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Michael Crichton and James Patterson’s “Eruption” is Riveting, but with a Shaky Genetic Foundation

PLOS: DNA Science

But the book has a glitch in a genetic explanation. He had the top book, film, and TV series within the same week – twice. See How Michael Crichton’s Widow Sherri Ushered in a Renaissance of His Work With New Book ‘Eruption’ in Variety.) ” I can’t wait for the film. He was too busy creating.

DNA 52
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Is Recent Gene Therapy Setback for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) Déjà vu All Over Again?

PLOS: DNA Science

In the final chapter of my 2012 book The Forever Fix: Gene Therapy and the Boy Who Saved It , I predicted that the technology would soon expand well beyond the rare disease world. million DNA bases. The DMD gene therapy delivers a shortened version of the dystrophin gene, just 4,558 DNA bases. I was overoptimistic.

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“Ordinary Soil” Revisits the Weedkiller and AgBiotech Story, While Feeding the Scientist-As-Nerd Stereotype

PLOS: DNA Science

The title Ordinary Soil alone would have drawn me to this book, for years ago, a dear botanist friend admonished me for using “dirt” and “soil” interchangeably, although dictionaries do so. Although the book is based on this very distinction, towards the end, “dirt” dominates.

Science 98
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What Limits a Genome’s Size?

Codon

billion bases of DNA which, if unfurled, would extend for more than 100 meters—taller than the Statue of Liberty. billion bases of DNA, the human genome measures just 2 meters in length when stretched end-to-end. Credit: Oriane Hidalgo Per the book Cell Biology by the Numbers , each base pair of DNA occupies 1 nm 3 of space.

DNA 59
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Why I’m Not Worried that ChatGPT Will Replace Me as a Biology Textbook Author

PLOS: DNA Science

As genetics morphed into genomics, artificial intelligence stepped in, layering the combinatorial information of comparative genomics onto DNA sequences. Train an algorithm on the DNA sequences of a known disease-causing gene, then search for identical or highly similar sequences in cells from other individuals to assist diagnosis.

DNA 98
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CRISPR Tackles Diverse Single-Gene Conditions

PLOS: DNA Science

” CRISPRs are short DNA sequences, peppered with repeats, that latch onto DNA-cutting enzymes, commandeering and directing them to snip certain parts of a chromosome. Unlike gene therapy as originally-envisioned since the 1950s, which adds a functioning copy of a gene, CRISPR can add, remove, or replace a DNA sequence.

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Bioprospecting in Dental Tartar from Neanderthals for Novel Antibiotics and Revisiting the Discovery of Penicillin

PLOS: DNA Science

Over time, the mineralized microbes of tooth tartar come to comprise a mouthful of tiny fossils, including snippets of degraded bacterial DNA. ” But long DNA molecules fray as they’re copied as bacteria reproduce, from ancient times leaving pieces too small to match entries in DNA databases from modern species.

DNA 52