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DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is the hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms. Nearly every cell in a person’s body has the same DNA. Most DNA is located in the cell nucleus (where it is called nuclear DNA), but a small amount of DNA can also be found in the mitochondria (where it is called mitochondrial DNA or mtDNA).

Vaping reduces fitness and blood vessel function in young adults

Young people who vape or smoke cigarettes have reduced blood vessel functionality, breathing efficiency and exercise capacity compared to those who have never smoked or vaped, according to a study published today in ERJ Open Research.

13 Jul 2026

Myotonia may play a much larger role in driving muscle damage than previously recognized

For decades, researchers studying myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) have focused on the disease's underlying genetic cause: a mutation that produces a toxic form of RNA, disrupting the normal processing of thousands of genetic messages inside cells.

13 Jul 2026

Structural study identifies unexpected cancer-regulating functions of MLL4 protein

The epigenetic modifier MLL4 has an unassuming name-the 4, for instance, indicates it's just one in a family of such modifiers.

13 Jul 2026

Genes follow a random switching principle, yet remain precise on average

Inside the cell nucleus, genes must be turned on and off with precision to regulate biological processes. The first models of gene regulation were developed in the 1960s, yet modern science continues to uncover new layers of control.

13 Jul 2026

New approach accurately predicts lung cancer mutations

Scientists have developed a new method for accurately predicting gene changes that cause lung cancer, without the need for slower, more expensive lab techniques.

13 Jul 2026

New therapy targets Hippo pathway to fight treatment-resistant acute myeloid leukemia

Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have discovered that an investigational epigenetic therapy remained effective in treatment-resistant acute myeloid leukemia (AML) through activating the Hippo pathway, a tumor-suppressing pathway linked to cancer growth and drug resistance.

13 Jul 2026

Engineered ribozyme repairs broken RNA to explain origins of life

In most modern cells, DNA stores the genetic blueprint, and relies on proteins to replicate, repair and build from those blueprints.

13 Jul 2026

EGFR inhibitors may overcome chemotherapy resistance in glioblastoma treatment

Treating glioblastoma with a class of drugs known as EGFR inhibitors made this cancer more sensitive to chemotherapy, suggests a study in preclinical models co-led by researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center and the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

12 Jul 2026

New viral library helps scientists study thousands of proteins

To prevent viruses from sickening or killing us - whether it's an individual case of hepatitis B or a COVID pandemic - it's crucial to understand how the proteins they make initiate changes in our bodies that allow them to flourish.

11 Jul 2026

DNA study challenges assumptions about medieval shared family graves

When archaeologists find adults and children buried together in medieval graves, it is often assumed that they were members of the same family.

11 Jul 2026

Genetic risk knowledge alone fails to curb obesity, study shows

Does informing people about their genetic risk of obesity help them change their habits and lose excess weight? A study, published in the journal Obesity Reviews by scientists including researchers from SWPS University, shows that knowledge about one's genes alone is not enough.

11 Jul 2026

New generation approaches revive BET protein inhibitors in solid tumors

BET proteins, especially BRD4, drive oncogenic transcription in solid tumours. First‑generation inhibitors (JQ1, molibresib, birabresib) showed preclinical promise but failed clinically due to modest efficacy, dose‑limiting thrombocytopenia, and resistance (isoform switching, compensatory PI3K/AKT/WNT signalling).

11 Jul 2026

New study explains how brain tumors evolve to resist treatment

A form of glioma, a type of brain cancer, tends to progress towards greater malignancy due to an increasing tendency of the glioma cells to transform into immature, stem-cell-like states, according to a study led by investigators at Weill Cornell Medicine, the New York Genome Center, Harvard Medical School and Mass General Brigham.

11 Jul 2026

Six-gene signature predicts colorectal cancer recurrence after liver metastases

Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center identified a six-gene signature in microscopic colorectal cancer (CRC) liver metastases that may help predict recurrence after treatment.

9 Jul 2026

Review highlights macrophages as key drivers of chronic transplant rejection

A comprehensive review led by Professors Malgorzata Kloc and Xian Chang Li at the Immunobiology and Transplant Science Center of Houston Methodist Hospital in the United States was published in Volume 2, article number 29 of the journal Immunity & Inflammation on June 30, 2026.

9 Jul 2026

Genetic research reveals surprising metabolic pathway for irritable bowel syndrome

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common condition that affects more than 10% of the general population, causing recurrent abdominal pain, bloating, constipation and diarrhea.

9 Jul 2026

Lung tumors hack the nervous system to cause severe cachexia

Cachexia is a condition in which patients affected by cancer or other chronic diseases become sick and lose weight.

9 Jul 2026

New genetic screening method unlocks insights into human development

A new genetic screening method allows researchers to efficiently modulate individual genes across entire tissues and provides new insights into human development.

9 Jul 2026

Smoking shows no major impact on the eye microbiome in small study

A small study found no evidence that smoking causes large or consistent shifts in the ocular surface microbiome or tear proteome. The authors caution that subtle smoking-related effects cannot be ruled out, given the small cohort and the ocular surface's low-biomass, contamination-sensitive microbial niche.

8 Jul 2026

Novel strategy can make stem cell transplants safer

Stem cell transplantation (also called bone marrow transplantation) and gene therapy are among the most powerful curative approaches for blood diseases such as sickle cell disease, b-thalassemia, immune deficiencies, and some blood cancers.

8 Jul 2026