PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Is DNA from mom or dad?

New technique will accelerate personalized medicine

2013-11-04
(Press-News.org) Contact information: Rachel Steinhardt
rsteinhardt@licr.org
212-450-1582
Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research
Is DNA from mom or dad? New technique will accelerate personalized medicine November 3, 2013, New York, NY and San Diego, Calif. – A new technique successfully takes on a longstanding challenge in DNA sequencing – determining whether a particular genetic sequence comes from an individual's mother or father. The method, described in a Ludwig Cancer Research study in Nature Biotechnology, promises to accelerate studies of how genes contribute to disease, improve the process of matching donors with organs and help scientists better understand human migration patterns.

"The technique will enable clinicians to better assess a person's individual risk for disease. It is potentially transformative for personalized medicine," says Bing Ren, Ludwig scientist at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, who led the research on the new technique, called "HaploSeq."

"Current sequencing technologies are fast and rapidly getting cheaper – an individual's genome can now be sequenced in about a week for $5,000," says Ren. "In the not too distant future, everyone's genome will be sequenced. That will become the standard of care." But, he explains, "There has been a problem with this scenario." Except for the sex chromosomes, everyone has two copies of each chromosome. One copy comes from mom, and the other from dad. Current techniques cannot distinguish between the two copies of each gene and, therefore, are not very good at determining whether particular genetic differences, such as a single-letter change in the DNA, originate with an individual's mother or father – muddying genetic analyses.

Ren's new technique, a mixture of molecular biology and computational biology approaches, bypasses this problem. The method enables researchers to quickly determine which genetic variants occur together on the same stretch of chromosome and, therefore, came from the same parent. "This advance has direct implications for the utility of genomics in clinical practice and will also have profound effects on genetic research and discovery," says Ludwig scientist Siddarth Selvaraj, who contributed to the study with Ren and fellow Ludwig researcher Jesse Dixon.

More immediately, the technique will enable clinicians to better assess a person's individual risk for disease, a cornerstone of personalized medicine. For instance, people at risk for a disease such as cancer often have more than one DNA mutation. HaploSeq could enable clinicians to determine if the two mutations are on the same chromosome or on different chromosomes, which can help in risk assessment – for instance, risk may be reduced if two mutations are on the same chromosome, since the 'good' chromosome can often compensate.

Similarly, the method, with further honing, has the potential to refine the currently cumbersome process of determining whether there is a genetic match between an organ donor and recipient. A large number of genes contribute to compatibility between donor and recipient, but there is a lot of genetic variability in these genes. The new technique could help determine whether DNA differences between donor and recipient are likely to be a good match. "This will require more study," says Ren, "but by creating a DNA database, it may be possible to more accurately and expediently pair recipients and donors."

The new method will also help researchers analyze human migration and determine ancestry from their DNA sequences. "In principal," says Ren, "you could compare your genetic sequence to your neighbor's and ask if you have any recent ancestors in common. With our technique we can study each individual and how they relate to other individuals. As we accumulate data from many individuals we can more precisely determine their relationships." Such findings will also bolster an ongoing international project to assess worldwide human genetic variation, the HapMap project.

One advantage of the new technique is that it builds on common sequencing technologies and should be easily adapted for use by clinicians and researchers alike. Says Ren, "I anticipate that this new method will be quite widely used."

### This study was funded by the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research and the Roadmap Epigenome Project (U01 ES017166).

About Ludwig Cancer Research

Ludwig Cancer Research is an international collaborative network of acclaimed scientists with a 40-year legacy of pioneering cancer discoveries. Ludwig combines basic research with the ability to translate its discoveries and conduct clinical trials to accelerate the development of new cancer diagnostics and therapies. Since 1971, Ludwig has invested more than $1.6 billion in life-changing cancer research through the not-for-profit Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research and the six U.S.-based Ludwig Centers. http://www.ludwigcancerresearch.org

Bing Ren is a member of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research who is based at the University of California, San Diego. More information on the Ren lab can be found here: http://www.ludwigcancerresearch.org/location/san-diego-branch/bing-ren-lab

For further information please contact Rachel Steinhardt, rsteinhardt@licr.org or +1-212-450-1582.


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

McMaster scientists unlock secrets of diabetes drug

2013-11-04
McMaster scientists unlock secrets of diabetes drug How and why metformin needs to interact with insulin to be effective Hamilton, Nov. 3, 2013 – About 120 million people around the world with Type 2 diabetes – and two million in Canada – take the drug metformin ...

Singapore scientists expose molecular secrets of bile duct cancers from different countries

2013-11-04
Singapore scientists expose molecular secrets of bile duct cancers from different countries SINGAPORE - A team of scientists from the National Cancer Centre Singapore, Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School Singapore, Fundeni Clinical Institute (Romania) and Koen Kaen University ...

York researchers discover important mechanism behind nanoparticle reactivity

2013-11-04
York researchers discover important mechanism behind nanoparticle reactivity An international team of researchers has used pioneering electron microscopy techniques to discover an important mechanism behind the reaction of metallic nanoparticles with the environment. ...

Lasers might be the cure for brain diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's

2013-11-04
Lasers might be the cure for brain diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden, together with researchers at the Polish Wroclaw University of Technology, have made a discovery that may lead to the curing ...

Nanotube-based sensors can be implanted under the skin for a year

2013-11-04
Nanotube-based sensors can be implanted under the skin for a year CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Nitric oxide (NO) is one of the most important signaling molecules in living cells, carrying messages within the brain and coordinating immune system functions. In many ...

Earlier onset of puberty in girls linked to obesity

2013-11-04
Earlier onset of puberty in girls linked to obesity CINCINNATI – New research in Pediatrics shows obesity is the largest predictor of earlier onset puberty in girls, which is affecting white girls much sooner than previously reported. Published ...

1 dose of HPV vaccine may be enough to prevent cervical cancer

2013-11-04
1 dose of HPV vaccine may be enough to prevent cervical cancer PHILADELPHIA — Women vaccinated with one dose of a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine had antibodies against the viruses that remained stable in their blood for four years, suggesting ...

Teens in child welfare system show higher drug abuse rate

2013-11-04
Teens in child welfare system show higher drug abuse rate PISCATAWAY, NJ – Teenagers in the child welfare system are at higher-than-average risk of abusing marijuana, inhalants and other drugs, according to a study in the November issue of the Journal ...

Kids who sleep more, may eat less, new study finds

2013-11-04
Kids who sleep more, may eat less, new study finds It seems everyone is looking for a culprit when it comes to childhood obesity: fast food, sugary drinks, super-sized everything. But it turns out part of the blame may lie with the simple matter of turning out the lights ...

DoD, CIA required military MDs to breach ethics in dealing with detainees: New report

2013-11-04
DoD, CIA required military MDs to breach ethics in dealing with detainees: New report Medical, military, and ethics experts say health professionals designed and participated in cruel, inhumane, and degrading treatment and torture of detainees; seek ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Salk scientist Joseph Ecker awarded McClintock Prize for Plant Genetics and Genome Studies

ADHD: Women are diagnosed five years later than men, despite symptoms appearing at the same age.

Power plants may emit more pollution during government shutdowns

Increasing pressures for conformity de-skilling and demotivating teachers, study warns

Researchers develop smarter menstrual product with potential for wearable health monitoring

Microwaves for energy-efficient chemical reactions

MXene current collectors could reduce size, improve recyclability of Li-ion batteries

Living near toxic sites linked to aggressive breast cancer

New discovery could open door to male birth control

Wirth elected Fellow of American Physical Society

The Journal of Nuclear Medicine Ahead-of-Print Tip Sheet: October 10, 2025

Destined to melt

Attitudes, not income, drive energy savings at home

The playbook for perfect polaritons

‘Disease in a dish’ study of progressive MS finds critical role for unusual type of brain cell

Solar-powered method lights the way to a ‘de-fossilized’ chemical industry

Screen time linked to lower academic achievement among Ontario elementary students

One-year outcomes after traumatic brain injury and early extracranial surgery in the TRACK-TBI Study

Enduring outcomes of COVID-19 work absences on the US labor market

Affirmative action repeal and racial and ethnic diversity in us medical school admissions

Cancer progression illuminated by new multi-omics tool

Screen time and standardized academic achievement tests in elementary school

GLP-1RA order fills and out-of-pocket costs by race, ethnicity, and indication

Study finds HEPA purifiers alone may not be enough to reduce viral exposure in schools

UVA Health developing way to ID people at risk of dangerous lung scarring even before symptoms appear

How can we know when curing cancer causes myocarditis?

Male infertility in Indian men linked to lifestyle choices and hormonal imbalances

An acoustofluidic device for sample preparation and detection of small extracellular vesicles

The advent of nanotechnology has ushered in a transformative era for oncology, offering unprecedented capabilities for targeted drug delivery and controlled release. This paradigm shift enhances thera

A prototype LED as thin as wallpaper — that glows like the sun

[Press-News.org] Is DNA from mom or dad?
New technique will accelerate personalized medicine