http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. Johns Hopkins researchers say they have discovered specific chemical alterations in two genes that, when present during pregnancy, reliably predict whether a woman will develop postpartum depression. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-genetic-predictors-postpartum-depression-uncovered.html Psychology & Psychiatry Tue, 21 May 2013 04:00:02 EST news288291866 A unique new study led by University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center researchers Guo-Min Li and Libya Gu, in collaboration with Dr. Wei Yang at National Institutes of Health, reveals a novel mechanism explaining the previously unknown root cause of some forms of colorectal cancers. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-potential-colorectal-cancers.html Cancer Thu, 25 Apr 2013 16:35:22 EST news286126517 Researchers have generated preclinical data demonstrating that the protein KDM1, which functions as a lysine demethylase, is a potential target for glioma treatment, according to Gangadhara R. Sareddy, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow in the Vadlamudi Laboratory at The University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, who presented the results at the AACR Annual Meeting 2013, held in Washington, D.C., April 6-10. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-kdm1-therapeutic-glioma.html Cancer Mon, 08 Apr 2013 09:00:01 EST news284629245 Tumourigenesis is driven by genetic alterations and by changes in the epigenome, for instance by the addition of methyl groups to cytosine bases in the DNA. A deeper understanding of the interaction between the genetic and epigenetic mechanisms is critical for the selection of tumour biomarkers and for the future development of therapies. Human tumour specimens and cell lines however contain a plethora of genetic and epigenetic changes, which complicate data analysis. In contrast, certain mouse tumour models contain only a single genetic mutation and allow the analysis of nascent tumours. Scientists of the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics in Berlin have now discovered a recurring pattern of more than 13,000 epigenetic alterations in young tumours of the mouse. This genome-wide pattern was found to be partly conserved in human colon carcinoma, and may therefor facilitate the identification of novel clinical colon cancer biomarkers for early detection. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-colon-cancer-epigenetic-pattern-mice.html Genetics Thu, 07 Feb 2013 17:00:03 EST news279472308 New research in human volunteers has shown that molecular changes to our genes, known as epigenetic marks, are driven mainly by ageing but are also affected by what we eat. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-12-evidence-epigenetic-effects-diet-healthy.html Genetics Thu, 06 Dec 2012 10:46:32 EST news274013181 A recent finding by medical geneticists sheds new light on how Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy develops and how it might be treated. More commonly known as FSHD, the devastating disease affects both men and women. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-mutations-genes-dna-packaging-result.html Genetics Sun, 11 Nov 2012 13:00:03 EST news271860742 (Medical Xpress)—Researchers at King's College London have for the first time identified a gene linked to age-related degeneration of the intervertebral discs in the spine, a common cause of lower back pain. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-gene-linked-age-related-degeneration-intervertebral.html Genetics Mon, 24 Sep 2012 08:17:00 EST news267693361 You might think that the DNA you inherited is one thing that you absolutely can't do anything about, but in one sense you'd be wrong. Researchers reporting in the March issue of Cell Metabolism, a Cell Press publication, have found that when healthy but inactive men and women exercise for a matter of minutes, it produces a rather immediate change to their DNA. Perhaps even more tantalizing, the study suggests that the caffeine in your morning coffee might also influence muscle in essentially the same way. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-dna.html Genetics Tue, 06 Mar 2012 13:17:25 EST news250262231 In 2009, the DNA alphabet expanded. Scientists discovered that an extra letter or "sixth nucleotide" was surprisingly abundant in DNA from stem cells and brain cells. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-patterns-dna-letter-brain-distinct.html Neuroscience Sun, 30 Oct 2011 14:00:01 EST news239201556 A high-fat diet during pregnancy may program a woman's baby for future diabetes, even if she herself is not obese or diabetic, says a new University of Illinois study published in the Journal of Physiology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-high-fat-diet-pregnancy-child-future.html Health Wed, 25 May 2011 16:05:52 EST news225558251 The most comprehensive analysis yet of the epigenetic modifications present in breast cancer has revealed potentially important new ways to detect and treat the disease, Belgian researchers have reported. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-epigenetic-reveals-insights-breast-cancer.html Cancer Thu, 05 May 2011 10:04:38 EST news223808665