Bridge to offer Counsyl test

A UK fertility centre is to offer the controversial US genetic test that promises to eliminate the chances of a couple having a baby with over 100 inherited diseases....[Read More]

Merck receives EU approval for new infertility drug

The European Commission has granted approval of ELONVA, a first-in-class drug manufactured by White House Station pharmaceutical company, Merck. ELONVA is used for controlled ovarian stimulation in women embarking on IVF (in vitro fertilisation) treatment for infertility. With this approval, Merck has marketing authorisation for the drug in all EU member states....[Read More]

Umbilical stem cells could treat cloudy cornea

New research offers promise of restoring vision in patients with congenital or acquired corneal scarring. The findings were presented at the 49th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Cell Biology in San Diego, US....[Read More]

Postmortem genetic testing recommended for sudden cardiac death families

Postmortem genetic testing of people who have suffered sudden unexplained death (SUD) is a more effective and cost-efficient means of identifying genetic abnormalities that place surviving relatives at risk of fatal heart rhythm disturbances, a new study presented at the American Heart Association's annual meeting in Orlando, US, suggests....[Read More]

New genetic links to inflammatory bowel disease

New genetic studies have identified several key genetic regions which could play a role in ulcerative colitus, a common form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). All three studies were reported in Nature Genetics on 15 November....[Read More]

Stem cell treatment in irradiated rats offers hope for radiotherapy patients

Following radiation to the head, rats transplanted with stem cells had greater improvements in learning and memory, showed a research team at the University of California....[Read More]

US lawsuit against gene patents to go ahead

A lawsuit challenging the patents relating to two genes linked to hereditary breast and ovarian cancer will proceed, a US federal judge ruled last week....[Read More]

Gene therapy restores significant vision in congenital blindness

US doctors have used gene therapy to restore significant vision in 12 patients who were previously blinded by a disease called Leber's congenital amaurosis. The study, conducted by researchers at the Children`s Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, was published online in the Lancet on 24 October....[Read More]

Promising new gene therapy for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

A potential new gene therapy for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) is now set to enter clinical trials after encouraging results in mice. The multinational team of scientists, publishing their findings in the journal Molecular Therapy, demonstrated that the therapy dramatically prevented severe muscle deterioration and extended the lifespan of mice with symptoms of DMD....[Read More]

New light cast on genetic influences on autism

A large genetic study has uncovered a single 'letter' change in DNA which is associated with autism. The multi-national collaborative team, who published their findings in Nature, also identified two further regions of the genome which could contain other rarer genetic changes that have an even greater influence on the condition. Coinciding with these discoveries and publishing their findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a team led by Pro...[Read More]