Genetics

  1. Animals

    For the first time, researchers decoded the RNA of an extinct animal

    The Tasmanian tiger, or thylacine, was hunted nearly to extinction. Now RNA extracted from a museum specimen reveals how its cells functioned.

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  2. Health & Medicine

    Scientists grow humanized kidneys in pig embryos

    The work represents an important advance in the methods needed to grow humanized kidneys, hearts, and pancreases in animals.

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  3. Animals

    A new DNA leaf swab technique could revolutionize how we monitor biodiversity

    Simple swabs of just 24 leaves in Uganda’s Kibale National Park provided a genetic snapshot of 52 animals in the tropical forest.

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  4. Genetics

    The Y chromosome’s genetic puzzle is finally complete

    New analyses of the human Y chromosome reveal millions of new bases and different locations for the same gene in different people.

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  5. Genetics

    A new look at Ötzi the Iceman’s DNA reveals new ancestry and other surprises

    Ötzi had genetic variants for male-pattern baldness and dark skin, and he also had an unusual amount of early farmer ancestry, a new DNA analysis finds.

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  6. Genetics

    The ‘unknome’ catalogs nearly 2 million proteins. Many are mysterious

    Scientists have unveiled a new database that emphasizes how much we still don’t know about human proteins and genes.

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  7. Humans

    Human embryo replicas have gotten more complex. Here’s what you need to know

    Lab-engineered human embryo models created from stem cells provide a look at development beyond the first week. But they raise ethical questions.

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  8. Archaeology

    How Asia’s first nomadic empire broke the rules of imperial expansion

    New studies reveal clues to how mobile rulers assembled a multiethnic empire of herders known as the Xiongnu more than 2,000 years ago.

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  9. Genetics

    The first gene therapy for muscular dystrophy has been approved for some kids

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration cleared a shortened version of a gene for a muscle protein to be used in 4- and 5-year-olds with muscular dystrophy.

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  10. Genetics

    Daphne Martschenko is a champion for ethical, inclusive genomics research

    A bioethicist focused on the genomics revolution, Daphne Martschenko fosters open discussion through “adversarial collaboration”

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  11. Animals

    DNA has revealed the origin of this giant ‘mystery’ gecko

    A genetic analysis of a 19th century museum specimen, the only known example of the planet’s biggest gecko, has rewritten the animal’s backstory.

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  12. Animals

    Octopuses and squid are masters of RNA editing while leaving DNA intact

    Modifications to RNA could explain the intelligence and flexibility of shell-less cephalopods.

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