As climate change progresses, we humans might have to inhabit a world for which we are increasingly maladapted. If we were able to identify genes that directly influence our ability to thrive in a changing climate, would it be ethically justifiable to edit the human genome to enhance our ability to adapt to this new environment? Should we use gene editing not only to prevent significant disease...

BACKGROUND The degradation of DNA represents one of the main issues in the genetic analysis of archeological specimens. In the recent years, a particular kind of post-mortem DNA modification giving rise to nucleotide misincorporation ("miscoding lesions") has been the object of extensive investigations. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS To improve our knowledge regarding the nature and incidence...

Food deprivation can affect performance on difficult cognitive task, such as the delayed nonmatch-to-place T-maze task (DNMT). The importance of food deprivation on maintaining high motivation for DNMT task has been emphasized, but not many studies have investigated the optimal conditions for depriving rodents to maximize performance. Establishing appropriate conditions for food deprivation is ...

Although there is widespread opposition to reproductive cloning, some have argued that its use by infertile couples to have genetically related children would be ethically justifiable. Others have suggested that lesbian or gay couples might wish to use cloning to have genetically related children. Most of the main objections to human reproductive cloning are based on the child's lack of unique ...

BACKGROUND To examine the effect of nutritional education on children's breakfast patterns. METHODS A kindergarten based nutrition intervention was started in September 2001 among 8 kindergartens in Hefei with a total of 2,012 children aged 4-6 years and their parent pairs. RESULTS Monthly nutrition education sessions were held over two semesters in kindergartens part of the intervention ar...

We have been studying the evolution and function of DNA methylation in vertebrate animals using three related approaches. The first is to further characterise proteins that bind to methylated DNA. Such proteins can be viewed as 'receptors' of the methyl-CpG 'ligand' that mediate downstream consequences of DNA modification. The second approach involves CpG islands. These patches of non-methylate...

In vivo correction of anaemia in beta-thalassemic mice by gammaPNA-mediated gene editing with nanoparticle delivery" (2016).

Current strategies for preventing the transmission of mitochondrial disease to offspring include techniques known as mitochondrial replacement and mitochondrial gene editing. This technology has already been applied in humans on several occasions, and the first baby with donor mitochondria has already been born. However, these techniques raise several ethical concerns, among which is the fact t...

Research into the genetic and environmental factors behind complex trait variation has traditionally been segregated into distinct scientific camps. The reductionist approach aims to decrypt phenotypic variability bit by bit, founded on the underlying hypothesis that genome-to-phenome relations are largely constructed from the additive effects of their molecular players. In contrast, the system...

Gene editing enables the site-specific modification of the genome. These technologies have rapidly advanced such that they have entered common use in experimental hematology to investigate genetic function. In addition, genome editing is becoming increasingly plausible as a treatment modality to rectify genetic blood disorders and improve cellular therapies. Genome modification typically ensues...