Archive for the ‘Gene Therapy Research’ Category

Genius, Mental Illness and Everything in Between: Dr. Lamont Tang at TEDxHongKongED
To what extent is genius and mental illness such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia related? To what extent do genetics and environment influence genius a...

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Genius, Mental Illness and Everything in Between: Dr. Lamont Tang at TEDxHongKongED - Video

LUGANO, Switzerland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TSE:4502) and Seattle Genetics, Inc. (SGEN) today announced data from a post-hoc analysis examining progression-free survival (PFS) following treatment with ADCETRIS (brentuximab vedotin) versus last prior therapy in patients diagnosed with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) post-autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT) or relapsed or refractory systemic anaplastic large cell lymphoma (sALCL). The data were highlighted during a presentation at the 12th International Conference on Malignant Lymphoma (ICML) being held June 1922, 2013 in Lugano, Switzerland.

ADCETRIS is an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) directed to CD30, a defining marker of classical HL and sALCL.

The post-hoc analysis compared investigator assessed PFS following ADCETRIS single-agent treatment to the last prior systemic therapy in patients taking part in two pivotal Phase 2 studies. The post-hoc analysis was conducted in patients with relapsed or refractory HL post-ASCT or relapsed or refractory sALCL in the intent-to-treat (ITT) population. It also included prior systemic treatment histories and post-ADCETRIS stem cell transplant experience for each patient in the ITT populations.

These encouraging data suggest that ADCETRIS may delay disease progression compared to prior therapies used in this heavily pretreated patient population, said John Radford, M.D., Professor of Medical Oncology, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK. ADCETRIS is a CD30-targeted treatment option for patients with relapsed or refractory HL or relapsed or refractory sALCL that has shown a high overall response rate, including durable complete responses in both of its approved indications.

Progression-free survival analyses of two pivotal phase 2 studies of brentuximab vedotin in patients with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin lymphoma or systemic anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (Poster #303)

The analysis, presented by Dr. Radford, included:

Relapsed or Refractory HL post-ASCT

Relapsed or Refractory sALCL

Details of the poster presentation are as follows:

Link:
Takeda and Seattle Genetics Highlight Post-Hoc Analysis Examining Progression-free Survival with ADCETRIS® ...

BOTHELL, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Seattle Genetics, Inc. (SGEN) today highlighted multiple ADCETRIS (brentuximab vedotin) data presentations at the 12th International Conference on Malignant Lymphoma (ICML) being held June 19-22, 2013 in Lugano, Switzerland. ADCETRIS is an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) directed to CD30, which is expressed in classical Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) and systemic anaplastic large cell lymphoma (sALCL), that was granted accelerated approval by the FDA in August 2011 for relapsed HL and relapsed sALCL and conditional marketing authorization by the European Commission in October 2012 for relapsed or refractory HL and relapsed or refractory sALCL. Four oral and two poster presentations at ICML illustrated the broad clinical development program for ADCETRIS, including oral presentations describing the ongoing global phase 3 ECHELON-2 trial in frontline mature T-cell lymphoma (MTCL) and data from a phase 2 trial in patients with relapsed MTCL. In addition, an oral presentation included the first report of data from an investigator-sponsored trial evaluating ADCETRIS in first-relapse HL patients as part of a pre-autologous stem cell transplant regimen.

With last years European conditional marketing authorization supporting the use of ADCETRIS as a treatment for patients with relapsed HL and sALCL, this meeting provides us with an opportunity to share important ADCETRIS data with the international physician and patient community as we evaluate ADCETRIS in additional disease settings, said Clay B. Siegall, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer at Seattle Genetics. ADCETRIS is being evaluated for the treatment of CD30-positive malignancies in more than 20 ongoing clinical trials, including three global phase 3 trials. We look forward to the ongoing presentation of important data at medical meetings such as ICML, demonstrating the broad therapeutic potential of ADCETRIS.

Oral Presentations

PET-adapted Sequential Therapy with Brentuximab Vedotin and Augmented-ICE in Relapsed and Refractory Hodgkin Lymphoma (Abstract #141, oral session on Saturday, June 22, 2013 at 8:50 AM CET)

In an ongoing investigator-sponsored phase 2 clinical trial, patients with relapsed or refractory HL have been enrolled to determine whether ADCETRIS can replace the combination chemotherapy regimen ifosfamide, carboplatin and etoposide (ICE) or be used in sequential administration with ICE to increase the rate of pre-transplant FDG-PET normalization (PET-N), which is an important prognostic factor for patients undergoing autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT). At the time of data analysis, 40 patients had been enrolled and 33 patients had completed the treatment program. Key findings presented by Dr. Alison Moskowitz from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center include:

ADCETRIS is not approved for salvage HL patients who are deemed eligible for ASCT.

Safety and Efficacy of Brentuximab Vedotin for the Treatment of Relapsed Mature T-/NK-Cell Lymphomas (Abstract #152, oral session on Saturday, June 22, 2013 at 10:00 AM CET)

In an encore presentation from the 2012 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting, data were highlighted from a subset of patients in an ongoing phase 2 clinical trial evaluating ADCETRIS in CD30-positive non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The trial is designed to assess the antitumor activity, duration of response and safety profile of ADCETRIS in these patients. At the time of data analysis, 29 patients with MTCL had been enrolled, including 11 with angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma (AITL) and 18 with peripheral T-cell lymphoma not otherwise specified (PTCL-NOS). The median number of prior systemic therapies in both lymphoma classifications was two. Key findings include:

ADCETRIS is not approved for the treatment of the MTCL subtypes described in this presentation.

Excerpt from:
Seattle Genetics Highlights ADCETRIS® (Brentuximab Vedotin) Clinical Data at International Conference on Malignant ...

Seven-year-old Emily Whitehead received a lot of attention last year when a gene therapy engineered at the University of Pennsylvania cured her of leukemia. At the time, Emily was one of 10 patients who received the T cell therapy that uses a patient's own healthy T cells infected with a virus to attack the cancer cells.

What's really interesting about the therapy is that it uses the HIV virus. How is that possible?

"The virus has been engineered so that it can't cause disease anymore, but it still retains the ability to reprogram the immune system so that it will now attack cancer cells," says Carl H. June, MD from the University of Pennsylvania.

The new cells have been nicknamed "serial killer cells," and rightfully so. These modified cells can kill more than 1,000 different tumor cells.

Check out the video below for more about Emily Whitehead and how the T cell gene therapy works.

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HIV virus behind leukemia cures at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

Ovation Cell Therapy Review
Ovation Cell Therapy claims to improve hair thickness, length and overall health of your hair. Link for more info below: http://ovationhair.com/cell-therapy....

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Ovation Cell Therapy Review - Video

First dog on Oahu gets stem cell therapy
A 13-year-old dog who was barely able to walk is back on his paws thanks to stem cell therapy. Before the treatment Kumba suffered from arthritis so bad he c...

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First dog on Oahu gets stem cell therapy - Video

WEDNESDAY, June 19 (HealthDay News) -- Could screening for colon cancer someday be as easy as having a blood test? Researchers say just such a test is showing early promise in trials.

The screening checks for levels of miR-21 -- a piece of DNA known as microRNA. Researchers in the gastrointestinal cancer research lab at the Baylor Research Institute in Dallas studied several hundred patients with either colorectal polyps (noncancerous growths that often precede cancer) or full-blown cancer.

They found that measuring levels of miR-21 in the blood accurately spotted up to 92 percent of patients with colorectal cancer.

The test also accurately identified up to 82 percent of patients with advanced colorectal polyps -- growths that put people at high risk of developing colorectal cancer.

The study was published June 19 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

"This blood-based test could be transformative in how we screen patients for colorectal cancer; it would save lives and could result in major savings of health care dollars," Dr. Michael Ramsay, president of Baylor Research Institute, said in an institute news release.

Other experts were cautiously optimistic.

"These results are very promising for the future of cancer screening and treatment," said Dr. Jerald Wishner, director of colorectal surgery at Northern Westchester Hospital in Mount Kisco, N.Y.

"Colonoscopy screening is the current gold standard to detect colon cancer. However, less than 50 percent of Americans who should be screened get screened," Wishner said. "The blood test is a less invasive screening method that will eliminate barriers to colonoscopies, including embarrassment and possible discomfort in preparation for the test."

Dr. David Robbins, associate chief of endoscopy at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, agreed that it is "only a matter of time before we can screen for the most common, and most lethal, cancers using a simple blood test."

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Gene-Based Blood Test for Colon Cancer Shows Promise

Public release date: 20-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Vicki Cohn vcohn@liebertpub.com 914-740-2100 x2156 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News

New Rochelle, NY, June 20, 2013At least half of all cases of deafness that develop from birth through infancy in developed countries have a genetic basis, as do many cases of later onset progressive hearing loss. To date, at least 1,000 mutations occurring in 64 genes in the human genome have been linked to hearing loss. Next-generation DNA sequencing technologies are enabling the identification of these deafness-causing genetic variants, as described in a Review article in Genetic Testing and Molecular Biomarkers, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available on the Genetic Testing and Molecular Biomarkers website.

In "Next-Generation Sequencing in Genetic Hearing Loss," Denise Yan and Xue Zhong Liu, University of Miami (Florida), and Mustafa Tekin and Susan Blanton, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, review the advances in high-throughput, massively parallel DNA sequencing that amplify and repeatedly sequence only specific regions of the human genome in which genes linked to deafness are likely to be found. This strategy, known as "targeted resequencing," allows researchers to find disease-related gene mutations much more quickly than searching through the entire genome. To date at least 1,000 DNA variants at more than 130 sites in the human genome have been identified that can cause hearing loss not associated with other symptoms or syndromes.

"Over the next decade, most of the variant genes responsible for deafness will be identified and such knowledge will lead to the development of practical treatments," conclude the authors.

"Knowledge of the genetic lesions underlying deafness will greatly assist development of targeted therapy," says Kenneth I. Berns, MD, PhD, Editor-in-Chief of Genetic Testing and Molecular Biomarkers, and Director of the University of Florida's Genetics Institute, College of Medicine, Gainesville, FL.

###

About the Journal

Genetic Testing and Molecular Biomarkers is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published 12 times per year in print and online that reports on all aspects of genetic testing, including molecular and biochemical based tests and varied clinical situations; ethical, legal, social, and economic aspects of genetic testing; and issues concerning effective genetic counseling. Tables of content and a free sample issue may be viewed on the Genetic Testing and Molecular Biomarkers website.

About the Publisher

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Goal of identifying nearly all genetic causes of deafness is within reach

Before I stumbled across vegangmo.com the other day I thought I knew the arguments for and against genetically-engineered crops.

The Vegan GMO website showed me I don't know as much as I thought. The site's "why are we vegans pro GMO?" page (http://www.vegangmo.com) lists four reasons, three of which were new to me:

-- Some safety tests for GE crops involve animal experiments;

-- Genetic engineering could create "animal alternative" foods that would encourage more veganism, like artificial cheese;

-- Genetic engineering could create plants containing nutrients vegans lack, like vitamin B12 and DHA;

-- GE crops use less fertilizer and pesticides, so fewer insects and fish are killed, and "no- or low-till agriculture will save the lives of ground-dwelling animals."

It was the first reason -- opposition to animal tests -- that led me to the site. I had been reading up on a study purporting to show that pigs consuming genetically-engineered corn and soybeans had developed health problems. Vegan GMO had quoted (http://www.vegangmo.com), a rebuttal charging that "this study subjects animals to inhumanely poor conditions resulting in health impacts which can then be data-mined to present 'evidence' against GMO feeds."

The rebuttal, by British environmentalist and recent pro-GE convert Mark Lynas, leveled other broadsides at the study (http://tiny.cc/). It noted that while the study's authors highlighted one measure on which the GE-fed pigs scored worse than those on conventional feed, on several health measures the GE-fed pigs had scored better.

As you might expect, though, the vegan website's excerpt from the Lynas rebuttal stuck with the animal-cruelty argument.

"Most damning of all," the excerpt continued, "close to 60% of both sets of pigs were suffering from pneumonia at the time of slaughter -- another classic indicator of bad husbandry. Had they not been slaughtered, all these pigs might well have died quickly anyway. No conclusions can be drawn from this study, except for one -- that there should be tighter controls on experiments performed on animals by anti-biotech campaigners, for the sake of animal welfare."

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Vegans Who Favor Genetic Engineering

London, June 21 (ANI): Researchers believe that most of the variant genes responsible for deafness will be identified over the next decade and such knowledge will lead to the development of practical treatments.

At least half of all cases of deafness that develop from birth through infancy in developed countries have a genetic basis, as do many cases of later onset progressive hearing loss.

To date, at least 1,000 mutations occurring in 64 genes in the human genome have been linked to hearing loss.

A new article has revealed that next-generation DNA sequencing technologies are enabling the identification of these deafness-causing genetic variants.

In "Next-Generation Sequencing in Genetic Hearing Loss," Denise Yan and Xue Zhong Liu, University of Miami (Florida), and Mustafa Tekin and Susan Blanton, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, review the advances in high-throughput, massively parallel DNA sequencing that amplify and repeatedly sequence only specific regions of the human genome in which genes linked to deafness are likely to be found.

This strategy, known as "targeted resequencing," allows researchers to find disease-related gene mutations much more quickly than searching through the entire genome. To date at least 1,000 DNA variants at more than 130 sites in the human genome have been identified that can cause hearing loss not associated with other symptoms or syndromes.

The Review article appeared in Genetic Testing and Molecular Biomarkers, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. (ANI)

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Nearly all genetic causes of deafness could be identified soon

Editor's Choice Academic Journal Main Category: Hearing / Deafness Also Included In: Genetics Article Date: 21 Jun 2013 - 0:00 PDT

Current ratings for: Deafness - Identifying All Genetic Causes Within Reach

According to WHO (World Health Organization), more than 360 million people worldwide live with disabling hearing loss.

So far, geneticists have identified 1,000 mutations in 64 genes in the human genome that have been associated with deafness.

The authors explained that next-generation DNA sequencing technologies are accelerating the identification of genetic variants that cause deafness.

In this latest report - "Next Generation Sequencing in Genetic Hearing Loss" - Susan Blanton, Mustafa Tekin, Xue Zhong Liu and Denise Yan gathered and examined data on the advances in high-throughput, massively parallel DNA sequencing that amplify and repeatedly sequence only certain regions of the human genome where genes associated with hearing loss are probably located.

This strategy is called "targeted resequencing". Scientists are able to locate disease-related gene mutations much faster than searching through the whole genome.

So far, over 1,000 DNA variants at over 130 sites in the human genome that have been identified to cause hearing loss and are not linked to any other symptoms or syndromes have been located.

The authors wrote:

Kenneth I. Berns, MD, PhD, Editor-in-Chief of Genetic Testing and Molecular Biomarkers said "Knowledge of the genetic lesions underlying deafness will greatly assist development of targeted therapy."

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Deafness - Identifying All Genetic Causes Within Reach

genetics,hate,primal instincts,epigenetics and blind breeding.
understand that what I am talking about is not fully researched but also is not ment at all to advocate for forced eugenics. what might benifit us most is kn...

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genetics,hate,primal instincts,epigenetics and blind breeding. - Video

Clinton: SCOTUS Myriad Genetics Decision #39;Terrific #39;
June 14 (Bloomberg) -- Former President Bill Clinton discusses the U.S. Supreme Court #39;s decision in Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, I...

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Clinton: SCOTUS Myriad Genetics Decision 'Terrific' - Video

Genetics Sex linked Traits
Genetics Sex linked Traits.

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Genetics Sex linked Traits - Video

SEATTLE, WA--(Marketwired - Jun 20, 2013) - Atossa Genetics, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATOS), The Breast Health Company, has signed an agreement with Fisher HealthCare Inc., part of Thermo Fisher Scientific, for distribution of Atossa's ForeCYTE Breast Health devices, which consist of the patented MASCT pump and ForeCYTE patient collection kits.

Atossa's MASCT system is used by physicians and nurses to collect a small amount of nipple aspirate fluid for cytological and genomic analysis at Atossa's wholly-owned National Reference Laboratory for Breast Health.

Dr. Steven Quay, Chairman, CEO & President of Atossa Genetics, said, "Fisher HealthCare is a recognized leader in providing diagnostic solutions to customers in the acute care, physician office and reference lab markets and we are excited to have entered into this distribution agreement. We believe our ForeCYTE test represents a significant breakthrough in breast cancer risk assessment and we look forward to working with our partners to make the ForeCYTE test a standard of care."

Mark Zacur, Vice President of Marketing & Business Development for Fisher HealthCare, stated, "We are pleased to partner with Atossa Genetics to help make the ForeCYTE test available to women across the U.S. We believe that the ForeCYTE test has the potential to have a meaningful impact on improving women's breast health."

Just as the Pap smear has reduced cervical cancer rates by more than 70 percent, becoming the most successful screening test in medicine, the goal of Atossa Genetics is to reduce the stubbornly high rate of breast cancer through the early detection and treatment of the precursor changes that lead to breast cancer.

About the ForeCYTE Breast Health Risk Assessment Test

The ForeCYTE test, the "Pap smear" for breast cancer, is a painless, quick and non-invasive procedure performed in a physician's office. The test provides vital early detection of pre-cancerous conditions that may progress to cancer over an approximately eight-year period before cancer can be detected by mammography or other means. The ForeCYTE test is intended for the 110 million women in the U.S. ages 18-73, including younger women, women with dense breasts, breast implants and BRCA gene mutations. Please click here for a video of the ForeCYTE test: http://vimeo.com/62365818.

About Atossa Genetics, Inc.

Atossa Genetics, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATOS), The Breast Health Company, based in Seattle, WA, is focused on preventing breast cancer through the commercialization of patented, FDA-designated Class II diagnostic medical devices and patented, laboratory developed tests (LDT) that can detect precursors to breast cancer up to eight years before mammography.

The National Reference Laboratory for Breast Health (NRLBH), a wholly owned subsidiary of Atossa Genetics, Inc., is a CLIA-certified high-complexity molecular diagnostic laboratory located in Seattle, WA.

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Atossa Genetics Signs Distribution Agreement With Fisher HealthCare

ASCI Two Worlds of Stem Cell Therapy Animation
Asian Stem Cell Institute (ASCI) Two Worlds of Stem Cell Therapy Animation Autologous Stem cell Treatments, mobilized peripheral blood, bone marrow and adipo...

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ASCI Two Worlds of Stem Cell Therapy Animation - Video

US Supreme Court Squashes Patents on Human Genes
So you know how your DNA is organized into 23 chromosomes? Well, those chromosomes are organized further into genes. And they determine different things abou...

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US Supreme Court Squashes Patents on Human Genes - Video

PISCATAWAY, N.J., June 20, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- On June 13, 2013, the United States Supreme Court unanimously ruled that although isolated, natural gene sequences are unpatentable, cDNA (referred to as synthetic DNA) is officially considered patentable subject material. The ruling was issued after the court reviewed patents owned by Myriad Genetics Inc. in the high-profile case( http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/12pdf/12-398_1b7d.pdf ) Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics. The patents claimed the genes BRCA1 and BRCA2, as well as methods for detecting mutations in the genes that have been linked to breast and ovarian cancer. The court supported this legal claim, stating that "cDNA is not a 'product of nature,' so it is patent eligible ".

GenScript's gene synthesis service( http://www.genscript.com/gene_synthesis.html?src=pullmenu ) is a valuable method for circumventing the isolation of natural DNA sequences for use in biological research studies. The service provides non-natural, de novo DNA sequences synthesized according to specified client design, allowing natural gene sequences or cassettes to be engineered for in vivo, or in vitro use, including diagnostic tests. Additionally, GenScript's OptimumGene(TM) codon optimization( http://www.genscript.com/codon_opt.html?src=pro ) technology can alter the sequence of natural genes, to increase the expression of the subsequent protein in a number of systems. The OptimumGene(TM) algorithm considers nearly every parameter affecting the central dogma process, from transcription to protein folding, and has been proven to optimize protein production in bacterial, mammalian, yeast and insect expression systems. OptimumGene(TM) codon optimization in combination of gene synthesis can generate novel, non-naturally occurring sequences, with high-utility and attractive patentable features. To preserve clients' intellectual property rights, GenScript does not claim any rights to specialized synthetic or OptimumGene(TM) codon optimized genes. Custom project details are kept strictly confidential; all intellectual property rights belong to the client.

It may be too soon to speculate on the court ruling's effect on DNA sequences' future patentability. However, as the pace of molecular biology research quickens, the use of synthetic DNA will inevitably become a mainstay in every lab. GenScript offers gene synthesis and codon optimization solutions for the present and future of gene patent law and remains committed to supporting innovation.

*GenScript is not a legal practitioner and the content above is in no way intended to provide legal advice for patent prosecution, litigation or any associated legal matters thereof.

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Synthetic DNA Deemed Patentable by US Supreme Court, Gene Synthesis and Codon Optimization Provide Potential Pathway ...

NEW YORK, June 19, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Below are experts from the ProfNet network that are available to discuss timely issues in your coverage area. If you are interested in interviewing any of the experts, please contact them via the contact information at the end of the listing. To receive these updates by email, send a note to profnet@profnet.com with the industries you cover, and we'll add you to the appropriate edition.

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Placing Mom on Medicaid Ronald Fatoullah, Esq. Elder Law & Estate Planning Attorney Ronald Fatoullah & Associates "Mom has just been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and will need long-term care. Health care costs are skyrocketing. What do families need to know about planning when a medical emergency or a catastrophic illness strikes? Regarding Medicaid eligibility and benefits -- who should apply and when?" Fatoullah is available to discuss the topics that arise when caring for a parent. He is the founder and managing attorney of Ronald Fatoullah & Associates, a New York law firm that exclusively focuses on the legal and financial challenges of aging: elder law, estate planning, Medicaid eligibility, asset preservation, probate, wills, trusts, guardianships, veteran planning, and planning for same-sex couples. Website: http://www.fatoullahlaw.com Media Contact: Carol Schell, cschell@fatoullahlaw.com

Supreme Court Decision on Human Gene Patents Lori Andrews Professor IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law "The Supreme Court has liberated human genes. This decision is great news for patients, doctors, and scientific researchers. Half of geneticists were impeded in their research by gene patents. Now they can begin the search for cures." In Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, Inc., the U.S. Supreme Court held that human genes were not patentable since they are products of nature and not inventions. Andrews filed amicus briefs in the trial court, appellate court and the U.S. Supreme Court representing medical organizations including the American Medical Association, the American Society of Human Genetics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. She argued that a patent on genes was not only legally inappropriate, but also a threat to public health. For the past 10 years, Andrews has studied the impact of gene patents on health care and scientific research, receiving grants from the federal Department of Energy Human Genome Project and from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Expert Contact: landrews@kentlaw.iit.edu Media Contact: Gwendolyn Osborne, gosborne@kentlaw.iit.edu

SCOTUS Gene Patent Case Barbara Evans Co-director, Health Law & Policy Institute University of Houston Law Center "The decision makes sense, but it is a major change that has the potential to upset business expectations of biotech firms that have structured their businesses on the assumption that genes are patentable. One hears dire forecasts that invalidating gene patents will put a halt to biotechnology investment and innovation. Frankly, those fears seem overblown." Evans is available to explain the issues involved in the case, as well as what it means for research companies and the average citizen after the U.S. Supreme ruled that companies cannot patent human genes. Media Contact: Carrie Criado, cacriado@central.uh.edu

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ProfNet Experts Available on Medicaid, Gene Patent Case

Researchers have identified 45 genetic genetic variants in overweight newborns that are known to occur in obese adults and hope their findings could someday help combat the global obesity epidemic.

"Allowing earlier identification of high-risk newborns may allow for earlier interventions to take place to possibly prevent obesity later in life," study lead author Dr. Reeti Chawla, a fellow in pediatric endocrinology at Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago and the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, said in an Endocrine Society news release.

Chawla and colleagues analyzed genetic data from more than 4,400 ethnically diverse newborns in the United States and found 45 genetic variants associated with higher fat levels. These variants were already known to occur in obese adults.

The researchers are now using the 45 genetic variants to develop a genetic risk score to determine whether having a large number of these genetic variants predicts whether newborns are at risk for having increased fat at birth and for obesity later in life.

The study was scheduled for presentation Tuesday at the Endocrine Society's annual meeting in San Francisco.

Being obese in childhood increases the risk of adult obesity and researchers are trying to identify risk factors to help predict who is at greater risk for weight gain.

More than one-third of American adults are obese, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Being overweight and obese increases the risk of many types of health problems, including heart disease, diabetes, stroke and some cancers.

The data and conclusions of research presented at medical meetings should be viewed as preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.

More information

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more about childhood overweight and obesity.

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Gene research may help spot baby's obesity risk

The Ataxia-Telangiectasia (A-T) Society in Harpenden has launched a medical research project. Pictured are Sinead Ward and Orla.

Debbie White Wednesday, June 19, 2013 6:01 AM

A NEW medical research project which has positive implications for people carrying a breast cancer gene recently highlighted by actress Angelina Jolie is being funded by a small national charity based in Harpenden.

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The Ataxia-Telangiectasia (A-T) Society has launched the project as there are currently no treatments for A-T and because the condition is so rare, drug companies do not usually invest in research.

A-T is a devastating disease of children and young adults which progressively affects their co-ordination and ability to carry out everyday activities. It also brings a very high risk of developing life-threatening illnesses including cancers, especially leukaemia, lymphoma and lung disease.

About one in every 200 people carries the defective A-T gene and is at risk of having a child with the disease. And women who carry the gene are up to eight times more likely to develop breast cancer than other women.

The society, based at Rothamsted Research Centre, is, with charity the Thomas Appeal, jointly funding the project which began on June 1 at the Steve Jackson Laboratory in Cambridge.

The research uses cutting-edge cell biology and DNA sequencing technology to identify new approaches for treating Ataxia-Telangiectasia and slowing its progression.

A spokeswoman for the society said: The fact that this project potentially offers hope for women with hereditary risk of breast cancer as well as people with A-T makes it extremely significant.

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Harpenden charity funding research into defective gene

Soft Kill Frankenfood | Genetic Engineering
soft kill = gm foods insight into this topic. This is the tip of the iceburg it gets worse if you research it more deeply .. watch the 1.5 hr online document...

By: organicslant

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Soft Kill Frankenfood | Genetic Engineering - Video

Newswise Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center and colleagues at Louisiana State University have developed a method for identifying aggressive prostate cancers that require immediate therapy. It relies on understanding the genetic interaction between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). The goal is to better predict a prostate cancers aggressiveness to avoid unnecessary radical treatment.

Their study was published in the online journal PLOS ONE in April.

According to the authors, prostate cancer accounts for 20 percent of all cancers and 9 percent of cancer deaths. It is the most common cancer and was the second leading cause of cancer death in American men in 2012.

For most prostate cancer patients, the disease progresses relatively slowly, said study co-author Hui-Yi Lin, Ph.D., assistant member of the Chemical Biology and Molecular Medicine Program at Moffitt. However, some cases grow aggressively and metastasize. It is often difficult to tell the difference between the two.

The two treatment options for aggressive prostate cancer radical surgery and radiation therapy have negative side effects, such as incontinence and erectile dysfunction. It is why the authors believe there is an urgent need for biomarkers that can identify or predict aggressive types of prostate cancer.

Through examining combinations of genetic variants, or SNP-SNP interactions, the researchers have identified and validated several genetic changes that are related to prostate cancer aggressiveness. Their work also shows that the epithelial growth factor receptor may be the hub for these interactions because it is involved in the growth of blood vessels (angiogenesis), which in turn stimulates tumor growth.

Our findings identified five SNP-SNP interactions in the angiogenesis genes associated with prostate cancer aggressiveness, explained study co-author Jong Y. Park, Ph.D., associate member of Moffitts Cancer Epidemiology Program. We successfully detected the genotype combinations that put patients at risk of aggressive prostate cancer and then explored the underlying biological associations among angiogenesis genes associated with aggressive prostate cancer.

The researchers concluded that the gene network they constructed based on SNP-SNP interactions indicates there are novel relationships among critical genes involved in the angiogenesis pathway in prostate cancer.

Our findings will help physicians identify patients with an aggressive type of prostate cancer and may lead to better personalized treatment in the future, Park said.

The study was supported by grants from the American Cancer Society (IRG-93-092-14) and the National Cancer Institute (R01 CA128813, R25T CA147832).

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Researchers Identify Genetic Variants Predicting Aggressive Prostate Cancers

Newswise Human genomics holds promise for prevention and tailored treatment of chronic illnesses. At the same time, people of color, who bear a disproportionate burden of chronic illnesses, take part in genomics research at low rates.

When Aaron Buseh, associate professor of nursing, began talking to members of the African American community about their reluctance to take part in genetic research, two cases were mentioned over and over again the Tuskegee syphilis experiments and Henrietta Lacks.

In both cases, African American subjects were involved in research without ever being informed about the goals or results, being told about potentially harmful consequences, benefiting from the research or even giving informed consent.

The 40 years of Tuskegee research abuses were exposed in the media in 1972. A 2010 book, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, outlined how others made huge profits from the HeLa line of cancer cells developed from Lackss genetic material, while her family lived in poverty.

For the past three years, the Community Engagement in Genetics/Genomics Project, led by Buseh, co-principal investigator Professor Sandra Underwood, Professor Patricia Stevens and a group of researchers from the College of Nursing, has been looking at the issues involved and identifying community-engagement strategies to increase the participation of African immigrants and African Americans in genomics initiatives. The Wisconsin Genomics Initiative and the UWM Graduate School funded the research.

More than 400 African Americans and African immigrants from 29 countries have been involved. Using a community-based participatory research approach (CBPR), the researchers created an academic-community partnership with the Black Health Coalition of Wisconsin and the Pan African Community Association.

Building trust through partnerships These partnerships allowed them to build trust, connect with community leaders and openly discuss the ethics and privacy concerns involved in genetics research, says Buseh. With the help of these partners, the researchers were able to conduct focus groups and in-depth interviews, and reach out to the community in surveys.

We would not have been able to accomplish this project if we did not have their participation and partnership, says Buseh.

Such academic-community partnerships are key to developing and implementing health programs, he adds.

We have come to appreciate that community engagement is more than just holding a public meeting. It is an ongoing, interactive process that includes multiple stakeholders and brings together community members for a common purpose in this case, genetic research and biobanking.

Read this article:
Genetic Research Among People of Color: a Question of Trust

Alistair Brock, Zebrafish Genetics exhibit at the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition 2013
Alistair Brock is a scientist from the Zebrafish Genetics exhibit at the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition 2013. Find out more about this exhibit here:...

By: RoyalSociety

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Alistair Brock, Zebrafish Genetics exhibit at the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition 2013 - Video