BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 16, 2005--Researchers at the Harvard-Partners Center for Genetics and Genomics (HPCGG) have developed a rapid, high-throughput screening technology for identifying disease-related genes, applying it to discover a new gene associated with colon cancer. The screening method, which takes advantage of a potent gene-silencing mechanism called RNA interference (RNAi), uncovered 20 potential tumor-suppressors in an experiment looking for genes that prevent cancer. This is the first report of a successful genetic screen using a human RNAi library for cancer genes. Dr. Stephen Elledge, Gregor Mendel Professor of Genetics at Harvard Medical School and HPCGG faculty member, led the research, which will be published in the July edition of Cell, and is now available online.
