http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. Thanks to thousands of volunteer twins, scientists have discovered over 400 novel genes associated with over 30 diseases over the last two decades, marking a golden era in genetic discovery. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-06-twin-age.html Genetics Fri, 07 Jun 2013 07:36:55 EST news289809391 The US Supreme Court will hear arguments Monday on whether to allow private entities to patent genes they have isolated and identified, a decision that could have far-reaching implications for genetic research. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-court-case-gene-patents.html Genetics Sat, 13 Apr 2013 05:10:01 EST news285046962 Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified a new set of genetic markers for Alzheimer's that point to a second pathway through which the disease develops. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-genetic-markers-id-alzheimer-pathway.html Alzheimer's disease & dementia Thu, 04 Apr 2013 12:32:42 EST news284297477 Zebrafish, the staple of genetic research, may hold the answer to repairing damaged retinas and returning eye-sight to people. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-zebrafish-retinas-eyesight-people.html Ophthalmology Thu, 31 Jan 2013 11:33:59 EST news278854432 Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are neurodevelopmental disorders typically characterized by difficulties in social interactions and delayed or abnormal language development. Although ASD reportedly affects 1 in 88 people in the United States, to date there have been no distinctive biomarkers to diagnose the disease. In a special themed issue of Disease Markers, investigators report on the current understanding of ASD genetics and the possibilities of translating genetic research toward biomarker development in ASD. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-biomarker-early-autism-spectrum-disorder.html Autism spectrum disorders Fri, 30 Nov 2012 10:43:51 EST news273494616 Researchers from the Guy Rouleau Laboratory affiliated with the CHUM Research Centre and the CHU–Sainte-Justine Research Centre have discovered the genetic cause of a rare disease reported only in patients originating from Newfoundland: hereditary spastic ataxia (HSA). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-genetic-discovery-hereditary-spastic-ataxiarare.html Genetics Thu, 06 Sep 2012 13:50:36 EST news266158210 With a 95 percent genomic similarity to humans, mice have long been used to learn about the genetic causes of human disease. Once researchers can shine a light on the genetic factors that cause disease in mice, they can start to develop prevention and treatment options to protect the human population. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-lab-mice-genetic-links-disease.html Genetics Thu, 05 Apr 2012 11:25:38 EST news252843923 University of Oregon scientists collaborating with an Oregon company that synthesizes antisense Morpholinos for genetic research have developed a UV light-activated on-off switch for the vital gene-blocking molecule. Based on initial testing in zebra-fish embryos, the enhanced molecule promises to deliver new insights for developmental biologists and brain researchers. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-added-gene-tool-view-cell.html Genetics Wed, 04 Apr 2012 09:54:05 EST news252752002 A majority of college students is receptive to donating blood or other genetic material for scientific research, according to a new study from Southern Methodist University, Dallas. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-college-students-donate-genetic-material.html Other Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:21:33 EST news249052877 In the past decade, a growing number of academic medical centers have begun offering research ethics consultation services, in which bioethics experts help scientists address the ethical and societal implications of their laboratory and clinical experiments. For instance, an investigator may want advice on the social and cultural ramifications of conducting genetic research among an indigenous population. But the role of these consults isn’t always well-understood. Many researchers believe that Institutional Review Boards, which must approve any research involving human subjects, will address these kinds of ethical questions. However, there are some areas of research — such as those involving animal subjects or broad social risk — that fall outside of the regulatory purview of IRBs. The consultation services can help fill this gap, in addition to giving scientists a sounding board for exploring ethical questions early in their research-design process. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-magnus-role-ethics.html Other Thu, 26 Jan 2012 08:20:01 EST news246786899 There's a 3-D world in our brains. It's a landscape that mimics the outside world, where the objects we see exist as collections of neural circuits and electrical impulses. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-scientists-frontiers-vision.html Neuroscience Fri, 06 Jan 2012 13:13:39 EST news245077991 In a study conducted at 12 university-based research sites, there was wide variation in how best-estimate clinical diagnoses within the autism spectrum were assigned to individual children, according to a study being published Online First by the Archives of General Psychiatry. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-wide-variation-best-estimate-clinical-diagnosis.html Psychology & Psychiatry Mon, 07 Nov 2011 16:33:16 EST news239905986 A new study from McLean Hospital/Harvard Medical School and the University of Colorado concludes that genetic research drawing correlations between specific genes, environmental variables and the combined impact they have on the development of some psychiatric illnesses needs additional scrutiny and replication before being accepted as true. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-09-accuracy-gene-by-environment-interaction.html Psychology & Psychiatry Thu, 08 Sep 2011 11:55:28 EST news234701706 Biobanks are repositories for tissue samples, usually in the form of blood or saliva or leftover tissue from surgical procedures. These samples are collected and used for future research, including genetic research. They may be linked to personal health information regarding the sample donor. People who are eligible to donate these samples and researchers who want to use them face important questions with respect to whether and how informed consent should be obtained for sample and health information collection and use. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-06-limited-consent-biobanks.html Genetics Wed, 29 Jun 2011 04:07:35 EST news228539222 A breakthrough in genetic research has uncovered the defect behind a rare hereditary children's disease that inhibits the body's ability to break down vitamin D. This discovery has led researchers to develop the first genetic and biochemical tests that positively identify the disease. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-06-diagnostic-hereditary-children-disease.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:15:29 EST news227441714 Mayo Clinic researchers have designed a new tool for identifying protein function from genetic code. A team led by Stephen Ekker, Ph.D., succeeded in switching individual genes off and on in zebrafish, then observing embryonic and juvenile development. The study appears in the journal Nature Methods. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-genetic-zebrafish-genes.html Genetics Sun, 08 May 2011 13:00:40 EST news224056027