Genetics & Molecular Biology

We're Gonna Have Toys!

During the 2000 presidential election I was living in a fraternity house with a roommate serving in the Air Force.  When Bush was projected to be the winner, he jumped up and yelled, "We're gonna have toys!  We're gonna have more toys!" ...

Article - Justin Gerke - Dec 1 2008 - 3:49pm

Don't Do It! Testing Your Kid For The 'Athletic' Gene Is Useless

Wouldn't it be great to know if your three-year-old has the potential to be a soccer star or a top marathon runner? One genetic testing company is offering to tell you just that, so that all of you obsessive, controlling parents can get your toddlers ...

Article - Michael White - Dec 1 2008 - 3:58pm

Finding A New Gene Behind Language Disorders

Why can humans talk while chimps can't? The answer is more than just vocal cord anatomy; our brains have a lot to do with our ability to learn and use language. One 'language gene' is FOXP2. Mutations in FOXP2 lead to a rare but dramatic lan ...

Article - Michael White - Dec 2 2008 - 12:55pm

When physicists try to talk genetics...

...the result is never pretty. I made this point in a comment, but I've hoisted it up here because this issue deserves more visibility. Physics professor Steve Hsu makes this argument: ...

Blog Post - Michael White - Dec 5 2008 - 2:19pm

Genetic Heart Of Lipids: Study Finds Six Genetic Variants Associated With 'Bad' Cholesterol

A new study presages a real aim of genetics: to look at whole populations to in order determine the significance of individual genetic variants for individual health. A research team says they found six novel genetic variants that are associated with lipid ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 7 2008 - 12:12pm

Population Study Finds Genetic Variants For 9 Metabolic Traits

A new genome-wide study examines genetic variants associated with nine metabolic traits and is the first to draw out novel variants from a population unselected for current disease. The traits are indicators for common disease such as cardiovascular diseas ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 7 2008 - 1:30pm

Going Beyond Nature's Limits To Learn The Logic Of Gene Regulation

How can we share 98% of our DNA with a chimpanzee and still be so different? One of the biggest biological surprises found in our genomes is that chimps, mice, and even flies don't differ very much from us in either number or types of genes. What mak ...

Article - Michael White - Dec 10 2008 - 2:09pm

Experienced Pilots May Have Suffered DNA Damage From Radiation- Study

Airline pilots who have flown for many years may be at risk of DNA damage from prolonged exposure to cosmic ionizing radiation, suggests a study in Occupational and Environmental Medicine. The research team compared the rate of chromosomal (DNA) abnormalit ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 11 2008 - 11:58am

Chromosomes Are So 20th Century- Male Genes Really Determine Baby Gender, Says Study

Men determine the sex of a baby depending on whether their sperm is carrying an X or Y chromosome. An X chromosome combines with the mother's X chromosome to make a baby girl (XX) and a Y chromosome will combine with the mother's to make a boy (X ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 14 2008 - 3:43pm

Transplanted Adult Stem Cell Repairs Tissue Damage In Mouse

The first demonstration that a single adult stem cell can self-renew in a mammal was reported at the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) 48th Annual Meeting, Dec. 13-17, 2008 in San Francisco.   The transplanted adult stem cell and its differentiated ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 14 2008 - 8:00pm