A Natural Archive

Cover Story

Making DNA Data Storage a Reality

Catherine Offord | Oct 1, 2017 | 10+ min read

A few kilograms of DNA could theoretically store all of humanity’s data, but there are practical challenges to overcome.

Features

Do Pathogens Gain Virulence as Hosts Become More Resistant?

Andrew F. Read and Peter J. Kerr | Oct 1, 2017 | 10+ min read

Emerging infections provide clues about how pathogens might evolve when farm animals are protected from infection.

Macrophages Are the Ultimate Multitaskers

Claire Asher | Oct 1, 2017 | 10+ min read

From guiding branching neurons in the developing brain to maintaining a healthy heartbeat, there seems to be no job that the immune cells can’t tackle.

Contributors

Contributors

Contributors

Meet some of the people featured in the October 2017 issue of The Scientist.

Editorial

Puzzle Me This

Puzzle Me This

Looking at words on many different levels

Speaking of Science

Ten-Minute Sabbatical

Ten-Minute Sabbatical

Take a break from the bench to puzzle and peruse.

Notebook

Meet the Transgenic Silkworms That Are Spinning Out Spider Silk

Meet the Transgenic Silkworms That Are Spinning Out Spider Silk

Researchers explore genetic engineering to produce super-tough fibers.

Researchers Argue for Considering Lab Animals’ Perspective in Housing Decisions

Researchers Argue for Considering Lab Animals’ Perspective in Housing Decisions

Some researchers suggest that providing experimental animals with more-natural living conditions not only benefits the organisms, but the data they generate as well.

Teaching Humans to Echolocate

Teaching Humans to Echolocate

By investigating the science behind “seeing” with sound, researchers hope to help blind individuals independently navigate the world.

Bitter Taste Receptors in Uterus May One Day Help Prevent Premature Birth

Bitter Taste Receptors in Uterus May One Day Help Prevent Premature Birth

Researchers suggest that the receptors can control early labor contractions.

Freeze Frame

Caught on Camera

Caught on Camera

Selected Images of the Day from the-scientist.com

Modus Operandi

Live Cell Extractions

Live Cell Extractions

Nanostraws that collect specimens from cells without killing them allow for repeated sampling.

The Literature

Paused RNA Polymerase Quashes New Initiation of Transcription

Paused RNA Polymerase Quashes New Initiation of Transcription

Pauses may help cells fine-tune gene expression.

Microglia Turnover in the Human Brain

Microglia Turnover in the Human Brain

Researchers find that about a quarter of the immune cells are replaced every year.

Insect Deploys Anti-Antiaphrodisiac

Insect Deploys Anti-Antiaphrodisiac

Female plant bugs produce a compound to counter males’ attempts to render the females unattractive to other mates.

Profile

Damage Patroller

Damage Patroller

Stephen Elledge has built a career studying how eukaryotic cells maintain genomic integrity.

Scientist to Watch

Harald Janovjak Bends Cells and Receptors to His Will

Harald Janovjak Bends Cells and Receptors to His Will

The 38-year-old synthetic biologist comes from a long line of tinkerers and engineers.

Lab Tools

Drugging the Disorderome

Drugging the Disorderome

Strategies for targeting intrinsically disordered proteins

Designer DNA

Designer DNA

Computational tools for mapping out synthetic nucleic acids

Bio Business

Flux and Uncertainty in the CRISPR Patent Landscape

Flux and Uncertainty in the CRISPR Patent Landscape

The battle for the control of the intellectual property surrounding CRISPR-Cas9 is as storied and nuanced as the technology itself.

Reading Frames

When Dogs Offer Insights into Tigers

When Dogs Offer Insights into Tigers

MRI scans of dog brains open windows into the cognition of the extinct thylacine.

Foundations

Bathtub Bloodbath, 1793

Bathtub Bloodbath, 1793

French revolutionary Jean-Paul Marat took on many roles over the course of his life, including physician and scientist.