RNA and DNA are chemical cousins. But one tiny difference between them (an extra oxygen atom repeated along RNA’s backbone) ...

Caltech researchers have identified a novel chemical reaction that could explain the formation of the building blocks of DNA and RNA, the molecules that encode all of life's functions. The work is an ...

Despite being made from a relatively simple set of building blocks, ribonucleic acid (RNA) has a broad array of complex responsibilities. From providing structure to carrying the instructions for ...

In most modern cells, DNA stores the genetic blueprint, and relies on proteins to replicate, repair and build from those blueprints. At the same time, proteins require instructions from DNA to be made ...

The landmark ideas of Watson and Crick relied heavily on the work of other scientists. What did the duo actually discover? Many people believe that American biologist James Watson and English ...

Scientists have identified a previously unrecognized layer of the human genome. It's built not from DNA's usual building blocks, but from small fragments of RNA embedded directly inside it. Georgia ...

Northwestern Medicine scientists have discovered that little-studied DNA structures play a central role in organizing the human genome and controlling gene activity, according to a new study published ...

An innovative new technique uses a novel DNA barcode system to track hundreds of RNA and protein molecules in single cells within thick biological samples, providing researchers with a full picture of ...

The Okazaki Fragments That Solved the Mystery of DNA Replication1. The Mystery That Could Not Be Solved by the Discovery of ...

A graphic representation of a round, lumpy, blue protein and a single, comblike, purple strand of RNA interacting with a twisted, double, blue strand of DNA that separates where it meets the RNA. A ...

Scientists may have found a clue to one of the biggest mysteries surrounding the origin of life: how fragile RNA molecules could gather and survive before cells existed. New research shows that RNA is ...