A half-century ago, scientists and lawyers agreed to strict self-regulation in DNA research to avoid catastrophe. Can A.I. follow the same model?

CRISPR-Cas provides RNA-mediated adaptive immunity, but how its first RNA-guided effector arose is unclear. In this study, we report the discovery of Viral Interference Programmable Repeat (VIPR) syst...

Scientists have discovered a powerful gene-targeting system in viruses. Billions of years old, VIPR seems to predate CRISPR and may be even more powerful.

The generation of functional viral genomes has urgent biosafety and biosecurity implications

AI-Assisted Technique Allows Scientists to Design New, Functional Genome Editors Beyond What Can Be Found in Nature - Innovative Genomics Institute (IGI)

Steroids won’t automatically make you a better person

The past offers both hope and warnings

Less than a year ago, US President Donald Trump gave a speech in the Middle East in which he excoriated his predecessors for their habit of launching “forever wars” in that region. Alluding to the Ame...

What building names can teach us about the history of science

TnpB is a compact RNA-guided endonuclease and evolutionary ancestor of CRISPR-Cas12 that offers a promising platform for genome engineering. However, the genome-editing activity of TnpBs remains limit...

AI-designed proteins, embryo editing, Coruscant IRL, and more!

Franklin was no victim in how the DNA double helix was solved. An overlooked letter and an unpublished news article, both written in 1953, reveal that she was an equal player.

No American institution is equipped to replace the agency. But a few trusted resources can help.

Dire wolves, AI virologists, sci-fi TV, and much more!

Safe gain-of-function research is necessary to identify new treatments for diseases like for tuberculosis — but the NIH has imposed unfounded stops.