This week, we have two stories from the front lines of research towards personalizing cancer treatments – a report of a non-invasive technique being developed to monitor the genetic make-up of tumors by isolating rare tumor cells from patients’ blood as well as a new study from the Cancer Genome Atlas uncovering mutations linked to tumor growth in a common form of lung cancer. Also, look for comments from our friend Mike Dougherty, Director of Education at the American Society of Human Genetics, in an article about whether a couple’s DNA says anything about their long-term compatibility. Finally, read about a study looking at the effects of a pregnant mouse’s diet on her grandchildren. To read more about this topic (a pgEd favorite, sometimes called by the fancy name “transgenerational epigenetic inheritance”), check out resources at the University of Utah’s Genetic Science Learning Center and cutting edge research from December reported by Virginia Hughes in National Geographic Phenomena.
Talk about chemistry! Dating site tests DNA to make matches
By Jolie Lee, USA Today
July 15, 2014
Cancer cells may guide treatment
Changes in patient monitored in lab
By Carolyn Johnson, Boston Globe
July 11, 2014
Mom’s environment during pregnancy can affect her grandchildren
by Jocelyn Kaiser, Science
July 10, 2014
Lung Cancer Genomic Mapping Yields New Targets in Study
By Robert Langreth, Bloomberg
July 9, 2014
Inclusion on our list does not imply any endorsement from pgEd. Also, there are many wonderful resources that we will not be able to cite, and we apologize in advance for works that we have not included.
Image credit: “Bootstrap DNA by Charles Jencks, 2003” by mira66 (CC BY 2.0)
