Circadian rhythm gene affects malignant breast cancer's spread
Sleep cycle interruptions may affect breast cancer formation and metastasis. Expression of a gene in the circadian rhythm pathway, Arntl2, has a significant effect on whether certain breast cancers will metastasize into additional tumors, reports Kent Hunter of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in Bethesda, Maryland and…
Clock gene may connect mood and sleep
If you pull an all-nighter or stay up late to binge watch Game of Thrones, you will probably be grumpy the next day. But if you don’t get enough sleep for weeks or months on end, you may develop depression or other lasting mood problems, and Howard Hughes Medical…
Seasonal affective disorder: first human gene mutation discovered
Seasonal affective disorder is believed to be triggered by seasonal changes in daylight, with the condition most prevalent during winter months. But what makes certain people more susceptible to such changes? Researchers say they have uncovered a gene mutation that could be responsible. Researchers have uncovered the first human gene…
Caltech biologists identify gene that helps regulate sleep
Caltech biologists have performed the first large-scale screening in a vertebrate animal for genes that regulate sleep, and have identified a gene that when overactivated causes severe insomnia. Expression of the gene, neuromedin U (Nmu), also seems to serve as nature’s stimulant–fish lacking the gene take longer to wake…
Estrogens alleviate hyperactivity in zebrafish with autism gene
Research led by UCL, Yale and University of California, San Francisco has shown that the hormone estrogen alleviates the sleep disruption experienced by zebrafish genetically designed to help understand the biology of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The scientists set out to investigate the function of genes linked…
Scientists discover link between sleep gene and blood cancer risk
A group of Argentinian researchers have conducted a study to assess the relationship between the polymorphism of the human clock gene and the risk of getting blood cancer. According to the National Sleep Foundation, the human body consists of circadian clock genes, or simply known as an…
Stanford researchers find sleep gene linked to heart failure
Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have identified a gene that, when working properly, appears to reduce the risk of heart failure and improve treatment outcomes, highlighting a possible target for the development of new drugs. The gene codes for a protein that was first identified when…