Want to detect the development of pancreatic cancer and improve patient outcomes but don’t have any tissue biopsies? An exciting new epigenetics study that employed liquid biopsies to detect 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5-hmC) on circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) to allow the early detection of pancreatic cancer now says: “No Problem!” Researchers at Bluestar Genomics (San Diego, CA, USA), […]
- Cancer Epigenetics
Epitranscriptomic tRNA Study Finally Reveals the “Y” of Aggressive Colon Tumors
Away with you Holmes, begone Poirot, and bye-bye Nancy Drew, because a terrific team of epigenetic detectives has solved an epitranscriptomic cold case to reveal the “Y” of aggressive colon tumors by linking CpG island promoter DNA hypermethylation of a key epitranscriptomic modifier and a transfer RNA (tRNA) modification to tumorigenesis. Epitranscriptomics includes the modification […]
Cell free DNA MeDIP-seq is a Molecular Methylation Magnet for Machine Learning Cancer Detection
Finding the cell free DNA (cfDNA) that most cell-types release into blood plasma is always a challenging task, but certain cancers release so little that it takes looking for a needle in a haystack to the next level. Methods for sorting the “hay” have often come up short, but two new studies successfully developed a […]
Epigenetic Study Suggests that the Safety of Vaping is Running on Fumes
With as many flavors as there are epigenetic modifications, vaping has arrived on the scene as a safer alternative to the smoking of cigarettes and a means to give up a rather unhealthy habit. However, the rise in vaping-related lung injuries and the “unforeseen” massive uptake of vaping by teenagers have prompted scientists to undertake […]
Biotechnology Development and Cancer Epigenomics with Dr. Martin Hirst
Dr. Martin Hirst from the University of British Columbia discusses his lab’s epigenomic research focused on biotechnology development and cancer at the 2019 joint CEEHRC/IHEC meeting.