Genetics

Signaling dynamics fine-tune gene expressiong

Lukasz Bugaj of the School of Engineering & Applied Science comments on a systematic and quantitative look at how gene information is transmitted and what can influence the amount of expression.

The census has revealed a more multiracial U.S. One reason? Cheaper DNA tests

Wendy Roth of the School of Arts & Sciences comments on the potential implications of genetic ancestry test results shaping how some people report their race for the census.

Penn researchers unlock genetic ‘treasure map’ for chronic kidney disease

The genome-wide association study pinpoints new target genes, cell types, and mechanisms for treating the disease that affects 850 people million worldwide.

six panels showing cells in green with protein involved in cell movement labeled in red

Protein’s ‘silent code’ affects how cells move

A School of Veterinary Medicine-led study shows how, despite having nearly identical amino acid sequences, two forms of the protein actin differ in function due their distinct nucleotide sequences.

Q&A

The use and misuse of race in health care

In a Q&A, PIK Professor Sarah Tishkoff, the Perelman School of Medicine’s Giorgio Sirugo, and Case Western Reserve University’s Scott Williams shed light on the “quagmire” of race, ethnicity, genetic ancestry, and environmental factors and their contribution to health disparities.

Concentric circles with different colors inside representing cancer cell lineages

Pinpointing how cancer cells turn aggressive

Penn scientists have developed a new method for tracing the lineage and gene expression patterns of metastatic cancer at the single-cell level.

microscopic view of inner ear in healthy mouse

Discovery of a new genetic cause of hearing loss illuminates how inner ear works

A gene called GAS2 plays a key role in normal hearing, and its absence causes severe hearing loss, according to a study led by researchers in Penn’s Perelman School of Medicine.

Person wiping sweat from their brow with a towel under the sun.

How humans evolved a super-high cooling capacity

The higher density of sweat glands in humans is due, to a great extent, to accumulated changes in a regulatory region of DNA that drives the expression of a sweat gland-building gene, explaining why humans are the sweatiest of the Great Apes.

rendering of a cell nucleus amidst multicolored cellular matter

Mysterious ‘nuclear speckle’ cell structures may help block cancers

A new study out of Penn Medicine shows that the tumor-suppressor protein p53 brings speckles and DNA together to boost gene expression.

opthamalogy exam tool in front of a computer screen displaying a large zoomed-in retina

Gene therapy shows promise in initial trial for patients with childhood blindness

Penn Medicine researchers delivered working copies of the gene GUCY2D to the eyes of patients with severe vision impairments.

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