The research and vision of Canadian scientists were key foundations of the Human Genome Project. Today, lack of funding threatens discovery research in Canada.
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On DNA Day, Canada should be inspired by the lifesaving discoveries of its researchers. However, lack of funding threatens Canadian researchers’ ability to meet the challenges of the future.
Our DNA is a treasure-trove of information. However, there are limits to what it can reveal about us.
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New genetic studies claim to be able to foretell our intelligence or predisposition to certain diseases. But two scientists beg to disagree, reminding us that not everything is written in our DNA.
Some animals appear to use a ‘parliament’ of genes to determine sex. But a closer look reveals these are the exception rather than the rule.
Stone obelisks stand tall in Aksum, Ethiopia. This city was once the capital of a kingdom spanning northeast Africa and the Arabian peninsula.
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FTD leads to changes in personality and behavior. Understanding its genetic and molecular causes could lead to new ways to treat neurodegenerative diseases.
Kate Legge’s husband was chronically unfaithful. So was his father, who was forced to leave the family home after revealing his mother’s affair. Legge reflects on generational love and infidelity.
Most clinical trials overrepresent young white males.
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Medicine works better when the treatments are tailored to fit each individual person’s biology and history. A first step is increasing diversity in clinical trials, but the end goal is precision medicine.
The little-known eating disorder Arfid usually develops in childhood.
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The immortal jellyfish ‘Turritopsis dohrnii’ is capable of escaping death. The molecular keys involved in its longevity have been revealed by researchers at the University of Oviedo.
When it comes to eye care, regular visits to the optometrist or ophthalmologist can detect the early signs of diabetic damage.
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The risk of developing eye complications is high in young people with Type 2 diabetes, which is increasingly affecting children and adolescents, especially those who are more sedentary.
More people moved into Scandinavia in Viking times than at any other time period analysed in the study.
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Our experiences of taste are so vivid and personal it can be hard to imagine how people can turn their nose up at your favourite comfort food. Research shows the explanation could be in your genes.
Humanity carries traces of other populations in our DNA – and a new study shows how one of these ancestors has influenced the immune systems of modern Papuans.
The human Y chromosome could disappear over time, putting our species in jeopardy. But some rodents have managed just fine without it – and we now know how.
Paternal and maternal genes drive fetal development in different directions.
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A study offers evidence that marine biology’s biggest stage is broken, and suggests ways to fix it.
Statistical pitfalls in GWAS can result in misleading conclusions about whether some traits (like long horns or spotted skin, in the case of dinosaurs) are genetically linked.
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Richard Border, University of California, Los Angeles and Noah Zaitlen, University of California, Los Angeles
People don’t randomly select who they have children with. And that means an underlying assumption in research that tries to link particular genes to certain diseases or traits is wrong.
Visiting Professor in Biomedical Ethics, Murdoch Children's Research Institute; Distinguished Visiting Professor in Law, University of Melbourne; Uehiro Chair in Practical Ethics, University of Oxford