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DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is the hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms. Nearly every cell in a person’s body has the same DNA. Most DNA is located in the cell nucleus (where it is called nuclear DNA), but a small amount of DNA can also be found in the mitochondria (where it is called mitochondrial DNA or mtDNA).

MIT Researchers Develop Amber-Like Polymer for Room-Temperature DNA Storage

In the movie "Jurassic Park," scientists extracted DNA that had been preserved in amber for millions of years, and used it to create a population of long-extinct dinosaurs.

14 Jun 2024

Johns Hopkins Scientists Engineer Synthetic Cells to Mimic Symmetry Breaking

In a feat aimed at understanding how cells move and creating new ways to shuttle drugs through the body, scientists at Johns Hopkins Medicine say they have built a minimal synthetic cell that follows an external chemical cue and demonstrates a governing principle of biology called "symmetry breaking."

14 Jun 2024

Exploring the Potential of Bacteriophages

Bacteriophages, viruses that target and destroy bacteria, are ubiquitous in the natural world. They play a crucial role in controlling microbe populations, though the mechanisms behind this regulation are not yet fully understood.

14 Jun 2024

Human Antibodies Offer Hope for Improved Black Widow Antivenom

Sera produced from horses can be used to treat serious illnesses caused by black widow bites. But this approach is not totally secure. To address this, scientists have produced entirely human antibodies that are capable of neutralizing the European black widow's alpha-latrotoxin.

13 Jun 2024

Mitochondria Influence the Ability of Adult Cardiac Cells to Multiply

Whether forcing adult cardiomyocytes to reverse from the oxidative phosphorylation phenotype to the glycolysis phenotype would also restore their mitotic ability.

13 Jun 2024

New Study Reveals Microbial Role in Soil Carbon Emissions

When soil microbes eat plant matter, the digested food follows one of two pathways. Either the microbe uses the food to build its own body, or it respires its meal as carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere.

12 Jun 2024

Virus-Like Nanoparticles Facilitate DNA Release and Host Reproduction in Streptomyces

Viruses are ubiquitous in the environment, and organisms have developed various mechanisms to counter their threat.

12 Jun 2024

Simplified Proteomics Method Could Open the Door Toward Precision Medicine

Proteins are workhorses that carry out most of the biological functions in our cells.

12 Jun 2024

SPT Labtech Brings the Power of Miniaturization to More Genomics Researchers with mosquito® Gen3

SPT Labtech, a global leader in the design, development and manufacture of automated instrumentation and consumables for life science applications, has expanded its nanoliter liquid handling portfolio with the launch of mosquito Gen3.

From SPT Labtech 12 Jun 2024

Whole Genome Sequencing Provides Answers Where Exome Sequencing Falls Short

Genetic mutations in human DNA can prevent proteins that perform important functions in the body from being formed correctly.

11 Jun 2024

Engineered Enzyme Boosts Gene Editing Efficiency for Potential Cystic Fibrosis Treatment

Researchers at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard have enhanced a gene-editing technology, enabling it to efficiently insert or substitute entire genes in the genome of human cells.

11 Jun 2024

Innovative Gene Editing Elevates Photosynthetic Efficiency in Food Crops

A team from the Innovative Genomics Institute at the University of California, Berkeley (UCB) has produced an increase in gene expression in a food crop by changing its upstream regulatory DNA.

10 Jun 2024

Multiciliated Cell Differentiation Regulated by an Alternative Cell Cycle

A fertilized egg can develop into a baby through the amazing process of cell division, while a malignant cell can become a malignant tumor. Since there is so much on the line, nature maintains strict control over it through a mechanism known as the cell cycle that scientists once believed they thoroughly understood.

7 Jun 2024

Study Reveals Diversity of DNA Transposons and Expands Genome Engineering Toolbox

In a study published in Cell, a research team led by Zhang Yong'e and WANG Haoyi from the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has characterized the diversity of DNA transposons and expanded the genome engineering toolbox.

7 Jun 2024

Determining Sex in Ants

Researchers at the universities of Mainz and Lausanne have identified a noncoding gene as the deciding factor in determining sex in Argentine ants.

From University of Mainz 7 Jun 2024

Genetic Clues Unveil New Insights into Restless Leg Syndrome

Scientists have discovered genetic clues to the cause of restless leg syndrome, a condition common among older adults.

6 Jun 2024

Study Unveils Key Mechanism of Telomere Maintenance by CST–Polα/Primase

The length of telomeres that protect the ends of our chromosomes should be tightly regulated. Those that are too long predispose to cancer, and those that are too short lose their protective ability, resulting in telomere disorders with serious health consequences.

6 Jun 2024