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Robotic hand inserting snipped of DNA into a double helix
A New Way to Control Stem Cell Fate Using Gene Circuits
Scientists engineered human pluripotent stem cells with synthetic gene circuits to control differentiation without human input.
A New Way to Control Stem Cell Fate Using Gene Circuits
A New Way to Control Stem Cell Fate Using Gene Circuits

Scientists engineered human pluripotent stem cells with synthetic gene circuits to control differentiation without human input.

Scientists engineered human pluripotent stem cells with synthetic gene circuits to control differentiation without human input.

miRNA

Matthew Disney
A Quest to Drug RNA
Ida Emilie Steinmark, PhD | Sep 8, 2023 | 5 min read
Matthew Disney’s idea of small molecules that target RNA once seemed fanciful. Now, even the pharma industry is pursuing it
Cells with miRNA activity reporter glowing
MicroRNAs Can Boost Gene Expression: Study
Holly Barker, PhD | Nov 15, 2022 | 3 min read
The tiny strings of RNA promote translation of a protein implicated in cancer, a hint they could regulate gene expression in more ways than previously thought.
Arabidopsis thaliana flowers
Plants Use RNA to Talk to Neighbors
Alejandra Manjarrez, PhD | Oct 21, 2021 | 4 min read
A study finds that plants sharing the same growth medium can exchange microRNAs that silence genes in the recipient, suggesting the nucleic acids may act as signaling molecules.
small-molecule therapeutics treat cancer and other diseases
Scientists Take Aim at Disease-Causing RNAs Using Small-Molecule Drugs
Claire Asher | Apr 1, 2019 | 9 min read
Renewed interest from the biotech industry sparks hope for drugging the nucleic acid to treat cancer and other conditions.
Researchers Identify Obesity-Diabetes Link
Catherine Offord | Dec 1, 2017 | 3 min read
Exosomes produced by macrophages in fatty tissue influence insulin sensitivity in distant cell types, a study finds.
Pradeep Chaluvally-Raghavan: Curious about Cancer
Jef Akst | Apr 1, 2016 | 2 min read
Instructor, Department of Systems Biology, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Age: 38
Tumor-Shrinking Triple-Helices
Ruth Williams | Apr 1, 2016 | 2 min read
A braided structure and some adhesive hydrogel make therapeutic microRNAs both stable and sticky.
Performance Art
Mary Beth Aberlin | Jan 1, 2015 | 3 min read
Regulation of genome expression orchestrates the behavior of insect castes and the human response to social stress.
Communicating Across Kingdoms?
Sandhya Sekar | Dec 15, 2014 | 3 min read
Researchers pinpoint microRNAs that could play a role in how Wolbachia bacteria manipulate their arthropod hosts.
Tumor Exosomes Make microRNAs
Kerry Grens | Oct 27, 2014 | 1 min read
Cellular blebs shed by tumor cells can process short stretches of RNA that go on to induce tumor formation in neighboring cells.
Roche Set to Buy RNAi Firm
Bob Grant | Aug 6, 2014 | 1 min read
The Swiss pharmaceutical giant will reportedly pay $450 million for a Danish biotech company that develops drugs that silence microRNAs.
Traces of Trauma in Sperm RNA
Jeffrey M. Perkel | Apr 13, 2014 | 3 min read
A mouse study shows that molecular remnants of early-life stress can be passed on to future generations.
Saving Failing Hearts
Kate Yandell | Mar 12, 2014 | 4 min read
Inhibiting a small regulatory RNA appears to improve cardiac function in mice with surgically induced heart problems.
MicroRNAs Repair Heart Cells
Sabrina Richards | Dec 5, 2012 | 3 min read
Researchers identify microRNAs that keep cardiac cells healthy after heart attack, potentially paving the way for future heart regenerating therapies.
Robert Blelloch: Teacher, Doctor, Scientist
Jef Akst | May 1, 2012 | 3 min read
Associate Professor, Department of Urology, University of California, San Francisco. Age: 45
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