Origins of immune system mapped, opening doors for new cancer immunotherapies
A first cell atlas of the human thymus gland could lead to new immune therapies to treat cancer and autoimmune diseases. Researchers from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, Newcastle University and Ghent University, Belgium, mapped thymus tissue through the human lifespan to understand how it develops and makes vital immune cells called T cells. In the future, this information could help researchers…
Otter genome to help understand genetic legacy of pollution crisis and secure species’ future
One of Britain’s best-loved mammals is set to receive a boost with the sequencing and release of the first high-quality Eurasian otter genome by scientists at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, in partnership with the Cardiff University Otter Project.
Gut bacteria’s interactions with immune system mapped
The first detailed cell atlas of the immune cells and gut bacteria within the human colon has been created by researchers. The study from the Wellcome Sanger Institute and collaborators revealed different immune niches, showing changes in the bacterial microbiome and immune cells throughout the colon.
Comprehensive study finds mutations in non-coding genome are infrequent drivers of cancer
A clearer picture of how DNA changes lead to cancer has emerged, following the most comprehensive evaluation of non-coding driver mutations to date by researchers at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Aarhus University Hospital and their collaborators.
Cancer-causing culprits will be caught by their DNA fingerprints
Causes of cancer are being catalogued by a huge international study revealing the genetic fingerprints of DNA-damaging processes that drive cancer development. Researchers from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, Duke-NUS Medical School Singapore, University of California San Diego School of Medicine, the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, and their collaborators around the world have achieved the…
Red and grey squirrel genomes could hold the key to the survival of reds in Britain and Ireland
New hope for the preservation of red squirrels in Britain and Ireland is on the horizon, after the completion of the red and grey squirrel reference genomes by scientists at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and their collaborators. The genomes may hold clues to why grey squirrels are immune to squirrel pox, a disease that is fatal to most red squirrels.
Tailor-made vaccines could almost halve rates of serious bacterial disease
New research has found that rates of disease caused by the bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae could be substantially reduced by changing our approach to vaccination. Researchers from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, Simon Fraser University in Canada and Imperial College London combined genomic data, models of bacterial evolution and predictive modelling to identify how vaccines could be optimised…
Never too late to quit: protective cells could cut risk of lung cancer for ex-smokers
Protective cells in the lungs of ex-smokers could explain why quitting smoking reduces the risk of developing lung cancer, scientists have determined. Researchers from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, UCL and their collaborators have discovered that, compared to current smokers, people who had stopped smoking had more genetically healthy lung cells, which have a much lower risk of developing into…
Root of childhood kidney cancer discovered
A fundamental change in our understanding of the childhood kidney cancer Wilms' tumour is on the horizon, after the discovery of its earliest genetic root by scientists at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and their collaborators. By comparing genome sequences from normal kidney tissue and tumours, the team identified patches of normal-looking kidney tissue that in fact carried DNA changes that cause…
New malaria drug targets identified in liver stage of life cycle
New research into the different life stages of malaria parasites has identified promising areas for new drug targets aimed at disrupting the parasite’s invasion of the liver. Scientists from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, the University of Bern and Umeå University discovered seven metabolic pathways that the parasite needs to infect the liver, where the parasite multiplies rapidly before invading…
Ambitious project to map genomes of all life on British Isles funded by Wellcome
An unprecedented insight to the diverse range of species on the British Isles will be made possible by Wellcome funding to the Darwin Tree of Life Project.
Measles infection wipes our immune system's memory, leaving us vulnerable to other diseases
Scientists have shown how measles causes long-term damage to the immune system, leaving people vulnerable to other infections. Researchers from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, University of Amsterdam and their collaborators revealed that the measles virus deletes part of the immune system’s memory, removing previously existing immunity to other infections, in both humans and ferrets. Importantly,…
Accumulation of DNA mutations found in healthy liver leads to disease
New insights into the journey from health to disease in the human liver have been made by scientists at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, the University of Cambridge and their collaborators. In the largest study of its kind, the team documented in unprecedented detail how the accumulation of changes in our DNA over time, known as mutations, evolves during the…
Resurrection of 50,000-year-old gene reveals how malaria parasite jumped from gorillas to humans
For the first time, scientists have uncovered the likely series of events that led to the world’s deadliest malaria parasite being able to jump from gorillas to humans. Researchers at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and the University of Montpellier reconstructed an approximately 50,000-year-old gene sequence that was acquired by the ancestor of Plasmodium falciparum, giving it the ability to…
Jumping genes can cause rare developmental disorders in children
The largest study of its kind into childhood developmental disorders has discovered that jumping genes cause genetic changes in some patients with undiagnosed neurodevelopmental diseases.
First cell map of developing human liver reveals how blood and immune system develops
In a world first, scientists have created the human developmental liver cell atlas that provides crucial insights into how the blood and immune systems develop in the foetus. It maps changes in the cellular landscape of the developing liver between the first and second trimesters of pregnancy, including how stem cells from the liver seed other tissues to support the high demand for oxygen needed…
Human kidney map charts our growing immune defence
The first cell atlas of the human kidney’s immune system has been created after scientists mapped nearly 70,000 individual kidney cells from early life and adults. Researchers at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, University of Cambridge, Newcastle University and their collaborators have generated the atlas and used it to map the communities of immune cells in the kidney. This shows for the first…
Scientists hone in on DNA differences behind immune diseases
Scientists are one step closer to discovering the causes of immune diseases such as asthma, multiple sclerosis and arthritis. Research from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, GSK and Biogen, under the Open Targets initiative, has shown that thousands of differences in DNA between individuals, associated with immune diseases, are linked with the switching-on of a specific subtype of immune cells.
Babies' gut bacteria affected by delivery method, Baby Biome project shows
Babies born vaginally have different gut bacteria - their microbiome - than those delivered by Caesarean, research has shown. Scientists from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, UCL, the University of Birmingham and their collaborators discovered that whereas vaginally born babies got most of their gut bacteria from their mother, babies born via caesarean did not, and instead had more bacteria…
Brown trout genome will help explain species' genetic superpowers
Better conservation and management of fish stocks is on the horizon, after the completion of the brown trout reference genome by scientists at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and their collaborators. The genome will help settle a longstanding debate about whether the physically-varied brown trout is actually a single species or several, and give insights into their ability to quickly adapt to…
LifeLab 2019 – discovery on your doorstep with an exciting programme of free events and activities
LifeLab has launched an exciting programme of events for Friday 27th and Saturday 28th September 2019, transforming parts of Cambridge, Peterborough and Ely into discovery zones for the weekend. Most events are free, taking place in a range of venues including shopping centres, theatres, cafes and bars.
Map of malaria behaviour set to revolutionise research
The first detailed map of individual malaria parasite behaviour across each stage of its complicated life cycle has been created by scientists. Researchers at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and their collaborators used advanced single-cell technology to isolate individual parasites and measure their gene activity.
Diarrhoea-causing bacteria adapted to spread in hospitals
Scientists have discovered that the gut-infecting bacterium Clostridium difficile is evolving into two separate species, with one group highly adapted to spread in hospitals. Researchers at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and collaborators identified genetic changes in the newly-emerging species that allow it to thrive on the Western sugar-rich diet…
Hospitals key in the spread of extremely drug resistant bacteria in Europe
New research has found that antibiotic-resistant strains of Klebsiella pneumoniae, an opportunistic pathogen that can cause respiratory and bloodstream infections in humans, are spreading through hospitals in Europe.
Multi-drug resistant malaria spreading in Asia
Genomic surveillance has revealed that malaria resistance to two first-line antimalarial drugs has spread rapidly from Cambodia to neighbouring countries in Southeast Asia. Researchers from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, University of Oxford and Mahidol University, Bangkok, discovered that descendants of one multi-drug resistant malaria strain are replacing the local parasite populations in…