Edible, fluorescent silk tags can suss out fake medications

Recent developments such as the explosion of online pharmacies and supply chain issues have made it easier for counterfeiters to profit from fake or adulterated medications. Now, researchers reporting in ACS Central Science ...

Expanding the genetic code with quadruplet codons

One of modern biologists' most ambitious goals is to learn how to expand or otherwise modify the genetic code of life on Earth, in order to make new, artificial life forms. Part of the motivation for this "synthetic biology" ...

Herbicide resistance no longer a black box for scientists

When agricultural weeds evolve resistance to herbicides, they do it in one of two ways. In target-site resistance, a tiny mutation in the plant's genetic code means the chemical no longer fits in the protein it's designed ...

Researchers improve efficiency and accessibility of CRISPR

One of the most powerful tools available to biologists these days is CRISPR-Cas9, a combination of specialized RNA and protein that acts like a molecular scalpel, allowing researchers to precisely slice and dice pieces of ...

VR visualization supports research on molecular networks

Networks offer a powerful way to visualize and analyze complex systems. However, depending on the size and complexity of the network, many visualizations are limited. Protein interactions in the human body constitute such ...

How nitrate regulates gene expression in legumes

Plants in the bean family (legumes) form nodules on their roots to take up nitrogen. Legumes will stop nodule production when nitrogen is plentiful (Figure 1), but precisely how nitrate presence controls nodule formation ...

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