Parkinson’s dyskinesia mechanism explained

JUPITER, Fla.–May 1, 2020–Many people with Parkinson’s disease eventually develop debilitating movements called dyskinesia, a side effect of their much-needed dopamine replacement medication. The mechanism underlying this unwanted side effect has been unknown, until now. An international collaboration led by Scripps Research, Florida has found a key cause, and with it, potentially, a new route…

Family history misses identifying individuals with high genetic risk of CVD or cancer

Certain genetic changes, termed “pathogenic variants,” substantially increase risk for cardiovascular disease and cancer–the leading causes of death–but testing to identify individual carriers is not part of current clinical practice. Now a team led by investigators at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) determined that nearly 1% of the population carry such pathogenic variants. These individuals were…

Labs Across U.S. Join Federal Initiative to Study Coronavirus Genome

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday announced a national initiative to speed research into how the coronavirus was spreading around the country, bringing together at least 75 public health, academic and commercial institutions studying its genome. As the virus replicates, tiny mutations accumulate in its genetic code. Those differences help scientists trace…