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IMAGE: Zhimin Gu, Ph.D., postdoctoral fellow, Children s Medical Center Research Institute at UT Southwestern (CRI), and Jian Xu Ph.D., associate professor, CRI view more
Credit: UT Southwestern Medical Center
DALLAS - April 8, 2021 - New research has uncovered a surprising role for so-called jumping genes that are a source of genetic mutations responsible for a number of human diseases. In the new study from Children s Medical Center Research Institute at UT Southwestern (CRI), scientists made the unexpected discovery that these DNA sequences, also known as transposons, can protect against certain blood cancers.
These findings, published in
Nature Genetics, led scientists to identify a new biomarker that could help predict how patients will respond to cancer therapies and find new therapeutic targets for acute myeloid leukemia (AML), the deadliest type of blood cancer in adults and children.