For much of the 20th century it was thought that the adult brain was incapable of regeneration. This view has since shifted dramatically and neurogenesis – the birth of new neurons – is now a widely ...

A dendrite – an extension of a neuron - from a 12-month-old human cerebral cortex neuron, grown from human stem cells and transplanted into a mouse cerebral cortex. Two human-specific genes, SRGAP2B ...

The promise of genome editing to help understand human diseases and create new therapies is vast, but technological limitations have limited advancement of the field. While existing editing ...

In a new genetic study, scientists have charted the rise of 214 human diseases across ancient Europe and Asia. By Carl Zimmer To prepare for future pandemics, scientists look to the past for clues.

In recent years, mRNA technology enabled the rapid development of vaccines to fight COVID-19, saving millions of lives. That same mRNA-powered approach to medicine—in which synthetic mRNA is ...

Current data suggests that drug development, from the start of a research program to FDA approval, can take anywhere from 10 to 17 years. However, there is a need to speed up this lengthy drug ...

The human genome is made up of 23 pairs of chromosomes, the biological blueprints that make humans … well, human. But it turns out that some of our DNA — about 8% — are the remnants of ancient viruses ...

Functions of the gut microbiome. Created with BioRender.com. SCFA, short chain fatty acids. The gut microbiome, an ecosystem of trillions of microorganisms in the human digestive tract, has been ...

During development of the digestive system, a complex network of nerves forms around it, creating a "second brain"—the enteric nervous system (ENS)—which controls the movement of food and waste ...