Genetics

More Stories in Genetics

  1. The head and neck of a naturally mummified woman with long dark hair, wearing a white hat
    Genetics

    DNA from mysterious Asian mummies reveals their surprising ancestry

    Ancient DNA indicates that an enigmatic Bronze Age group consisted of genetic, but not cultural, loners.

    By Bruce Bower
  2. two Siberian sled dogs
    Archaeology

    Dog DNA reveals ancient trade network connecting the Arctic to the outside world

    People in Siberia were exchanging canines and probably other goods as early as 7,000 years ago with cultures as far off as Europe and the Near East.

    By Freda Kreier
  3. twin girls stand side by side
    Genetics

    All identical twins may share a common set of chemical markers on their DNA

    Identical twins may share a set of unique chemical tags on their DNA that could be used to identify individuals who were conceived as identical twins.

    By Jonathan Lambert
  4. image of a row of statues on Easter Island
    Genetics

    DNA offers a new look at how Polynesia was settled

    Modern genetic evidence suggests that statue builders on islands such as Rapa Nui, also known as Easter Island, had a shared ancestry.

    By Bruce Bower
  5. skull bones from an ancient Indonesian woman
    Anthropology

    Ancient DNA shows the peopling of Southeast Asian islands was surprisingly complex

    Ancient DNA from a hunter-gatherer skeleton points to earlier-than-expected human arrivals on Southeast Asian islands known as Wallacea.

    By Bruce Bower
  6. a group of Ayta people in front of huts beside a river
    Genetics

    An Indigenous people in the Philippines have the most Denisovan DNA

    Genetic comparisons crown the Indigenous Ayta Magbukon people as having the most DNA, 5 percent, from the mysterious ancient hominids.

    By Bruce Bower
  7. close-up of a tardigrade from above
    Life

    Near-invincible tardigrades may see only in black and white

    A genetic analysis suggests that water bears don’t have light-sensing proteins to detect ultraviolet light or color.

    By Erin Garcia de Jesús
  8. a crowd of people
    Humans

    Only a tiny fraction of our DNA is uniquely human

    Some of the exclusively human tweaks to DNA may have played a role in brain evolution.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  9. greater horseshoe bats hanging from cave ceiling
    Health & Medicine

    One mutation may have set the coronavirus up to become a global menace

    A study pinpoints a key mutation that may have put a bat coronavirus on the path to becoming a human pathogen, helping it better infect human cells.

    By Erin Garcia de Jesús