Scientists at UC San Francisco, UC Berkeley and UCLA have received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval to jointly launch an early phase, first-in-human clinical trial of a CRISPR gene correction therapy in patients with sickle cell disease using the patient's own blood-forming stem cells. The trial will combine CRISPR technology developed at Innovative Genomics
Analysis indicated the number of mutations in the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) receptor-binding domain (RBD) doubles every 72 days. As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic continues infecting more people, SARS-CoV-2 is also evolving. Several new variants of the virus have now been discovered, some more infectious than the original strains. This
A team of scientists from Brazil recently explored the abilities of the UK, South African, and Brazilian variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) to evade host CD8+ T cell responses induced by natural infection or vaccination. The findings reveal reduced antigenic coverage for the P.2 Brazilian lineage, indicating its ability to evade
As new variants of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) continue to emerge, fueling the continued spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, a new study offers encouragement. Released as a preprint on the bioRxiv* server, the study reports the protection offered by antibodies elicited by natural infection against the newer variants
A new coronavirus variant with concerning mutations is on the rise in New York City, according to news reports. This latest coronavirus variant, dubbed B.1.526, first emerged in New York in November 2020, and it now accounts for about 25% of coronavirus genomes that were sequenced from New York in February and posted to a
The most frequently mutated gene in human cancers is called p53. Patients with Li-Fraumeni syndrome, which is a rare disorder that increases the risk of developing several types of cancer, often have an increased risk to develop cancers at early ages if they inherit p53 mutations. Recent studies suggest that some individuals with inherited p53
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), continues to wreak havoc across the globe. Scientists are racing to develop effective therapeutic regimens to combat the infection. One of therapy currently used to stimulate a robust immune response against the virus is monoclonal antibodies, a treatment used for
Researchers at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena have developed a software tool called "Variant Database" that has detected an emerging lineage of severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) isolates in New York. The novel SARS-CoV-2 virus is the agent responsible for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic that continues to sweep the globe
Researchers in the United States who tracked the evolution of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in an immunocompromised patient found that convalescent plasma therapy was associated with the emergence of viral variants that were less susceptible to neutralizing antibodies. The SARS-CoV-2 virus is the agent responsible for the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic that
With new variants emerging, often showing increased transmissibility and virulence, governments and health organizations do not appear to be within striking distance of effectively containing the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), this condition presents with a wide spectrum of severity, ranging from asymptomatic infection
A study led by researchers at the National Institutes of Health has made a surprising connection between frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), two disorders of the nervous system, and the genetic mutation normally understood to cause Huntington’s disease. This large, international project, which included a collaboration between the National Institute of Neurological
Researchers at the National Institutes of Health have discovered in mice what they believe is the first known genetic mutation to improve cognitive flexibility—the ability to adapt to changing situations. The gene, KCND2, codes for a protein that regulates potassium channels, which control electrical signals that travel along neurons. The electrical signals stimulate chemical messengers
A mutation that causes a type of muscular dystrophy that affects the limbs protects against HIV-1 infection, according to a study published August 29 in the open-access journal PLOS Pathogens by Sara Rodríguez-Mora, Mayte Coiras and José Alcamí of the Instituto de Salud Carlos III in Madrid, Spain, and colleagues. As the authors noted, this
Scientists have identified a gene mutation in the tumours of men with prostate cancer that is linked to very poor survival—and which could be used to pick out patients for more intensive treatment. Men with mutations in the retinoblastoma gene in their tumours were more than three times as likely to die and nearly seven
As a Mutation from pain, wounds and Fears can protect A Scottish Pensioner seems to have a lot of with the super heroes of the current Marvel films have in common. The old lady hardly feels pain and has an extremely strong ability to heal from injuries. Researchers found out now that due to the
As a Mutation from pain, wounds and Fears can protect A Scottish Pensioner seems to have a lot of with the super heroes of the current Marvel films have in common. The old lady hardly feels pain and has an extremely strong ability to heal from injuries. Researchers found out now that due to the
THURSDAY, Aug. 2, 2018 — The C-509T allele in the promoter region of transforming growth factor β (TGFB1) is associated with radiation-induced breast fibrosis risk among patients with early-stage breast cancer, according to study published online July 19 in JAMA Oncology. Aaron J. Grossberg, M.D., Ph.D., from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
A physician-scientist at the University of Arizona Cancer Center investigated a novel treatment for pancreatic cancer patients whose tumors exhibited a harmful genetic mutation. The results, in which a type of drug called a PARP inhibitor showed early promise in treating pancreatic cancer in patients with mutations in the BRCA gene, were published online last
Researchers from Washington State University have discovered how a genetic mutation linked to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) disrupts the heart’s normal function. The study, which will be published May 18 in the Journal of General Physiology, reveals that the mutation prevents the heart from increasing the amount of force it produces when it needs to pump
At the start of the epidemic in West Africa, the Ebola virus did not change as rapidly as thought at the time. ETH researchers explain why scientists misjudged it at the time. Scientific evidence at the start of the last major Ebola epidemic in West Africa that suggested the virus would change exceptionally rapidly was
We and our partners use cookies on this site to improve our service, perform analytics, personalize advertising, measure advertising performance, and remember website preferences.Ok