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Getting some extra z’s each night could dampen the effect of genes that predispose you to weight gain, a recent study from University of Washington in Seattle finds.
Despite the vast promise of the genetic revolution in medicine, the fact remains that the hype has far outpaced the reality. Experiments with gene therapy, for instance, in which a new or corrected version of missing or damaged DNA is injected to treat disease, have been disappointing at best.
Is living clean the key to living long? Maybe not, says a new study by Yeshiva University’s Institute for Aging Research, which shows that people who made it to the ripe age of 95 were just as likely as their shorter-lived peers to engage in the kinds of lifestyle habits that researchers deem unhealthy: eating [...]
Random changes in genes, rather than changes handed down from parents, may be responsible for some cases of autism, say scientists who report in three new papers a major breakthrough in understanding where those genetic changes may lie.
Smokers with a variant gene linked to higher risk for heroin addiction and more relapse in alcoholism actually have an easier time quitting cigarettes — and a new study finds that their pleasure from nicotine varies with the availability of certain receptors made by the gene.
Genes are a gateway to understanding disease, and Alzheimer’s is certainly no exception. In recent years, researchers have grown the list of known genes associated with the most common form of the condition, which affects memory and brain function the elderly. But the question is, How do these discoveries help patients?
Growth hormone is touted as an anti-aging remedy, but scientists studying a group of short-statured Ecuadoreans might beg to differ.
A new study suggests that when it comes to certain genes, friends of a feather flock together—but with others, opposites attract.
Never mind what the sleuths on CSI would have you believe, finding DNA at the scene of a crime can sometimes be a dead end. Your genome may readily reveal your susceptibility to certain diseases or even the consistency of your ear wax, but it’s notoriously bad at saying much about your key physical characteristics.
There are aspects of our lives that we like to think are totally under our control — political affiliation is certainly one of them. But a growing field of researchers asserts that there may be some biology underpinning our liberal or conservative bent.
Although arthritis is extremely common, people still have many misconceptions about the disease. How much do you really know?
