Good News Notes: “A new type of early human previously not known to scientists has been discovered in Israel, Tel Aviv University and Hebrew University researchers announced Thursday as their extraordinary findings appeared in the prestigious academic journal Science. Researchers believe the new “Homo” species intermarried with Homo sapiens and was an ancestor of the…
Tag: DNA
How a cutting-edge gene editing tool is helping scientists save endangered salmon
Good News Notes: “A tool that has been instrumental in the development of cancer treatments and COVID-19 testing supplies is aiding scientists in locating endangered salmon species. Researchers use the CRISPR-based Sherlock gene-editing tool, which stands for Specific High-sensitivity Enzymatic Reporter unlocking, to identify endangered fish, including the Sacramento winter-run and Central Valley Spring run,…
Rare Owl With Bright Orange Eyes Seen for the First Time in More Than 125 Years
Good News Notes: “An easy way to find and identify a bird species is to listen for their unique calls. But Otus brookii brookii, a Bornean subspecies of the Rajah scops owl, hasn’t been observed by scientists since 1892, and its song is unknown, making it that much harder to find. Now, for the first time…
‘Living Fossil’ Thought Extinct For 273 Million Years Found Thriving on Ocean Floor
Good News Notes: “A symbiotic relationship between two marine lifeforms has just been discovered thriving at the bottom of the ocean, after disappearing from the fossil record for hundreds of millions of years. Scientists have found non-skeletal corals growing from the stalks of marine animals known as crinoids, or sea lilies, on the floor of the…
This Company Wants to Rewrite the Future of Genetic Disease—Without Crispr Gene Editing
Good News Notes: “CRISPR’S POTENTIAL FOR curing inherited disease has made headlines, including at WIRED, for years. ( Here, here, here, and here.) Finally, at least for one family, the gene-editing technology is turning out to deliver more hope than hype. A year after 34-year-old Victoria Gray received an infusion of billions of Crispr’d cells, NPR reported last week that those cells were still…
Orangutans Form ‘Very Special Bond’ with Otters Sharing Zoo Home
Good News Notes: “A group of orangutans living at the Pairi Daiza Zoo in Belgium is sharing a home with a family of Asian small-clawed otters — and they’re all getting along swimmingly! The close relationship between the animals is on display in a series of photos shared by the zoo, which shows the two…
Gene therapy trial shows promise for curing a type of hemophilia
Good News Notes: “A new gene therapy appears to serve as a functional cure for the most common type of hemophilia, early clinical trial results indicate. Patients who received the one-time intravenous therapy continue to have a more than 90 percent decrease in bleeding events two to three years after their initial treatment, researchers reported…