Genetics

Developing software to reveal large genetic changes that lead to cancer

The noted aging researcher talks about how scientists are like birds

Eight years after a Chinese scientist's report of gene-edited babies shocked the world, U.S. scientists reported editing embryos not meant for pregnancies using a more precise technique

Stuart Orkin and Swee Lay Thein shared a Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences for their research on genetic causes of sickle cell disease and beta-thalassemia that set the stage for approved gene therapies. The treatments are not accessible to everyone, though

Three 2026 Breakthrough Prize winners reflect on developing Luxturna, a gene therapy that treats blindness caused by rare inherited eye diseases

Scientist and medical technology entrepreneur J. Craig Venter published the first bacterial genome ever decoded in 1995. The result heralded a new age of discovery for genetics

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) can have the same genetic cause, a discovery that won two neurogeneticists a portion of the 2026 Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences

The weight you lose and the nausea you experience from GLP-1 drugs may be linked to common gene variants, but they can’t fully explain why some people lose more weight than others

Scientists have discovered a potential path out of devastating genetic bottlenecks that could help these Australian animals, as well as many other vulnerable and endangered species

Researchers sequenced the genomes of tumors from almost 500 domestic cats and found remarkable parallels with human and dog cancers

A new analysis suggests that genes play a much larger role in human longevity than previously believed. But lifestyle factors still matter

Researchers are using cutting‑edge DNA techniques to hunt for genetic evidence in centuries‑old artworks in an effort to better understand the genius of Leonardo da Vinci