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Researchers at the MRC Molecular Haematology Unit (Radcliffe Department of Medicine), in collaboration with colleagues from Hannover Medical School and Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, have discovered the specific gene mutations that are required for the development of leukaemia in children with Down’s syndrome.
Children with Down’s syndrome have a 150-fold increased risk of myeloid leukaemia, and while some of the genetic causes of this have been previously established, this is the first study to identify a wide range of mutations and how they functionally interact to lead to leukaemia. The study was published in the journal Cancer Cell.
Read more (University of Oxford website)