With Britain recently deciding to proceed with draft regulations on the mitochondria replacement technique for preventing women from transmitting mitochondrial disorders to their children, the method joins the list of revolutionary fertility and embryology tools that have come under opposition and criticism. In the recent past, the somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) method has faced … Continue reading Editorial: Fear unfounded
Mitochondrial DNA
Editorial: Indo-African gene admixture
Published in The Hindu on July 28, 2011 India is a classic example of genetic potpourri. Though the Ancestral South Indians (ASIs) found in the four southern States are not related to any group outside India, populations in the north Indian States known as Ancestral North Indians (ANIs) exhibit a close genetic affinity to middle … Continue reading Editorial: Indo-African gene admixture
Editorial: Neanderthal genes in us
Published in The Hindu on May 15, 2010 Did Neanderthals and modern humans interbreed? While several methods, including the study of mitochondrial DNA of Neanderthals, failed to resolve this longstanding controversy, a comparison of the genomes of Neanderthals and modern humans shows that between 1 and 4 per cent of the DNA of humans living … Continue reading Editorial: Neanderthal genes in us
Editorial: A new human species
Published in The Hindu on April 10, 2010 Nearly 10 years after the genome of a living individual was first sequenced, and shortly after the sequencing of the genome of a 4,000-year-old male Eskimo, scientists have successfully sequenced the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genome of a nearly 40,000-year-old hominin. The study, published recently in Nature, was … Continue reading Editorial: A new human species
New species in human’s family tree found
Published in The Hindu on March 25, 2010 A team of scientists has successfully sequenced mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of a hominin who had lived in the Altai Mountain region of Siberia, Russia. This hominin had shared a common ancestor with anatomically modern humans and Neanderthals about 1 million years ago. Further investigation reveals that the … Continue reading New species in human’s family tree found
Editorial: Hair reveals our past
Published in The Hindu on February 24, 2010 In less than 10 years after the human genome from a living individual was first sequenced, scientists have successfully sequenced a complete ancient human genome (only partial ancient human genomes and mitochondrial DNA have been sequenced in the past). The study was published recently in Nature. The … Continue reading Editorial: Hair reveals our past
Now, ancient human genome studied
Published in The Hindu on February 11, 2010 For the first time ever the genome of an ancient human has been studied. The about 4,000-year-old sample studied was a human hair of an Eskimo recovered from permafrost sediments in Qeqertasussuk, Greenland. Four hair tufts were recovered and only one was studied (sequenced). The hair was … Continue reading Now, ancient human genome studied
Editorial: A giant leap in sequencing Neanderthal genome
Published in The Hindu on February 25, 2009 The successful completion of a rough draft of the Neanderthal genome — this is the first time that a genome of an extinct organism has been sequenced — marks a giant leap in evolution science. The announcement coincided with the 200th birth anniversary of Charles Darwin. The … Continue reading Editorial: A giant leap in sequencing Neanderthal genome
Unlocking the secrets of human evolution
Published in The Hindu on February 19, 2009 Preliminary study of the Neanderthal genome reveals many thousands of differences between the two closest relatives The genetic makeup of chimpanzees and modern humans differ by only 1 per cent. And in the case of Neanderthals, the difference is as small as 0.5 per cent. The rough … Continue reading Unlocking the secrets of human evolution
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