DNA

A new article is reporting the first results of a genetic study into the DNA of the novel coronavirus spreading across the globe. The research suggests the virus may have originated in snakes, which were sold at the market where the outbreak began.

Gauging the maximum lifespan of wild animals can be difficult, as scientists are limited to examining whichever creatures they capture. Now, however, researchers have developed a method of determining a species' natural lifespan, based on its DNA.

INTEGRATE is a newly-developed version of CRISPR that edits genes more gently. It uses “jumping genes” that insert large sequences of DNA without breaking the strands, and now scientists have imaged the mechanism at work for the first time.

Scientists have extracted a complete human genome from a 5,700-year-old piece of "chewing gum." It was discovered that the chewer was an ancient female – now named Lola – with dark skin, blue eyes, and most likely a taste for duck and hazelnuts.

Researchers from ETH Zurich have created 3D rabbit models embedded with synthetic DNA that contained their own blueprints. That allows them to effectively "clone" the models, printing copies by clipping small pieces off the original.

A new study from an international team of geneticists is suggesting we are further away than many realize from being able to effectively genetically select for complex polygenic traits such as IQ or height and create designer babies.

The latest ingredients of life to be discovered off-world are certain bio-essential sugars, which have now been found in meteorites. This could lend weight to the idea that meteorite impacts are responsible for the origin of life on Earth.

Combining studies of genetics, geology and climate history, scientists from Australia and South Africa say they’ve identified what could be called the “homeland” of modern humans – a vast, ancient wetland system in southern Africa.

CRISPR is a powerful gene-editing tool – but it has its own problems too. Now, Harvard and MIT scientists have created a new approach called prime editing, which could correct almost 90 percent of disease-causing genes.

The difference between biological age and chronological age, as shown on our birth certificates, can reveal health problems associated with premature aging, and now scientists have devised a tool to study it in children for the first time.

A new Japanese study simulated interstellar clouds of dust and gas, and managed to produce some of the building blocks of DNA.

Researchers have managed to reconstruct a Denisovan face for the first time, using DNA methylation mapping techniques.