DNA

Filling in genome gaps could help scientists better the genetic basis for certain diseases and lead to new medical discoveries.

Scientists Have Finally Sequenced a 'Gapless' Human Genome

Scientists have deciphered the missing eight percent of our genetic blueprint, setting the stage for new discoveries in human evolution and disease

Using human genomes, researchers have developed a massive family tree identifying nearly 27 million ancestors dating back more than 100,000 years ago. 

Largest Human Family Tree Identifies Nearly 27 Million Ancestors

Researchers create massive genealogical network dating back 100,000 years

Danish scientist Kristine Bohmann collects air samples in the Copenhagen Zoo’s tropical rainforest house.

Scientists Pull Animal DNA Out of Thin Air

The new method, tested at two zoos, could revolutionize the study of biodiversity in the wild

A roughly 2000-year-old mummified man of the Ansilta culture, from the Andes of San Juan, Argentina, had lice eggs and cement in his hair which preserved his own DNA

DNA Preserved in Lice Glue Reveals South American Mummies' Secrets

Remarkable samples from an ancient culture offer scientists a promising new way to study the past

A humpback whale and her calf swim underwater. A recent study in Nature found whales eat and poop way more than previously thought—and that feces plays an important role in fertilizing the ocean.

The Top Ten Ocean Stories of 2021

From the discovery of a large bioluminescent shark to the use of an innovative drone to study hurricanes, these are the best marine stories of the year

New research suggests Celtic people—and their sheep—arrived on the Faroe Islands more than 300 years before the Vikings.

Ancient Sheep Poop Tells the Tale of the Faroe Islands' First Inhabitants

New analysis suggests the Celts arrived on the archipelago hundreds of years before the Vikings

Archaeologists unearthed the body of a female infant at a 10,000-year-old burial site in the Arma Veirana cave in Italy.

Baby Buried With Care 10,000 Years Ago Found in Italian Cave

The rare interment suggests that some hunter-gatherer societies imbued female infants with full personhood

Frozen DNA evidence trapped in soil suggests that mammoth and wild horse populations petered out slowly, instead of vanishing quickly.

Mammoth and Horse DNA Left in Freezer Rewrite Ice Age Extinctions

New research reveals the ancient animals survived some 8,000 years later than previously thought

Of a total crew of 864 men, 429 were killed on the USS Oklahoma, sunk at Pearl Harbor 80 years ago. New DNA testing has allowed scientists to identify 90 percent of the remains in the last few years.

Eighty Years After Pearl Harbor, New DNA Tech Helps Identify Victims of the Attack

Researchers say they have now identified over 90 percent of the remains of those killed aboard the USS Oklahoma

Other biodegradable bioplastics from algae, cornstarch, sawdust have lower emissions over their lifetime than regular oil-based plastics but still, need the energy provided by the fossil-fuel energy grid to manufacture.

Scientists Made an Eco-Friendly Plastic Using DNA From Salmon Sperm

The material requires 97 percent less carbon emissions to make than petroleum-based plastics

DNA analysis of a lock of hair taken from Sitting Bull confirms that a South Dakota man is the Lakota leader's great-grandson.

DNA Analysis Confirms Claim of Sitting Bull Descendant

Formerly in the Smithsonian collections, a lock of hair taken from the Lakota leader verifies South Dakota man is his great-grandson

The naturally mummified remains were remarkably well preserved, with some still sporting clothing and hair.

New Research Reveals Surprising Origins of Millennia-Old Mummies Found in China

Once thought to be migrants from West Asia, the deceased were actually direct descendants of a local Ice Age population, DNA analysis suggests

The modern horse overtook other equine lineages as it spread across Europe and Asia thousands of years ago.

Genetic Sequencing Pinpoints the Origins of the Domestic Horse

One lineage in southwestern Russia gave rise to all modern domestic horses, from sleek thoroughbreds to heavy-built Clydesdales

Now named a new species, Wallace's sphinx moth (top) of Madagascar displays its world's longest tongue next Morgan's sphinx moth, which is found on the African mainland.

With a Nearly Foot-Long Proboscis, This New Moth Species Holds Record for Longest Insect Tongue

DNA testing shows island moth from Madagascar is distinctly different from similar varieties found on the African mainland

Scientists used DNA analysis of mummies from ancient Egypt to reconstruct the faces of three men buried more than 2,000 years ago.

3-D Reconstruction Reveals the Faces of Three Ancient Egyptian Mummies

Researchers used a combination of DNA and physical analysis to approximate the trio's visages

Early Etruscans had advanced knowledge of art, farming and metallurgy, leading some historians to believe the civilization originated elsewhere before settling in what is now Italy. DNA analysis shows they were actually locals.

Where Did the Ancient Etruscans Come From?

A new DNA analysis suggests the enigmatic civilization was native to the Italian Peninsula

Umeno Sumiyama (left) and Koume Kodama (right) with their official certificates

107-Year-Old Japanese Sisters Are the World's Oldest Identical Twins

Umeno Sumiyama and Koume Kodama were born on the island of Shodoshima on November 5, 1913

Approximately 71 percent of modern Japanese people's ancestry comes from the newly identified Kofun period population.

DNA Analysis Rewrites Ancient History of Japan

A new study suggests the island's modern populations trace their ancestry to three distinct groups, not two as previously proposed

Resurrecting the Sublime recreates the scent of Hibiscadelphus wilderianus, which went extinct in 1912.

What Do These Extinct Plants Smell Like?

A multidisciplinary collaboration resurrects three types of flora lost due to 20th-century colonialism

Grizzly bears in coastal British Columbia are more closely linked to Indigenous groups than previously realized.

Grizzly Bear Territories in Canada Match Maps of Indigenous Language Families

DNA analysis shows a distinct relationship between three distinct groups of grizzlies and Indigenous populations with different languages

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