Researchers have revealed that so-called “junk DNA” contains powerful switches that help control brain cells linked to ...

Did you know that many of us have up to 4% neanderthal DNA? Did you know that many of us have up to 4% neanderthal DNA? And that 100% of your DNA may come from outer space? No joke. The biochemistry ...

The genetic code is the recipe for life, and provides the instructions for how to make proteins, generally using just 20 ...

Fargo, ND, is probably better known for its blizzards, floods, and eponymous TV series than its biotechnological prowess. Yet for the past 25 years, Aldevron, a manufacturer of DNA, RNA, and proteins, ...

For many genetic diseases, disabling or editing a gene using CRISPR is insufficient to overcome the effects of the underlying genetic mutation. A corrective gene needs to be added to the genome to fix ...

To our immune system, a potentially lifesaving gene therapy can look a lot like a dangerous infection. That's because most ...

Comparison of a single-stranded RNA and a double-stranded DNA with their corresponding nucleobases. (Image: Wikimedia Commons, CC SA 3.0) The most common type of base pairing is the Watson-Crick base ...

We’re celebrating 180 years of Scientific American. Explore our legacy of discovery and look ahead to the future. In 1957, just four years after Francis Crick and other scientists solved the riddle of ...