• Science

    Mammoth (DNA) Resurrection

    By Jaya Jiwatram Posted on 11.20.2008 2 Comments

    Long gone are the days when woolly mammoths roamed the icy North American and Eurasian turf 10,000 years ago. But in the labs of Penn State University they have been resurrected—well, almost. While you won't see a shaggy, 12-feet-tall mammoth brought back from the dead any time soon (unlike the 16-year-old frozen mice earlier this month), scientists at Penn State are the first to decode almost the entire DNA set of the now extinct species of elephant.

    11.19.2008 at 02:25pm - Comment by JohnLloydScharf

    These articles are confusing. The Nature article says they were doing a mitochondrial DNA sequence. I can see how their mitochondrial DNA sequence can be 100 times more extensive than any other published and still have very little done compared to humans. Humans have less than 17,000 base pairs, though, in their mitochondrial DNA. I definitely doubt that any animal has a mitochondrial genome of 4 billion base pairs. However, nuclear DNA breaks down into such small pieces that it is much harder to sequence. I COULD see a modern elephant's nuclear DNA having its whole nuclear genome being sequenced and being 4 billion base pairs. This article needs to be worked over by a science editor.

  • Science

    Hunting for Ancestors? Look No Further Than Your Genes

    By Laura Allen Posted on 9.10.2008 3 Comments

    Mancini is my grandfather’s surname, and what a goose chase it’s been to find the Italian village from which his forebears hailed. Grandpa doesn't know its name because he was never told. Great-aunt Liz simply forgot. Finally, I got a tip from a friend of the famiglia who once hung around my late great-uncle “Tweet’s” luncheonette. The village was called Fontanelle. But which Fontanelle? Google Maps turned up two candidates of the same name, separated nearly 350 miles.

    10.8.2008 at 11:04am - Comment by JohnLloydScharf

    I was greatly disappointed to read your article entitled, "Hunting for Ancestors? Look No Further Than Your Genes" I know for a fact that many who are orphans or children of orphans will be disappointed to learn that this is a terrible misrepresentation of what is possible for a DNA test of any sort. I have had extensive testing of my Y chromosome DNA (more than 67 markers) and a full genome sequencing of my miochondrial DNA. No DNA testing company or responsible authority in DNA testing would make this claim. I am disappointed that you did not check up on this claim before putting it into print. The term "could" is certainly a wonderful modifier to attempt to justify what is claimed. However, it is likely that this "could" will be 25 or 30 years into the future, depending on how many and who will be tested.



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