U.S. researchers have reported a breakthrough in stem cell research, describing how they turned human skin cells into embyronic stem cells for the first time.
One of the world’s most popular aquarium fishes has joined the rat, the mouse, fruitfly and nematode worm in the roll call of creatures whose DNA has been sequenced to help fight disease among humans.
African Americans with a certain gene variant have nearly double the risk of developing late-onset Alzheimer’s disease than those without it, a new study has found.
Scientists have found mutations in 26 genes that may cause oesophageal cancer – a breakthrough they hope will lead to new drugs for the deadly and increasingly frequent disease.
As human populations grow, we’re increasingly exposed to unknown, animal-borne diseases. When the next virus jumps the species barrier, can we catch it before it catches us? Zara Qadir investigates.
Jews of European origin are a mix of ancestries, with many hailing from tribes in the Caucasus who converted to Judaism and created an empire that lasted half a millennium, according to a gene study.
The complex social structure of the red fire ant, a fast-spreading invasive insect with a painful bite, is made possible by a DNA fusion known as a supergene, biologists say.
People from the Indian sub-continent migrated to Australia and mixed with Aborigines 4,000 years ago, bringing the dingo with them.
A new DNA test can restore at least part of the identity of long-dead people who left no trace of their image, scientists report.
Medical advances this century may will make our future more bizarre. Get ready for medical science to push the boundaries of what it means to be human.
