At the core of this cell behavior is how the loss of that single gene changes activation levels of dozens of other genes, suppressing genes associated with metastatic disease and increasing
activity of genes linked to normal tissue.
Not exact matches
The researchers found: cord plasma increased the
activity of several
genes linked to neural plasticity and memory; young adult plasma activated a subset
of the same
genes; and older adult plasma had no effect on
gene expression.
This work is part
of the ongoing Duke Neurogenetics Study (DNS), a comprehensive study
linking genes, brain
activity and other biological markers to risk for mental illness in young adults.
The team also recently obtained a grant from the National Medical Research Council in Singapore to pursue a study using the probe to examine the relationship between key Parkinson's disease -
linked genes and MAO - B expression and
activity to further understand the causes
of the disease and illuminate the role
of MAO - B in this.
More
activity of the neuroligin - 3
gene in high - grade gliomas was
linked to shorter survival among patients with these tumors.
The initial results published last year showed that people who scored in the top 15 percent
of the U.C.L.A. Loneliness Scale, a self - administered psychiatric questionnaire for measuring the emotion, exhibited increased
gene activity linked to inflammation and reduced
gene activity associated with antibody production and antiviral responses.
Then, they added estrogen to see if
gene activity changed, honing in on TLR8, an X chromosome -
linked gene whose expression has already been implicated in the development
of lupus.
Stice's group also genotyped these young women to determine whether or not they possessed variant alleles
of two
genes (DRD2 Taq1A A1 and DRD4 - 7 +) that have been
linked with lower dopamine
activity and, in some studies, obesity.
«These findings are extremely important,» says political scientist James Fowler at the University
of California, San Diego, who has been doing research
linking certain
gene variations to political
activity.
They found a
link between MYC overexpression and the
activity of spliceosome - related
genes.
Varun Warrier added: «We now need to confirm these results using new genetic and brain scan data so as to understand how exactly
gene activity and thickness
of the cortex are
linked in autism.»
The researchers now intend to investigate how the different processes that regulate DNA modifications and
gene activity might be
linked, and which regions
of the genome are initially resistant to reprogramming and why that might be.
On the negative side, the researchers found that many
of the
genes whose
activity is unique to modern humans are
linked to diseases like Alzheimer's disease, autism and schizophrenia, suggesting that these recent changes in our brain may underlie some
of the psychiatric disorders that are so common in humans today.
Genetic analysis also revealed significant increase in
activity in two
genes that may be involved in mitochondria function, suggesting that osteoclast activation might be
linked to the reaction
of mitochondria to microgravity.
The study *, published in the British Journal
of Cancer ** today (Wednesday), showed a potential
link between the
activity of a
gene called BCAR4 and the likelihood that a breast cancer tumour will not respond to tamoxifen — widely used to treat women with breast cancer.
They found that the absence
of the RASGRF - 2
gene was
linked to a significant reduction in alcohol - seeking
activity.
Using an array
of techniques, including RNA sequencing and targeted
gene expression profiling, the researchers searched for
links between
gene activity and protein production in these tumors and the clinical outcomes
of patients.
This was found to be
linked to increased
activity of a previously unstudied
gene named betatrophin in liver and fat tissue.
Therefore, in some cases the process
of inserting the healthy
gene can increase the
activity of cancer -
linked genes, leading to tumour formation.
The
gene variant produced a telltale pattern
of activity linked to production
of a key brain messenger chemical.
Genetic variation in HDAC4 among the women was
linked to a lower level
of HDAC4
gene activity and differences in their ability to respond to and recover from fear, and also differences in «resting state» brain imaging.