Connection Between Epigenome, Selective Mutability, Evolution, and Human Disease
Li, Harris et al., PLoS Genetics
Researchers at the Baylor College of Medicine and elsewhere propose a "connection between the epigenome, selective mutability, evolution, and human disease" based on the findings of their study on associations of structural mutability with germline DNA methylation and with non-allelic homologous recombination mediated by low-copy repeats. "Combined evidence from four human sperm methylome maps, human genome evolution, structural polymorphisms in the human population, and previous genomic and disease studies consistently points to a strong association of germline hypomethylation and genomic instability," the Baylor-led team writes.
German, American Team Confirms CYP2D6 Influence on Tamoxifen Response
Using a retrospective study involving more than 1,300 women with breast cancer, a group of researchers from Germany and the US found that individuals carrying poorer metabolizing versions of the CYP2D6 enzyme had increased rates of cancer recurrence.
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