Genes that influence the onset of menstruation identified

September 16th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists have come closer to engineering drug-free cannabis plant after identifying genes that produce psychoactive substance in marijuana. University of Minnesota researchers have identified genes producing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive substance in marijuana, which could lead to new and better drugs for pain, nausea and other conditions.

September 2nd, 2009 WASHINGTON - Humans and chimpanzees are genetically very similar yet clearly distinct in many ways. Scientists have isolated genes that evolved in humans after branching off from other primates, making us uniquely human.

September 2nd, 2009 WASHINGTON - In a remarkable piece of detective work, scientists working at Trinity College Dublin have discovered three genes that are unique to humans. In the study published online in Genome Research, boffins have made a crucial discovery of genes that have evolved in humans after branching off from other primates.

August 31st, 2009 WASHINGTON - Researchers have identified a couple of genes that could script a new story of rice production in India and Bangladesh and Asia in general. The two genes allow deep-water rice varieties to elongate their stems to be above the rising water level, especially during floods, instead of drowning in it.

July 29th, 2009 WASHINGTON - The subtle tug-of-war between maternal and paternal genes is likely to track into childhood, and possibly as late as the onset of puberty, say researchers. Human development is set by ongoing interplay of parent and offspring genes.

July 3rd, 2009 WASHINGTON - Practice makes perfect in music, but fresh evidence thrown up by research shows that for aspiring musicians, genes may also influence the outcome. Perfect pitch, also known as absolute pitch, is the rare ability to recognise and name musical notes without any reference pitch for comparison, detecting, for instance, A before middle C.

July 2nd, 2009 LONDON - If you always attributed a rock-solid self-confidence to upbringing and other environmental factors then better think again, for an unshakeable self belief is in the genes, according to a new study. The psychiatrists behind the study say that the ability to perform under pressure is more than a state of mind, and that some people are just born with it.

June 11th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists have identified a set of genes that affect aggression in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. By studying male flies from a large panel of lines, which each carry a mutation in a single gene but are otherwise genetically identical, researchers identified particularly angry and particularly placid insects, uncovering 59 mutations in 57 genes that affect aggressive behaviour.

May 18th, 2009 WASHINGTON - In findings that could improve understanding of human growth, researchers have identified two genes that switch on the process of menstruation among women. The finding could help scientists address short stature and increased body weight, as both are connected to early onset of menstruation.

May 14th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have shed light on how cocaine-linked genes enhance behavioural effects of addiction - a find that will lead to new strategies for battling the habit. The research team led by Dr Eric J.

April 21st, 2009 WASHINGTON - University of Liverpool researchers have developed a novel method to help scientists identify genes that can help protect the body during the ageing process. The team developed a method of analysing genes in multiple ageing tissue types in both animals and humans.

March 21st, 2009 WASHINGTON - Researchers at Uppsala University, together with colleagues at Karolinska Institute and Sanger Institute, have identified three genes that would help determine the optimal dose of blood-thinning drug warfarin. The team led by Mia Wadelius have come across three genes VKORC1, CYP2C9, and CYP4F2 that would help determine adequate warfarin dosage.

March 18th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists at the University of California - Los Angeles (UCLA) say that a new study lends more force to the suggestion that intelligence is largely inherited. The researchers used a new type of brain-imaging scanner to show that intelligence is strongly influenced by the quality of the brain's axons, or wiring that sends signals throughout the brain.

March 14th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Researchers from University of Alberta have identified certain genes responsible for spinal disc degeneration. Michele Crites-Battie and Tapio Videman, in the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, have discovered eight genes linked to lumbar disc degeneration.

January 27th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Have you ever wondered that genes could be the key to your popularity and being the life of any party and how it helps you network socially? Researchers from the universities of Harvard and California-San Diego have found evidence showing our standing in a social network that is influenced partly by genes. This is the first study to examine the inherited characteristics of social networks and to establish a genetic role in the formation and configuration of these networks.