and environmental factors. Previous studies have reported gene expression differences among human populations, but it has been suggested that this could be due to non-genetic effects. Populations of recently mixed ancestry such as African Americans, who on average inherit about 80% African and 20% European ancestry, offer a solution to this question, since individuals vary in their proportion of European ancestry while the analysis of a single population minimizes non-genetic factors.

New Self-Training Gene Prediction Program For Fungi Developed By Researchers At Georgia Tech

Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed a computer program that trains itself to predict genes in the DNA sequences of fungi.

Fungi – which range from yeast to mushrooms – are important for industry and human health, so understanding the recently sequenced fungal genomes can help in developing and producing critical pharmaceuticals. Gene prediction can also help to identify potential targets for therapeutic intervention and vaccination against pathogenic fungi.