Chromosome 8 (human)
hideChromosome 8 is one of the 23 pairs of chromosomes in humans. People normally have two copies of this chromosome. Chromosome 8 spans about 145 million base pairs (the building material of DNA) and represents between 4.5 and 5.0% of the total DNA in cells.
The chromosome has two arms, 8p and 8q. The short arm, 8p, has about 45 million base pairs, about 1.5% of the genome, and includes 484 genes and 110 pseudogenes; about 8% of its genes are involved in brain development and function, and about 16% are involved in cancer. A unique feature of 8p is a big region of about 15 megabases that appears to have a high mutation rate, and which shows an immense divergence between human and chimpanzee, suggesting that its high mutation rates have contributed to the evolution of the human brain.
Identifying genes on each chromosome is an active area of genetic research. Because researchers use different approaches to predict the number of genes on each chromosome, the estimated number of genes varies. Chromosome 8 is likely to contain between 700 and 1,000 genes.
For more information about Chromosome 8 (human), read the full article at
Wikipedia.
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News tagged with chromosome 8
Two more genetic risk factors for Alzheimer's disease found
Sep 06, 2009 |
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An international team of scientists has identified two more genetic risk factors for Alzheimer's disease. The findings are reported in the online edition of the journal Nature Genetics.
Scientists discover novel mechanism that increases colorectal cancer risk
Jun 29, 2009 |
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Finnish Academy Professors Lauri Aaltonen and Jussi Taipale have identified and described a mechanism whereby a single-base change in the human genome increases the risk of colorectal cancer.
Cleft lip and palate: Genes more important than thought?
Mar 08, 2009 |
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Comparing 500,000 snippets of human DNA put scientists from the University of Bonn on the right track. A genetic variant on chromosome 8 occurs with significantly higher frequency in people with cleft lip and palate than ...
Team finds breast cancer gene linked to disease spread
Jan 05, 2009 |
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A team of researchers at Princeton University and The Cancer Institute of New Jersey has identified a long-sought gene that is fatefully switched on in 30 to 40 percent of all breast cancer patients, spreading the disease, ...
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Largest gene study of childhood IBD identifies 5 new genes
Nov 15, 2009 |
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In the largest, most comprehensive genetic analysis of childhood-onset inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), an international research team has identified five new gene regions, including one involved in a biological pathway ...
Chromosomes dance and pair up on the nuclear membrane (w/ Video)
Nov 13, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Meiosis - the pairing and recombination of chromosomes, followed by segregation of half to each egg or sperm cell - is a major crossroads in all organisms reproducing sexually. Yet, how the ...
Single gene may cause curly hair
Nov 10, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists in Australia have identified a single gene that strongly influences whether you have curly or straight hair.
Study shows that some malignant tumors can be shut down after all
Nov 09, 2009 |
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Oncologists have had their hands tied because more than half of all human cancers have mutations that disable a protein called p53. As a critical anti-cancer watchdog, p53 masterminds several cancer-fighting operations within ...
Developmental delay could stem from nicotinic receptor deletion
Nov 08, 2009 |
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The loss of a gene through deletion of genetic material on chromosome 15 is associated with significant abnormalities in learning and behavior, said a consortium of researchers led by Baylor College of Medicine in a report ...
Possible help in fight against muscle-wasting disease (w/ Video)
Nov 06, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A compound already used to treat pneumonia could become a new therapy for an inherited muscular wasting disease, according to researchers at the University of Oregon and the University of ...
Genome sequence for the domestic horse unveiled
Nov 05, 2009 |
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The whole genome sequence of the domestic horse has been completed by the genome-sequencing center of The Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, in collaboration with an international team of researchers that ...
Drought tolerant cowpea can improve crop yield in arid West Africa
Nov 03, 2009 |
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Even the highly drought-resistant cowpea (a long type of legume) now has an increasingly difficult time surviving in the Sahel countries where climate change has resulted in shorter and less frequent rainy seasons. Wageningen ...
Clinical tests begin on medication to correct Fragile X defect
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Nov 02, 2009 |
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NIH-supported scientists at Seaside Therapeutics in Cambridge, Mass., are beginning a clinical trial of a potential medication designed to correct a central neurochemical defect underlying Fragile X syndrome, the most common ...
Researchers to perform sex change operation on papaya
Nov 02, 2009 |
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The complicated sex life of the papaya is about to get even more interesting, thanks to a $3.1 million grant from the National Science Foundation. The grant will fund basic research on the papaya sex chromosomes ...
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