ADVERTISEMENT
A man with glasses that looks distressed as he stands in front of a laboratory bench with his failed experiment.
Voltage Ventured, Nothing Gained
A common mistake and a well intentioned but misguided gesture led Allison Mackay’s experiment awry in the lab.
Voltage Ventured, Nothing Gained
Voltage Ventured, Nothing Gained

A common mistake and a well intentioned but misguided gesture led Allison Mackay’s experiment awry in the lab.

A common mistake and a well intentioned but misguided gesture led Allison Mackay’s experiment awry in the lab.

DNA

Abstract blue color digital particles wave with dust and light background.
Predict Functional Genomics with Confidence
The Scientist Staff | Mar 1, 2024 | 1 min read
An advanced multiomics solution allows researchers to predict gene expression, chromatin accessibility, and enhancer state from one DNA sample.
Infographic showing how recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) technique works.
Infographic: Recombinase Polymerase Amplification in Action
Hannah Thomasy, PhD | Dec 4, 2023 | 4 min read
A rapid isothermal amplification technique enables pathogen identification and antibiotic resistance detection in low-resource settings.
A blood test tube with the label ‘cfDNA Screening–Test’, held in a hand wearing blue gloves.
The Basics and Applications of Cell-Free DNA 
Rebecca Roberts, PhD | 5 min read
Found circulating in peripheral blood, scientists use cell-free DNA (cfDNA) to assess genetic abnormalities, infections, cancer, transplant rejection, and cardiovascular disease.
Eytan Stibbe wears a headset and a blue shirt while surrounded by computers and other equipment on the International Space Station.
Whenever, Wherever: Taking DNA Amplification Outside the Lab
Hannah Thomasy, PhD | Dec 4, 2023 | 10 min read
Recombinase polymerase amplification lets researchers rapidly replicate DNA in the clinic, in the field, or even in the International Space Station.
Samantha Maragh speaks on stage after receiving the State of Maryland Outstanding Young Scientist Award 2019.
Making Standards Exceptional
Meenakshi Prabhune, PhD | Dec 4, 2023 | 9 min read
Samantha Maragh has taken on the difficult challenge of standardizing assays, data norms, and terminology in the ever evolving genome editing field.
Equally-sized droplets of a nucleic acid sample.
Digital PCR: The Journey to Superior Data 
Bio-Rad Laboratories | 1 min read
With digital PCR (dPCR), researchers accurately and precisely quantitate nucleic acid samples.
qPCRDriving Wastewater Surveillance for Infectious Disease
Nathan Ni, PhD | Oct 30, 2023 | 3 min read
Natalie Knox and the Public Health Agency of Canada’s National Microbiology Laboratory are helping establish a national qPCR-driven wastewater surveillance network for SARS-CoV-2 and other diseases.
The illustration shows floating chromosomes with a Y-shaped chromosome in the foreground.
Closing the Gaps in the Human Genome: Why Y Was the Final Hurdle
Kamal Nahas, PhD | Aug 28, 2023 | 4 min read
For two decades, scientists struggled to fully sequence the Y chromosome. Finally, researchers have mapped its full length thanks to recent advances in sequencing technology.
Better Ways to Extract DNA
Better Ways to Extract DNA
The Scientist | 1 min read
Learn how to obtain high throughput DNA purification that improves next-generation sequencing.
An older woman wearing a blue suit, shaking hands with an older man wearing a black suit.
Iconic Geneticist Evelyn Witkin Dies at Age 102
Lisa Winter | Jul 24, 2023 | 3 min read
Lasker Award winner Evelyn Witkin discovered the mechanism for DNA repair following UV damage.
Sir Richard Roberts won the 1993 Nobel Prize “for their discoveries of split genes.” 
How Restriction Enzymes Changed Biology
Nathan Ni, PhD | Jun 1, 2023 | 4 min read
Endonuclease R changed Richard Roberts’ career trajectory and created an industry.
Technique Talk: Single-Cell Spatial Transcriptomics with Cleavable Fluorescent Probes 
Single-Cell Spatial Transcriptomics with Cleavable Fluorescent Probes 
The Scientist | 1 min read
In this webinar, Jia Guo discusses the basics of in situ hybridization and how to use novel fluorescent probes for ultra-sensitive single-cell resolution in situ genomics.
Ribbon diagram of the bacterial histone Bd0055
Bacteria Have Histones After All: Study
Kamal Nahas, PhD | Feb 14, 2023 | 4 min read
Researchers identify hundreds of candidate histone proteins in bacteria, including one with an unusual way of binding to DNA.
An artist’s rendering of a DNA-based virus trap, represented as gray rods in a short cone-shaped arrangement. One is coated with blue molecules, likely antibodies, that adhere to a virus target. Another image shows to traps coming together to capture a red coronavirus.
“Origami” DNA Traps Could Keep Large Viruses From Infecting Cells
Natalia Mesa, PhD | Jan 18, 2023 | 4 min read
By engineering structures out of DNA, scientists could potentially prevent larger viruses, like coronaviruses and influenza viruses, from interacting with cells.
Fluorescent microscopy images of cells after being transfected.
Universal Transfection Reagents: Improving Efficiency and Decreasing Cell Toxicity
The Scientist, MilliporeSigma, and Roche | 4 min read
Researchers optimize their transfection protocols with the ideal transfection reagent that has multiple applications, low cytotoxicity, and high transfection efficiency.
Artist’s rendering of a reflective metallic DNA double helix.
Humans Are Still Evolving Thanks to Microgenes
Natalia Mesa, PhD | Jan 4, 2023 | 3 min read
A study sheds light on the tiny genes that have evolved in human genomes since we split from our mammalian ancestors.
A collection of images from prior stories, including illustrations of DNA, chromosomes, and various cells, microscopy images of cancer cells, and a photo of a mouse on a treadmill.
Our Favorite Cancer Stories of 2022
Dan Robitzski | Dec 27, 2022 | 4 min read
This year, cancer researchers uncovered a variety of ways that tumors can survive and spread, ranging from damaging their own DNA to exploiting the nearby microenvironment for nutrients.
VAI
One Sequence, Many Variations
Van Andel Institute | 5 min read
Andrew Pospisilik explores the epigenetic changes that give organisms the plasticity to change in response to their environments.
Genomic data. Dna test infographic, molecule structure genetic sequencing chart and chromosome architecture genealogy diagram, vector concept stock illustration
Unearthing Hidden Family Secrets: Tracing the Lineage of a Centuries-Old Grand-Mummy
Iris Kulbatski, PhD | Dec 13, 2022 | 3 min read
Researchers show how a toxic therapy helped identify a mummy using preserved DNA.
ADVERTISEMENT