Monthly Archives: January 2016

Phenotype (male-magnificent feathers) polymorphism is controlled by one supergene

Posted on January 29, 2016 by DWN

“Alice laughed. ‘There’s no use trying. One can’t believe impossible things.’  I daresay you haven’t had much practice,’ said the Queen. ‘When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many … Continue reading →

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Contribution of rare variant alleles to prostate cancer heritability

Posted on January 29, 2016 by DWN

Considering “how much diverse single-nucleotide variants (SNVs) contribute to heritability”, there are three classes: >95% of each common SNV usually elicits small effects; <5% of each low-frequency SNV usually elicits larger effects; and <0.5% of each rare SNV can elicit … Continue reading →

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Abundant contribution of STRs to gene expression variability in humans

Posted on January 29, 2016 by DWN

Considering the topic of gene-environment interactions, quantitative human traits include phenotypes such as “toxicity to a given environmental toxicant”, “drug-independent adverse drug reactions” (diADRs), and “drug efficacy”. The contribution of repetitive elements to quantitative human traits is largely unknown. Authors … Continue reading →

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“Tasmanian Devils” and their transmissible tumors

Posted on January 27, 2016 by DWN

For those interested in transmissable viral-caused cancer, this is a recent article from TheGuardian.com – Tasmanian devils can catch second strain of facial cancer New strain of tumour – the fourth transmissible cancer found anywhere – makes devils the only … Continue reading →

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Dependence of mutation rates on age and time

Posted on January 23, 2016 by DWN

The article listed below describes (or models the possibilities as to) how mutations arise and accumulate––as a function of gender, age, and cell division. The authors’ model provides a single framework within which to interpret emerging results from evolutionary biology, … Continue reading →

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Initial assessment of the benefits of implementing pharmacogenetics into the medical management of patients in a long-term care facility

Posted on January 21, 2016 by DWN

Health care costs associated with prescription drugs are enormous, particularly in patients with polypharmacy (taking more than five prescription medications), and the costs continue to grow annually. Authors claim [reference below] that evolution of pharmacogenetics has provided clinicians with a … Continue reading →

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Unknown Primary Squamous Cell Carcinoma” (UPSCC)

Posted on January 20, 2016 by DWN

Presence of human papillomavirus (HPV) in unknown primary squamous cell carcinoma (UPSCC) of the head-and-neck at initial presentation focuses on primary tumors of the oropharynx. The trends, frequency, and detection rate of UPSCCs have not previously  been evaluated in the … Continue reading →

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FLINT’S HIGH LEAD LEVELS HAVE DOCTORS STRUGGLING FOR ANSWERS

Posted on January 20, 2016 by DWN

AUTHOR: LIZZIE WADE – SCIENCE DATE OF PUBLICATION: 01.14.16 Here is an online article from Wired.com This environmental health tragedy is VERY serious in this day and age. This is relevant to gene x environment interactions, … because, without a … Continue reading →

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Disruption of putative noncoding regulatory DNA … associated with autism in affected families

Posted on January 16, 2016 by DWN

Simplex autism (a subset of the disorder that has been greatly expanded and recently named the “autism spectrum disorder”, ASD) is a multifactorial trait––not that different from many human complex diseases, as well as such phenotypes as drug efficacy and … Continue reading →

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An improved Cas9 engineering nuclease … to make CRISPR methodology even BETTER

Posted on January 16, 2016 by DWN

Once the RNA-guided endonuclease Cas9 from microbial clustered regularly-interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)/Cas adaptive immune systems was developed––as a powerful tool for genome editing in eukaryotic cells––everyone knew it was only a matter of time until even that breakthrough could … Continue reading →

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