Genetics

Jessica Rath sculpts paragon and roma tomatoes from life.

These Sculptures of Giant Tomatoes Are Ripe For the Picking

What physical traits do humans find desirable? Artist Jessica Rath looks in her grocery store's produce section for answers

Here's What the Newly Sequenced Cat Genome Might Tell Us

In addition to teaching us more about kitties themselves, the cat genome could shed light on human disease

Fun fact: Most of the fish oil harvested from the sea goes to fish farms.

Fish Oil Could (One Day) Come From Plants

A field trial of genetically modified oilseed plants that can make fish oil hopes to help fish farming become more sustainable

We Choose Friends Who Are Genetically Similar to Us

On average, our friends are like the genetic equivalents of fourth cousins

The software can spot people with these disorders: (A) Angelman, (B) Apert, (C) Cornelia de Lange, (D) Down, (E) Fragile X, (F) Progeria, (G) Treacher-Collins, (H) Williams-Beuren.

This Software Can Spot Rare Genetic Disorders Just by Looking at a Person's Face

New software can spot genetic disorders like Down's syndrome by analyzing photographs of faces

Mapping a child's genome could be something available to all parents in the coming years. But is the procedure always good?

Will Genome Sequencing Make Us Smarter About Dealing With Diseases in Our Genes—Or Just More Anxious?

Doctors could use our genetic map to pinpoint the best treatment for our diseases. But how much do we want to know about what's lurking in our DNA?

Tweaking the Banana’s Genome Could Save the Lives of Thousands of Children in Uganda

But not everyone agrees that GMO crops should be used to solve food and nutrition problems

When Homo Sapiens Began to Emerge, Herpes Was Already Waiting

Herpes first evolved in chimpanzees before colonizing the cells of Homo erectus

Europe Was Probably Colonized By Island Hoppers

New genetic research shows that people and agriculture likely spread across the Mediterranean by going from island to island

Female Pigs Respond Differently to Batches of Sperm Carrying Mostly X Or Mostly Y Chromosomes

In an experiment, mother pigs' gene expression changed depending on the sperm type they were fertilized wtih

DNA Proves Once And for All That a Supposed Titanic Survivor Was a Fraud

Loraine Allison, a two-year-old who was on board the Titanic, almost certainly drowned

Thorax and wings of a tree bug (Pentatoma rufipes) found in 1990 in Graubünden, Switzerland, part of the Chernobyl fallout area. Hesse-Honegger notes that the right wings are disturbed and the scutellum is bent.

Chernobyl’s Bugs: The Art And Science Of Life After Nuclear Fallout

In 1986, a Swiss artist set out to document insects from regions affected by the Chernobyl disaster, and science is starting to catch up with her

Scientists Convince a Mouse's Organ to Roll Back Its Own Aging

By triggering the expression of a specific gene, the mouse's thymus reversed its aging

Scientists made synthetic version of a chromosome found in brewer's yeast, pictured above, a fungus commonly used to make beer.

Scientists Build a Yeast Chromosome From Scratch. Next Up? Designer Genomes

Creating synthetic organisms with specially-tailored genomes is a long way off, but the first synthetic eukaryotic chromosome is a big step forward

The Intel Science Talent Search honored the top winner and nine esteemed runners-up of its 2014 competition at a black-tie affair in Washington, D.C.

These Teenagers Have Already Accomplished More Than You Ever Will

The winners of this year's Intel Science Talent Search take on flu vaccines, stem cells and tools for diagnosing cancer

King Richard III Will Be the First Famous Historical Person Whose Genome Is Sequenced

And it'll be public, so anyone can check it out

Sperm from the Aedes aegypti mosquito, magnified 50 times.

Mosquitoes' Sperm Can Detect Smells

Mosquitoes' individual sperm have scent-detecting sensors

Modern humans get back to their (partial) roots at the Neanderthal Museum in Germany.

Neanderthals Went Extinct 30,000 Years Ago, But Their DNA Is Still in the Human Genome

Some of the Neanderthal genes made important contributions while others made us more susceptible to disease

GM Purple Tomatoes Could Actually Be Good for You

These tomatoes are stuffed with anthocyanins (but they're not the only source of the healthy pigment)

In Selfmade, microbiologist Christina Agapakis and scent artist Sissel Tolaas made cheese from bacteria collected from people's mouths and toes.

Cheese Made From Bacteria Between Your Toes and Other Bizarre Bio Art

With groundbreaking (and controversial) projects, artists are starting a conversation about the future of synthetic biology

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