COOL TOOL. See how the TALE protein (rainbow colored) recognizes the target DNA site and wraps around the double helix. When this TALE protein is fused to a nuclease (the scissors), creating a TALEN, the hybrid protein will clip the DNA at the target site. Credit: Jeffry D. Sander, Massachusetts General Hospital
This stunning picture of a human bone cancer cell won artistic accolades: 3rd place in the Nikon Small World Competition. DNA, the blueprint of life, is actually blue in this photo. The yellow squiggles are little powerhouses called mitochondria that generate ATP ‘fuel’ for the cell. The purple
This looks like the type of Lego kit I would get my grandkids for Christmas, or a new version of Tetris. It is, in fact, much cooler. These are ‘DNA bricks’—short strands of DNA that plug into each other like a peg in a hole. I’m excited to
Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., was officially sworn in on Monday, August 17, 2009 as the 16th director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Dr. Collins was nominated by President Barack Obama on July 8, and was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate on August 7.