News and Announcements
Read the latest news from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine’s Center for Genetic Medicine. The links below take you to articles where you can learn more about our members' latest achievements, awards and honors.
02.13.2019Scientists identified over 500 genetic variants associated with tobacco or alcohol use, in a genome-wide association study recently published in Nature Genetics.
02.01.2019A genome-wide analysis revealed nine new genes associated with fragile X syndrome, findings that shed light on the complex hereditary mechanisms behind the genetic disease.
01.15.2019Northwestern Medicine scientists demonstrated how innate immune cells in inflamed tissue induce DNA damage that promotes the development of cancer.
01.08.2019Northwestern Medicine scientists have identified a gene, called isocitrate dehydrogenase 3-alpha, that promotes tumors in grade IV glioblastoma, according to a study published in Science Advances.
01.07.2019Elizabeth McNally, MD, PhD, has been elected as a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, joining more than 900 other inventors, who were selected for prolific innovations that improve quality of life or economic development.
12.10.2018Inhibiting CHAF1B, a protein that normally helps replenish blood cells, may be a promising treatment for leukemia, according to a recent study.
11.27.2018A recent study found that stability of chromatin structures across DNA replication requires cooperation between a histone chaperone and DNA replication machinery; a mechanism of epigenetic inheritance.
11.14.2018Dimitri Krainc, MD, received the Soriano Award at the American Neurological Association (ANA) 143rd Annual Meeting.
11.13.2018The Simpson Querrey Center for Epigenetics is connecting the Northwestern academic and medical community to integrate the study of epigenetics into science and clinical care.
10.23.2018According to a recent study, a group of four gene mutations seen only in people with African ancestry may contribute to an increased risk of severe bleeding while taking warfarin.
10.19.2018Targeting cancer cells with a transcription elongation inhibitor delayed tumor progression in animal models, according to a recent Northwestern Medicine study.
10.15.2018Arthur Prindle, PhD, assistant professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, will study bacterial communication and its potential applications to human health with a five-year grant from The David and Lucile Packard Foundation.
10.12.2018An experimental genetic inhibitor that could stave off Alzheimer’s disease has unintended consequences, but may represent a target for future drug development, according to a recent study.
10.05.2018A new study has identified genes that, when inhibited, may slow or stop the progression of primary effusion lymphoma.
09.26.2018Northwestern has been awarded a $12 million, five-year grant from the NIH for a research center dedicated to advancing the genetic understanding of epilepsy.
09.20.2018A protein facilitating DNA replication during cell cycle also binds microtubules, findings that could inform more effective cancer treatments, according to a recent study published in the Journal of Cell Biology.
09.13.2018Northwestern Medicine scientists have identified how a type of RNA regulates genes over an unprecedented distance, during a critical process of embryonic brain development that affects adult seizure susceptibility.
09.06.2018The three-dimensional atomic structure of the epigenetic driver COMPASS was solved for the first time in a study published in the journal Cell.
08.14.2018Molecular autopsies can reveal genetic risk factors in young people who unexpectedly die, but proper interpretation of the results can be challenging, according to a recent study.
07.24.2018Northwestern Medicine scientists are using a variety of innovative techniques to uncover the epigenetics of breast cancer, as seen in three recent studies.
07.18.2018Ali Shilatifard, PhD, has been appointed editor of Science Advances, an open-access journal published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, which also publishes the journal Science.
07.17.2018A team of scientists has identified thousands of lincRNAs — long non-coding RNA molecules produced by so-called “junk DNA” — that are unique to human fat cells and may play an important role in fat metabolism.
06.14.2018A team of scientists has identified a key enhancer of Sox9 — a gene critical for male sex development — and demonstrated that deleting the enhancer results in male-to-female sex reversal in animal models.
06.07.2018Lack of a receptor regulating mitochondrial metabolism was linked with kidney dysfunction including kidney disease, according to a recent study.
05.24.2018A team of scientists has discovered that in children with epilepsy thought to be caused by a spontaneous mutation, about 10 percent of parents in fact carry the same variant in a small proportion of their own cells.
05.23.2018Genetic mutations dysregulating synapse function contribute to a toxic cascade that leads to neurodegeneration in Parkinson’s disease, according to a Northwestern Medicine study.
05.21.2018Northwestern Medicine scientists have discovered an epigenetic imbalance that can lead to cancer, and used these findings to inhibit tumors in models.
05.10.2018Mutations in a gene called DBR1 may increase patients’ susceptibility to brain infection, according to a study published in Cell.
05.08.2018Scientists discovered the regulatory role of the enzyme CDK5 in an aggressive form of brain cancer and successfully halted tumor growth by inhibiting it.
04.19.2018In new clinical trials, a gene therapy for a serious blood disorder called beta-thalassemia significantly improved outcomes among patients, without serious side effects.