Bacteria can pass on memory to descendants, researchers discover

Led by scientists at UCLA, an international team of researchers has discovered that bacteria have a "memory" that passes sensory knowledge from one generation of cells to the next, all without a central nervous system or ...

Google AI tool predicts danger of genetic mutations

Researchers at Google DeepMind, the tech giant's artificial intelligence arm, on Tuesday introduced a tool that predicts whether genetic mutations are likely to cause harm, a breakthrough that could help research into rare ...

A lead to overcome resistance to antibiotics

Pseudomonas aeruginosa can become a formidable pathogen causing fatal infections, especially in intubated patients, people suffering from cystic fibrosis or severe burns. The presence of certain metals in the natural or human ...

Garlic can fight chronic infections

An active sulphurous compound found in garlic can be used to fight robust bacteria in patients with chronic infections, a new study from the University of Copenhagen indicates. Here the researchers show that the garlic compound ...

New nanoparticles can perform gene-editing in the lungs

Engineers at MIT and the University of Massachusetts Medical School have designed a new type of nanoparticle that can be administered to the lungs, where it can deliver messenger RNA encoding useful proteins.

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Cystic fibrosis

Cystic fibrosis (also known as CF, mucovoidosis, or mucoviscidosis) is a genetic disorder known to be an inherited disease of the secretory glands, including the glands that make mucus and sweat.

The hallmarks of cystic fibrosis are salty tasting skin, normal appetite but poor growth and poor weight gain, excess mucus production, and coughing/shortness of breath. Males can be infertile due to the condition Congenital absence of the vas deferens. Often, symptoms of CF appear in infancy and childhood. Meconium ileus is a typical finding in newborn babies with CF.

Although technically a rare disease, cystic fibrosis is ranked as one of the most widespread life-shortening genetic diseases. It is most common among nations in the Western world; one in twenty-two people of Mediterranean descent is a carrier of one gene for CF, making it the most common genetic disease in these populations.[citation needed] An exception is Finland, where only one in 80 people carry a CF mutation. In the United States, 1 in 4,000 children are born with CF. In 1997, about 1 in 3,300 caucasian children in the United States was born with cystic fibrosis. In contrast, only 1 in 15,000 African American children suffered from cystic fibrosis, and in Asian Americans the rate was even lower at 1 in 32,000.

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