Predicting the Human Genome Using Evolution
To gain a clearer picture of health and disease, scientists have now provided an independent reference for all human variation by looking through the evolutionary lens of our nearest relatives….
Genomes
Reprogramming of DNA Observed in Human Germ Cells for First Time
A team of researchers led by the University of Cambridge has described for the first time in humans how the epigenome — the suite of molecules attached to our DNA…
Gene Expression is Key to Understanding Differences Between Individuals and Disease Susceptibility
The Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) project consortia, which includes scientists from the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) in Barcelona, have now published their results from their first pilot study in three…
How an RNA Gene Silences a Whole Chromosome
Researchers at Caltech have discovered how an abundant class of RNA genes, called long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs, pronounced link RNAs) can regulate key genes. By studying an important lncRNA, called…
The Rumors Were True: Scientists edited the genomes of human embryos for the first time
Excerpt: “In March, a rumor surfaced in the scientific community that was intriguing, and perhaps a bit chilling: According to those in the know, researchers in China had successfully edited…
Why Iceland Is the World’s Greatest Genetic Laboratory
Today, the journal Nature Genetics released a set of four papers based entirely on the genetic sequences of Icelanders. Their results, which range from the identification of a new Alzheimer’s-associated…