Mice with woolly mammoth traits could pave the way for the resurrection of an ice age giant

The “woolly mice” have the thick, shaggy hair of mammoths, along with a fat metabolism gene.

Timothy Hearn, Senior Lecturer in Bioinformatics, Anglia Ruskin University • conversation
March 5, 2025 ~5 min

Ancient DNA study shows women at the centre of societies in iron age Britain – supporting decades of archaeology

Genetics shows that women stayed put in Late Iron Age Dorset, while men moved to other groups.

Rachel Pope, Reader in European Prehistory, Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology, University of Liverpool • conversation
Jan. 23, 2025 ~9 min


Microbes can colonize space, produce drugs and create energy − researchers are simulating their inner workings to harness how

Using digital blueprints of the metabolism of microbes, scientists can simulate expensive and time-intensive experiments set in space, power plants and farm fields.

Blaise Manga Enuh, Postdoctoral Research Associate in Microbial Genomics and Systems Biology, University of Wisconsin-Madison • conversation
Jan. 6, 2025 ~8 min

Turtle genomes fold in a special way

"The turtles may be showing us what existed at the beginning, shedding light on the evolution of vertebrate genomes."

Camden Flath-Futurity • futurity
Nov. 13, 2024 ~7 min

Plants and animals with bigger genomes grow less efficiently – new research helps explain why they never died out

The size of DNA cells between the biggest and smallest genomes varies by as much as 10,000 times.

Kimberley Simpson, Research Fellow, School of Biosciences, University of Sheffield • conversation
Nov. 7, 2024 ~6 min

Fighting antibiotic resistance at the source – using machine learning to identify bacterial resistance genes and the drugs to block them

By analyzing the resistance genes and proteins of E. coli, researchers can optimize treatments to address both current and future antimicrobial resistance.

Abdullahi Tunde Aborode, Mississippi State University • conversation
Oct. 30, 2024 ~5 min

DNA reveals secrets of cave-dwelling medieval community that survived conquest and epidemics

It’s unclear why people chose to live in the caves, but DNA is shedding light on their lives.

Ricardo Rodriguez Varela, Research in Molecular Archaeology, Department of Archaeology and Classical Studies, Stockholm University, Stockholm University • conversation
Aug. 28, 2024 ~8 min

Banana apocalypse, part 2 – a genomicist explains the tricky genetics of the fungus devastating bananas worldwide

Fusarium oxysporum can infect over 120 plant species. Whether it destroys Cavendish bananas as it did their predecessor depends on the agricultural industry and consumers.

Li-Jun Ma, Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, UMass Amherst • conversation
Aug. 16, 2024 ~6 min


If we want to settle on other planets, we’ll have to use genome editing to alter human DNA

Altering the human genome could help astronauts survive the harsh radiation and effects of weightlessness.

Sam McKee, Associate Tutor and PhD Candidate in Philosophy of Science, Manchester Metropolitan University • conversation
July 23, 2024 ~7 min

Cutting-edge genomic test can improve care of children with cancer

Whole genome sequencing has improved clinical care of some children with cancer in England by informing individual patient care. Research published today

Cambridge University News • cambridge
July 2, 2024 ~5 min

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