Genes News

December 22, 2025

Top Headlines

This Cancer-fighting Molecule Took 50 Years to Build

Dec. 22, 2025 MIT scientists have achieved the first-ever lab synthesis of verticillin A, a complex fungal compound discovered in 1970. Its delicate structure stalled chemists for decades, despite differing from related molecules by only two atoms. With the ...

A New Tool Is Revealing the Invisible Networks Inside Cancer

Dec. 21, 2025 Spanish researchers have created a powerful new open-source tool that helps uncover the hidden genetic networks driving cancer. Called RNACOREX, the software can analyze thousands of molecular interactions at once, revealing how genes communicate ...

The 98% Mystery: Scientists Just Cracked the Code on “Junk DNA” Linked to Alzheimer’s

Dec. 19, 2025 Researchers have revealed that so-called “junk DNA” contains powerful switches that help control brain cells linked to Alzheimer’s disease. By experimentally testing nearly 1,000 DNA switches ...

Scientists Found a New Way to Slow Aging Inside Cells

Dec. 19, 2025 A small tweak to mitochondrial energy production led to big gains in health and longevity. Mice engineered to boost a protein that helps mitochondria work more efficiently lived longer and showed better metabolism, stronger muscles, and healthier ...

The Gear Meant to Protect Firefighters May Carry Hidden Dangers

Dec. 18, 2025 Firefighter turnout gear is designed to shield first responders from extreme heat and danger, but new research suggests it may also introduce chemical exposures. A U.S. study found that brominated flame retardants are present across multiple layers ...

Scientists Reveal Why Some Brains Stop Growing Too Soon

Dec. 17, 2025 Researchers used miniature human brains grown in the lab to uncover why certain genetic mutations lead to abnormally small brains. Changes in actin disrupted the orientation of early brain cell divisions, causing crucial progenitor cells to ...

Scientists Find the Missing Links Between Genes and Disease

Dec. 16, 2025 A new genetic mapping strategy reveals how entire networks of genes work together to cause disease, filling in the missing links left by traditional genetic studies. The technique could transform how scientists identify drug targets for complex ...

AI Learns to Decode the Diseases Written in Your DNA

Dec. 16, 2025 A newly developed AI can predict which diseases specific genetic mutations are likely to cause, not just whether they are harmful. The breakthrough could speed up diagnoses and open new paths for personalized ...

AI Found a Way to Stop a Virus Before It Enters Cells

Dec. 15, 2025 Researchers discovered a hidden molecular “switch” that herpes viruses rely on to invade cells. By combining AI, simulations, and lab experiments, they identified and altered a single amino acid that shut down viral entry. What once might have ...

Harvard Gut Discovery Could Change How We Treat Obesity and Diabetes

Dec. 14, 2025 Scientists found that certain molecules made by gut bacteria travel to the liver and help control how the body uses energy. These molecules change depending on diet, genetics, and shifts in the microbiome. Some even improved insulin response in ...

The Brain Switch That Could Rewrite How We Treat Mental Illness

Dec. 13, 2025 Scientists exploring how the brain responds to stress discovered molecular changes that can influence behavior long after an experience ends. They also identified natural resilience systems that help protect certain individuals from harm. These ...

New Discovery Offers Real Hope for Rare Genetic Disease

Dec. 12, 2025 Scientists discovered that certain gene changes allow cells to function even when frataxin, the protein lost in Friedreich’s ataxia, is missing. Experiments in worms, human cells, and mice revealed that lowering a gene called FDX2 helps restore ...

Latest Headlines

updated 11:20am EST

Indoor Tanning Triples Melanoma Risk and Seeds Broad DNA Mutations

Dec. 15, 2025 Researchers discovered that tanning beds cause widespread, mutation-laden DNA damage across almost all skin, explaining the sharply increased melanoma risk. Single-cell genomic analysis revealed ...

Even Moderate Drinking Carries a Bigger Cancer Risk Than You Think

Dec. 11, 2025 Researchers found that both how often and how much someone drinks significantly shape their cancer risk, even at moderate levels. Vulnerability varies across groups, with genetics, socioeconomic ...

Scientists Uncover a Hidden Protein Behind Deadly Mystery Diseases

Dec. 11, 2025 Scientists discovered that the protein RPA plays a critical and previously unconfirmed role in stimulating telomerase to maintain long, healthy telomeres. When RPA malfunctions, telomeres can shorten ...

Gene-Edited CAR-T Cells Erase Aggressive T-Cell Leukemia

Dec. 11, 2025 A cutting-edge therapy using base-edited immune cells is offering a major breakthrough for patients with one of the toughest forms of blood cancer, T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. By precisely ...

Scientists Uncover the Hidden Survival Trick That Lets Cancer Bounce Back

Dec. 10, 2025 Scientists discovered that certain cancer cells use a low-level activation of a DNA-dismantling enzyme—normally seen in cell death—to survive treatment. Instead of dying, these “persister ...

Single Enzyme Mutation Reveals a Hidden Trigger in Dementia

Dec. 9, 2025 Researchers discovered that a tiny structural feature of the enzyme GPX4 helps keep neurons safe. A rare mutation removes this protection, allowing harmful molecules to damage cell membranes and ...

Scientists Keep a Human Alive With a Genetically Engineered Pig Liver

Dec. 7, 2025 Researchers successfully implanted a genetically modified pig liver into a human, proving that such an organ can function for an extended period. The graft supported essential liver processes before ...

Natural Hormone Unlocks a Hidden Fat Burning Switch

Dec. 6, 2025 FGF19 triggers the brain to burn more energy and activate fat-burning cells, offering a potential new path for obesity treatments. The hormone enhances thermogenesis and reduces inflammation, but ...

Scientists Find Hidden Layers in Brain’s Memory Center

Dec. 6, 2025 Scientists uncovered a surprising four-layer structure hidden inside the hippocampal CA1 region, one of the brain’s major centers for memory, navigation, and emotion. Using advanced RNA imaging ...

Experimental RNA Treatment Shows Surprising DNA Repair Power

Dec. 5, 2025 Cedars-Sinai scientists have created a new experimental drug called TY1 that helps the body repair damaged DNA and restore injured tissue. The discovery came from studying tiny molecular messages ...

Simple Nutrient Mix Delivers Surprising Autism Breakthrough in Mice

Dec. 4, 2025 A low-dose mix of zinc, serine, and branched-chain amino acids boosted neural function and social behavior in autism mouse models. The combination restored more typical synaptic protein patterns and ...

A Long-Overlooked Weak Point in Your DNA Has Just Been Revealed

Dec. 3, 2025 Scientists discovered that the first 100 base pairs of human genes are unusually prone to mutations, especially during the earliest stages of embryonic development. These mosaic mutations often go ...

Scientists Find a Hidden Obesity Trigger in Soybean Oil

Nov. 30, 2025 Researchers at UC Riverside have uncovered why soybean oil, one of America's most widely consumed ingredients, drives significant weight gain—at least in mice. The findings point not to the ...

New Brain Imaging Breakthrough Reveals Clues to Parkinson’s

Dec. 1, 2025 A high-speed “zap-and-freeze” method is giving scientists their clearest view yet of how brain cells send messages. By freezing tissue at the instant a signal fires, researchers revealed how ...

Scientists Reveal a Hidden Alarm System Inside Your Cells

Nov. 25, 2025 Ribosomes don’t just make proteins—they can sense when something’s wrong. When they collide, they send out stress signals that activate a molecule called ZAK. Researchers uncovered how ZAK ...

Your Body May Already Have a Molecule That Helps Fight Alzheimer’s

Nov. 27, 2025 Spermine, a small but powerful molecule in the body, helps neutralize harmful protein accumulations linked to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. It encourages these misfolded proteins to gather into ...

Nanoflowers Supercharge Stem Cells to Recharge Aging Cells

Nov. 27, 2025 Texas A&M researchers found a way to make stem cells produce double the normal number of mitochondria using nanoflower particles. These energized stem cells then transfer their surplus “power ...

Immune Cells Use a Surprising Trick to Heal Muscle Faster

Nov. 24, 2025 A research team has found that specific immune cells can connect with muscle fibers in a lightning-fast, neuron-like way to promote healing. These cells deliver quick pulses of calcium, triggering ...

New Nasal Nanodrops Wipe out Brain Tumors in Mice

Nov. 22, 2025 A new nasal-delivered nanotherapy shows promise against aggressive glioblastoma tumors. By activating the STING immune pathway using gold-core spherical nucleic acids, researchers were able to reach ...

Scientists Capture Stunning Real-Time Images of DNA Damage and Repair

Nov. 23, 2025 Scientists have created a live-cell DNA sensor that reveals how damage appears and disappears inside living cells, capturing the entire repair sequence as it unfolds. Instead of freezing cells at ...

Hidden Mitochondrial DNA Damage May Be a Missing Link in Disease

Nov. 28, 2025 Researchers identified a new, sticky form of mitochondrial DNA damage that builds up at dramatically higher levels than in nuclear DNA. These lesions disrupt energy production and activate ...

Inflammation Turns Bone Marrow Into a Breeding Ground for Disease

Nov. 19, 2025 Researchers discovered that chronic inflammation fundamentally remodels the bone marrow, allowing mutated stem cell clones to quietly gain dominance with age. Reprogrammed stromal cells and ...

Scientists Discover Hidden Switch That Helps Cancer Cells Survive

Dec. 1, 2025 Researchers have found a small but powerful switch inside breast cancer cells that helps them survive stressful conditions. When this switch flips, the cells activate protective programs that make ...

CRISPR Unlocks a New Way to Defeat Resistant Lung Cancer

Nov. 17, 2025 Scientists used CRISPR to disable the NRF2 gene, restoring chemotherapy sensitivity in lung cancer cells and slowing tumor growth. The technique worked even when only a fraction of tumor cells were ...

Your Skin Has a Built-in Cancer Defense and Sunlight Turns It Off

Nov. 30, 2025 Scientists have uncovered how too much sunlight can flip a hidden switch inside skin cells that makes inflammation spiral out of control and increases the risk of cancer. Their research reveals that ...

Scientists Reverse Kidney Damage in Mice, Hope for Humans Next

Nov. 14, 2025 Researchers uncovered how fatty molecules called ceramides trigger acute kidney injury by damaging the mitochondria that power kidney cells. By altering ceramide metabolism or using a new drug ...

New DNA Test Predicts Dangerous Heart Rhythms Early

Nov. 17, 2025 Scientists at Northwestern Medicine have developed a new genetic risk score that predicts who is most likely to experience irregular or dangerous heart rhythms. The test merges several types of ...

Scientists Uncover a Surprising Protein That Heals Stubborn Wounds

Nov. 17, 2025 Researchers have uncovered that SerpinB3, typically linked to severe cancers, is also a key player in natural wound healing. The protein drives skin cell movement and tissue rebuilding, especially ...

Scientists Discover Metformin May Block Key Exercise Benefits

Nov. 18, 2025 Rutgers scientists found that metformin can blunt many of the metabolic and cardiovascular improvements normally produced by exercise. Participants who took the drug saw reduced gains in fitness, ...

Blocking a Single Protein Forces Cancer Cells to Self-Destruct

Nov. 20, 2025 Researchers uncovered a powerful weakness in lung cancer by shutting down a protein that helps tumors survive stress. When this protein, FSP1, was blocked, lung tumors in mice shrank dramatically, ...