The Cornell Daily Sun (https://cornellsun.com/tag/genes/)
Researchers at the Chen Lab, led by Prof. Shuibing Chen, cell and developmental biology, recently published a study identifying a key gene in the pathology of COVID-19. The gene, CIART, helps establish the viral infection that causes COVID-19, also known as SARS-CoV-2.
Embark, a canine DNA testing company founded in 2015 by brothers Ryan and Adam Bokyo in Cornell’s Incubator for Life Science Companies, is now taking strides in studies of the canine genome. With the swab of a dog’s cheek, Embark can provide information about the dog’s genetic risk factors and ancestry.
“We’re about two percent different from chimps,” Prof. Chris Mason said. “He would have been a different species if seven percent of his DNA changed.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that one in 68 children have Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Yet, despite extensive research, the reason for the disorder’s development remains unclear. But that could soon change, thanks to research conducted by Yiqin Wang grad and Prof. Zhenglong Gu, nutritional sciences. The duo studied the link between certain states of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and ASD. mtDNA, unlike nuclear DNA, is inherited from the mother and while there are over three billion base pairs of nuclear DNA, there are about 16,500 base pairs of mtDNA.