RNA is key to the dark matter of the genome. Scientists are sequencing it to illuminate human health and disease

Although there are striking differences between the cells that make up your eyes, kidneys, brain and toes, the DNA blueprint ...

Could the discovery of a tiny RNA molecule explain the origins of life?

One of the greatest mysteries of our planet is how a soup of lifeless chemicals transformed into the first living cell. There are several competing theories about where this happened, from frozen ...

Tiny, 45 base long RNA can make copies of itself

These random molecules were fed a collection of three-base-long RNAs, each linked to a chemical tag. The idea was that if a molecule is capable of ligating one of these short RNA fragments to itself, ...

A DNA 'on-off' switch? Light and redox cues reversibly link strands for nanotech

DNA, the blueprint of life, is best known for its fundamental role as genetic material—storing and transmitting biological information through the precise sequence of its bases. For decades, this ...