Genetics

  1. Genetics

    How ancient herders rewrote northern Europeans’ genetic story

    New DNA analyses show the extent of the Yamnaya people’s genetic reach starting 5,000 years ago and how it made descendants prone to diseases like MS.

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  2. Health & Medicine

    Fetuses make a protein that causes morning sickness in pregnancy

    A hormone called GDF15 triggers a part of the brain involved in nausea and vomiting, a new study finds. Blocking its action may lead to treatments.

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  3. Health & Medicine

    Why Huntington’s disease may take so long to develop

    Repeated bits of the disease-causing gene pile up in some brain cells. New treatments could involve stopping the additions.

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  4. Animals

    Here’s how high-speed diving kingfishers may avoid concussions

    Understanding the genetic adaptations that protect the birds’ brains when they dive for food might one day offer clues to protecting human brains.

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  5. Genetics

    These 8 GMOs tell a brief history of genetic modification

    Since the first genetically modified organism 50 years ago, GMOs have brought us disease-resistant crops, new drugs and more.

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  6. Genetics

    Most of today’s gene therapies rely on viruses — and that’s a problem

    The next big strides in gene therapy for rare diseases may come from CRISPR and new approaches to delivery.

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  7. Animals

    In a first, genetically modified silkworms produced pure spider silk

    An effort to engineer silkworms to produce spider silk brings us closer than ever to exploiting the extraordinary properties of this arachnid fiber.

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  8. Animals

    Gene editing can make chickens resistant to bird flu

    Chickens genetically modified to be impervious to avian influenza may one day prevent the spread of the disease on farms, a study suggests.

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  9. 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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  10. 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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  11. 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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  12. 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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