Genetics & Molecular Biology

Mutational Robustness: Why Duplicate Genes Remain In The Genome

Geneticists have found a mechanism sought for more than four decades that explains how gene duplication leads to novel functions in individuals.  Gene duplication is a biological phenomenon that leads to the sudden emergence of new genetic material. ' ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 1 2014 - 9:31am

Dwell Time As The Missing Link: Counting The Seconds For Immunological Tolerance

Our immune system must distinguish between self and foreign and in order to fight infections without damaging the body's own cells at the same time. The immune system is loyal to cells in the body, but how this works is not fully understood. A new st ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 5 2014 - 9:12am

Making Bone From Fat Cells

Our fat contains a variety of cells with the potential to become bone, cartilage, or more fat if properly prompted. This makes adipose tissue a key potential resource for regenerative therapies such as bone healing if doctors can get enough of those cells ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 6 2014 - 11:31am

29-Year 100 Billion Animal Study Reinforces Safety Of GM Foods

By Jon Entine, Genetic Literacy Project Visit almost any anti-GMO website and you will find alarming headlines about the alleged dangers of GMO foods. They kill pigs, cows and sheep on farms and in lab studies! Humans are next! ...

Article - Jon Entine - Oct 7 2014 - 11:52am

Live And Let-7: Autophagy And Cell Survival

A microRNA molecule has been tagged as a surprisingly crucial player in managing cell survival and growth. The findings underscore the emerging recognition that non-coding RNAs – small molecules that are not translated into working proteins – help regulat ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 7 2014 - 2:32pm

Weekend Science: Coffee Drinker? Maybe You Hit The Genetic Powerball

A recent genome-wide meta-analysis has identified a biological commonality among 120,000 regular coffee drinkers- 6 new genetic variants related to caffeine metabolism, lipid and glucose metabolism, and its psychoactive effects, found among about 2.5 milli ...

Blog Post - Hank Campbell - Oct 11 2014 - 10:30am

Synthetic Biology: GMOs Without The Cultural Drama

Credit: Shutterstock One thing certain about nature- it sure isn't efficient. Just take a look at the human male reproductive system and you get the idea that if it was designed, it was designed by fish, and on a dare. It is a problem waiting to happ ...

Blog Post - Hank Campbell - Oct 9 2014 - 10:12am

Antioxidants Of Wild Tomato Species Get Studied

Tomatoes contain antioxidants such as vitamin C, lycopene, β-carotene, and phenolics. Antioxidants are substances capable of delaying or inhibiting oxidation processes caused by free radicals and are of interest to both consumers and plant biologists. Con ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 10 2014 - 8:30am

Brown Is Beautiful: How The Brain Transforms White Fat To Control Eating

Researchers have uncovered a molecular process in the brain known to control eating that transforms white fat into brown fat, and that impacts how much energy we burn and how much weight we can lose.   ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 11 2014 - 1:32pm

How Cholesterol Is Made

Cholesterol has gotten a bad reputation, thanks to mainstream media's penchant for alternating miracle vegetables with scare journalism, which prompts shady diet fad book authors to promote whatever is getting attention this year. Outside health fads ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 13 2014 - 8:00am