Aurora magazine

A German study has identified the mechanism behind papilloma virus (HPV) skin cancer. The key lies in a particular molecular pathway, which makes people with more vomiting (EV) more vulnerable epidermodysplasia.

The beta-beta or beta-HPV virus papilloma is also able to infect skin cells. It therefore increases the risk not only of uterine cancer, but also of skin cancer. To date, the virus's action was not understood. Previous research had suggested a role of the protein called E6, present in the virus. However, the molecular mechanism behind the action of E6 was unclear.

Saarland University researchers focused on HPV on patients with verdure-like epidermodysplasia, a rare genetic disorder. The risk is much more present in these subjects. They have analyzed samples of some skin lesions of patients. Some were positive to beta-papillomas.

Positive HPV lesions showed much lower levels than the average of microRNA-203. The latter regulates the growth of skin cells and their differentiation. The lesions also had higher levels of p63, a protein regulated by the microRNA-203 and associated with the development of tumors.

Laboratory experiments revealed a molecular bond between microRNA-203 and the effects of papilloma virus. The beta-HPV protein E6 suppresses the expression of C / EBP, key protein against skin cancers. The C / EBP rules microRNA-203. Patients with verrucal epidermodysplasia affected by the virus showed very low levels of C / EBP as well as microRNA-203.

Discovery suggests that papilloma interferes with the mechanisms that block the development of skin cancers. Mechanisms that are already weak in subjects with genetic disease.

Source: plos.org

Some people attract mosquitoes more than others. We have always suspected it, but science is looking for a confirmation. An English study aims to identify the genes that make us attractive to insects. If the study was successful, new repellents could be processed. An end is nothing but futile if you think that mosquitoes are endemic to lethal illnesses like malaria.

The study will involve over 200 couples of homozygous and heterozygous twins, identical or unidentified. The researchers will pick up the participants' socks and put them in a mosquito-filled wind tunnel. If some individuals really produce chemicals that attract insects, then the mosquitoes will focus on their socks. It will thus be possible to examine what is different from their sweat and what are the genetic causes.

Previous studies have shown that some visual, olfactory and thermal stimuli attract mosquitoes. Individuals that expel more carbon dioxide, for example, receive more bites. Even taller and more powerful people are under attack by mosquitoes, as are women with the cycle. Nonetheless, little is known about what makes us more or less attractive to insects at the genetic level.

Are there really people with "sweet blood" as some popular beliefs would like? Two years ago, a study of the same team involved 18 pairs of homozygous twins and 19 heterozygous twins. Already then scientists had found that homozygous twins, therefore with the same genetic heritage, attract the same amount of insects. Moreover, their smells are similar. That means our appetite could have genetic causes.

If we identified the genes that make our smell interesting for insects, it would be easier to find a solution. It would in any case be a long work, but it could lead to pharmacological treatments that make us insect repellent. Such drugs would be an inestimable weapon against mosquito-like diseases, such as zika and malaria.

Source: scientificamerican.com

A team of the London Cancer Research Institute has developed a new DNA test for prostate cancer. The principle is the same as non-invasive prenatal screening tests. It starts with a drop of blood of the subject and analyzes the tumor DNA present in the circle. This way doctors can choose the best medication to deal with the tumor.

The researchers analyzed the DNA of the tumor cells circulating. They have thus identified the subjects with the most advanced forms. They have reserved treatment with new drugs, PARP inhibitors. They also used the test to identify those on whom the treatment was not working, so that it can be addressed immediately.

The test has many potentialities on the therapeutic front. First, it identifies the type of tumor. Physicians can thus distinguish less severe prostate cancer from the more aggressive ones, which require violent treatments. Second, it gives an image of the genetic evolution of the tumor. Allows in short to see if the tumor is evolving and is becoming resistant to drugs.

The new study has identified genetic mutations of prostate cancer that make it resistant to traditional treatments. The test therefore allowed us to avoid unnecessary treatment for some patients, saving time and aiming for more effective solutions right away.

Source: icr.ac.uk

Behind the behavioral problems there may be some epigenetic factors at birth. Specifically, researchers identified abnormalities in genes related to aggression and drug dependence. This is revealed by a study at King's College in London and the University of Bristol.

Behavioral problems include litigation, propensity to lie, and theft. Children who develop such attitudes before the age of 10 are at risk of chronic antisocial attitudes. This involves two types of state spending: the psychological treatment of children; Management of disadvantaged adults. It is therefore desirable to find the root of these problems, both from the human point of view and from the economic point of view.

Genetic factors account for between 50% and 80% of behavioral problems. However, little is known about how these factors interact with environmental influences, especially during fetal development. The most promising approach is to analyze changes in epigenetic processes that regulate genetic expression. The study then examined the association between epigenetic changes at birth and behavioral problems.

The researchers observed a group of children between 4 and 13 years of age. They discovered that babies with anti-social behaviors had epigenetic changes in seven DNA segments. Many of these focused on the MGLL gene, involved in dependency development. The changes were linked to the prenatal exposure to alcohol and smoking, proving how maternal behaviors affect the child's future.

Epigenetic changes increase the risk of antisocial behavior, but they are not condemnation. The study does not demonstrate a net cause and effect ratio but points out the need to follow the most vulnerable subjects. The development of the infant is in fact fundamental to the definition of future behaviors.

Source: kcl.ac.uk