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Nanoscale robotic ‘hand’ made of DNA could be used to detect viruses

28 May 2023

A tiny hand crafted out of DNA has jointed fingers that can be used to grab small objects like gold nanoparticles or viruses

Was DNA pioneer Rosalind Franklin really a victim of scientific theft?

25 April 2023

It is widely thought that Rosalind Franklin was a victim whose work on DNA was stolen, but a letter and unpublished magazine story add to the evidence that this view is misleading

Parasitic DNA makes us age faster - but we're not sure why

21 December 2022

Genetic parasites called retrotransposons become more active as we age, and an animal study suggests this may trigger immune responses that shorten our lifespans

Visualizing inferred human ancestral lineages over time and space. Each line represents an ancestor-descendant relationship in our inferred genealogy of modern and ancient genomes. The width of a line corresponds to how many times the relationship is observed, and lines are colored on the basis of the estimated age of the ancestor.

A family tree of humanity released in 2022 shows how we're all related

14 December 2022

Researchers unveiled a picture of humanity’s genealogy based on 3601 modern genomes and eight ancient genomes going back 2 million years

Genetically engineered Escherichia coli is involved in the growth of many chemicals and drugs, such as insulin, but unmodified versions of the bacteria can be infected by viruses

E. coli that is recoded to be virus resistant may aid drug production

4 August 2022

Changing Escherichia coli's genetic code may enable the recoded bacterium to be grown in large vats for drug production, without the risk of a viral infection upending the process

What is a genetically modified organism?

17 July 2020

A genetically modified organism (GMO) is usually defined as an organism whose DNA has been altered by genetic engineering.

What is a chimera?

21 January 2020

A chimera is an individual whose body is composed of cells that are genetically distinct, as if they are from different individuals – and sometimes they really are from different individuals.

Tea and banana plants have been genetically modified by bacteria

8 October 2019

Around 1 in 20 flowering plants are naturally transgenic, with added bacterial genes that can make them produce unusual chemicals

Handheld device could detect CRISPR bioweapons before they spread

13 March 2019

Bits of DNA known as gene drives that force themselves through a population could be use maliciously, but thankfully there is a way to detect them before they spread