Catálogo de publicaciones - revistas

<jats:title>Self-defense by avoiding self-targeting</jats:title> <jats:p> By silencing transposons, Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) protect the stability of animal genomes in germ lines. However, many piRNAs do not map to transposons, and their functions have remained undefined. Zhang <jats:italic>et al.</jats:italic> described the piRNA targeting logic in <jats:italic>Caenorhabditis elegans</jats:italic> and identified an intrinsic sequence signal in endogenous germline genes that confer resistance to piRNA silencing. Thus, diverse piRNAs silence foreign nucleic acids but spare self genes to defend the <jats:italic>C. elegans</jats:italic> genome. In addition, multiple foreign transgenes can be engineered to escape piRNA targeting, allowing successful expression in the germline. </jats:p> <jats:p> <jats:italic>Science</jats:italic> , this issue p. <jats:related-article xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" ext-link-type="doi" issue="6375" page="587" related-article-type="in-this-issue" vol="359" xlink:href="10.1126/science.aao2840">587</jats:related-article> </jats:p>

<jats:title>Biofilms provide refuge for cancerous bacteria</jats:title> <jats:p> Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) causes benign polyps along the colon. If left untreated, FAP leads to a high incidence of colon cancer. To understand how polyps influence tumor formation, Dejea <jats:italic>et al.</jats:italic> examined the colonic mucosa of FAP patients. They discovered biofilms containing the carcinogenic versions of the bacterial species <jats:italic>Escherichia coli</jats:italic> and <jats:italic>Bacteroides fragilis</jats:italic> . Colon tissue from FAP patients exhibited greater expression of two bacterial genes that produce secreted oncotoxins. Studies in mice showed that specific bacteria could work together to induce colon inflammation and tumor formation. </jats:p> <jats:p> <jats:italic>Science</jats:italic> , this issue p. <jats:related-article xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" ext-link-type="doi" issue="6375" page="592" related-article-type="in-this-issue" vol="359" xlink:href="10.1126/science.aah3648">592</jats:related-article> </jats:p>

<jats:p>A weekly roundup of information on newly offered instrumentation, apparatus, and laboratory materials of potential interest to researchers.</jats:p>

<jats:p> In order for precision medicine to be successful, accurate characterization of the patient is necessary. A variety of biomarkers could provide the necessary data, collected through a variety of 'omics techniques. However, identifying and characterizing biomarkers that accurately reflect a physiological state (normal or diseased), or response to a particular drug or therapy, has turned out to be challenging. Add to this the complication that biomarkers may differ between population groups, or indeed between individuals, and that tracking these biomarkers as the patient's status changes can be onerous, and the future of precision medicine could be described as bleak. Yet this pessimistic outlook has not stopped researchers from pushing forward in their search for accurate and robust biomarkers, which they hope will help to predict the risk of disease, ascertain the probability of positive clinical outcomes, and evaluate therapeutic efficacy. In this supplement to <jats:italic>Science</jats:italic> , these important topics are discussed, with a focus on advances in precision medicine research in China. </jats:p> <jats:p> This special supplement brought to you by the <jats:bold>Science</jats:bold> /AAAS Custom Publishing Office. </jats:p>