Genetic Study Reveals Surprising Ancestry of Many Americans
In the United States, almost no one can trace their ancestry back to just one place. And for many, the past may hold some surprises, according to a new study….
genetics
University of Toronto Cell Biologists Discover On-off Switch for Key Stem Cell Gene
Consider the relationship between an air traffic controller and a pilot. The pilot gets the passengers to their destination, but the air traffic controller decides when the plane can take…
Genes Tell Story of Birdsong and Human Speech
His office is filled with all sorts of bird books, but Duke neuroscientist Erich Jarvis didn’t become an expert on the avian family tree because of any particular interest in…
Genome sequencing for newborns: What do new parents think?
A study published this week in Genetics in Medicine is the first to explore new parents’ attitudes toward newborn genomic testing. The findings suggest that if newborn genomic testing becomes…
Study Shows How Epigenetic Memory is Passed Across Generations
A growing body of evidence suggests that environmental stresses can cause changes in gene expression that are transmitted from parents to their offspring, making “epigenetics” a hot topic. Epigenetic modifications…
Why Humans Don't Suffer From Chimpanzee Malaria: DNA Region Controlling Red Blood Cell Invasion Holds Genetic Key to Infection
By comparing the genomes of malaria parasites that affect chimpanzees and those that affect humans, researchers discovered that it is the difference in the parasites’ surface proteins that determine which…