A new look at prolonged radiation exposure
A new study from MIT scientists suggests that the guidelines governments use to determine when to evacuate people following a nuclear accident may be too conservative. The study, led by Bevin Engelward...
View ArticleResearchers achieve RNA interference, in a lighter package
Using a technique known as “nucleic acid origami,” chemical engineers have built tiny particles made out of DNA and RNA that can deliver snippets of RNA directly to tumors, turning off genes expressed...
View ArticleGenetic 911: Cells’ emergency systems revealed
Toxic chemicals wreak havoc on cells, damaging DNA and other critical molecules. A new study from researchers at MIT and the University at Albany reveals how a molecular emergency-response system...
View ArticleSearching genomic data faster
In 2001, the Human Genome Project and Celera Genomics announced that after 10 years of work at a cost of some $400 million, they had completed a draft sequence of the human genome. Today, sequencing a...
View ArticleResearchers build a toolbox for synthetic biology
For about a dozen years, synthetic biologists have been working on ways to design genetic circuits to perform novel functions such as manufacturing new drugs, producing fuel or even programming the...
View ArticleNew nanoparticles shrink tumors in mice
By sequencing cancer-cell genomes, scientists have discovered vast numbers of genes that are mutated, deleted or copied in cancer cells. This treasure trove is a boon for researchers seeking new drug...
View ArticleDeciphering the language of transcription factors
Transcription factors are proteins that bind to DNA to promote or suppress protein production. Since almost all diseases involve disruption of the protein-production process, transcription factors are...
View ArticleMIT team builds most complex synthetic biology circuit yet
Using genes as interchangeable parts, synthetic biologists design cellular circuits that can perform new functions, such as sensing environmental conditions. However, the complexity that can be...
View ArticleEvolution: It’s all in how you splice it
When genes were first discovered, the canonical view was that each gene encodes a unique protein. However, biologists later found that segments of genes can be combined in different ways, giving rise...
View ArticleCardiac development needs more than protein-coding genes
When the human genome was sequenced, biologists were surprised to find that very little of the genome — less than 3 percent — corresponds to protein-coding genes. What, they wondered, was all the rest...
View ArticleResearch update: Imaging fish in 3-D
Zebrafish larvae — tiny, transparent and fast-growing vertebrates — are widely used to study development and disease. However, visually examining the larvae for variations caused by drugs or genetic...
View ArticleA new piece to the autism puzzle
Most cases of autism are not caused by a single genetic mutation. However, several disorders with autism-like symptoms, including the rare Fragile X syndrome, can be traced to a specific mutation....
View ArticleNeuroscientists identify a master controller of memory
When you experience a new event, your brain encodes a memory of it by altering the connections between neurons. This requires turning on many genes in those neurons. Now, MIT neuroscientists have...
View ArticleThe mathematics of taste
The design of aromas — the flavors of packaged food and drink and the scents of cleaning products, toiletries and other household items — is a multibillion-dollar business. The big flavor companies...
View ArticleMetabolic errors can spell doom for DNA
Many critical cell functions depend on a class of molecules called purines, which form half of the building blocks of DNA and RNA, and are a major component of the chemicals that store a cell’s energy....
View ArticleStem cells could drive hepatitis research forward
Hepatitis C, an infectious disease that can cause inflammation and organ failure, has different effects on different people. But no one is sure why some people are very susceptible to the infection,...
View ArticlePrions play key role in yeast survival and evolution
Misfolded proteins called prions are best known for causing neurodegenerative disorders such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and mad cow disease. However, a new study by scientists at MIT’s Whitehead...
View ArticleEric Lander wins Dan David Prize
Eric Lander, director of the Broad Institute and a professor of biology at MIT, is among the recipients of the 2012 Dan David Prize — a prestigious Israeli award for achievements having an outstanding...
View ArticleWhat lies ahead for science and science writing?
The MIT Graduate Program in Science Writing turns 10 this year, and this Saturday saw many of the program’s 61 alumni back on campus to catch up and reminisce with fellow graduates, professors and...
View ArticleStudy shows unified process of evolution in bacteria and sexual eukaryotes
Bacteria are the most populous organisms on the planet: They thrive in almost every known environment, adapting to different habitats by means of genetic variations that provide the capabilities...
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