Genetics

Genetics

New CRISPR gene editors can fix RNA and DNA one typo at a time

New gene editors can correct common typos that lead to disease.

Genetics

Inbreeding hurts the next generation’s reproductive success

Inbreeding has evolutionary consequences for humans.

Genetics

Mating with Neandertals reintroduced ‘lost’ DNA into modern humans

Neandertal DNA brought back some old genetic heirlooms to modern humans.

Genetics

Resurrecting extinct species raises ethical questions

'Rise of the Necrofauna' examines the technical and ethical challenges of bringing woolly mammoths and other long-gone creatures back from the dead.

Genetics

Doubling up on ‘junk DNA’ helps make us human

DNA duplicated only in humans may contribute to human traits and disease.

Animals

To understand the origins of pain, ask a flatworm

A danger-sensing protein responds to hydrogen peroxide in planarians, results that hint at the evolutionary origins of people’s pain sensing.

Genetics

We’re more Neandertal than we thought

Neandertals contributed more to human traits than previously thought.

Genetics

Ancient humans avoided inbreeding by networking

Ancient DNA expands foragers’ social, mating networks.

Plants

José Dinneny rethinks how plants hunt for water

Plant biologist José Dinneny probes the very beginnings of root development, which may have important implications for growing food in a changing climate.

Anthropology

Christina Warinner uncovers ancient tales in dental plaque

Molecular biologist Christina Warinner studies calculus, or fossilized dental plaque, which contains a trove of genetic clues to past human diet and disease.

Health & Medicine

Luhan Yang strives to make pig organs safe for human transplants

A bold approach to genome editing by biologist Luhan Yang could alleviate the shortage of organs and ease human suffering.

Life

Cracking the body clock code wins trio a Nobel Prize

Circadian clock researchers take home the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine.