In a bold rewrite of the recipe for life, scientists have designed a new type of DNA with 12 chemical letters instead of the usual four. This artificial genetic system is already helping to usher in the era of personalized medicine for millions of patients with HIV, hepatitis and other diseases and may one day […]
Chemical engineers at the California Institute of Technology have used various plant genes to genetically modify common baker’s yeast to produce large quantities of drugs, including antibiotics, nicotine, and even morphine. Writing about their work in Nature Chemical Biology, Caltech’s Christina D. Smolke and Kristy Hawkins explained how they genetically modified baker’s yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) […]
