A mutation affecting factors that influence gene activity - the epigenome - could induce, researchers have found, an inherited form of mental retardation in boys.
The findings may help scientists further understand why X-linked disorders cause cognitive impairment and develop new therapies to treat or prevent them.
Genetic Testing of Diseases
Genetic testing helps to confirm a genetic condition in an individual and involves q complex laboratory techniques
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Hank Qi and his collaborators, Madathia Sarkissian and Thomas Roberts at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, tested the normal enzyme function of histone demethylase in zebrafish, a popular model for genetic function.
The team found a dramatic impact on craniofacial development and the fish without the enzyme developed virtually no jawbone.
"These studies suggest that the imbalance of histone methylation dynamics plays a critical role in mental retardation. You can imagine a therapeutic approach to enhance the compromised enzymatic activity or to restore the downstream function," says Yang Shi, also a professor of pathology at Harvard Medical School.
The study is published online July 11 in the journal Nature.
Source: ANI
"These studies suggest that the imbalance of histone methylation dynamics plays a critical role in mental retardation. You can imagine a therapeutic approach to enhance the compromised enzymatic activity or to restore the downstream function," says Yang Shi, also a professor of pathology at Harvard Medical School.
The study is published online July 11 in the journal Nature.
Source: ANI
Epigenetics
In the recent years 'epigenetics' represents inheritable changes in gene expression that do not include DNA alterations.
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 Oxidative Stress is the Underlying Cause to Genetic MutationsOxidative DNA damage is a primary cause of the process of mutation, according to a study that tracked genetic mutations through the human equivalent of about 5,000 years. | Advertisement
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Scientists Identify Critical Gene for Brain Development, Mental Retardation
A brain protein, called srGAP2, plays a vital role in brain development and could even lead to mental retardation, according to researchers
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