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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: DNA

DNA stories: 132 news summaries

21 - 40 of 132 Stories | << Prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Next >>

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(Newser) - The promised age of unlocking the mystery of common diseases through DNA appears to have a hit a disappointing roadblock, the New York Times reports. As a result, companies that bill people to provide a personal genomic profile—and theoretically warn them of their risk to illness—are practicing nothing... More »

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genetics • disease • DNA • New England Journal of Medicine • human genome

Move Over, Police Sketches: DNA's On the Case

Forensic phenotyping works, but is it ethical?

Mar 27, 09 10:02 AM CDT
(Newser) - The old-fashioned police sketch could soon be obsolete, the Wall Street Journal reports, thanks to DNA forensic phenotyping, an increasingly popular technique that uses crime-scene DNA to describe a suspect. So far, labs can only determine details such as ethnicity and physical traits, but that alone has helped in... More »

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DNA • forensics • DNA evidence • digital forensics

Sloppy DNA Work Creates Myth of Phantom Serial Killer

Female 'suspect' now believed to have been employee at DNA swab factory

Mar 27, 09 9:13 AM CDT
(Newser) - Embarrassed German cops may soon call off their hunt for a notorious female serial killer, the Times of London reports. DNA from a suspect dubbed "the woman without a face” has been found at dozens of crime scenes across Europe, including stranglings and shootings, but detectives now believe the... More »

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Germany • DNA • forensics • serial killers • DNA evidence • crime scene • Howard Stern Grid

Americans Use DNA Tests 
to Trace African Roots

Obama's rise could accelerate trend



Feb 18, 09 12:01 PM CST
(Newser) - As a kid, Isaiah Washington only knew Africans as the “natives running around with bones in their noses” on TV, “trying to put Tarzan in a pot.” Now, the former Grey’s Anatomy actor is chieftain of a village in Sierra Leone, thanks to a DNA... More »

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Africa • African Americans • DNA • Isaiah Washington • ancestry • geneology

ANALYSIS

DNA Tests Can Improve Health—and Ruin Privacy

Testing labs can sell genomes to Big Pharma

Feb 17, 09 6:22 PM CST
(Newser) - Genetic testing is quickly becoming cheaper and widely available, prompting questions of whether the privacy of this most personal data can be ensured, writes Peter Dizikes for Salon. Companies such as 23andMe and Navigenics can study your genes for $399 or so to determine if you're at risk for a... More »

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drug companies • DNA • genome • regulation • pharmaceutical • Personal Genome Project

Baby-Faced Teen May Not
Be the Dad

Will take DNA test to disprove two other teens' claims

Feb 16, 09 8:33 AM CST
(Newser) - Four-foot-tall teen dad Alfie Patten will take a DNA test to prove he really is the father of girlfriend Chantelle Steadman’s daughter Maisie, the Mail reports. Photos of the baby-faced 13-year-old caused an uproar last week, and two other teens came forward to claim they also slept with Chantelle.... More »

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pregnancy • DNA • children • baby • Britain • paternity test • teen pregnancy

(Newser) - Scientists using ancient fossils have pieced together a rough draft of Neanderthals' genetic code, the Times of London reports. The development could eventually shed light on how they thought, spoke, and functioned, and why they disappeared. Because Neanderthals are humans' closest relatives, scientists may be able to get a better... More »

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DNA • genome • Neanderthals

Cloning Brings Extinct Ibex Back to Life

Breakthrough may be used to save endangered species

Feb 1, 09 6:07 AM CST
(Newser) - Scientists have used frozen skin samples from a Spanish ibex to create the first clone of an extinct species, reports the Telegraph. The ibex, a wild mountain goat native to the Pyrenees, died out in 2000. Scientists were able to extract DNA from preserved cells and implant it in the... More »

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endangered species • DNA • extinction • goats • animal cloning • Spanish ibex • nuclear transfer

Eye Trouble May Have Affected Galileo's Observations

Scientists want to exhume astronomer

Jan 22, 09 1:24 PM CST
(Newser) - Galileo’s vision problems may have distorted some of his findings, Reuters reports. Scientists want to exhume the scientist’s body to determine, through DNA tests, the exact nature of his eye condition. “If we knew exactly what was wrong with his eyes we could use computer models to... More »

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astronomy • disease • DNA • Saturn • Galileo • pathology • eyes

OPINION

 The 5 Best Species to Resurrect 

DNA samples still exist for many extinct megafauna

Jan 8, 09 4:27 PM CST
(Newser) - Now that scientists have the woolly mammoth’s genome, the possibility of resurrecting the giant creatures—and other impressive species from our planet’s past—is a bit closer. Which megafauna would you bring back? New Scientist lists its favorites:
  • Sabre-toothed tiger. This massive cat with huge fangs would
... More »

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DNA • extinction • genome • gorilla • woolly mammoth • animal

Are Your Meds Working? Gene Tests Could Tell

Docs could eliminate half of drugs genetics prevent from working

Dec 30, 08 11:45 AM CST
(Newser) - The drugs you take may not actually be working. Experts say that, thanks to various genetic quirks, most drugs only work for about half the people who take them, meaning that much of the roughly $300 billion America spends on drugs each year is wasted. That’s why forward-looking doctors... More »

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cancer • medicine • health care • drugs • genetics • DNA

 Dixie Chicks 
 Sued for Libel 
 in Murder Case 

Lead singer accused plaintiff of murdering 3 boys

Dec 5, 08 2:17 AM CST
(Newser) - Outspoken country music stars the Dixie Chicks are being sued for libel and defamation by the stepfather of one of three 8-year-old Arkansas boys murdered 15 years ago. Plaintiff Terry Hobbs claims Dixie Chicks lead singer Natalie Maines accused him of the murders at a Little Rock rally in support... More »

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murder • DNA • libel • Michael Moore • Dixie Chicks • Natalie Maines • Steve Branch • Christopher Byers • Damien Echols • Jessie Misskelley • Jason Baldwin • Terry Hobbs

 Science Supersizes  
 Thanksgiving 

Our fare is not the same as the pilgrims'

Nov 27, 08 2:45 PM CST
(Newser) - Thanksgiving food has undergone massive genetic changes in the centuries since the Pilgrims first prepared the feast, resulting in turkeys more than twice as big and corn six times as sweet. But human taste buds have evolved, too, meaning we don’t necessarily appreciate our new and improved fare any... More »

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agriculture • genetically modified crops • corn • DNA • turkey • crops • Thanksgiving • potatoes

 Scientists  
 Map DNA 
 of Woolly 
 Mammoth  

Neanderthals, early humans could be next

Nov 19, 08 6:42 PM CST
(Newser) - Scientists have pieced together the nearly complete genome of the woolly mammoth from a hair strand found in Siberia, National Geographic reports. It's the first time scientists have decoded the nuclear DNA of an extinct species. The development makes it theoretically possible for the mammoths to roam the earth again... More »

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science • DNA • natural history • genome • woolly mammoth • scientific breakthroughs

 RNA: Secret Weapon 
 Against Disease 

Once seen as weak partner of DNA, gene helps control cells' activity

Nov 11, 08 12:05 PM CST
(Newser) - RNA has long been seen as DNA’s little brother, a messenger between the human genome and cells’ protein factories. But studies point to a bigger role—ribonucleic acid can “turn off” certain genes, for example, fighting a range of health problems, the New York Times reports. “This... More »

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cancer • disease • DNA • cells • RNA • genes • human genome • proteins

Coke Addicts Can Blame It
on DNA

Newly uncovered gene boosts chance of
getting hooked

Nov 10, 08 8:34 PM CST
(Newser) - A newly discovered gene can improve your chances of getting hooked on cocaine, scientists said today. A study of 670 cocaine addicts and 700 non-users found that addicts were 25% more likely to have the gene variant. The discovery could lead to DNA screenings for those likely to try the... More »

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drug addiction • cocaine • DNA • genes

 Cancer Genes Decoded 
 For First Time 

Breakthrough view into cancer's genetic roots promises new battle realm

Nov 6, 08 2:10 AM CST
(Newser) - Scientists have unlocked cancer's genetic blueprint for the first time, the New York Times reports. Working with cells from a woman who died of leukemia, they decoded her entire DNA sequence and zeroed in on ten mutations that occurred only in the cancerous cells. Researchers say the breakthrough could someday... More »

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cancer • DNA • cancer research • leukemia • genome • genetic code

 New Fungus 
 Linked to 
 Bat Die-Offs 

Scientists probe mass deaths in caves

Oct 31, 08 9:55 AM CDT
(Newser) - Scientists have identified a new fungus that might be responsible for the mass deaths of bats in the Northeast. If the findings are borne out, they could help researchers understand and eventually stop the contagion—dubbed white-nose syndrome—that has wiped out entire colonies in their caves, the Los Angeles ... More »

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DNA • bats • hibernation • pesticide • mass deaths • Bat Conservation International • Thomas H. Kunz • U.S. Geological Survey • National Wildlife Health Center

DNA Study: Ancient Phoenicians Still With Us 

Phoenician blood in North Africa, MidEast

Oct 31, 08 8:40 AM CDT
(Newser) - The Phoenicians may have disappeared as a distinct society a few thousand years ago, but it turns out their imprint remains very much alive today. Genetic researchers have discovered the DNA of the seafaring civilization in the blood of men—as many as 1 in 17— who live today in... More »

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Lebanon • Syria • Morocco • Tunisia • DNA • Cyprus • Malta • National Geographic Society • Phoenicians • Genographic Project • Y chromosomes



 

10 Volunteers Go Public 
 With Their DNA 

Database will divulge what really makes a Harvard man, and other genetic secrets

Oct 20, 08 10:51 AM CDT
(Newser) - Ten volunteers, including some rather well known ones, are exposing themselves online, the New York Times reports, by making their DNA available for anyone to peruse. The goal of the Personal Genome Project is to start making genetic information—along with personal traits called phenotypes—publicly available, a move whose... More »

MORE ABOUT:
genetics • privacy • DNA • genome • James Watson • Personal Genome Project • Esther Dyson • Steven Pinker

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