Genetics & Molecular Biology

Promoters, Enhancers And Connecting The Genomic Dots

Researchers have developed and used a new technique to connect the dots in the genomic puzzle. Just as dots have to be connected to visualize a full picture, the researchers connected regulatory elements called promoters and enhancers and showed their phy ...

Article - News Staff - May 4 2015 - 5:03pm

How A Mobile DNA Sequence Finds Its Target

To understand how transposable elements, DNA sequences capable of moving independently,  shape genomes, where they are maintained over generations, it is vital to discover the mechanisms behind their targeted integration. Researchers from the Laboratoire P ...

Article - News Staff - May 5 2015 - 8:30am

Mitochondrial Link Between High Glucose And Metabolic Disease

A new study has created a cause-and-effect link between chronic high blood sugar and disruption of mitochondria, the energy factories that create the metabolic energy that power most of our cells.  Previous experiments by other research groups had shown t ...

Article - News Staff - May 5 2015 - 5:02pm

MicroRNA, The Puppet Master Of The Genome

We all know how irritating it is to have an inbox flooded with junk mail. Fortunately email providers these days contain filters to keep the junk mail at bay. As a result the junk mail folder tends to pile up with never-to-be-read emails. But, occasionall ...

Article - The Conversation - May 6 2015 - 7:30am

'Organoids'- Living Biobank Of 3D Cultures Personalizes Cancer Drug Screening

"Organoids", a futuristic-sounding term for three-dimensional cultures derived from tumors of cancer patients, closely replicate key properties of the original tumors- so close that these "organoid" cultures could be used for large-sca ...

Article - News Staff - May 8 2015 - 8:48am

FGFR1 Gene Is The Conductor In The 'Symphony Of Biology'

One of developmental biology's biggest mysteries is ontogeny and the signals that transform masses of undifferentiated cells into tremendously complex organisms.  A new paper suggests that it all begins with a single "master" growth factor r ...

Article - News Staff - May 8 2015 - 12:00pm

Gene For Plant Growth At Warmer Temperatures Discovered

Researchers have discovered a gene, which they have named ICARUS1,  that enables plants to regulate their growth in different temperatures, and it could lead to new ways of optimizing plant growth in different climates. ...

Article - News Staff - May 13 2015 - 8:00am

New Isotopic Biosignature Of Photosynthesis Discovered

Photosynthesis, the process by which plants utilize the sun's energy to create their own, leaves behind a unique calling card in the form of a chemical signature that is spelled out with stable oxygen isotopes. Photosynthesis by microscopic plants fo ...

Article - News Staff - May 12 2015 - 8:48am

Mystery Of The Tubulin Code Unraveled

Cellular structures called microtubules are tagged with a variety of chemical markers that can influence cell functions and the pattern of these markers makes up the "tubulin code". One of the main writers of this code is tubulin tyrosine ligase ...

Article - News Staff - May 14 2015 - 9:14am

Transposable Element: Selfish DNA Parasites

Transposable elements are DNA sequences that are capable of changing their genome position by cut and paste or copy and paste through the enzyme transposase. This ability can be harmful for hosts if transposable elements destroy functioning genes, but it ...

Article - News Staff - May 17 2015 - 10:00am