Tag: Gene

  • Nation & World

    Horizontal helper

    Cassandra Extavour and Leo Blondel provide the strongest suggestive evidence yet that at least part of a specific gene came from bacterial genomes.

    7 minutes
    Cassandra Extavour.
  • Nation & World

    Enzyme interference

    Researchers discovered that Eggerthella lenta — a bacterium found in the guts of more than 30 percent of the population — can metabolize the cardiac drug digoxin in high enough quantities to render it ineffective. Now, a team of researchers has identified the culprit gene that produces the digoxin-metabolizing enzyme.

    6 minutes
  • Nation & World

    Mom, dad set in their ways? Maybe it’s not their fault

    Research led by Hopi Hoekstra breaks new ground by uncovering links between the activity of specific genes and parenting differences across species

    5 minutes
  • Nation & World

    Science of stripes

    Scientists have shown that to interrupt the development of pigment cells that form their stripes, African striped mice and chipmunks both use a gene that until now had been associated primarily with cranio-facial development.

    5 minutes
  • Nation & World

    So long, snout

    New research shows that bird beaks are the result of skeletal changes controlled by two genetic pathways, shedding light on the origins of one of nature’s most efficient tools.

    4 minutes
  • Nation & World

    Improved accuracy in genome editing

    A team of scientists has engineered a form of the genome-editing protein Cas9 that can be controlled by a small molecule and offers improved DNA specificity.

    5 minutes
  • Nation & World

    Toward genetic editing

    Led by David Liu, professor of chemistry and chemical biology, a team of Harvard researchers developed a system that uses commercially available molecules called cationic lipids to deliver genome-editing proteins into cells.

    6 minutes
  • Nation & World

    One gene, many mutations

    In a new paper, Harvard researchers show that changes in coat color in mice are the result not of a single mutation, but of many mutations, all in a single gene. The results start to answer one of the fundamental questions about evolution: Does it proceed by huge leaps — single mutations that result in…

    4 minutes
  • Nation & World

    A hidden genetic code

    For decades, scientists wondered whether there was some subtle difference between parts of the genetic code that, while different, appear to encode the same amino acid. Harvard researchers now have the answer.

    4 minutes
  • Nation & World

    Aspirin’s impact on colorectal cancer

    Harvard researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute find that aspirin therapy can extend the life of colorectal cancer patients whose tumors carry a mutation in a key gene, but it has no effect on patients who lack the mutation.

    3 minutes
  • Nation & World

    ‘Stealing’ life’s building blocks

    Researchers have found that a parasitic flower takes large portions of its genetic code from its host, and that some genes borrowed by the flowers may even be functional. The surprising finding suggests that the process may convey some evolutionary advantage to the flowers.

    5 minutes
  • Nation & World

    Disrupting a cancer gene

    Scientists at Harvard-affiliated Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have successfully disrupted the function of a cancer gene involved in the formation of most human tumors by tampering with the gene’s “on” switch and growth signals, rather than targeting the gene itself.

    3 minutes
  • Nation & World

    RNA dynamics deconstructed

    RNA plays a critical role in directing the creation of proteins, but there is more to the life of an RNA molecule than simply carrying DNA’s message.

    5 minutes
  • Nation & World

    Beyond DNA

    On a day when Harvard celebrated the accomplishments of the Human Genome Project, the Radcliffe Institute hosted a scientist whose work focuses not just on DNA, but on the mechanisms that control its expression.

    2 minutes
  • Nation & World

    Following the genomic road map

    Harvard President Drew Faust hosted a panel discussion on the legacy of the Human Genome Project Feb. 22 at Sanders Theatre.

    5 minutes
  • Nation & World

    The map of us

    To mark the 10th anniversary of the publication of the Human Genome Map, Harvard President Drew Faust will host a panel discussion on the project next week (Feb. 22) in Sanders Theatre.

    5 minutes
  • Nation & World

    Critical finding for skin cancer treatment

    Researchers’ findings pinpoint a critical gene involved in melanoma growth, and provide a framework for discovering ways to tackle cancer drug resistance.

    5 minutes