Genetics News
September 18, 2025
Top Headlines
Sep. 16, 2025 — Scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory have cracked open the secrets of plant stem cells, mapping key genetic regulators in maize and Arabidopsis. By using single-cell RNA sequencing, they created a gene expression atlas that identifies rare ...
Sep. 15, 2025 — Volcanic eruptions on the remote island of Nishinoshima repeatedly wipe the land clean, giving scientists a rare chance to study life’s earliest stages. Researchers traced the genetic origins of an ...
Sep. 9, 2025 — Tiny ocean microbes called Prochlorococcus, once thought to be climate survivors, may struggle as seas warm. These cyanobacteria drive 5% of Earth’s photosynthesis and underpin much of the marine food web. A decade of research shows they thrive ...
Aug. 30, 2025 — Scientists have uncovered a surprising new healing mechanism in injured cells called cathartocytosis, in which cells "vomit" out their internal machinery to revert more quickly to a stem cell-like ...
Aug. 29, 2025 — Yale scientists discovered that cavefish species independently evolved blindness and depigmentation as they adapted to dark cave environments, with some lineages dating back over 11 million years. This new genetic method not only reveals ancient ...
Aug. 17, 2025 — Roughly two-thirds of all atmospheric methane, a potent greenhouse gas, comes from methanogens. Tracking down which methanogens in which environment produce methane with a specific isotope signature is difficult, however. UC Berkeley researchers ...
Aug. 17, 2025 — Scientists have engineered a groundbreaking cancer treatment that uses bacteria to smuggle viruses directly into tumors, bypassing the immune system and delivering a powerful one-two punch against cancer cells. The bacteria act like Trojan horses, ...
Aug. 8, 2025 — Researchers at Scripps have created T7-ORACLE, a powerful new tool that speeds up evolution, allowing scientists to design and improve proteins thousands of times faster than nature. Using engineered bacteria and a modified viral replication system, ...
Aug. 4, 2025 — Glasswing butterflies may all look alike, but behind their transparent wings hides an evolutionary story full of intrigue. Researchers discovered that while these butterflies appear nearly identical to avoid predators, they produce unique pheromones ...
July 21, 2025 — What scientists once dismissed as junk DNA may actually be some of the most powerful code in our genome. A new international study reveals that ancient viral DNA buried in our genes plays an active role in controlling how other genes are turned on ...
July 21, 2025 — Gene editing may hold the key to rescuing endangered species—not just by preserving them, but by restoring their lost genetic diversity using DNA from museum specimens and related species. Scientists propose a visionary framework that merges ...
July 16, 2025 — Scientists have discovered that a protein once thought to be just a cellular "courier" actually helps plants survive drought. This motor protein, myosin XI, plays a critical role in helping leaves close their pores to conserve water. When it's ...
Latest Headlines
updated 11:41am EDT
Sep. 18, 2025 — A team from the University of Illinois has uncovered surprising evolutionary links between the genetic code and tiny protein fragments called dipeptides. By analyzing billions of dipeptide sequences ...
Sep. 15, 2025 — A groundbreaking project is piecing together Leonardo da Vinci’s genetic profile by tracing his lineage across 21 generations and comparing DNA from living descendants with remains in a Da Vinci ...
Sep. 14, 2025 — By analyzing tooth enamel chemistry, scientists uncovered proof that Jurassic dinosaurs divided up their meals in surprising ways—some choosing buds and leaves, others woody bark, and still others ...
Sep. 14, 2025 — Sweetpotato, a critical food crop for millions, has finally had its genetic code fully decoded after decades of mystery. Scientists unraveled its extraordinarily complex genome of six chromosome ...
Sep. 13, 2025 — Scientists in Tokyo have uncovered “Inocles,” massive strands of extrachromosomal DNA hidden inside bacteria in human mouths. These giants, overlooked by traditional sequencing, could explain how ...
Sep. 12, 2025 — Mars’ Jezero Crater holds signs of ancient water and strange mineral reactions, some linked with organic compounds. With Perseverance’s samples ...
Sep. 4, 2025 — A small tissue fold in fly embryos, once thought purposeless, plays a vital role in stabilizing tissues. Researchers show that it absorbs stress during early development, and its position and timing ...
Aug. 28, 2025 — Researchers demonstrated how amino acids could spontaneously attach to RNA under early Earth-like conditions using thioesters, providing a long-sought clue to the origins of protein synthesis. This ...
Aug. 24, 2025 — Scientists have discovered that a gene called MUC19, inherited from Denisovans through ancient interbreeding, may have played a vital role in helping ...
Aug. 23, 2025 — Scientists have developed a breakthrough food supplement that could help save honeybees from devastating declines. By engineering yeast to produce six essential sterols found in pollen, researchers ...
Earlier Headlines
Aug. 20, 2025 — Two independent research teams have unveiled near-complete reference genomes of the central bearded dragon, a reptile with the rare ability to change sex depending on both chromosomes and nest ...
Aug. 6, 2025 — Apple snails can fully regrow their eyes, and their genes and eye structures are strikingly similar to humans. Scientists mapped the regeneration process and used CRISPR to identify genes, including ...
Aug. 16, 2025 — Once on the brink during the last ice age, great white sharks made a remarkable recovery globally, but their DNA reveals a baffling story. Classic migration explanations fail, leaving scientists with ...
Aug. 6, 2025 — Australian skinks have developed a remarkable genetic defense against venomous snake bites by mutating a key muscle receptor, making them resistant to neurotoxins. These tiny but powerful molecular ...
Aug. 5, 2025 — A group of Chinese scientists has created powerful new tools that allow them to edit large chunks of DNA with incredible accuracy—and without leaving any trace. Using a mix of advanced protein ...
Aug. 7, 2025 — Scientists discovered that jewel wasp larvae that undergo a developmental "pause" live longer and age more slowly at the molecular level by nearly 30%. This slowdown is tied to conserved ...
Aug. 4, 2025 — In a surprising twist of conservation success, a U.S. Air Force bombing range in Florida has become a sanctuary for endangered species like the red-cockaded woodpecker. Michigan State University ...
July 30, 2025 — Scientists have used artificial intelligence to upgrade plant immune systems, potentially revolutionizing how crops like tomatoes and potatoes can defend against harmful bacteria. By reengineering ...
July 23, 2025 — What made ribose the sugar of choice for life's code? Scientists at Scripps Research may have cracked a major part of this mystery. Their experiments show that ribose binds more readily and ...
July 11, 2025 — In a bold step toward sustainable space travel, scientists are engineering a radically small, protein-rich rice that can grow in space. The Moon-Rice project, led by the Italian Space Agency in ...
July 8, 2025 — High heat and heavy metals dampen a bumblebee’s trademark buzz, threatening pollen release and colony chatter. Tiny sensors captured up-to-400-hertz tremors that falter under environmental stress, ...
July 8, 2025 — Scientists at MIT have turbocharged one of nature’s most sluggish but essential enzymes—rubisco—by applying a cutting-edge evolution technique in living cells. Normally prone to wasteful ...
July 7, 2025 — Scientists have decoded the sea spider’s genome for the first time, revealing how its strangely shaped body—with organs in its legs and barely any abdomen—may be tied to a missing gene. The ...
July 2, 2025 — Scientists at UC Davis discovered a small genetic difference that could explain why humans are more prone to certain cancers than our primate cousins. The change affects a protein used by immune ...
July 4, 2025 — Scientists have discovered that starving and then refeeding worms can reveal surprising secrets about aging. When a specific gene (called TFEB) is missing, these worms don’t bounce back from ...
June 25, 2025 — Leafcutter ants live in highly organized colonies where every ant has a job, and now researchers can flip those jobs like a switch. By manipulating just two neuropeptides, scientists can turn ...
June 23, 2025 — In a remarkable twist of science, researchers have transformed a fungus long associated with death into a potential weapon against cancer. Found in tombs like that of King Tut, Aspergillus flavus was ...
June 20, 2025 — Even after 20 million years of evolutionary separation, two tiny worm species show astonishingly similar patterns in how they turn genes on and off. Scientists mapped every cell s activity during ...
June 19, 2025 — During Earth's ancient Snowball periods, when the entire planet was wrapped in ice, life may have endured in tiny meltwater ponds on the surface of equatorial glaciers. MIT researchers ...
June 18, 2025 — New research is shaking up our understanding of evolution by revealing that some species may not evolve gradually at all. Instead, scientists discovered that certain marine worms experienced an ...
Wednesday, August 20, 2025
Wednesday, August 6, 2025
Saturday, August 16, 2025
Wednesday, August 6, 2025
Tuesday, August 5, 2025
Thursday, August 7, 2025
Monday, August 4, 2025
Wednesday, July 30, 2025
Wednesday, July 23, 2025
Friday, July 11, 2025
Tuesday, July 8, 2025
- What Happens When Bees Can’t Buzz Right? Nature Starts Falling Apart
- MIT Scientists Just Supercharged the Enzyme That Powers All Plant Life
Monday, July 7, 2025
Wednesday, July 2, 2025
Friday, July 4, 2025
Wednesday, June 25, 2025
Monday, June 23, 2025
Friday, June 20, 2025
Thursday, June 19, 2025
Wednesday, June 18, 2025
Monday, June 16, 2025
Saturday, June 14, 2025
Tuesday, June 24, 2025
Thursday, June 12, 2025
Wednesday, June 11, 2025
Sunday, June 15, 2025
Friday, June 6, 2025
- Scientists Find Immune Molecule That Supercharges Plant Growth
- Scientists Uncover 230 Giant Ocean Viruses That Hijack Photosynthesis
Tuesday, June 3, 2025
- DNA Floating in the Air Tracks Wildlife, Viruses -- Even Drugs
- Two Plant Species Invent the Same Chemically Complex and Medically Interesting Substance
- Large-Scale Immunity Profiling Grants Insights Into Flu Virus Evolution
Monday, June 2, 2025
Friday, May 30, 2025
- Scientists Find a New Way to Help Plants Fight Diseases
- The EU Should Allow Gene Editing to Make Organic Farming More Sustainable, Researchers Say
Thursday, May 29, 2025
- 'Future-Proofing' Crops Will Require Urgent, Consistent Effort
- Keep the Cool Feeling: A Lipid Enzyme for Maintaining Cool Temperature Sensation and Avoidance
- Genetic Basis of Purring in Cats
- Cannabis Pangenome Reveals Potential for Medicinal and Industrial Use
Wednesday, May 28, 2025
- Bed Bugs Are Most Likely the First Human Pest, New Research Shows
- Yeast Can Now Produce Human DNase1
- In Nature's Math, Freedoms Are Fundamental
- Chemists Recreate How RNA Might Have Reproduced for First Time
- A High-Fat Diet Sets Off Metabolic Dysfunction in Cells, Leading to Weight Gain
- Researchers Engineer a Herpes Virus to Turn on T Cells for Immunotherapy
- New AI Tool Reveals Single-Cell Structure of Chromosomes -- In 3D
- Intestinal Bacteria Influence Aging of Blood Vessels
Monday, May 26, 2025
- A Root Development Gene That's Older Than Root Development
- Flowers Unfold With Surprising Precision, Despite Unruly Genes
Friday, May 23, 2025
Thursday, May 22, 2025
- Ancient DNA Used to Map Evolution of Fever-Causing Bacteria
- 'Selfish' Genes Called Introners Proven to Be a Major Source of Genetic Complexity
- Study Discovers DNA Switch That Controls TB Growth, and Could Help Unlock Its Antibiotic Resistance Secrets
Wednesday, May 21, 2025
- Plant Cell Sculptors
- The Dietary Bug in a Cancer Therapy
- Researchers Identify a Dual Origin of Cells Controlling Puberty and Reproduction
- Unlocking the Secrets of Bat Immunity
- Songbirds' Great Risk Results in Great Genetic Reward
- How Hibiscus Flowers Lost Their Bullseyes
- This Gene Variant Contributed to the Dietary and Physiological Evolution of Modern Humans
- A New Technology for Extending the Shelf Life of Produce
- Hand2: Positional Code That Allows Axolotls to Regrow Limbs Found
- Live View: Stress-Induced Changes in Generations of Cancer Cells
Tuesday, May 20, 2025
- A New Complexity in Protein Chemistry
- Common Diabetes Drug Helps Chickens Lay More Eggs
- How Membranes May Have Brought About the Chemistry of Life on Earth
- Advanced Genomics Study Improves Detection of Hard-to-Find Diarrheal Infections
- Wild Spinach Offers Path to Breed Disease Resistance Into Cultivated Varieties
Monday, May 19, 2025
- Bees Facing New Threats, Putting Our Survival and Theirs at Risk
- A Head and a Hundred Tails: How a Branching Worm Manages Reproductive Complexity
- 'Cutting to Survive': How Cells Remove DNA Bridges at the Last Moment
- Survival Trick: Pathogen Taps Iron Source in Immune Cells
- Family of Parasite Proteins Presents New Potential Malaria Treatment Target
- How Did Plants Evolve the Ability to Transport Massive Amounts of Protein Into Seed Vacuoles?
Friday, May 16, 2025
- Researchers Find CRISPR Is Capable of Even More Than We Thought
- Novel Molecular Maneuver Helps Malaria Parasite Dodge the Immune System
- GPS for Proteins: Tracking the Motions of Cell Receptors
Thursday, May 15, 2025
- Protein Switch Turns Anti-Viral Immune Response on and Off
- Improved Model System Allows Researchers to Study Embryo Development
- Scientists Track Down Mutation That Makes Orange Cats Orange
- 'Rogue' Immune Cells Explain Why a Gluten-Free Diet Fails in Some Celiac Patients
Wednesday, May 14, 2025
- Rediscovering the First Known Cellular Receptor
- Marsupial Research Reveals How Mammalian Embryos Form
- Artificial Intelligence and Genetics Can Help Farmers Grow Corn With Less Fertilizer
- Making Connections: A Three-Dimensional Visualization of Musculoskeletal Development
- Genome of Near-Extinct Northern White Rhino Offers Hope for Reviving the Species
Tuesday, May 13, 2025
- A Plant You've Never Heard of Can Do What Scientists Once Thought Impossible
- With AI, Researchers Predict the Location of Virtually Any Protein Within a Human Cell
- 'Loop'hole: HIV-1 Hijacks Human Immune Cells Using Circular RNAs
Friday, May 9, 2025
- A More Realistic Look at DNA in Action
- Researchers Map 7,000-Year-Old Genetic Mutation That Protects Against HIV
- Bacterium Produces 'organic Dishwashing Liquid' To Degrade Oil
- Improving Newborn Genetic Screening
- Can Frisky Flies Save Human Lives?
Thursday, May 8, 2025
- Researchers Find New Defense Against Hard-to-Treat Plant Diseases
- Bacteria: Recording Gene Activity More Efficiently
- Novel Point of Attack to Combat Dangerous Tropical Diseases
- Discovery Opens Up for New Ways to Treat Chlamydia
- Engineering an Antibody Against Flu With Sticky Staying Power
- AI-Designed DNA Controls Genes in Healthy Mammalian Cells for First Time