Genetics is the branch of biological sciences that investigates the organization, transmission, variation, and functional consequences of hereditary information in organisms. It focuses on the structure and function of genes and genomes, the molecular mechanisms of DNA replication, transcription, and translation, and the regulation of gene expression across developmental and environmental contexts. Genetics encompasses classical (Mendelian) inheritance, molecular genetics, population and quantitative genetics, and genomics, providing the framework for understanding mutation, recombination, genetic linkage, and evolutionary change, as well as informing experimental design and interpretation in biomedical, agricultural, and model-organism research.
An international research team led by Hiroki Shibuya at RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (BDR) in Japan has solved a genetic mystery and revealed a previously unknown way that DNA can control what cells do.
Evolution
Oct 23, 2025
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59
Imagine you are a kind of fish called a goby, part of a huge family of more than 2,000 species. Maybe you're of average size for a goby, about three to four inches long. Your longest relative is about four times your length—more ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 22, 2025
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91
The goal of gene therapy is to permanently cure hereditary diseases. One of the most promising technologies for this is the CRISPR/Cas system, colloquially known as gene scissors. These can cut and modify DNA in a targeted ...
Biotechnology
Oct 22, 2025
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33
Long interspersed nuclear element-1 (LINE-1 or L1) is the only active, self-copying genetic element in the human genome—comprising about 17% of the genome. It is commonly called a "jumping gene" or "retrotransposon" because ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Oct 20, 2025
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129
Before cells can divide, they first need to replicate all of their chromosomes, so that each of the daughter cells can receive a full set of genetic material. Until now, scientists had believed that as division occurs, the ...
Cell & Microbiology
Oct 17, 2025
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107
Molecular biologists have long believed that the beginning of a gene launched the process of transcription—the process by which a segment of DNA is copied into RNA and then RNA helps make the proteins that cells need to function.
Biotechnology
Oct 13, 2025
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197
Scientists have long suspected connections between heredity and disease, dating back to Hippocrates, who observed certain diseases "ran in families." However, through the years, scientists have kept getting better at finding ...
Biotechnology
Oct 10, 2025
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63
Many butterflies develop wing patterns that mimic other species to protect themselves from predators. While growing complex body parts like wings involves many genes, the difference between two versions of the same thing—like ...
Ecology
Oct 9, 2025
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27
Small plastic or metal bits at the end of shoelaces, known as aglets, prevent laces from unraveling and protect them from wear and tear. Similarly, chromosomes are capped by telomeres—specialized complexes of repetitive DNA ...
Cell & Microbiology
Sep 25, 2025
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52
HHMI Janelia Research Campus Senior Group Leader Meng Wang and her team study longevity. They've shown that by overexpressing an enzyme in the lysosomes of the roundworm C. elegans, they can extend the worm's life by up to ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 25, 2025
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