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A woman long believed to be the 'first Black Briton' was in fact white and had local ancestry from southern England, according to a new genetic study that overturns more than a decade of public perception.For years, scientists believed the woman, known as the Beachy Head Woman, came from sub-Saharan Africa. Her remains were discovered near the cliffs of Beachy Head in East Sussex and were widely presented as early evidence of African presence in Roman Britain...Her remains were first rediscovered in 2012 in Eastbourne Town Hall, stored in a box suggesting they were originally excavated in the 1950s. At...

European researchers have achieved a milestone in paleogenomics by sequencing RNA from a woolly mammoth specimen dating back approximately 39,000 to 40,000 years, roughly three times older than the previous record for ancient RNA. The RNA was recovered from a well-preserved juvenile mammoth known as Yuka, discovered in northern Siberian permafrost in 2010, according to Love Dalén, a professor of evolutionary genomics at Stockholm University and lead author of a study published in the journal Cell. Dalén told the Wall Street Journal that the findings could aid in identifying the genetic traits responsible for the mammoth’s distinctive woolly coat. The...

As the manhunt for the Brown University shooter entered its sixth day Thursday, sources say police in Providence, Rhode Island, recovered live rounds from the shooting scene.

In an extraordinary—and ominously underreported—announcement, the Department of Defense’s research arm, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), has openly revealed a biological research effort that could fundamentally redefine life itself. The program, called Generative Optogenetics (GO), is not science fiction. According to DARPA’s own descriptions, it aims to use light to directly write DNA and RNA sequences inside living cells, effectively turning biology into something programmable at the molecular level. This is concerning, and if it’s not obvious why then pay close attention. DARPA has publicly acknowledged the goal of directing the synthesis of DNA and RNA within living...

An international team of researchers have successfully recovered and analysed ancient DNA from Egyptian mummies dating from approximately 1400 BCE to 400 BCE, including the first genome-wide data from three individuals. The study found that modern Egyptians share more ancestry with sub-Saharan Africans than ancient Egyptians did, whereas ancient Egyptians were found to be most closely related to ancient people from the Middle East and Western Asia. This study counters prior scepticism about the possibility of recovering reliable ancient DNA from Egyptian mummies. Despite the potential issues of degradation and contamination caused by climate and mummification methods, the authors were...

The most direct way to answer the ancestry question is through genetics. Recent studies of ancient DNA (aDNA) have provided a robust, chronologically consistent picture of the Egyptian people’s origins, showing remarkable stability over thousands of years, followed by gradual admixture. Genetic evidence shows that the foundational population of the Nile Valley was established long before the first dynasty. During the “Green Sahara” period (approx. 11,000 to 5,000 years ago), populations migrated towards the Nile from all directions as the Sahara dried, creating a unique, indigenous mix of Northeast African peoples and migrants from the Near East. A breakthrough 2025...

A trace of blood found on a pizza box inside a ransacked Northeast Florida home became the key evidence that helped detectives identify and locate a suspect, authorities said Monday. The incident originally took place on Jan. 28, when a Palm Coast homeowner returned to her residence to find the power cut, the internet disabled and the house burglarized. Between $2,500 and $3,000 in cash was missing, according to a press release from the Flagler County Sheriff's Office. While processing the scene, detectives discovered a red smear on a pizza box in the kitchen that they believed to be blood....

Most modern dog breeds have small amounts of wolf ancestry from long after dogs were domesticated, according to a new study. The wolf DNA isn't left over from when dogs and wolves diverged; instead, it most likely came from interbreeding in the past few thousand years. That wolfish influence may be linked to certain characteristics, such as size and personality traits, in different dog breeds, researchers reported Nov. 24 in the journal PNAS. "Dogs are our buddies, but apparently wolves have been a big part of shaping them into the companions we know and love today," study co-author Logan Kistler,...

We marked last week the death at age 97 of James D. Watson (1928 – 2025), co-discoverer with Francis Crick of the structure of DNA. Reflecting on his life leads to contradictory responses: a hero of science, whose work led to insights pointing to life’s intelligent design, he was also a bigoted atheist and champion of pseudoscientific racism.The names Watson and Crick are almost as iconic as the DNA double helix that they elucidated in 1953, for which they won the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine along with Maurice Wilkins. One discovery led to another: Crick’s sequence hypothesis...

James Watson, who co-discovered the double-helix structure of DNA in 1953, has died at age 97. Born in Chicago in 1928, Watson made the groundbreaking discovery at just 24 years old alongside British physicist Francis Crick. Watson died in hospice care after a brief illness, his son confirmed Friday, according to The Associated Press. "As a scientist, his and Francis Crick’s determination of the structure of DNA, based on data from Rosalind Franklin, Maurice Wilkins and their colleagues at King’s College London, was a pivotal moment in the life sciences," Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Watson’s former research institution, said in...

A pair of Ice Age “puppies” preserved in Siberian permafrost for over 14,000 years have turned out to be wolves, not early domesticated dogs. A recent study of two ancient “puppies” dating back more than 14,000 years suggests they were actually wolves, not early domestic dogs as once believed. Genetic testing revealed that the cubs were sisters, around two months old. Like modern wolves, they ate a combination of meat and plants. What surprised researchers most was the discovery of woolly rhinoceros remains in their stomachs, since such a massive animal would have been a difficult target for wolves to...

According to a statement released by Peking University, researchers led by Huang Yani and Pang Yuhong of Peking University analyzed the complete genomes of 58 individuals whose remains were recovered from central China's Baligang site. This Neolithic site is situated between the Yellow River basin to the north, where early farmers grew millet, and the Yangtze River basin to the south, where people planted rice. The DNA study suggests that in the early Neolithic period, the Baligang population comprised a mix of northern and southern East Asian ancestry. Then, some 4,200 years ago, there was an increase in people bearing...

On October 14, 2025, Missouri is set to execute Lance Shockley by lethal injection. The circumstantial evidence is compelling, but comprehensive DNA testing wasn’t done—and the courts have decided that it never will be. In 2005, Sergeant Carl Graham was investigating Shockley's role in a fatal drunk driving accident. Graham was killed by a rifle shot. Shockley (28) was charged with the murder. There were no eyewitness or physical evidence—no DNA, fingerprints, blood or murder weapon. Shockley's trial started on March 20, 2009. The jury found him guilty but deadlocked on the penalty—life or death. The trial judge sentenced him...

Scientists claim to have found evidence of alien genetic manipulation in human DNA, with large sections of genes seemingly 'inserted' into people, potentially affecting millions of humans. If confirmed, the discovery could fundamentally alter our understanding of human evolution and the future of the human race, said lead researcher Dr Max Rempel, the founder and chief executive of the DNA Resonance Research Foundation. The study, which has not yet undergone peer review, analyzed DNA from both ordinary people and self-reported alien abductees. In an examination of 581 complete families from the 1,000 Genomes Project, Rempel found 'large sequences' of DNA...

By KGThanks to advanced DNA technology, law enforcement has solved a 12-year-old case. Authorities now say the unidentified human remains -- discovered more than a decade ago -- belong to Velma Louise Silva Lee of Napa. Lee was born in 1936 and had been missing for years. Advanced DNA technology opened the door and shed light on a case that has stumped investigators for more than a decade. The mystery surrounding a human skull found in Redding 12 years ago has finally been solved. The family of Lee now has some answers. "This person's name was finally realized after many,...

FBI Director Kash Patel says investigators have found DNA evidence linking alleged Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson to the scene of last week's shooting. Patel made the statement during a Monday morning appearance on "Fox & Friends," saying the suspect's DNA was found on a screwdriver as well as a towel that was wrapped around the firearm believed to have been used in the shooting. "I can report today that the DNA hits from the towel that was wrapped around the firearm and the DNA on the screwdriver are positively processed for the suspect in custody," Patel said. Authorities say...

For the first time in the U.S., an identical twin has been convicted of a crime based on DNA analysis. The breakthrough came from Parabon Nanolabs, who’s scientists used deep whole genome sequencing to identify extremely rare “somatic mutations” that differentiated Russell Marubbio and his twin, John. The results were admitted as evidence in court, making last week’s conviction of Russell in the 1987 rape of a 50-year-old woman a landmark case. Case background On Dec. 19, 1987, the victim, a 50-year-old woman, was working as a clerk at a gas station in Woodbridge, Va. She left the store to...

BUENOS AIRES - They look like ordinary foals, docile with honey brown coats and white facial patches, content to spend their days munching alfalfa in a cordoned-off pasture in rural Buenos Aires province. But these five 10-month-olds are the world’s first genetically edited horses: cloned copies of a prize-winning horse named Polo Pureza, or Polo Purity, with a single DNA sequence inserted using CRISPR technology with the aim of producing explosive speed. Kheiron Biotech, the Argentine company that created the horses, says gene-editing has the potential to revolutionize horse breeding. While cloning creates a genetically identical copy, CRISPR functions as...

Bearded dragons are famous for their ability to change sex depending on heat and genes. Two new genome projects have revealed the likely master gene, Amh, behind this switch — finally solving a reptile mystery that has baffled scientists for years. Credit: Shutterstock Scientists have finally cracked one of the strangest mysteries in reptile biology: how bearded dragons decide their sex. Breakthrough Genomes Reveal Bearded Dragon’s Secrets Two separate research teams have now released near-complete reference genomes of the central bearded dragon (Pogona vitticeps), a lizard species that ranges widely across central eastern Australia and is also a favorite pet...

Cutting-edge technology could one day transform treatment for Down syndrome, as researchers have successfully deleted an extra chromosome in lab-grown cells. Down syndrome - which occurs when a person has three copies of chromosome 21 instead of two - alters brain development and can cause intellectual disability, learning difficulties and other health challenges. It affects about one in 700 births in the US, with an estimated 250,000 people living with the condition. Scientists from Mie University in Japan have used CRISPR-Cas9, a DNA-editing tool often described as 'molecular scissors,' to cut away the surplus chromosome in cells. Their system was...