Selected Stories

Covering the life sciences inside and out

Vanishing Y Chromosomes

By Molly Sharlach

A new study reveals an association between smoking and rates of Y chromosome loss in blood cells, which may explain elevated cancer risk among male smokers.

Valuable Cord Blood Sits Unused

By Lydia Chain

High costs are keeping patients from using stem cells harvested from umbilical cords

Genome Digest

By Tracy Vence

What researchers are learning as they sequence, map, and decode species’ genomes

The Nutshell

Daily News Roundup

New NIH IRB Guidelines Proposed

By Jef Akst

A draft policy from the US National Institutes of Health suggests that clinical studies performed at multiple sites should be reviewed by a single institutional review board.

Watson Sells Nobel for $4.1M

By Molly Sharlach

James Watson, who helped to discover the structure of DNA, has auctioned off his Nobel Prize medal.

Shoring Up Golgi To Slow Alzheimer’s

By Kerry Grens

Blocking activity of a kinase in a mouse model protects Golgi in cells and reduces the build-up of amyloid β, a primary component of Alzheimer’s disease.

Multimedia

Video, Slideshows, Infographics

Image of the Day

A model of a specially designed nanoparticle that targets a drug (purple) specifically to the liver or kidney and can be tracked using a fluorescent dye (blue)

Disease on the Wing

Bats’ special relationship with pathogens

Sponsored Webinars

Educational videos and online seminars

Spotlight on Epigenetics Drug Discovery

Efforts to unravel the epigenome and a deeper understanding of the role epigenetic pathways play in cell function and disease have led to intense drug-discovery initiatives both in academia and the pharma/biotech industry. The Scientist brings together a panel of experts to address some of the key questions that the field is grappling with today.