genes

Scientists in the UK have developed a rapid new way of checking for toxic genes in disease-causing bacteria which infect insects and humans.

Their findings could in the future lead to new vaccines and anti-bacterial drugs.

The roadmap to the future of the gorgeously-decorated fish which throng Australia’s coral reefs may well be written in their genes.

Of particular importance may be to protect ‘pioneer’ fish populations which are able to re-colonize regions of reef devastated by global warming and other impacts or settle new areas as the corals move south.

In a discovery that counters prevailing thought, a study in mice has found that inactivating a pair of key genes involved in "fat-burning" can actually increase energy expenditure and help lower diet-induced obesity.

Obese patients with a specific genetic make-up lose more weight when taking the weight loss drug sibutramine and undergoing behavioral therapy compared to those without this genetic make-up.

How a cell achieves the coordinated control of a number of genes at the same time has long puzzled scientists.

Researchers have discovered a surprising answer. Just as human engineers control devices ranging from dimmer switches to retrorockets using frequency modulated signals, cells tune the expression of groups of genes using discrete bursts of activation.

Researchers have discovered a connection between genes that could hold the key to a longer, healthier life. Using worms that share similar genetics to humans, scientists have identified a previously unknown link between two genes -- one associated with aging, the other with certain types of cancer.

Researchers have discovered two new genes that increase the risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease in childhood.

Continuing discovery of genes that interact with each other and with environmental influences in this complex disease helps build the foundation for personalized IBD treatments tailored to a patient's genetic profile.

The tick-tock of your biological clock may have just gotten a little louder. The number of genes under control of the biological clock in a much-studied model organism is dramatically higher than previously reported.

The new study implies that the clock may be much more important in living things than suspected only a few years ago.

Researchers have discovered that a protein called FOXA2 controls genes that maintain the proper level of bile in the liver.

FOXA2 may become the focus for new therapies to treat diseases that involve the regulation of bile salts.

Isoforms from a new family of genes called novel structure proteins could be involved in apoptosis or programmed cell death.