http://www.physorg.com/ en-us Physorg.com internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. A multi-national group of investigators, including a scientist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, has discovered that nearly a third of the genetic basis of schizophrenia may be attributed to the cumulative actions of thousands of common genetic variants. The effects of each of these genetic changes, innocuous on its own, add up to a significant risk for developing both schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. http://www.physorg.com/news165674543.html Medicine & Health Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:42:44 EST news165674543 A new study at the University of Leicester aims to investigate the DNA of sleep. http://www.physorg.com/news165055510.html Medicine & Health Wed, 24 Jun 2009 09:45:39 EST news165055510 Medical scientists at the University of Leicester are investigating how a species of fish from the Pacific Ocean could help provide answers to tackling chronic conditions such as hereditary high blood pressure and kidney disease. http://www.physorg.com/news164888782.html Medicine & Health Mon, 22 Jun 2009 11:27:52 EST news164888782 Without the process of domestication, humans would still be hunters and gatherers, and modern civilization would look very different. Fortunately, for all of us who do not relish the thought of spending our days searching for nuts and berries, early civilizations successfully cultivated many species of animals and plants found in their surroundings. Current studies of the domestication of various species provide a fascinating glimpse into the past. http://www.physorg.com/news164639448.html Biology Fri, 19 Jun 2009 14:11:27 EST news164639448 Contrary to a previous report, an analysis of 14 previous studies does not find an association between a serotonin transporter gene variation, stressful life events, and an increased risk of major depression, according to an article in the June 17 issue of JAMA. The authors did find that the number of stressful life events is associated with depression. http://www.physorg.com/news164423585.html Medicine & Health Wed, 17 Jun 2009 03:20:03 EST news164423585 In a multi-center trial led by a Saint Louis University researcher, investigators found that a new combination therapy of daily consensus interferon and ribavirin helps some hepatitis C patients who have not responded to previous treatment. The findings, published in the June issue of Hepatology, offer a new option for hepatitis C patients, and may be effective even for those patients with factors that make their condition difficult to treat. http://www.physorg.com/news164360551.html Medicine & Health Tue, 16 Jun 2009 09:10:01 EST news164360551 A genetic analysis of data from three studies suggests that genetically elevated levels of lipoprotein(a) are associated with an increased risk of heart attack, according to a study in the June 10 issue of JAMA. http://www.physorg.com/news163823424.html Medicine & Health Wed, 10 Jun 2009 03:31:13 EST news163823424 Two scientists at the Institute for Aging Research of Hebrew SeniorLife are part of an international team of investigators that has identified genes that influence the start of menstruation, a milestone of female reproductive health that has lifelong influences on overall health. The breakthrough was published online in Nature Genetics, one of the world's leading scientific journals. http://www.physorg.com/news162885042.html Medicine & Health Sat, 30 May 2009 06:51:15 EST news162885042 Vienna, Austria: For the first time, scientists have been able to identify genetic factors that influence the age at which natural menopause occurs in women. Ms Lisette Stolk, a researcher from Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, told the annual conference of the European Society of Human Genetics today ( Monday 25 May) that a greater understanding of the factors influencing age at menopause might eventually help to improve the clinical treatment of infertile women. http://www.physorg.com/news162472037.html Medicine & Health Mon, 25 May 2009 12:07:52 EST news162472037 Behavioural ecologists working in Bolivia have found that wild spider monkeys control their diets in a similar way to humans, contrary to what has been thought up to now. Rather than trying to maximize their daily energy intake, the monkeys tightly regulate their daily protein intake, so that it stays at the same level regardless of seasonal variation in the availability of different foods. http://www.physorg.com/news162047681.html Biology Wed, 20 May 2009 14:15:21 EST news162047681 Individuals with heart disease are twice as likely to suffer from depression as the general population, an association the medical community has largely been unable to explain. Now, a new study by researchers at The Miriam Hospital, in conjunction with The Montréal Heart Institute, University of Montréal and McGill University, reveals there may be genetic variations that contribute to depression in heart disease patients. http://www.physorg.com/news161951023.html Medicine & Health Tue, 19 May 2009 11:23:58 EST news161951023 A new tool will help researchers identify the minute changes in DNA patterns that lead to cancer, Huntington's disease and a host of other genetic disorders. The tool was developed at North Carolina State University and translates DNA sequences into graphic images, which allows researchers to distinguish genetic patterns more quickly and efficiently than was historically possible using computers. http://www.physorg.com/news161935232.html Biology Tue, 19 May 2009 07:01:07 EST news161935232 A family-based prevention program designed to help adolescents avoid substance use and other risky behavior proved especially effective for a group of young teens with a genetic risk factor contributing toward such behavior, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Georgia. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), components of the National Institutes of Health, supported the study, which appears in the May/June issue of Child Development. http://www.physorg.com/news161614455.html Medicine & Health Fri, 15 May 2009 13:55:06 EST news161614455 Researchers from the Peninsula Medical School and the University of Bristol, using data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children and the Exeter Family Study of Childhood Health, have identified a common genetic variant that explains why some women may find it more difficult to quit smoking during pregnancy. http://www.physorg.com/news161604372.html Medicine & Health Fri, 15 May 2009 11:06:47 EST news161604372 (PhysOrg.com) -- Through sophisticated statistical analyses and advanced computer simulations, researchers are learning more about the genomic patterns of human population structure around the world. http://www.physorg.com/news161528365.html Medicine & Health Thu, 14 May 2009 14:00:01 EST news161528365 Rare traits persist in a population because predators detect common forms of prey more easily. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Ecology found that birds will target salamanders that look like the majority - even reversing their behavior in response to alterations in the ratio of a distinguishing trait. http://www.physorg.com/news161360038.html Biology Tue, 12 May 2009 15:14:47 EST news161360038 Using a new technique for cDNA preparation combined with the latest sequencing methods, researchers have uncovered the larval transcriptome of a reef-building coral (Acropora millepora). Their study, described in the open access journal BMC Genomics, features the most extensive database of genes and genetic markers currently available for any coral. http://www.physorg.com/news161315733.html Biology Tue, 12 May 2009 02:56:01 EST news161315733 (AP) -- The detailed new look yet at the genetics of Mexicans is showing significant diversity, a finding that could help point the way to customized drugs and identification of people prone to certain diseases. http://www.physorg.com/news161281404.html Medicine & Health Mon, 11 May 2009 17:23:50 EST news161281404 A team of researchers from the United States, the Netherlands and Iceland has identified three genes containing common mutations that are associated with altered kidney disease risk. One of the discovered genes, the UMOD gene, produces Tamm-Horsfall protein, the most common protein in the urine of healthy individuals. Although the Tamm-Horsfall protein has been known for almost 60 years, its functions are not well understood and its relationship to chronic kidney disease risk was not known previously. The findings are published in the May 10 issue of Nature Genetics. http://www.physorg.com/news161182324.html Medicine & Health Sun, 10 May 2009 13:54:37 EST news161182324 Of dozens of candidates potentially involved in increasing a person's risk for the most common type of Alzheimer's disease that affects more than 5 million Americans over the age of 65, one gene that keeps grabbing Johns Hopkins researchers' attention makes a protein called neuroglobin. http://www.physorg.com/news160845820.html Medicine & Health Wed, 06 May 2009 16:24:15 EST news160845820 A study on schizophrenia has implicated machinery that maintains the flow of potassium in cells and revealed a potential molecular target for new treatments. Expression of a previously unknown form of a key such potassium channel was found to be 2.5 fold higher than normal in the brain memory hub of people with the chronic mental illness and linked to a hotspot of genetic variation. http://www.physorg.com/news160820661.html Medicine & Health Wed, 06 May 2009 09:24:56 EST news160820661 For some time now it has been known that certain hereditary factors enhance the risk of schizophrenia or a manic-depressive disorder. However, just how this occurs had remained obscure. Researchers at the Zentralinstitut für Seelische Gesundheit in Mannheim, Heidelberg University and Bonn University are now able to answer this question, at least for one common genetic variant: this impairs the interoperation of certain regions of the brain. The study is to appear on 1st May in the prestigious scientific journal Science. It will also be suited to provide fresh stimuli for the search for cures. http://www.physorg.com/news160322616.html Medicine & Health Thu, 30 Apr 2009 15:04:19 EST news160322616 The genetic predisposition of cows has an effect on the fat and protein content of their milk. Researchers at Wageningen University have spent the past few years examining the scope and significance of genetic variation between cows for the differences in quality characteristics of milk. They have discovered a number of genes that contribute to this genetic variation. http://www.physorg.com/news160215986.html Biology Wed, 29 Apr 2009 09:27:30 EST news160215986 UCLA scientists, in partnership with 30 research institutions across the country, have identified a new gene variant that is highly common in autistic children. And when researchers scrutinized the activity of the gene, known as CDH10, in the fetal brain, they discovered that it is most active in key regions that support language, speech and interpreting social behavior. http://www.physorg.com/news160145737.html Medicine & Health Tue, 28 Apr 2009 13:56:02 EST news160145737 The Medical College of Georgia is part of a large national study examining the genes of 10,000 patients with schizophrenia and 10,000 healthy individuals in an effort to pinpoint variations that can improve disease diagnosis and treatment. http://www.physorg.com/news160056481.html Medicine & Health Mon, 27 Apr 2009 13:08:36 EST news160056481 (PhysOrg.com) -- An international study led by University of Cincinnati (UC) researchers has detected two genetic variations that could provide insight into why intracranial aneurysms develop. http://www.physorg.com/news159803515.html Medicine & Health Fri, 24 Apr 2009 14:52:47 EST news159803515 Genetics plays a key role in determining risk for colorectal cancer, the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. Several common genetic markers have been found to be associated with the disease, but finding the biological events that lead to cancer can be much more difficult. In a study published online in Genome Research, scientists have identified a common genetic variation associated with the risk of colorectal cancer and its functional implications, shedding new light on the basis of this deadly disease. http://www.physorg.com/news159728950.html Medicine & Health Thu, 23 Apr 2009 18:09:42 EST news159728950 During the past several years, significant progress has been made in identifying susceptibility genes for nicotine dependence through genetic linkage and association analyses. Although a large number of genes have been associated with tobacco smoking, only a very limited number of genetic variants are considered to be causative. How to find these functional variants and then characterize them remains challenging in the field of human genetics. http://www.physorg.com/news159699716.html Medicine & Health Thu, 23 Apr 2009 10:02:21 EST news159699716 The globalization of health care and the growth of "transplant tourism" (traveling abroad to purchase donor organs and undergo organ transplantation) have outpaced the implementation of internationally accepted ethical standards for procurement of organs for transplantation. A new article appearing in Clinical Transplantation finds that both U.S. and foreign transplant physicians expressed serious concern about organ procurement practices in China, and that this concern influenced their patient care decisions. The study is the first to assess how the perceptions of healthcare providers on transplant tourism may influence domestic patient care decisions. http://www.physorg.com/news159695328.html Medicine & Health Thu, 23 Apr 2009 08:49:32 EST news159695328 New genetic research suggests that the traditional risk factors for melanoma may not be as helpful in predicting risk in all people as previously thought, according to data presented at the American Association for Cancer Research 100th Annual Meeting 2009. http://www.physorg.com/news159559395.html Medicine & Health Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:04:16 EST news159559395