Losing their tails provided our ape ancestors with an evolutionary advantage – but we’re still paying the price

Many evolutionary changes also come with costs.

Laurence D. Hurst, Professor of Evolutionary Genetics at The Milner Centre for Evolution, University of Bath • conversation
Feb. 28, 2024 • ~7 min

How frontotemporal dementia, the syndrome affecting Bruce Willis, changes the brain – research is untangling its genetic causes

FTD leads to changes in personality and behavior. Understanding its genetic and molecular causes could lead to new ways to treat neurodegenerative diseases.

Fen-Biao Gao, Professor of Neurology, Gov. Paul Cellucci Chair in Neuroscience Research, UMass Chan Medical School • conversation
Feb. 22, 2023 • ~8 min

Helping cells become better protein factories could improve gene therapies and other treatments – a new technique shows how

Gene therapies and vaccines are often injected into muscle cells that are inefficient at producing desired proteins. Making them work more like liver cells could lead to better treatment outcomes.

Lila Gierasch, Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, UMass Amherst • conversation
Aug. 1, 2022 • ~6 min

From CRISPR to glowing proteins to optogenetics – scientists' most powerful technologies have been borrowed from nature

Three pioneering technologies have forever altered how researchers do their work and promise to revolutionize medicine, from correcting genetic disorders to treating degenerative brain diseases.

Marc Zimmer, Professor of Chemistry, Connecticut College • conversation
Aug. 5, 2021 • ~9 min

Scientists are on a path to sequencing 1 million human genomes and use big data to unlock genetic secrets

The first full human genome was sequenced 20 years ago. Now, a project is underway to sequence 1 million genomes to better understand the complex relationship between genetics, diversity and disease.

Xavier Bofill De Ros, Research Fellow in RNA biology, National Institutes of Health • conversation
April 15, 2021 • ~8 min

Flaws emerge in modeling human genetic diseases in animals

Recent studies using CRISPR to fast-track genetic studies into human disease genes appear flawed.

Gage Crump, Professor of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, University of Southern California • conversation
Nov. 10, 2020 • ~8 min

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