Category Archives: DNA

Gardai used DNA to identify a man from Laois who had stolen hundreds of euros worth of fuel from a tractor in Offaly.

William McInerney, 33, of 13 Bruach na hAbhainn, Portlaoise admitted stealing the diesel worth 400 and tools worth 100 from the tractor at Ballycollin, Geashill, Offaly between September 15 and 16, 2020.

Sgt JJ Kirby said Gardai investigating the theft of 400 from a tractor in Offaly found a syphon at the scene. DNA was taken from the syphon hose, he explained. The was sent to the Garda forensic laboratory and the DNA matched the accused. Sgt Kirby said the man has 20 previous convictions.

When Judge Andrew Cody asked about the mans convictions, Sgt Kirby described him as someone who would have a history. He is always on the garda radar, he added.

Solicitor Philip Meagher said his client had separated briefly from his wife at the time of the offence. He fell into old company and he got involved in this particular enterprise, he said.

He said the defendant had brought full compensation, a letter of apology and was now working with a Laois Traveller group and the Mens Shed. This particular event was an aberration in what was otherwise a better path than he had been following, Mr Meagher told the sitting of Portlaoise District Court. It certainly wasnt a campaign of activity, he added.

Judge Andrew Cody warned the defendant to be very careful for the next two years as he handed him a three month sentence suspended for 24 months.

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DNA on syphon led to fuel theft arrest of man in Laois - Laois Live

When Dan Florness took the reins as president adn CEO of Fastenal Co. in 2016, ecommerce accounted for less than 6% of total sales. But for the recent third quarter ended Sept. 30, ecommerce sales grew to 18%.

Its becoming part of our DNA, he said on a Q3 earnings call today.

Dan Florness, president and CEO, Fastenal Co.

That share of ecommerce, including web sales and EDI transactions, amounted to $324.43 million out of $1.802 billion in total Q3 sales for at the wholesale distributor of fasteners and other industrial and construction supplies. But factoring in other digital sales through internet vending machines and other digital channels what Fastenal calls its total digital footprint digital commerce overall accounted for 50% of total sales, or $901.20 million.

Moreover, Florness noted that digital commerce is expanding throughout the companys operations.

When I stepped into this role [in 2016] ecommerce was about 5.5% of our sales, he said. They had been stuck there and they were stuck in purgatory because were a service organization not a catalog company or a ecommerce company.

But Fastenal figured how it could play to its strengths as a service-oriented business and make ecommerce part of our business. For example, its network of 1,716 physical branch locations learned how to support customers ecommerce transactions. In the third quarter, 52% of Fastenals branches had over 10% of their revenue in ecommerce, Florness said.

He asserted that the ecommerce channels 18% share of Q3 total sales isnt coming from a few Fastenal operations. Its coming from a lot of activities throughout the organization, which means its becoming part of our DNA.

Florness added that Fastenals growth trend in ecommerce is following similar trends in the companys broader digital footprint. That includes its vending machines and OnSite inventory management services.

For the third quarter ended Sept. 30, Fastenal reported:

For the nine months ended Sept. 30, Fastenal reported:

Sign up for acomplimentary subscription to Digital Commerce 360 B2B News, published 4x/week. It covers technology and business trends in the growing B2B ecommerce industry. Contact editor Paul Demery at [emailprotected]and follow him on Twitter @pdemery.

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At Fastenal, ecommerce is becoming part of our DNA - Digital Commerce 360

National Eye Institute researchers mapped the organization of human retinal cell chromatin, the fibers that package 3 billion nucleotide-long DNA molecules into compact structures that fit into chromosomes within each cells nucleus. The resulting comprehensive gene regulatory network provides insights into regulation of gene expression in general, and in retinal function, in both rare and common eye diseases. The study1 published in Nature Communications.

This is the first detailed integration of retinal regulatory genome topology with genetic variants associated with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and glaucoma, two leading causes of vision loss and blindness, the studys lead investigator, Anand Swaroop, PhD, senior investigator and chief of the Neurobiology Neurodegeneration and Repair Laboratory at the NEI, part of the National Institutes of Health, said in a news release.

According to an NIH news release, adult human retinal cells are highly specialized sensory neurons that do not divide, and are therefore relatively stable for exploring how the chromatins three-dimensional structure contributes to the expression of genetic information.

The NIH noted that chromatin fibers package long strands of DNA, which are spooled around histone proteins and then repeatedly looped to form highly compact structures. All those loops create multiple contact points where genetic sequences that code for proteins interact with gene regulatory sequences, such as super enhancers, promoters, and transcription factors.

Such non-coding sequences were long considered junk DNA. But more advanced studies demonstrate ways these sequences control which genes get transcribed and when, shedding light on the specific mechanisms by which non-coding regulatory elements exert control even when their location on a DNA strand is remote from the genes they regulate.

Moreover, the NIH noted that using deep Hi-C sequencing, a tool used for studying 3D genome organization, the researchers created a high-resolution map that included 704 million contact points within retinal cell chromatin. Maps were constructed using post-mortem retinal samples from four human donors.

The researchers then integrated that chromatin topology map with datasets on retinal genes and regulatory elements. What emerged was a dynamic picture of interactions within chromatin over time, including gene activity hot spots and areas with varying degrees of insulation from other regions of DNA.

They found distinct patterns of interaction at retinal genes suggesting how chromatins 3D organization plays an important role in tissue-specific gene regulation.

Having such a high-resolution picture of genomic architecture will continue to provide insights into the genetic control of tissue-specific functions, Swaroop said in the release.

Furthermore, NIH noted that similarities between mice and human chromatin organization suggest conservation across species, underscoring the relevance of chromatin organizational patterns for retinal gene regulation. More than a third (35.7%) of gene pairs interacting through a chromatin loop in mice also did so in human retina.

The researchers integrated the chromatin topology map with data on genetic variants identified from genome-wide association studies for their involvement in AMD and glaucoma, two leading causes of vision loss and blindness. The findings point to specific candidate causal genes involved in those diseases.

The integrated genome regulatory map will also assist in evaluating genes associated with other common retina-associated diseases such as diabetic retinopathy, determining missing heritability and understanding genotype-phenotype correlations in inherited retinal and macular diseases.

The study was supported by the NEI Intramural Research Program, grants ZIAEY000450 and ZIAEY000546.

Reference

1 Marchal C, Singh N, Batz Z, Advani J, Jaeger C, Corso-Diaz X, and Swaroop A. High-resolution genome topology of human retina uncovers super enhancer-promoter interactions at tissue-specific and multifactorial disease loci. Published October 7, 2022, Nature Communications

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3D map reveals DNA organization within human retina cells - Ophthalmology Times

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Rodney Reed has been sitting on death row at Texas infamous Polunsky Unit for more than two decades, convicted of abducting, raping and murdering 19-year-old Stacey Stites as she drove to her early morning shift at HEB.

Reed has maintained his innocence all that time, and his lawyers have argued repeatedly that there might be a way to prove it: testing crime scene evidence that was never checked for DNA, including the murder weapon itself, a woven leather belt used to strangle Stites.

Reeds best chance at getting that evidence tested now rests with the U.S. Supreme Court, which on Tuesday heard oral arguments centering on one procedural question: Did Reed wait too long to ask a federal court to order the tests?

Ironically, the states case against Reed partly relied on DNA evidence. When Reeds sperm was found inside Stites body after her death, Reed became the prime suspect in her murder. Reed contends that in 1996, he and Stites were engaged in a consensual affair and had sex in the hours before her death. Reed is Black and Stites was white; his lawyers argue that Stites fianc, Jimmy Fennell, also white, was violent and racist and that he likely murdered his fianc after discovering the affair. Reed hopes to bolster this theory through DNA evidence found on the murder weapon.

The case has received widespread attention, including calls for his freedom by Texas lawmakers and celebrities like Kim Kardashian, who pointed to Reeds compelling claims of innocence.

Reeds execution was set for November 2019 but was stayed by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals and sent back to a lower court for review of new claims, including that he is innocent of the crimes. In 2021, after an evidentiary hearing, a district judge ruled the new evidence was not enough to justify granting Reed a new trial.

The Court of Criminal Appeals has received the recommendation but has not yet ruled on the outcome of Reeds state appeals.

The state has argued that the crime scene items should not be tested because they were improperly stored and may be contaminated. In 2014, a district court agreed, and in 2017, the Criminal Court of Appeals, Texass highest criminal court, affirmed that decision.

Reeds attorneys then brought a federal claim under Section 1983, which allows individuals to sue state actors for violating their rights. In Texas, those claims have a statute of limitations of two years. The state is arguing that the statute of limitations began in 2014 when the district court made its initial decision not to test the DNA.

No provision of Texas law requires an applicant to appeal a denial of DNA testing in state court, the state argued in its brief to the Supreme Court. Reed knew that he was injured when he was denied testing, and he could have pursued a facial challenge in federal court on due-process grounds immediately after that denial.

The Criminal Court of Appeals upheld the lower courts ruling in April 2017. Reeds attorneys argue that the clock started on the statute of limitations in October 2017, after the appeals court denied Reeds request for a rehearing. Reed filed his 1983 claim in August 2019.

The Fifth Circuit agreed that the statute of limitations in Reeds case was tied to the initial ruling, but in a different case, the Eleventh Circuit had ruled that the statute of limitations begins once the options for relief in state court are exhausted.

A federal court should not proceed with adjudication before state courts have had their say, a dozen legal scholars wrote in an amicus brief filed in support of Reed, warning that forcing plaintiffs to file suit in state and federal courts simultaneously invites unnecessary intrusions into state processes.

In Tuesdays oral arguments, Texas Solicitor General Judd Stone told the justices that the more time goes by, the harder it is for the state to defend its case, as evidence degrades and witnesses age. Additional delay harms the states ability to be able to redress this if, for example, hes entitled to a new trial for one reason or another, which he most emphatically is not, Stone argued.

In another amicus brief filed in support of Reed, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund noted that if the Supreme Court limits the amount of time incarcerated people have to bring federal claims regarding untested DNA, the decision will disproportionately harm Black people and other people of color, who are more likely to be wrongfully convicted and must rely on access to DNA evidence to prove their innocence.

In cases like Mr. Reeds, where racial bias or other arbitrary factors undermine the reliability of a conviction, DNA evidence is a critical means of remedying wrongful convictions, the brief stated.

Since Reed was convicted, multiple witnesses have come forward to corroborate that Reed and Stites were having a relationship and that Stites was scared of Fennell before her death. In 2008, Fennell pled guilty to kidnapping a woman and engaging in improper sexual conduct with her while on duty with the Georgetown Police Department. In an interview, the victim told filmmaker Ryan Polomski that he pulled out his gun, put it near her head and raped her.

Fennell was released from prison in 2018 after serving 10 years. According to a sworn affidavit by a member of the Aryan Brotherhood who was incarcerated with Fennell, Fennell told him that he killed his fianc because she slept with a Black man.

Reed has also been accused but not convicted of multiple other sexual assaults. He was charged, and acquitted, in one case. In 2021, while testifying in the evidentiary hearing in Reeds case, Fennell denied there was any truth to the statements that multiple witnesses had made, including that he was violent toward Stites, that hed admitted to the crime while in prison and that Reed and Stites knew each other. As far as I'm concerned, he said, theyre all lying.

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Rodney Reed pleads before U.S. Supreme Court for DNA testing that might establish his innocence - The Texas Tribune

Advancements in DNA technology have helped D.C. police link the cases of two women who were raped and killed decades ago inside a Capitol Hill apartment building.

Florence Eyssalenne was murdered 37 years ago at her apartment on 3rd Street SE. She had recently graduated from Harvard University.

I could never bring myself to come back here again. There is just something about these stairs," Eyssalenne's brother, Bernard Eyssalenne, told News4.

Bernard Eyssalenne said the memories of getting the news of his sister's death are still vivid. He lived in Brooklyn, and to New York City police officers came to his door to tell him.

And Im still grateful I was the one who answered the door and not my mother because she would have collapsed," he said.

He didn't know it then, but it was the beginning of a decades-long odyssey of hopeful breaks that never came - until now.

Never gave up. I've always stayed in touch with all the investigators," Bernard Eyssalenne said.

Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia local news, events and information

Through advancements in DNA technology, lab technicians were recently able to get a full DNA profile from the stem of a swab used in the 1985 rape kit taken at the time of Florence Eyssalenne's death. The kit, which was never before tested, was linked with the murder of Greta Rainey.

Rainey, 35, was found strangled and raped in an apartment in the same building and on the same floor as Eyssalenne.

D.C. police said the man who killed Florence Eyssalene and Rainey was likely very familiar with the building or the neighborhood.

Essentially, the identity of this person is still unknown to us, however, we can say the individual is a male. We believe him to be of African American descent," Metropolitan Police Department Cpt. Kevin Kentish said.

Police have ruled out at least one suspect using the DNA, and are working to identify more possible suspects.

Everything is on the table. Right now, detectives still doing the legwork, hoping to get more leads. Hopefully, somebody calls in and gives us a lead that we can examine, but we're also going the route of the genealogy route and that may take a little longer so we dont want to put all our eggs in that one basket," Kentish said.

Bernard Eyssalene, who has always been a champion for his sister, says he has some hope there could be justice for her after all.

Its like a hole that never gets filled. You move on in life because you have to, but that hole is always there and I wouldnt want anybody to go through that," he said.

There is a $50,000 reward for information that leads to a conviction in the two cases. Police are asking anyone who has any information to call 202-727-9099.

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2 Capitol Hill Killings Linked Through DNA Evidence After Nearly 40 Years - NBC4 Washington

As the Los Angeles Dodgers begin their pursuit of another World Series championship, Adidas is celebrating the team with a special makeup of the Ultra Boost 5.0 DNA.

Instead of a run-of-the-mill Dodgers shoe, Adidas styled this version of the runner after the uniquely colored rows of seats at Dodgers Stadium. The blue seats were inspired by the ocean and skies, green by the surrounding landscape, orange by the citys famous beaches, and yellow by the year-round sunshine its famous for. Adidas also teamed up with LA-based creative studio Down the Street to release a limited edition set of posters that sync up with the sneakers concept.

The Los Angeles Ultra Boost 5.0 DNA will release this Saturday, Oct. 15 for $190 at adidas.com and local LA retail stores, the latter of which will also be giving away 100 of the posters.

Adidas Ultra Boost 5.0 DNA Los AngelesRelease Date: 10/15/22Color:Grey Two/Silver Metallic/Core BlackStyle #: HP7421Price: $190

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There's Dodgers DNA in This LA-Themed Adidas Ultra Boost - Sole Collector

Healthcare workers treating patients with monkeypox should use personal protective equipment (PPE), regularly disinfect any frequently touched surfaces, and practise hand hygiene to protect themselves from becoming infected, researchers have said, after they found that viral DNA circulated widely in the air in hospital isolation treatment rooms.

These results suggest that monkeypox virus shed into a hospitalised patients environment poses an infection risk that needs to be managed, said Susan Gould of the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, who is an author of the study published in Lancet Microbe.1

She added, In the context of ward based care, our results support infection prevention and control measures designed to protect against exposure to infectious virus on surfaces and in the air, such as appropriate PPE, as well as applying measures designed to contain shed virus within hospitalised patients isolation rooms, including the use of negative pressure rooms and doffing areas.

More than 70000 cases of monkeypox and 26 deaths have been confirmed in 108 countries this year, the World Health Organization has reported.2 Most cases were recorded from May this year, when the zoonotic disease spread to many countries that had previously not reported outbreaks.

Although monkeypox is largely transmitted through direct physical contact between two peoplelargely through skin-to-skin contact with lesions, scabs, or body fluidshealthcare workers treating patients in the UK and the US have contracted the illness.3 In August two Brazilian nurses treating a patient who was infected with monkeypox at their home contracted the disease, probably from contaminated surfaces.4

To determine the risk of the diseases spread the researchers took samples from frequently touched surfaces, health workers PPE, and air samples during bedding changes in isolated rooms of patients with monkeypox at the Royal Free Hospital in London from 24 May to 17 June 2022. Virus DNA shed by the patients was detected on 93% (56/60) of surfaces in the isolation rooms, in five of 20 air samples, and on PPE.

Jake Dunning, a study author and researcher in diseases at the University of Oxford, told The BMJ, We expected to see a lot of monkeypox virus DNA in the isolation rooms based on what we know about virus shedding by patients with monkeypox, but the relatively low Ct values [monkeypox DNA cycle threshold] and the widespread distribution of DNA within some of the rooms, including the floors, was still a wow moment when the results came back.

We were even more amazed to see that we could capture virusparticularly virus that could be isolated in cell culturefrom air samples, as its technically challenging to do this.

The finding that the virus sampled in the air was capable of replicating in cells under laboratory conditions suggests that it could infect other people.

More viral DNA was detected in the air samples taken when bed linen was being changed, suggesting that replacing the sheets of an infected person increases the risk of exposure. It was likely that skin particles were shed into the sheets and then dispersed in the air when they were changed, the researchers said.

Gould said that the detection of live virus in air samples had added to the evidence that particles circulating in the air could be a route of transmission in community or household settings.

We also know that virus is in shed skin particles and up to 50% of household dust is shed skin cells, she added. We often forget that household dust is often stirred up and forms aerosolsthose particles we see slowly moving through the air when sunlight shines through a window.

The fact that so few cases of monkeypox had been detected in healthcare professionals, however, suggested that current safety precautions in hospitals were successfully reducing risk of transmission, the researchers said.

Gould added, That doesnt mean that exposure to respiratory droplets or short range respiratory aerosols containing virus is not contributing to transmission when people do have close contact, but the worse disease we see [with the most numerous lesions or most severe lesions] is often in areas that we think were directly exposed to the infectious lesions on skin or mucous membranes of someone with monkeypox.

The case and outbreak investigations do not suggest that monkeypox spreads like cough, cold, and flu viruses spread.

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Monkeypox: Virus DNA is widespread in treatment rooms, study finds - The BMJ

DNA stands for deoxyribonucleic acid, and it is one of the most fascinating things you ever saw. Perhaps you remember it from school, but do you remember everything there is to it? This hard-to-pronounce name comes from its structure, a sugar (deoxyribose) and phosphate backbone (acid) with units called bases sticking out from it located in the cells nucleus.

DNA is the chemical molecule that carries genetic information in all living things. It is passed on from one generation to the next and holds the key to our survival on the planet. Almost every single one of the cells in the body contains an exact copy of DNA. This is due to a characteristic that sets it apart from any other molecule: the ability to copy itself.

In 1869, Friedrich Miescher was the first scientist to isolate nucleic acid. By 1952, it was confirmed that DNA is the molecule responsible for the passing of genetic information. Since then, scientists have engaged in an authentic race into knowing more about it. This has led to remarkable discoveries and so many practical uses, especially in the medical field. You have probably heard stuff about cloning or the production of insulin in a lab. All of that and so much more stem from our understanding of this structure.

But what does it look like?

As you have seen in many images, including the one above, DNA looks like a twisted ladder. The rungs of a DNA molecule stand for small chemical bases: adenine (A), thymine (T), cytosine (C), and guanine (G). The side rails are composed of units called nucleotides, which are made of two substances: a phosphate group and a sugar.

Erwin Chargoff discovered in 1949 that even though different organisms have different amounts of DNA, the amount of adenine was always the same as thymine, and the amount of cytosine was always the same as guanine. This led to the conclusion that the ladder is composed of only A-T and C-G runs, called complementary bases, positioned in specific sequences that codify for particular characteristics.

But lets take a closer look at this fascinating and unique molecule to understand why it is so fundamental to the perpetuation of life.

This molecules chemical composition can be split into three major structural parts: a phosphate group, a deoxyribose sugar, and a nitrogenous base.

DNA is a polymer made of units called nucleotides. These nucleotides are joined together in rows through the chemical bond between the phosphate group of one and the deoxyribose sugar of the next and so on.

The two railways or backbones are joined together through weak hydrogen bonds between the nitrogenous bases (adenine and thymine; cytosine and guanine).

This is like the boring part of DNA since it is a repetitive sequence, one after the other. Here we find the acidic phosphate group of one nucleotide bonded to the deoxyribose sugar of the next to form a long line of nucleotides.

You can think of these as the exciting part of DNA. The nitrogen or nitrogenous bases make up the letters of your genome. The adenine from one strand bonds with the thymine of the other and the cytosine with guanine, creating an A-T and C-G order particular to each organism.Together with a deoxyribose and phosphate of the backbone, a nitrogenous base pair forms a nucleotide the monomer of the large nucleic acid polymer.

Now that you know that DNA stands for deoxyribonucleic acid, have you ever wondered why it is classified as an acid? Thats because it is!

Does the word phosphate remind you of phosphoric acid? The acidity of DNA comes from this phosphate group.An acid is defined as a substance that releases protons. Phosphoric acid (H3PO4), for instance, releases three protons. The only difference between phosphoric acid and the phosphate group is the replacement of two protons with protons from the sugar molecule of the nucleotide. The remaining proton is what makes the entire molecule acidic.

Typically, genetic material is found in the cells nucleus, where it never leaves. However, a small amount of DNA can also be found in the mitochondria (mitochondrial DNA).

This DNA is cut in segments tightly coiled in the nucleus into structures called chromosomes. In humans, DNA is stored in 23 pairs of chromosomes (46 in total). This means that all the cells in your body contain this number of chromosomes packed inside the nucleus. This number varies among organisms. Corn, for example, has 20 chromosomes total in each cell, while dogs have 78.

Your sex cells (sperms in males and ovules in females) contain only half that number of chromosomes, which, when combined with your couples sex cell, will create an entire being with the complete set of 46.

In its physical composition, DNA has the shape of a ladder that naturally coils into the famous double helix shape due to its weight and structure.

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a double helix as a helix or spiral consisting of two strands in the surface of a cylinder that coil around its axis. This definition applies especially to the structural arrangement of DNA.

The term was popularized by the 1968 book by James Watson (one of the discoverers of the DNA structure) titled The Double Helix: A Personal Account of the Discovery of the Structure of DNA.

James Watson and Francis Crick discovered this model of DNA in 1953, upon the grounds of the work of Rosalind Franklin, an X-ray crystallographer who took an X-ray diffraction photo of a DNA molecule. Then, aided by the work of other remarkable scientists, Watson and Crick were able to construct what we now know as the nucleic acid double helix.

Fortunately for us, all living things have DNA since they all need instructions on building their anatomies, configure their physiology, and pass on these instructions to their offspring. Even microscopic organisms such as some viruses have DNA.

All living organisms store their hereditary information in the form of DNA. This information includes all the instructions for every genetic trait, from skin color to blood type; it is stored in DNA segments. These segments are what we call genes.

So, what is the difference between your DNA and the DNA found in a carrot, for example? The difference is the sequence of DNA base pairs A, T, C, and G. Think of it as the English alphabet letters. You can create two different stories with the same 26 letters.

The order or sequence of base pairs (A-T and C-G) varies from one organism to another. This sequence determines the instructions to produce insulin in humans and chlorophyll in plants, for example. A humans DNA does not have the sequence that instructs chlorophyll production, and a plants DNA lacks the instructions for insulin.

But, if all cells in the human body have an exact copy of DNA, what is the difference between a bone cell and a skin cell, for example? That has to do with gene expression. Both cells activate the genes required for basic living processes, but only skin cells express the genes for skin proteins. So bone (and other) genes are silenced in this case.

You just saw how DNA has the same letters for all organisms. What is even more impressive is that the language of DNA is the same for all forms of life. Thus, a gene from an organism can be copied, transferred, and translated by any other living organism to produce the same protein.

Insulin is now created by a microbe that has been engineered with instructions from human DNA to produce human insulin. In other words, a copy of human genes for insulin production is copied and transferred to these microbes. These organisms have no blood or blood sugar, but they will produce insulin as they read the recipe to do so, even if they have no use for it.

Remember, DNA stands for deoxyribose nucleic acid and is the repository of all bacteria, plant, and animal hereditary information. In any organism, every cell has the same base sequence as every other cell in that living organism.

Three distinct processes encompass DNAs job to all organisms. These are replication, transcription, and translation.

Every cell in your body will divide through a process called mitosis. During this cell division, DNA copies itself via the process of replication.

So, how does DNA make a copy of itself?

Through a complex process involving enzymes, DNA uncoils into two single strands. Free nucleotides in the nucleus are bonded to each strand, complementing them and creating two exact copies.

DNA is the only molecule known to do this.

We mentioned earlier that DNA never exits the nucleus. So, what tells your cells what to do? This is where the process of transcription comes in. Through this process, DNA will create a blueprint that does exit the cell. This copy is known as RNA.

Transcription is an essential process to life as it sends the information out for cells to carry out their operations and manufacture large molecules called proteins, the building blocks of organisms. The process involves the uncoiling of DNA through specialized enzymes. Free nucleotides complement one of the strands, creating a unique strand (RNA) that acts as a blueprint that will exit the nucleus.

Many transcribed genes contain instructions for manufacturing proteins. This RNA will be read through the process of translation.

If you put together the words r, e, a, and d, you will get a grapheme that is translated into a sound; in this case, the word read. Similarly, a set of three consecutive nitrogenous bases are translated into a particular unit called an amino acid. Many amino acids put together form a protein.

This set of rules that determines what a gene in a DNA section stands for what amino acid is known as the genetic code. Simply put, the genetic code is used by living cells to translate encoded genetic information into proteins.

Just like in school you played games where you had to discover a secret message using a code, living cells will use this code to translate a message into actionable proteins.

How long is a DNA strand?

If you could uncoil the DNA in your chromosomes and stretch it out, it would be about 2 m (6 ft) long. Considering an estimated 37.2 trillion cells in your body, if you could put together every strand, the distance would be the equivalent of 96,000 round trips to the moon.

What are genes?

Genes are sections of DNA that codify for a protein. There are 20,000 of them in human DNA, which accounts for only 1.2%. The rest is noncoding DNA which scientists are only recently discovering has certain functions, like helping organize DNA in the nucleus and turning on and off gene expression.

Do all cells have the same DNA?

Yes, all living organisms have the same DNA but with different instructions among species.

What does DNA look like under a microscope?

You probably saw a project at a science fair called DNA extraction. In this case, DNA cells looked like strands of white noodles. But under a microscope, you can see the double-helix structure.

What is the difference between DNA and genes?

DNA is the molecule, and genes are sections of DNA. Take a look at the illustration below.

What is the difference between DNA and chromosome?

Chromosomes are packed bundles of DNA inside the nucleus. Every species has a distinct number of chromosomes in its cells.

What is the relationship between DNA bases and traits?

Traits in an organism are determined by the sequence of DNA bases.

Do all humans have the same DNA?

Yes, we do. In fact, we share about 99.8% of our DNA sequence.

Can a DNA test reveal if I have European ancestry?

Yes, a DNA test can reveal if you are more British than your brother, for example, by observing your DNA variations and comparing them to certain populations.

DNA stands for deoxyribosenucleaic acid. There is a lot to DNA that we have been able to understand through the years. Your genome can reveal the genetic composition of your potential children or if your gene instructions make you more susceptible to a certain type of cancer. Through DNA, you can even find those ancestors you thought were lost.

In Nebula Genomics, we decrypt your entire DNA to provide you with the most comprehensive information of your genome. Imagine the whole new world that will unfold before your eyes! Our 30x Whole Genome Sequencing guarantees complete information on your genetic composition. Order your DNA test today!

Edited by Christina Swords, PhD

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What does DNA stand for? Learn more about this important molecule!

A body without a head or hands that was found hidden in a suitcase in New York state has finally been identified, 42 years after the victim was killed.

According to a statement from the New York State Police, the murder victim was identified as Anna L. Papalardo-Blake thanks to advances in DNA analysis.

Papalardo-Blake, 44, was found on March 20, 1980 in a travel trunk near a dumpster on the grounds of the Hudson View Apartment Complex in Fishkill, New York. She had last been seen leaving her receptionist job 60 miles away in Manhattan two days previously. For the past 42 years, police have been unable to identify the bodyuntil now.

"Because of recent advances in genetic technology, an identifiable DNA sample was obtained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Investigative Genealogy Team, in partnership with Othram, a private lab that specializes in cutting edge forensic DNA analysis," the police statement reads.

It remains a mystery who killed Papalardo-Blake and the police asked for anyone with information to get in touch with them.

The human body begins to decompose about four minutes after a person dies, and proceeds to go through several stages of decay, including autolysis, bloat, active decay, and skeletonization.

Autolysis involves the cells starting to die and burst, causing skin slippage. Then, gasses produced from bacterial decomposition within the gut cause bloating, which eventually ruptures the skin. Insects colonize the body, laying eggs inside orifices which hatch into maggots that eat the body. Eventually, there is nothing left but bone.

"The major things that drive [rate of decomposition] are temperature, humidity and insect activity," Patrick S. Randolph-Quinney, an associate professor of forensic science at Northumbria University in the U.K., told Newsweek.

After recognizable features like the face or fingerprints have been decomposed, it can be difficult to identify a body.

Papalardo-Blake was found by police two days after her disappearance, so the condition of the body would have depended heavily on the conditions, and how well-sealed the suitcase was.

"I've seen bodies that are in Samsonite suitcase, the sealable ones, where you can't get oxygen in it and can't get access to insects, and basically it hermetically seals it," Randolph-Quinney said.

"That creates a different pattern of decomposition than you find if a body is allowed to decompose naturally. So you know, a body could be in a Samsonite suitcase, and it will be decomposing, but the fluids will be inside the suitcase, the skin will go through various changes, and start to decompose. Even if it's in a sealed suitcase, it will have a slower rate of decomposition than many other environments. "

"If a body was in something that's a little less hermetically sealed, then generally what you would get is you maybe get some insects in there. You would certainly have an exchange of gas. Even if it's only a few days, then you would potentially have quite advanced decomposition, especially if you get an insect in there."

The lack of head and hands would have made it extremely difficult for forensic scientists at the time to identify the body, as in the 1980s DNA identification was crude and forensics relied mostly on facial, dental and fingerprint records.

"Forty years ago we didn't have forensic DNA analysis," Randolph-Quinney said. "So they might have had blood serology in Europe and some blood group somebody was, but it wasn't till the 1980s that you had that the first use of forensic DNA and it was relatively coarse what we could do in this early, early period."

"These days, if somebody goes missing or something or body turns up and you have a suspected potential missing person, then very often what happens is you'll have the family liaison ... who will take things like the toothbrush, hair brushes, anything that might provide traces of their DNA, they may well take objects from the house that have got fingerprints on, that kind of thing," Randolph-Quinney said.

"We can also do things like familial DNA searching, where you might not be looking for an individual but you might get a hit on say, a sibling, or a parent or grandparent who's in the system. But again, that's a relatively recent phenomenon."

In modern times, DNA identification technology is a lot more sophisticated, so upon obtaining a new DNA sample that they could match to the body, they identified the body as that of Papalardo-Blake.

If a body is left outside, as Papalardo-Blake's was, the DNA will be degrading at the same time, which can interfere with results.

The rate of body and DNA decay is studied by forensic scientists using body farms, or human taphonomic research facilities, which place cadavers in different situations and measure how various processes go about.

"A lot of experimental work that goes on is about differences between bodies that are in the open, bodies in built structures, in collapsed buildings, that are buried, that are in cars, and underwater," Randolph-Quinney said. "They provide a lot of information about the rate and tempo of decomposition: what survives and what doesn't, what biomolecules survive, how DNA degrades, and what you can do with degraded DNA."

See the article here:
How DNA and Forensic Science Failed to Identify Headless Body for 40 Years - Newsweek

A project to tackle the biodiversity crisis using DNA data, genomic science that will fundamentally change conservation science and policy has been launched by European experts.

The new pan-European Biodiversity Genomic Europe (BGE) consortium was made public day (September 28) is leading the way with this large-scale application of genomic science. Impacts are predicted to be on a scale similar to those of the Human Genome Project in medicine. The 21 million ($20 million)project is co-funded by the European Commission, as well as the UK and Swiss governments.

Those involved in the project say time is running out. They have highlighted that an appalling one in four species on the planet are currently threatened with extinction, putting livelihoods, food supplies, and essential water and nutrient cycles at risk.

The consortium says knowledge is of the essence in the fight to reverse this unprecedented loss of species and degradation of ecosystems but that currently our understanding of how life on Earth functions and responds to environmental pressures is far from complete.

Genomics provides crucial new tools to answer these questions, and the BGE consortium will cause a quantum leap in the use of genomics across the continent.

It says despite centuries of scientific research, an estimated 80% of the worlds species still await scientific discovery and description. Even for described species, telling them apart is often difficult.

Moreover, the consortium says that interactions within and among species, and between species and their environment, create a hugely complex picture from individual to planetary levels. Genomic science is the best hope for success in mapping these interdependencies and predicting how individuals and groups may respond to environmental change.

By bringing together Europes key practitioners in two fundamental DNA-based technologies DNA barcoding and genome sequencing BGE will streamline the rollout of these methods across Europe.

DNA barcodinguses short sequences of DNA to discriminate between species analogous to the way conventional barcodes distinguish products in a supermarket. BGE says that with modern genetic sequencing techniques, DNA barcoding has the potential to dramatically accelerate the inventory of life on Earth, providing a basis for global conservation monitoring.

At the opposite end of the scale, it says,genome sequencingdetermines the order of DNA nucleotides the building blocks of the genetic code throughout the entire genome of any given species. This enables scientists to identify and locate genes and other features of the genome, creating a comparative map of the code that creates each organism. This provides a full picture of how biological systems function and, crucially, how species respond and adapt to environmental change.

Pete Hollingsworth, director of science at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, and deputy director of BGE, said:This vital European coalition brings together diverse expertise and infrastructure across two emerging technological streams using the power of DNA and genomic science to help understand and conserve biodiversity, providing the means to tackle some of the biggest challenges facing the planet today.

The EUs Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 and the European Green Deal make clear commitments to address challenges such as pollinator decline, the deterioration of key terrestrial, freshwater and marine habitats, and the impact of invasive non-native species on biodiversity.

The Horizon Europe-funded BGE Consortium a major investment in European genomic science provides the means to achieve these aims.

BGEs project director,Dimitris Koureas(Naturalis Biodiversity Center, The Netherlands) saidWe see BGE as a mechanism through which we can go out from the limitations of national investments that we already have in biodiversity genomics and into the European level. We are looking at BGE as a mechanism to build the economies of scope and scale that we need for the future.

BGE will also collaborate with the Earth BioGenome Project and International Barcode of Life.

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Project to tackle biodiversity crisis using power of DNA launched - Labiotech.eu