Neuronal Histone Modifications in AutismNovember 15, 2011Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are mostly seen as a range of mental conditions, so researchers from the University of Massachusetts Medical School focused in on the prefrontal cortex (PFC) neurons of autistic individuals, and mapped their H3K4me3 epigenomes in order to better understand the complex condition. The project compared autistic PFC neuron profiles to a […]
Socio-Economic Status Leaves A Methyl Mark on DNANovember 9, 2011Candidates for public office never seem to learn that you can’t escape your past. It’s almost like they’ve never even heard of Google or YouTube or something! Speaking of not letting go of the past, we’ve seen a few papers recently suggesting that some epigenetic changes in early life can stick around for decades. Now, […]
Epigenetic Marker Maternal Blood Prenatal Trisomy 21November 8, 2011Screening for trisomy 21, or Down Syndrome, is a terrifying experience for soon-to-be parents that’s made even worse by the anxiety of the invasive procedures used in today’s testing methods. Soon, though, new diagnostics based on epigenetic markers should be able to indicate prenatal trisomy 21 from just a bit of mom’s blood. A new […]
EpiGenie Review: Chromatin’s Role in CancerNovember 7, 2011There’s lots of attention, not to mention several therapeutics, focused on chromatin’s part in cancer. Take a look at some of the research featured in EpiGenie that makes chromatin such a hot topic with cancer researchers. The Role of Chromatin in Cancer Epigenetic Changes in a Hard-to-Treat Childhood Cancer A very difficult-to-treat childhood leukemia may […]
The Return of the Coding RNAsNovember 7, 2011When George Lucas penned the scripts to the Star Wars series, is it possible that he foresaw the parallels his plots would have with epigenetics? Probably not, but some new research has us thinking they share a lot in common. The non-coding RNA “dark side” of the genome has generated a lot of buzz over the last […]
DNA Methylation Changes in CancerOctober 29, 2011EpiGenie ran recently ran a review of the new text Epigenetics: A Reference Manual. Now, to present a little taste of what the book has to offer, here’s a summary of one of the chapters. DNA Methylation Changes in Cancer By Samson Mani and Zdenko Herceg Epigenetic mechanisms can contribute to each step of cancer […]
Macrosatellite EpigeneticsOctober 28, 2011EpiGenie ran recently ran a review of the new text Epigenetics: A Reference Manual. Now, to present a little taste of what the book has to offer, here’s a summary of one of the chapters. Macrosatellite Epigenetics By Brian P. Chadwick The sequence of the human genome does not differ considerably from that of other […]
EpiGenie Review: Environmental Links to Epigenetics and CancerOctober 27, 2011If our daily environment can lead to cancer, and it can also alter our epigenetics, then it only makes sense that there is a connection between all three things. Here are the articles EpiGenie has written about showing the evidence linking environmental factors, and epigenetic mechanisms together with cancer. Environmental – Epigenetic Link to Cancer […]
Epigenetic Fountain of Youth Found in Worms?October 26, 2011We recently came across a hot new article that even the mainstream media has been all over. Stanford University researchers found that longevity can be passed down through generations without using DNA sequence to do it. The study found that C. elegans worms with certain histone modifications leading to increased longevity were able to pass that long […]
RNA Demethylation in ObesityOctober 19, 2011In news more surprising than the rise of the Occupy Wall Street movement, researchers have unearthed a novel mechanism in which RNA demethylation is mediated by, of all things, the obesity related protein FTO. FTO is a well-established target of obesity and diabetes researchers, but its function has so far been elusive. At least it […]