Ancient DNA shines light on Caribbean history, prehistory
New answers have emerged from the largest genome-wide study to date of ancient human DNA in the Americas.
Dec. 23, 2020 • ~12 min
science-technology dna archaic-age caribbean-people ceramic-age
Enzymatic DNA synthesis sees the light
Controlling a DNA-synthesizing enzyme with photolithographic methods from the computer chip industry facilitates multiplexed writing and storage of digital data in DNA.
Oct. 19, 2020 • ~9 min
science-technology dna harvard-medical-school george-church wyss-institute
Analyzing toehold sequences for synthetic biology
Computational algorithms enable identification and optimization of RNA-based tools for myriad applications.
Oct. 7, 2020 • ~16 min
science-technology dna synthetic-biology rna wyss-institute james-collins
Gene editing may be a path to restore partial hearing
Wei Hsi “Ariel” Yeh dedicated her research in chemistry to solving some of the vast genetic mysteries behind hearing loss.
June 5, 2020 • ~6 min
science-technology dna chemistry crispr genome basic-research howard-hughes-medical-institute chemistry-and-chemical-biology rna gene-editing broad-institute caitlin-mcdermott-murphy deafness hearing-loss cas9 base-editing base-editors david-liu genetic-disease genetic-engineering sickle-cell-anemia progeria tmc1
In clinical study, blood test can detect range of cancers
In a study involving thousands of participants, a new blood test detected more than 50 types of cancer as well as their location within the body with a high degree of accuracy.
March 31, 2020 • ~4 min
dna cancer basic-research harvard-medical-school health-medicine annals-of-oncology grail pathfinder
How CRISPR technology is advancing
Fewer off-target edits and greater targeting scope bring gene editing technology closer to treating human diseases.
Feb. 14, 2020 • ~7 min
science-technology dna chemistry crispr genome chemistry-and-chemical-biology rna gene-editing broad-institute caitlin-mcdermott-murphy cas9 base-editing base-editors biotechnology-nature david-liu genetic-disease genetic-engineering sickle-cell-anemia
Study likens Earth’s evolution to creation of Frankenstein’s monster
The evolution of the first building blocks on Earth may have been messier than previously thought, likening it to the mishmash creation of Frankenstein’s monster.
Jan. 28, 2020 • ~4 min
science-technology engineering dna chemistry genetics basic-research chemistry-and-chemical-biology jack-szostak origins-of-life rna science caitlin-mcdermott-murphy primordial-soup prebiotic seohyun-kim
Evolution more complex than ‘survival of the fittest’ had us believe
By re-barcoding the DNA of yeast, researchers were able to follow evolution for approximately 1,000 generations, finding surprises along the way.
Nov. 13, 2019 • ~4 min
science-technology dna evolution physics yeast organismic-and-evolutionary-biology alex-n-nguyen-ba barcoding ivana-cvijovic michael-desai
Harvard researchers create DNA ‘propellers’
Understanding how DNA and proteins interact — or fail to — could help answer fundamental biological questions about human health and disease.
July 19, 2019 • ~7 min
science-technology dna chemistry biotechnology optics nanotechnology nature microscopy biomechanics cell-biology micromachines molecular-biology xiaowei-zhuang
New tool calculates genetic risk for obesity
A “polygenic score” for obesity, a quantitative tool that predicts an individual’s inherited risk for becoming overweight, may identify an opportunity for early intervention.
April 18, 2019 • ~6 min
dna obesity genetic health-medicine uk-biobank broad-institute amit-v-khera avon-longitudinal-study-of-parents-and-children clinical-interventions coronary-artery-risk-development-in-young-adults-study framingham-offspring-study polygenic-score polygenic-scoring
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