Universal RNA barcoding system for tracking gene transfer in bacteria created
In the microscopic world of bacteria, gene transfer is a powerful mechanism that can alter cellular function, drive antibiotic resistance and even shape entire ecosystems. Now an interdisciplinary group of researchers at Rice University has developed an innovative RNA "barcoding" method to track these genetic exchanges in microbial communities, providing new insights into how genes move across species. The findings were recently published in Nature Biotechnology.
A new approach to controlling gene expression in microbial populations
The ability to control gene expression across a wide range is crucial for many fields, including bioengineering, disease detection, and environmental monitoring. Research led by Lingchong You, Ph.D., professor of biomedical engineering and molecular genetics and microbiology, developed a system to better regulate gene expression that could be applied to biosensors, toxin production, and metabolic pathway regulation.
Horizontal gene transfer: How fungi improve their ability to infect insects
Researchers at the Kiel Evolution Center have investigated for the first time in detail how a fungus important for biological plant protection can pass on an advantageous chromosome horizontally, using a previously little-studied way of exchanging genetic information.
Marine algae implants could boost crop yields
Scientists have discovered the gene that enables marine algae to make a unique type of chlorophyll. They successfully implanted this gene in a land plant, paving the way for better crop yields on less land.
Engineering tomatoes for high-yield saffron apocarotenoid production
Apocarotenoids, derived from the oxidative cleavage of carotenoids by carotenoid cleavage dioxygenases (CCDs), are crucial for biological functions in plants and animals, though their definition varies among scientific communities. In plant carotenoid biosynthesis, enzymes convert isoprenoids into carotenoids, leading to products like lycopene, lutein, and zeaxanthin, which play roles in photoprotection and detoxification.
Video: Genetically improving sorghum for biofuels
Bioscientist Anne Villacastin is using genetics to supercharge the growing power of sorghum, a cereal plant that humans have been cultivating for millennia. By adding genes from wheat, Villacastin and her colleagues at the Joint BioEnergy Institute are making sorghum strains that grow tall and robust with very little water, so farmers can produce large quantities of the crop at low cost and low environmental impact.
Natural genetically modified crops: Grasses take evolutionary shortcut by borrowing genes from their neighbors
Grass may transfer genes from their neighbors in the same way genetically modified crops are made, a new study has revealed.
Scientists discover how parasites of viruses drive superbug evolution
In a study published in Cell, scientists from the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Imperial College London have discovered a new way by which bacteria transmit their genes, enabling them to evolve much faster than previously understood.
Caterpillar venom study reveals toxins borrowed from bacteria
Researchers at The University of Queensland have discovered the venom of a notorious caterpillar has a surprising ancestry and could be key to the delivery of lifesaving drugs.
CellBioNews