Finding meaning among the junk
By Kevin McElwee Only about 10 percent of the human genome are actually genes. The other 90 percent? Once called “junk DNA,” researchers now know that this genetic material contains Continue Reading →
Category: National Institutes of Health
Lights, camera, action – of genes in development
By Yasemin Saplakoglu MOLECULAR BIOLOGIST MIKE LEVINE likes to recall his childhood when he talks about the reason he came to Princeton. “I grew up near Hollywood and I always loved Continue Reading →
A challenge to help kids
By Yasemin Saplakoglu A collaborative approach to sociology aims to target fundamental and perhaps overlooked issues to improve policies that affect the lives of disadvantaged children. The effort, called the Continue Reading →
Probing the genetic basis for dog-human relationships
By Pooja Makhijani A new study has identified genetic changes that are linked to dogs’ human-directed social behaviors and suggests there is a common underlying genetic basis for hyper-social behavior Continue Reading →
How cancer stem cells evade the immune system
By Yasemin Saplakoglu When Daniel D. Liu first encountered the world of research, he saw giants in white lab coats shaking flasks and squirting liquids into small vials. He was Continue Reading →
In cells, self-destructive behavior suggests strategy for fighting cancer
SOMETIMES, TO SURVIVE, our cells destroy their own ribonucleic acid (RNA), the part of our genetic instruction code that helps turn genes into proteins. Cells do this as part of Continue Reading →
Bright future: Princeton researchers unlock the potential of light to perform previously impossible feats
By Bennett McIntosh One hundred years ago, Italian chemist Giacomo Ciamician predicted a future society that would run on sunlight. In a paper presented in 1912 to an international meeting Continue Reading →
Tiny delivery capsules for new drugs
Some drugs cannot be delivered via a normal pill or injection because they cannot readily dissolve in water. About 40 percent of new pharmaceuticals have this hydrophobic (water-fearing) character, and Continue Reading →
Imaging system tracks brain activity of a freely moving worm
TO EXPLORE HOW THE BRAIN controls behavior, researchers have for the first time captured the whole-brain activity of a freely moving animal, in this case a nematode worm called Caenorhabditis Continue Reading →
Energy boost: Study sheds light on mitochondrial disease
INSIDE OUR CELLS, TINY FACTORIES convert nutrients from food into a form of energy that cells can use. Failure of these factories, known as mitochondria, can lead to metabolic disorders Continue Reading →
Listening in on bacterial communications
BACTERIA SPEAK TO ONE ANOTHER using a soundless language known as quorum sensing. In a step toward translating bacterial communications, researchers have revealed the structure and biosynthesis of streptide, a Continue Reading →
Measles may weaken immune system up to three years
THE MEASLES VIRUS can lead to serious disease in children by suppressing their immune systems for up to three years, according to a study published in the journal Science on Continue Reading →
Bioengineering: Unlocking the secrets of human health
By Takim Williams RED-HOT RIVERS OF MOLTEN COPPER and aluminum alloys streamed from one receptacle to another. As an undergraduate watching the demonstration in a materials science class, Clifford Brangwynne Continue Reading →
Striking resemblance: A physical law may govern very different biological activities
FLOCKS OF BIRDS FLY ACROSS THE SKY in shifting configurations. In the retina of an eye, millions of neurons ignite in ever-changing combinations, translating light into meaningful images. Yet both Continue Reading →
No more mirrors: a new way of making molecules for tracking disease
RADIOACTIVITY IS USUALLY ASSOCIATED with nuclear fallout or comic-book spider bites, but in very small amounts it can be a useful tool for diagnosing diseases. Small molecules containing a radioactive Continue Reading →
How to train your worm to explore the circuits involved in learning
AS AN UNDERGRADUATE, Angelina Sylvain was fascinated to learn that devastating declines in cognition and muscle coordination could be caused by changes in a single gene — the cause of Continue Reading →
Far from random, evolution follows a predictable pattern
Evolution, often perceived as a series of random changes, might in fact be driven by a simple and repeated genetic solution to an environmental pressure, according to new research. “Is Continue Reading →
