Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain
the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in
Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles
and JavaScript.
Fluorescently tagged nucleotides (small white 'dots') bound to complementary bases on immobilized single DNA molecules provide the backdrop for this image. With four week-long runs on one instrument, Pushkarev et al. sequence an individual's genome (p 847). Credits: Erin Dewalt, based on "One in a million" by Dimitri Vervitsiotis/Getty Images
As the cost of human genome sequencing plunges and large-scale genome-phenotype studies become possible, society should do more to reward those individuals who choose to disclose their data, despite the risks.
Business plan competitions can earn you more than a plaque for the wall and a pat on the back—they can provide start-up money, experience and the attention your idea needs to get off the ground.
A survey of Canadian biotech firms reveals that their biotech collaborations with developing countries are not only significant but also increasingly reciprocal in terms of the exchange of financial resources and technological know-how.
Two recent events—the issuance of the world's first patent for induced pluripotent stem cells and, under a pilot system, the issuance of the fastest patent ever granted—signal a watershed in Japanese academia's transition from gown to town.
Modulatory proteins ensure that transcription factors are active when and where they should be. Wang et al. describe an algorithm for identifying modulators from a compendium of gene expression profiles and experimentally validate four diverse modulators of the MYC oncogene in human B cells.
Systemic delivery remains a major obstacle in therapeutic applications of siRNAs. Using RNA aptamer–siRNA chimeras with enhanced silencing activity and specificity, Dassie et al. achieve regression of xenograft prostate tumors by intraperitoneal injection.
Pushkarev et al. present the first human genome sequence obtained using single-molecule sequencing technology. These results demonstrate that human genome sequencing—previously the turf of large sequencing centers—is now within reach of an individual lab in a matter of weeks.
Hockemeyer et al. demonstrate targeted genetic modification of three genes in human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells using zinc-finger nucleases delivered on plasmids. They use the approach to generate a reporter cell line that monitors the pluripotent state, a drug-inducible overexpression system, and a reporter cell line for a gene that is not expressed in pluripotent stem cells.
Gene-specific changes in DNA methylation are promising biomarkers, but sensitive quantitative detection of these epigenetic marks remains challenging. Li et al. adapt the so-called BEAMing technology to enable high-throughput digital quantification of gene methylation in clinical samples.