First there was Darwin, who published the revolutionary On the Origin of Species in 1859, introducing the world to the theory of natural selection. According to this theory, genetic variations arise as adaptions to differential environments, where any profitable traits that incur a survival advantage are selected for and preserved[Read More…]
Search Results for author "Lauren Mokry"
Looking beyond mutation with cancer genetics
The media constantly bombards us with coverage of presumed cancer causing agents, jumping to the conclusions that we should ‘avoid this’ or ‘avoid that,’ only to contradict themselves the following week. Since the culmination of the Human Genome Project, which succeeded at sequencing the entire human genome, the media has[Read More…]
Some smokers’ genes make it harder to kick the habit
According to Health Canada, approximately 37,000 deaths each year in Canada can be attributed to tobacco use, racking up $4.4 billion in hospital bills. Although the adverse health effects of smoking are well-known—thanks in part to the government’s anti-smoking campaigns—many have difficulty quitting, despite a variety of available cessation drugs.[Read More…]
A new potential therapy for Alzheimer’s disease
Recent McGill research may have brought scientists one step closer to finding an early marker for Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s is one of the most menacing chronic illnesses, one which attacks the brain by degrading the neural tissue necessary for thoughts and normal brain function. The disease manifests by erasing the[Read More…]
Genetic breakthrough made in childhood brain cancer
chemgapedia.de Dr. Nada Jabado, an associate professor of pediatrics at McGill, recently led an international cohort of scientists in search of the genetic factors behind the onset of childhood brain cancer. The study, published in Nature, uncovered two important mutations that affect the regulation of the genome. Glioblastoma multiforme, a[Read More…]
