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Composition of DNA with a glitch effect
“Silent” Mutations Make Noise In Cancer
Synonymous mutations have long been ignored in cancer studies since they don’t affect the amino acid sequences of proteins. But research increasingly reveals that they can have disease-driving effects.
“Silent” Mutations Make Noise In Cancer
“Silent” Mutations Make Noise In Cancer

Synonymous mutations have long been ignored in cancer studies since they don’t affect the amino acid sequences of proteins. But research increasingly reveals that they can have disease-driving effects.

Synonymous mutations have long been ignored in cancer studies since they don’t affect the amino acid sequences of proteins. But research increasingly reveals that they can have disease-driving effects.

mutations

A fossilized mammoth tusk sitting in a grassy field during sunset 
Woolly Mammoth Genomes Reveal Genetic Adaptations to Cold
Hannah Thomasy, PhD | Dec 12, 2022 | 2 min read
Researchers identified mutations in genes that may be involved in fat regulation, fur growth, and morphology.
Illustration from the epigenetics and the genome infographic
Infographic: How Epigenetic Marks Can Change the Genome
Katarina Zimmer | Nov 1, 2022 | 2 min read
Although epigenetic changes were long thought to largely act on the genome, rather than as part of it, research is now showing that these patterns can, directly or indirectly, change the genetic code.
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Targeting the Undruggable
The Scientist’s Creative Services Team | 1 min read
Through a combination of basic science research and clinical trials, researchers uncover innovative approaches for targeted cancer treatment. 
Cellular DNA and epigenetics
Do Epigenetic Changes Influence Evolution?
Katarina Zimmer | Nov 1, 2022 | 10+ min read
Evidence is mounting that epigenetic marks on DNA can influence future generations in a variety of ways. But how such phenomena might affect large-scale evolutionary processes is hotly debated.
Pink- and purple-stained cells clustered into glands
Phenotypic Variation in Cancer Cells Often Not Due to Mutations
Jef Akst | Oct 26, 2022 | 3 min read
Most differences in gene expression among cells within a tumor are likely due to environment or noise, a study suggests. 
Test tubes containing liquid biopsy samples with circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA)
Supporting the Evolution of Liquid Biopsies
The Scientist Creative Services Team in collaboration with Twist Bioscience | 1 min read
Sequencing circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) within liquid biopsies permits tumor identification and tracking. 
Tree with many scattered branches.
Scientists Resurrect Ancient Rubiscos to Understand Their Evolution
Alejandra Manjarrez, PhD | Oct 14, 2022 | 5 min read
A team proposes that the addition of a small accessory subunit to the carbon-fixing enzyme was key to improving its catalytic properties and specificity to CO2.
Ribbon weed meadow in Shark Bay, Western Australia
World’s Largest Organism Discovered Underwater
Andy Carstens | Jun 2, 2022 | 2 min read
Off the western Australian coast, in Shark Bay, a field of seagrass big enough to cover Washington, DC, has flourished for more than four millennia, a new study finds.
Challenges and Applications
Combinatorial Single Cell CRISPR Screens: Challenges and Applications
The Scientist Creative Services Team in collaboration with 10x Genomics | 2 min read
An expert panel will discuss how single cell sequencing enhances throughput in CRISPR gene editing applications.
Illustration of light blue speckled DNA helix on a dark background
Study Nearly Doubles Known Cancer-Linked Mutational Signatures
Jef Akst | Apr 22, 2022 | 2 min read
Analyzing the whole genome sequences of more than 18,000 tumors, researchers catalog nearly 60 new patterns of mutations that could inform cancer treatment.
An orange CRISPR Cas 9 enzyme cutting DNA
CRISPR-Based Treatment Successfully Lowers Toxic Protein Levels
Natalia Mesa, PhD | Mar 2, 2022 | 3 min read
A first-of-its-kind gene therapy dramatically reduced misfolded protein levels in some clinical trial participants for up to six months and reduced levels in all participants for up to a year.
Microscopy image showing patches of magenta and green
Three Autism-Linked Genes Converge on Tweaks to Cells’ Timing
Angie Voyles Askham, Spectrum | Feb 3, 2022 | 3 min read
The genes are involved in pacing the development of inhibitory and excitatory neurons. An imbalance in these two types of signaling is thought to play a role in autism.
Man with glasses wearing yellow long sleeve shirt sits at a desk, surrounded by stacks of paper
Stephen Warren, Icon of Fragile X Research, Dies at 67
Lisa Winter | Sep 21, 2021 | 2 min read
He famously identified the genetic mutation that causes the condition in 1991.
tube of blood labeled positive for COVID-19 Mu variant
What We Know About Mu, the WHO’s Latest Variant of Interest
Christie Wilcox, PhD | Sep 7, 2021 | 2 min read
The SARS-CoV-2 variant was first detected in January, but its rising prevalence and potential resistance to vaccines has garnered it special attention from the World Health Organization.
artistic drawing of neuron filled with tau proteins
Genes for Alcohol Use Disorder and Alzheimer’s Risk Overlap: Study
Emma Yasinski | Aug 24, 2021 | 4 min read
Genetic, transcriptomic, and epigenetic data reveal molecular mechanisms tying these disorders to each other and to immune disfunction.
An artistic rendering of blue neurons against a white background
Participant’s Diagnosis Halts Gene Therapy Clinical Trial
Amanda Heidt | Aug 12, 2021 | 3 min read
The FDA pauses the research program on a lentivirus-based treatment for a rare neurological condition after a patient developed a bone marrow disorder that could presage leukemia.
No Transgenerational Effects of Chernobyl Radiation Found
Abby Olena, PhD | Apr 22, 2021 | 4 min read
The genomes of the children of people exposed to fallout from the Chernobyl nuclear accident appear to carry no trace of the incident.
Variant Found in Brazil Could Evade Immunity from Past Infection
Lisa Winter | Mar 2, 2021 | 2 min read
The P.1 variant, which has also been detected in five US states, could be responsible for cases of reinfection, according to a preprint.
Long-Lived Trees’ Epigenetic Mutations Serve as a Molecular Clock
Jef Akst | Mar 1, 2021 | 2 min read
Cells found in different branches of a tree have different patterns of DNA methylation, changes in which accumulate over time.
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