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Genetics of the fetus and placenta control developmental abnormalities Appeared in BioNews 1094 Developmental abnormalities, including those leading to miscarriage and autism, are primarily controlled by the genetics of the fetus and placenta. Abnormalities of the placental trophoblast bilayer – the primary barrier between maternal and fetal tissues – are known as trophoblast inclusions. These abnormalities are linked with aneuploidy and miscarriage. However, it has not been known whether they occur due to the mother s uterine environment or the genetics of the fetus. Mothers often feel that they are responsible for these defects. But it s not their fault, said Dr Harvey Kliman, senior author and researcher at Yale School of Medicine, Connecticut. This new research points to the genetics of these children as being the most important cause. ....
Epigenetic changes in sperm may predict autism in children Appeared in BioNews 1079 Biomarkers in human sperm have been discovered that may specify whether a father is likely to have a child with autism. Scientists at Washington State University, Valencia Clinical Research Centre and Valencia University in Spain investigated sperm epigenetics and discovered a set of genomic features, called DNA methylation regions, in sperm samples from men who had autistic children. With this information the scientists conducted a series of blind tests to determine whether they could predict which men had autistic children. The results of these tests showed that they were able to predict men who had fathered autistic children with 90 percent accuracy. ....
Correlation and Causation: What Can Genetics and Genomics Tell Us about COVID-19? Appeared in BioNews 1077 Session three of the Progress Educational Trust (PET) annual conference explored the genetic and genomic links to susceptibility to severe COVID-19. Sarah Norcross, director at PET, opened the session with the unfortunate news that one of the speakers – Dr Kári Stefánsson – was unable to participate in the session due to illness. The session was chaired by Dr Roger Highfield, science director at the Science Museum Group – mild-mannered and a clear speaker, he chaired the session with ease. Dr Highfield introduced the first speaker – Dr Sharon Moalem – a scientist and physician who specialises in genetics. Dr Moalem is a bestselling author, with titles including: How Sex Works , Inheritance: How Our Genes Change Our Lives and Our Lives Change Our Genes , and The Better Half: On the Genetic Superiority of Women (see BioNews 1050). ....
Genetic variants linked to severe COVID-19 identified Five genes associated with the development of critical illness in patients with COVID-19 have been identified. Researchers led by Dr Kenneth Baillie, academic consultant in critical care medicine, Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, performed a genome-wide association study on 2244 critically ill patients with COVID-19 from 208 UK intensive care units, which represents more than 95 percent of all intensive care beds. They compared the genetic make-up of these patients to a control group, and identified five genetic sequences that were more common in those patients who became critically ill with COVID-19. These genetic sequences all relate to genes that are involved in inflammatory processes and the body s response to viruses. ....