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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).

Reprogramming the Aging Process to Effectively Promote Longevity

Human lifespan is associated with the aging of individual cells. Three years ago, a group of researchers from the University of California, San Diego, uncovered fundamental mechanisms underlying the aging process.

28 Apr 2023

The Origins of Human Accelerated Regions

Large parts of the human genome were changed over a million years ago due to a random event during egg or sperm formation that resulted in the deletion, duplication, or reversal of sections of DNA. Investigators have demonstrated that those structural variants likely set off a cascade of other fast alterations in human DNA that may underpin unique human traits, particularly the brain.

28 Apr 2023

Understanding the Origins of Human Disease Using the Power of Evolutionary Genomics

Hundreds of scientific studies have been conducted over the years to find the genes underlying common human traits, from eye color to intelligence and physical and mental illnesses.

28 Apr 2023

Study Finds Link Between Chemical "Marks" on DNA in Father’s Sperm and Autistic Traits in Children

Among families with children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, Johns Hopkins University researchers say they have found a link between chemical "marks" on DNA in the sperm of fathers and autistic traits in their 3-year-old children.

28 Apr 2023

MolGen Acquires Synchron

MolGen announced last Wednesday that it has acquired Dutch automation company Synchron Instrumenten BV, also known as Synchron Lab Automation.

From MolGen 28 Apr 2023

Research Deepens Our Understanding of Circadian Rhythm Regulation

New research from a multidisciplinary team helps to illuminate the mechanisms behind circadian rhythms, offering new hope for dealing with jet lag, insomnia and other sleep disorders.

27 Apr 2023

Highly Tissue-Specific lincRNA Markers Could Indicate the Presence of Disease

Our genetic code includes over 15,000 specific sections that can be made into molecules called lincRNAs.

27 Apr 2023

New Gene Therapy may be on the Horizon for Usher Syndrome Type 1F

Usher Syndrome type 1F is a rare but severe genetic disease that causes deafness, lack of balance, and progressive blindness.

27 Apr 2023

New Genetic Mutations Linked to Canine Bladder Cancers Identified

Researchers have identified new genetic mutations linked to a subset of canine bladder cancers. Their findings have implications both for early cancer detection and for targeted treatments in dogs and humans.

26 Apr 2023

New Genome Editing Technology Achieves Precise Targeted Insertion of DNA Segments

A new genome editing technology was developed by GAO Caixia’s group from the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). This technology achieves successful and accurate targeted insertion of large DNA segments in plants.

26 Apr 2023

A Study on Genetic Markers and Their Efficiency in the Cultivation of High-Quality Rice

For individual organisms, genetic markers, like simple sequence repeat (SSR), fragment length polymorphisms (RFLP), and single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), offer unique identifiers. This helps in the determination of important genetic variations in plants, enabling modern plant breeding to choose high-quality crop varieties.

26 Apr 2023

A Rapid Method for the Quantitative Detection of miRNA

Researchers investigating the growth of a roundworm discovered a tiny RNA molecule that controlled the expression of specific genes in the early 1990s. This resulted in the discovery of microRNAs (miRNAs), which are now known to exist in all forms of life. These molecules, it turns out, play vital functions in a variety of biological processes.

26 Apr 2023

Interpretable Machine Learning Framework Helps Optimize Chromosome Design and Synthesis

Artificially synthesizing genomes has numerous applications, including medical research and industrial strains. Scientists are continuously progressing in the depth and breadth of genome design and synthesis, from Craig Venter’s team’s synthesis of the artificial life JCVI-syn1.0 in 2010 to the rewriting and synthesis of the prokaryotic E. coli genome, and the Sc2.0 project’s artificial synthesis of the yeast genome.

26 Apr 2023

Generating the Landscape of m6A in a Mouse Embryo

RNA, particularly mRNA, has recently received some attention as the major component of the COVID-19 vaccines.

26 Apr 2023

New Powerful Resource to Understand the Biology of Extracellular RNA

An international team led by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine with the National Institutes of Health Extracellular RNA Communication Consortium and the Bogdan Mateescu laboratory at the ETH Zürich and University of Zürich has developed a new powerful resource to study extracellular RNA (exRNA), a novel form of cell-to-cell communication.

24 Apr 2023

Genetic Variant Linked to Increased Risk of Developing Perianal Crohn's Disease

Cedars-Sinai investigators have identified a genetic variant that increases people's risk of developing perianal Crohn's disease, the most debilitating manifestation of Crohn's disease.

24 Apr 2023

Universal Mechanism by Which Cells Determine DNA Shape Uncovered

We finally know why our DNA has an X shape. This finding by researchers at the Netherlands Cancer Institute may have much broader implications for how our cells behave.

21 Apr 2023

Food-Poisoning Bacteria Create Syringe-Like Structures to Inject Toxins Into Intestinal Cells

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have discovered how a bacterium that infects people after they eat raw or undercooked shellfish creates syringe-like structures to inject its toxins into intestinal cells.

21 Apr 2023

Spatial Organization of Chromosomes and the Role of DNA Tension

Two protein complexes are primarily responsible for chromosomal spatial organization in human cell nuclei. DNA tension has an unanticipated function in this. Together with Austrian colleagues, nanoscientist Cees Dekker and his PhD candidate Roman Barth of TU Delft’s Kavli Institute of Nanoscience published their detailed visualization in Nature on April 19th, 2023.

21 Apr 2023

Gene-Silencing Complexes Work Together to Render X Chromosomes Inactive

Two protein complexes are involved in the mysterious process of shutting off one X chromosome in female mammals, according to a new study from RIKEN. This result could aid in the understanding of how specific tumors in women develop.

21 Apr 2023