Genetics
Formaldehyde damages proteins, not just DNA
The capacity of formaldehyde, a chemical frequently used in manufactured goods such as automotive parts and wood products, to damage...
How to be a male without the Y chromosome
Hokkaido University researchers have revealed that key sex-determining genes continue to operate in a mammalian species that lacks the Y...
Genes underlying dogs’ social ability revealed
The social ability of dogs is affected by genes that also seems to influence human behaviour, according to a new...
How baby’s genes influence birth weight and later life disease
New research finds genetic differences that help to explain why some babies are born bigger or smaller than others. It...
Smoking fathers increase asthma-risk in future offspring
A Norwegian study shows that asthma is three times more common in those who had a father who smoked in...
Rapid adaptation of Aspergillus fungus presents doctors with a dilemma
The fungus Aspergillus fumigatus is capable of rapid genetic adaptation in both natural environments and in humans according to a...
Essential mouse genes could guide human precision medicine
Credit: Doug Rowland, UC Davis. About one-third of 1751 genes studied in the first comprehensive survey of the mouse genome...
Human ‘junk’ gene sequences can promote translation
Piero Carninci of CLST, who led the team Credit: RikenScientists have found a group of human sequences — unrelated to...
A low-cost sensor for cystic fibrosis diagnosis
Naturally fluorescing polymer nanoparticles can be used to detect a key marker of cystic fibrosis. Credit: Yang Lab/Penn StateA new,...
Yes, computing genetic ancestors is super accurate
Ryan Randall (R) and Caelan Radford hold up cultures of lab bacteria with mutated proteins fluorescing in various colors. Credit:...
Mosquito preference for human versus animal biting has genetic basis
Mosquitoes are more likely to feed on cattle than on humans if they carry a specific chromosomal rearrangement in their...
New software helps to find out why ‘jumping genes’ are activated
Photo Credit: Robert Kofler/Vetmeduni ViennaThe genome is not a fixed code but flexible. It allows changes in the genes. Transposons,...
Ancient DNA traces extinct Caribbean ‘Island Murderer’ back to the dawn of mammals
The Solenodon taxa is the closest living relative to the extinct Nesophontes. Photo Credit: Natural History Museum, London UKFrom skeletal...
Memory of a heart attack is stored in our genes
Both heredity and environmental factors influence our risk of cardiovascular disease. A new study, by researches at Uppsala University, shows...