The Medical Research Council (MRC) has announced a £50 million investment in the new MRC Centre of Research Excellence in Mitochondrial Genome Therapeutics, which aims to enable new treatments into potentially fatal mitochondrial DNA diseases.
Cambridge scientists have developed and tested a new drug in mice that has the potential to reduce damage to the brain when blood flow is restored following a stroke.
Eleven senior researchers at the University of Cambridge have been awarded Advanced Grants from the European Research Council – the highest number of grants awarded to any institution in this latest funding round.
Fifty years since its discovery, scientists have finally worked out how a molecular machine found in mitochondria, the ‘powerhouses’ of our cells, allows us to make the fuel we need from sugars, a process vital to all life on Earth.
Professor Patrick Chinnery, Head of the Department of Clinical Neurosciences at the University of Cambridge, has been appointed as the new Executive Chair of the Medical Research Council (MRC).
Scientists have shown that in one in every 4,000 births, some of the genetic code from our mitochondria – the ‘batteries’ that power our cells – inserts itself into our DNA, revealing a surprising new insight into how humans evolve.
Meet Daniel Ives, co-founder of a Cambridge start-up with one big ambition: to put an end to ageing and the diseases that come with it.
A new genetic discovery adds weight to a theory that motor neurone degenerative diseases are caused by abnormal lipid (fat) processing pathways inside brain cells. This theory will help pave the way to new diagnostic approaches and treatments for this group of conditions. The discovery will provide answers for certain families who have previously had no diagnosis.
Defective mitochondria – the ‘batteries’ that power the cells of our bodies – could in future be repaired using gene-editing techniques. Scientists at the University of Cambridge have shown that it is possible to modify the mitochondrial genome in live mice, paving the way for new treatments for incurable mitochondrial disorders.
Whole genome sequencing from a single blood test picks up 31% more cases of rare genetic disorders than standard tests, shortening the ‘diagnostic odyssey’ that affected families experience, and providing huge opportunities for future research.
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