Our principal investigators and their research teams are gaining a better understanding of the genetic origins of cancer, diabetes, Parkinson’s, cardiovascular disease, lupus, glaucoma, infertility, Down syndrome and dozens of other diseases and conditions.

Support from generous donors helped make possible these recent discoveries toward improving health:

Discovering kidney disease genes. Albuminuria, or proteinuria, is a condition in which urine contains an abnormal amount of the protein albumin, and is a sign of kidney damage resulting from diabetes or other medical conditions. A Jackson Laboratory research team led by Research Scientist Ron Korstanje, Ph.D., has discovered two genes that are associated with albuminuria in both aging mice and human patients with diabetic kidney disease. See full news release 

Extending life span. Jackson Laboratory Professor David Harrison, Ph.D., and collaborators reported that rapamycin, a drug used to prevent organ rejection in human transplant recipients, can significantly extend the life span of mice. Harrison's team fed rapamycin to mice late in their life—600 days of age—and extended their life span by 9 to 14 percent, making rapamycin the first pharmacological intervention proven to lengthen mammalian life span. See full news release  

Knocking out leukemia. Jackson Laboratory researchers identified a gene involved with the inflammatory response that could hold the key to treating or even preventing chronic myeloid leukemia, a lethal cancer. The researchers showed that a combination of drugs knocked out CML in mouse models of the disease.  See full news release 

Testing drug toxicity. The Jackson Laboratory, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and other institutions reported a new approach to testing drugs for potential toxicity. Testing acetaminophen, the commonly used nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, on 40 different mouse models revealed several gene variations associated with toxic reactions. These variations, not found in the standard drug testing process, matched those in human patients experiencing adverse reactions to the drug. See full news release