The Basic Structure of Amino Acids
We’ve previously examined how the central dogma of molecular biology hinges on the precise translation of genetic information into proteins, utilizing a specific set of 20 proteinogenic amino acids. The term “proteinogenic amino acids” refers […]
Epigenetics and DNA Methylation
Epigenetics is a dynamic and rapidly expanding field within biology that is transforming our understanding of heredity, gene expression, and cellular function. The term “epigenetics,” derived from the Greek prefix epi, meaning “above” or “on […]
Where Does Life Come From? Early Ideas About Life’s Origins
Imagine cracking open a rotten log and seeing maggots wriggling inside, or noticing frogs suddenly appearing in a drying pond. For centuries, naturalists and philosophers observed these kinds of phenomena and asked: Where does life […]
More Than Food: How Farming and Animals First Revealed the Rules of Inheritance
As humans transitioned from nomadic wanderers to cultivating the land and tending herds, they engaged with unintentional experiments. You might envision fields of early grains swaying in the breeze or small flocks of the first […]
Biology 101: Our Earliest Steps in Understanding Life
Let’s think back for a minute. Way back. Not just to how people take things for granted nowadays, but to a time when humans first looked around at the world and tried to make sense […]