Genes and genetics
Bacteria encode hidden genes outside their genome — do we?
A new study by Columbia researchers shows that bacteria break the known order of chromosomes as linear strings of letters and create free-floating and ephemeral genes.
Keeping skin healthy: New method provides molecular portrait of sebum production
In a recent JBC paper, researchers at Leipzig University report that they have spatially mapped changes in gene expression in sebaceous glands for the first time.
Not so selfish after all: Viruses use freeloading genes as weapons
Phage viruses, increasingly used to treat antibiotic resistance, gain an advantage by cutting off a competitor’s ability to reproduce.
The perverse legacy of participation in human genomic research
The story of how one person became the majority source of DNA for the Human Genome Project encapsulates 20th-century researchers’ attitudes toward donor consent, the author says.
From the Journals: JBC
Nuclear actin affects transcription elongation. Proteostasis in Alzheimer’s disease. RNA and splicing affect cancer invasiveness. Read about recent papers on these topics.
Do ribosomal traffic jams cause Huntington’s disease?
“Just because there are a lot of cars doesn’t mean they’re all reaching their destination,” a researcher points out. And so it goes with mRNA translation within mitochondria.
When it comes to DNA replication, humans and baker’s yeast are more alike than different
New findings visualize a molecular complex that loads a “clamp” to keep parts of the replication machinery from falling off the DNA strand.
New study discovers tiny target on RNA to short-circuit inflammation
Paper details high-throughput process for rapid screening, identification of mysterious ‘long non-coding RNA.’
Simple trick could improve accuracy of plant genetics research
Researchers at North Carolina State University have found that a technique used to study gene activity in other organisms can also be used to make studies in plants more accurate.