DNA Genotek's Sample Collection Blog

Professor Gareth Evans of the University of Manchester is heading up a major research study, which is being carried out throughout Greater Manchester. 60,000 women are being invited to join a study, named PROCAS, which aims to predict breast cancer risk for women who attend routine NHS breast screening in Greater Manchester. A woman’s risk is assessed by collecting extra information on each of the most important breast cancer risk factors – family history, lifestyle factors, breast density and genetics.

It’s that time of year again when I reflect on the past year and highlight DNA Genotek’s top ten list for 2011. This is now the third installment of my annual top ten list series and each year, I am surprised at how difficult it is to keep this list to just ten items. I easily come up with 20 to 30 topics that could be on this list and struggle to choose those most deserving of a mention. This year, there were many significant events for DNA Genotek. After much deliberation, here is my top ten list for 2011, in no particular order.

Seasons Greetings Everyone:

Please click the video link for a special holiday video card from DNA Genotek.

My lab is devoted to understanding the biological and psychological characteristics of persons at risk for alcoholism. Alcohol addiction is a behavioral disorder with both genetic and environmental contributions. Persons with a positive family history of alcoholism are 4 – 6 times as likely to develop an alcohol use disorder as persons with no such history. Our guiding hypothesis is that a genetic predisposition toward alcohol and other substance-use disorders involves altered function of brain regions regulating reward motivation. We are studying four domains of function related to prefrontal cortex and limbic system regulation of motivated behavior: 1) Behavioral under control: the person's temperamental balance of positive to negative affect should be less stable and weighted toward dysphoria.  2) Cognitive processing on tests or working memory.  3) Decision-making during a reward based delay discounting calling for choices between immediate, but small rewards vs. waiting over a time delay to gain a larger reward. 4) Visceral responses to psychological stress using the stress hormone, cortisol, and autonomic control of the heart.

“Movember” (the month formerly known as November) is a moustache growing charity event held throughout November each year that raises funds and awareness for men's health. Movember is responsible for the sprouting of moustaches on thousands of men’s faces around the world. Since its humble beginnings in Melbourne Australia, Movember has grown to become a truly global movement inspiring more than 1.1 Million Mo Bros and Mo Sistas to participate, with formal campaigns in Australia, New Zealand, the US, Canada, the UK, Finland, the Netherlands, Spain, South Africa and Ireland. In addition Mo Bros and Mo Sistas support the campaign and men’s health cause across the globe, from Russia to Dubai, Hong Kong to Antarctica, Rio de Janeiro to Mumbai, and everywhere in between.

We are all familiar with the role genetics play in shaping our physical appearance. You might have inherited your mother’s green eyes or your father’s broad shoulders. We too understand how genes influence our risk or resilience to developing various conditions. In previous The Genetic Link blog features we’ve linked genes with substance abuse, cancer, epilepsy and tropical diseases. But what I’ve been pondering lately is how and to what extent our unique genetic code is involved in making us who we are by shaping our personality, behavior, social interactions and thought processes. Perhaps you’re familiar with the idea of nature versus nurture, or gene versus environment studies. What I want to know is how much of who I am is due to my genetic make-up versus  how much is a result of that complicated mix of my early experiences, social and cultural influences, family interactions, education…in other words, my environment? These almost philosophical questions are tackled on a daily basis by psychologists, psychiatrists and neurologists; and I am absolutely riveted by this research.

I am pleased to announce the launch of ORAcollect•DNA (OCR-100), the newest product in the DNA Genotek family. ORAcollect•DNA is a sample collection kit that uses the same underlying technology as Oragene•DNA, but with a different collection method. The fundamental difference between Oragene•DNA and ORAcollect•DNA is the way the sample is collected.  Instead of spitting into an Oragene•DNA kit, the patient/donor uses the integrated sponge to collect the sample and then invert the sponge and secure it in the collection tube.

If you’re looking for funding for your research project using DNA in saliva, DNA Genotek’s Grant Program might be the solution. Today, DNA Genotek launched a new Grant Program designed to uncover new, innovative applications for our products. The Grant Program encompasses three primary areas of focus:

It’s that time of year once again; time for one of the biggest conferences in human genetics (ICHG/ASHG) and we’re looking forward to seeing you at the meeting in Montreal, QC from October 11-15th. It’s one of our favorite annual events and as such, we’ve planned something special that we know you will like. In order to get the details of this special announcement, you’ll have to drop by our booth #1004 (or listen to it second hand because news like this is bound to travel fast).  

At DNA Genotek, we recently learned the details of study being conducted by Wake Forest University. We wanted to share some of this information with you here on The Genetic Link. The Center for Cancer Genomics at Wake Forest University Health Sciences uses genomics to gain an understanding of the complex processes involved in the development and progression of various types of cancer, and to develop approaches to utilize this information for the prediction of cancer and personalized intervention. Dr. Xu is a Professor and the Director of the Center for Cancer Genomics at Wake Forest University. Dr. Xu is a well known genetic epidemiologist who specializes in genetic studies focused on prostate cancer. He has published about 200 papers on the genetics of cancer and other complex diseases in leading journals, including NEJM, Nature Genetics, and JNCI.