For the first time, scientists have tracked the activity, across the lifespan, of an environmentally responsive regulatory mechanism that turns genes on and off in the brain’s executive hub. Among key findings of the study by National Institutes of Health scientists: genes implicated in schizophrenia and autism turn out to be members of a select club of genes in which regulatory activity peaks during an environmentally-sensitive critical period in development.

Related posts:

  1. Medicare: Our brains are made of the same stuff, despite DNA differences Despite vast differences in the genetic code across individuals and ethnicities, the human brain shows a “consistent molecular architecture,” say researchers supported by the National Institutes of Health. The finding is from a pair of studies that have created databases revealing when and where genes turn on and off in multiple brain regions through development....
  2. Rare gene glitch may hold clues for schizophrenia — NIH-funded study Rare gene glitch may hold clues for schizophrenia -- NIH-funded study...
  3. NIMH Seeks More BRAINS The National Institute of Mental Health is seeking more BRAINS for 2010 by offering a second round of Biobehavioral Research Awards for Innovative New Scientists (BRAINS) (http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-MH-10-060.html). The program calls for innovative and groundbreaking research projects from early stage investigators to explore the complex mechanisms underlying mental disorders or novel treatments and prevention strategies....
  4. MedicareCard.com – Scientists Find Genes That Influence Brain Wave Patterns Scientists have identified new genes and pathways that influence an individual’s typical pattern of brain electrical activity, a trait that may serve as a useful surrogate marker for more genetically complex traits and diseases. One of the genes, for example, was found to be associated with alcoholism....
  5. Gene Associated with Rare Adrenal Disorder Appears To Trigger Cell Death, According to NIH Study A gene implicated in Carney complex, a rare disorder of the adrenal glands, appears to function as a molecular switch to limit cell growth and division, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions....
  6. Medicare Research, Songbird Genome Analysis, Reveals New Insights Into Vocal Behavior An international research consortium has identified more than 800 genes that appear to play a role in the male zebra finch's ability to learn elaborate songs from his father. The researchers also found evidence that song behavior engages complex gene regulatory networks within the brain of the songbird -- networks that rely on parts of the genome once considered junk....
  7. Medicare Future? Pathways that Can Repair Brca1 Cancer Gene Mutation Clarified in Mice In a new study in mice, scientists have compensated for mutations in the Brca1 gene that can lead to cancer by deleting a second gene, which then lessens the probability of cancer. Mice Brca1-associated mammary tumors have significant similarities to human BRCA1- associated (BReast CAncer 1, early onset) breast cancer in regard to tumor aggressiveness, high incidence, mutations and genetic instability. The study, led by scientists at National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, and their colleagues, appeared online April 1, 2010 and in print April 16, 2010, in the journal Cell....
  8. Medicare: Same Genes Suspected in Both Depression and Bipolar Illness Researchers, for the first time, have pinpointed a genetic hotspot that confers risk for both bipolar disorder and depression. People with either of these mood disorders were significantly more likely to have risk versions of genes at this site than healthy controls...
  9. Medicare: Researchers produce detailed map of gene activity in mouse brain A new atlas of gene expression in the mouse brain provides insight into how genes work in the outer part of the brain called the cerebral cortex. In humans, the cerebral cortex is the largest part of the brain, and the region responsible for memory, sensory perception and language....
  10. How Medicare Coverage Can Help – Gene Mutations Linked to Early-Onset Inflammatory Bowel Disease An international team has discovered that mutations in either of 2 related genes cause a severe and rare form of inflammatory bowel disease in young children. The discovery allowed the researchers to successfully treat one of the study patients with a bone marrow transplant....
  11. NIH and FDA announce awards to advance regulatory science The National Institutes of Health will award $9.4 million over three years to support four research projects in regulatory science. This research is conducted in partnership with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which will contribute approximately $950,000. These projects will better inform scientists and regulatory reviewers alike about medical product safety, and improve the […]...
  12. Discovered gene causes Kabuki syndrome Using a new, rapid and less expensive DNA sequencing strategy, scientists have discovered genetic alterations that account for most cases of Kabuki syndrome, a rare disorder that causes multiple birth defects and mental retardation. Instead of sequencing the entire human genome, the new approach sequences just the exome, the 1-2 percent of the human genome […]...
  13. Autism blurs distinctions between brain regions Autism blurs the molecular differences that normally distinguish different brain regions, a new study suggests. Among more than 500 genes that are normally expressed at significantly different levels in the front versus the lower middle part of the brain’s outer mantle, or cortex, only 8 showed such differences in brains of people with autism, say […]...
  14. Scientists identify gene that could hold the key to muscle repair Researchers have long questioned why patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) tend to manage well through childhood and adolescence, yet succumb to their disease in early adulthood, or why elderly people who lose muscle strength following bed rest find it difficult or impossible to regain. Now, researchers at the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal […]...
  15. Medicare Card: Gene Linked to Alzheimer’s Disease Plays Key Role in Cell Survival Scientists have discovered that a gene linked to Alzheimer’s disease may play a beneficial role in cell survival by enabling neurons to clear away toxic proteins. A study funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA), part of the National Institutes of Health, shows the presenilin 1 (PS1) gene is essential to the function of […]...