Science and Enterprise

Tag: genomics

  • Grants Awarded to Fund Research on Health Records, Genomics

    The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), part of National Institutes of Health, will fund research on patients’ genomic information linked to disease characteristics and symptoms in their electronic medical records. NHGRI will award grants totaling $25 million over the next four years to seven institutions in the Electronic Medical Records and Genomics (eMERGE) network.…

  • Lab Develops Automated DNA Construction Software

    A team of researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California has written a software package that they say streamlines the process of DNA construction. The software, known as j5, is available for free for non-commercial users. DNA construction, also known as DNA cloning or recombinant DNA technology, has become a critical tool of modern…

  • USDA, Energy Fund Research to Accelerate Biofuel Crops

    The U.S. Departments of Energy and Agriculture have awarded 10 grants totaling $12.2 million for up to three years for research on improving the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of growing biofuel and bioenergy crops. Energy’s Office of Science will provide $10.2 million in funding for eight projects, while USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)…

  • DNA Biomarker Blood Test Aids Prostate Cancer Diagnosis

    Researchers at University of Cincinnati and Harvard University have identified a blood test for a DNA biomarker that bolsters the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test used to screen men for prostate cancer. Their findings appear online in the British Journal of Cancer; paid subscription required. The study led by Cincinnati molecular epidemiologist Tianying Wu (pictured left)…

  • Electronic Conductivity Found in Bacteria Nanowires

    A team of microbiologists and physicists at University of Massachusetts in Amherst have discovered the ability of nanowires in a common microbe to transport electrons across long distances. The researchers published their findings online in the journal Nature Nanotechnology (paid subscription required). Microbiologist Derek Lovley with physicists Mark Tuominen, Nikhil Malvankar and colleagues found this…

  • Oxford, Illumina to Sequence 500 Human Genomes

    Oxford University in the U.K. and Illumina Inc. in San Diego will collaborate on a project to sequence the whole genomes of 500 people with a range of life-threatening diseases. The research will explore how whole-genome sequencing can improve diagnosis and treatment decisions for individual patients. Illumina is a developer and manufacturer of genomic analysis…

  • Surfactants Discovered Among Naturally Occurring Yeasts

    Scientists with the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service in Peoria, Illinois have found naturally-grown yeasts that can produce molecules with surfactant properties. Surfactants are wetting agents that lower a liquid’s surface tension, used in a variety of consumer and industrial products, and normally derived from petroleum. Surfactants work by enabling the cleaning solution to fully wet…

  • Faster Lab-On-a-Chip Devised for Genetic Analysis

    A team at University of British Columbia in Vancouver has developed a small silicon chip that the researchers say can make genetic analysis faster and more sensitive. The findings have been accepted for publication in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The UBC scientists worked with colleagues at the British Columbia Cancer Agency…

  • Kaiser Permanente, UCSF Complete DNA Data Gathering

    Researchers at health care provider Kaiser Permanente and University of California at San Francisco completed the genomic analysis of more than 100,000 older Kaiser Permanente members, the first phase of their project to better understand the genetic makeup of their patients. The NIH-funded research aims to provide scientists with high-quality, genetic data on a large…

  • International Team Completes Draft Sequence of Potato Genome

    The Potato Genome Sequencing Consortium (PGSC), a global group of universities and research institutes, has published a draft sequence of the potato genome. Their work appears in the current issue of the journal Nature. PGSC began in 2006 at Wageningen University & Research Centre in the Netherlands, and has grown to include 29 research groups…