US FDA bans 23andme direct to consumer genetic testing kit

FDA Orders Genetic Testing Firm 23andme to Stop Marketing DNA Analysis Service — Blocks Sale of a Company’s Mail-Order Gene Tests – The Food and Drug Administration, USA has ordered 23andme – the maker of a popular genetic-testing kit to stop sales of its heavily marketed product, saying the mail-order tests haven’t been proven effective and could dangerously mislead people about their health.

DNA markers in low IQ autism suggest heredity – ASD

DNA markers in low-IQ autism suggest heredity – Researchers are striving to understand the different genetic structures that underlie at least a subset of autism spectrum disorders. In cases where the genetic code is in error, did that happen anew in the patient, perhaps through mutation or copying error, or was it inherited? A new study in the American Journal of Human Genetics finds evidence that there may often be a recessive, inherited genetic contribution in autism with significant intellectual disability.

Skin cells can be morphed into brain cells in multiple sclerosis & cerebral palsy patients

Ordinary skin cells morphed into functional brain cells — Scientists at CWRU School of Medicine discover new technique that holds promise for the treatment of multiple sclerosis and cerebral palsy – Researchers at Case Western Reserve School of Medicine have discovered a technique that directly converts skin cells to the type of brain cells destroyed in patients with multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy and other so-called myelin disorders.

Rare genetic disorder linked to schizophrenia

Rare genetic disorder points to molecules that may play role in schizophrenia — Finding may suggest novel therapeutic target for treating disease – Scientists studying a rare genetic disorder have identified a molecular pathway that may play a role in schizophrenia. The findings may one day guide researchers to new treatment options for people with schizophrenia ? a devastating disease that affects approximately 1 percent of the world’s population.

Gene therapy may restore sense of smell

Can’t smell anything? This discovery may give you hope – Gene therapy in mice restores sense of smell, may also aid research into other diseases caused by cilia defects, U-M researchers say – Scientists have restored the sense of smell in mice through gene therapy for the first time — a hopeful sign for people who can’t smell anything from birth or lose it due to disease. The achievement in curing congenital anosmia — the medical term for lifelong inability to detect odors — may also aid research on other conditions that also stem from problems with the cilia.

2 new pancreatic enzyme products Ultresa and Viokace to aid food digestion

FDA approves two new pancreatic enzyme products to aid food digestion — Approvals to help ensure adequate supply of these medications – Two new pancreatic enzyme products used to help aid food digestion, Ultresa (pancrelipase) and Viokace (pancrelipase), were approved today by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Migraine in mom may increase baby’s risk of colic

Moms with migraines twice as likely to have baby with colic — Study shows moms who suffer migraines more likely to have colicky babies – Mothers who experience migraine may be more likely to have a baby with colic than mothers without a history of migraine. Colic is defined as excessive crying in an otherwise healthy infant.

New Down syndrome treatment suggested by US researchers

New Down syndrome treatment suggested by Stanford/Packard study — Cognitive dysfunction reversed in mouse model of Down syndrome. – Findings from the Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital shed light on the neural basis of memory defects in Down syndrome and suggest a new strategy for treating the defects with medication.

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