Genes News and Research

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Open Sesame: Can Plants Acquire Genes from the Species They Parasitize On?

A new study shows how Cuscuta plants acquire and repurpose a functional gene from a host species through horizontal gene transfer, thereby enhancing metabolic diversity.

8 Sep 2026

High Resolution Chemical Maps Reveal Internal Manufacturing Layout of Herbs

Plants produce flavonoids-bioactive compounds with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and osteoprotective properties-through complex modification pathways.

8 Sep 2026

First Chromosome-Level Genome Unveils Blueprints of Valued Medicinal Compounds

Spuriopimpinella brachycarpa, known locally as Dayeqin or Shanqincai, has long been used in traditional medicine to treat colds, indigestion, abdominal pain, and cough.

8 Sep 2026

Salk Study Uncovers How Mitochondrial Signals Drive Lasting Cardioprotection

Mitochondria are popularly known as the "powerhouse of the cell," but these cellular structures do so much more-including acting as signaling hubs.

7 Sep 2026

Elusive Archaea Act as Flexitarians in Marine Sponge Symbiosis

Symbiotic ammonia-oxidizing archaea in marine sponges are not strict specialists, but true "flexitarians": A team led by microbiologists Bettina Glasl and Katharina Kitzinger from the University of Vienna, in collaboration with partners from Australia, has shown that these microbes dine not only on ammonia but also on amino acids such as valine, leucine, and isoleucine - and presumably do that to communicate with their animal host.

7 Sep 2026

Why Not Every Ant Helps

Why do some ants help nestmates in distress while others don't? A research team from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) and Tel Aviv University has addressed this question in a new study.

7 Sep 2026

Genetic Differences In Neural Pathways Determine Which Ants Save Nestmates

Why do some ants help nestmates in distress while others don't? A research team from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) and Tel Aviv University has addressed this question in a new study.

7 Sep 2026

Ancient DNA Reveals Famous Extinct Feline Was Actually Fish Eating Puma

A new study led by researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, has overturned decades of assumptions about Miracinonyx trumani, the extinct predator popularly known as the American cheetah.

7 Sep 2026

Research Identifies Microorganisms That Convert Precursors Into Testosterone

Many prostate cancers depend on androgen hormones, including testosterone, to grow. That is why treatments for advanced disease often try to reduce testosterone production or block its effects.

7 Sep 2026

New Understanding of Brain Circuitry Genes Opens Door for Targeted OCD Therapies

A Rutgers-led international team co-authored a study, which was published in Nature Neuroscience, revealing 36 genes significantly increasing the risk for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and chronic tic disorders. This research offers the most comprehensive biological insight into the development of these conditions and potential future treatments.

4 Sep 2026

Genetic Prediction Tools May Misjudge Mutation Risks, Study Finds

When a patient has their DNA read, it gets compared against a reference version of the human genome. It allows geneticists and rare disease experts to look at a list of places where the patient's DNA differs.

4 Sep 2026

Scientists Uncover Unexpected Feature of Human DNA Organization

A new study led by Francesca Storici, a professor in the School of Biological Sciences and faculty member of the Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience, has uncovered an unexpected feature of human DNA linked to gene activity and the physical organization of DNA.

3 Sep 2026

Study Reveals Hidden Mutational Process in Colorectal Cancer

The discovery of SBS111 in colorectal cancer offers new perspectives on mutational processes and DNA repair, emphasizing its significance in tumor biology.

3 Sep 2026

AI-Designed Protein Vehicle Enables Lower RNA Dosing While Maximizing Therapeutic Protein Expression

Researchers at Helmholtz Munich and TUM have developed Synthetic Transfer Vehicles (STVs), an entirely new class of RNA transporters. To do so, they combined naturally occurring protein building blocks with synthetic protein structures designed using generative AI.

3 Sep 2026

Scientists Identify Dark Genome Library Containing Over Thirty Thousand Chimeric mRNAs

For decades, scientists have understood that each of the roughly 20,000 genes in the human body carries the instructions for a single kind of protein.

3 Sep 2026

Research Sheds Light on Molecular Origins of Pediatric Brain Cancers

Melbourne researchers have uncovered a critical signaling pathway that controls the timing of brain development, shedding new light on how neurodevelopmental disorders may develop.

3 Sep 2026

New Platform Links Dysfunctional Biomolecular Condensates to Microcephaly and Neurodevelopment

When you add drops of oil to water, the oil and water remain separate. Within cells, biological molecules cluster together in a similar way, separating themselves from the rest of the cell. And while they don't have a membrane, they are their own distinct compartments.

3 Sep 2026