Genetics

About a kilometer deep beneath the ocean surface, where sunlight disappears and food becomes scarce, lives a giant creature that can wait out starvation and survive more than five years without eating.

Scientists from the University of Minnesota have taken a monumental step toward understanding the process of abiogenesis by piecing together their own organic cell and watching it divide in two.

An international team of scientists led by researchers at Virginia Tech has completed the millipede family tree for the first time.

A new study suggests that as many as 20% of Parkinson's disease cases may be something else entirely, highlighting the importance of test accuracy before treatment is even on the cards. As to why it's been misdiagnosed – well, it's complicated.

A new study suggests that genes from the ancient human species, Homo erectus, may have been passed on to living people in the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, and across south-east Asia.

Our taste for bread and pasta wouldn’t be the same if not for our ability to break down starch, a talent Peru’s Andean populations have taken to the extreme by evolving a unique profile of genes.

Using the largest sample of super-agers to date, scientists have found convincing evidence that supports what many of us have suspected: Longevity isn’t just about healthy lifestyle choices, but also a good draw in the genetic lottery.

A tool long used to probe neural circuits in the lab is now being floated as a new way to treat human patients. The technique uses light to turn specific neurons on or off, and it could be used to treat everything from chronic pain to epilepsy.

Americans are being urged to be extra vigilant, as a new influenza A variant is spreading more rapidly and evading our abilities to fight it off. With more than 110,000 hospitalizations so far, scientists expect this wave to worsen as the season peaks.

It's that time of year – and my personal favorite corner of science to look back on – when we recap the many fascinating discoveries in the plant and animal kingdom in 2025. Orcas have again made news, but no luxury yachts were hurt in the process.

High on sheer cliffs in China, ancient coffins are wedged into rock faces hundreds of feet above the ground. These dramatic burials, now re-examined using ancient DNA, point to a broader practice where disparate cultures all had their own "sky graves."

Most pet dogs carry a little wolf inside them; tiny snippets of wolf DNA that slipped into dog genomes after domestication. Now a new study has found almost two-thirds of dog breeds have a small amount of wolf genes, including some breeds you wouldn't expect.