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Epitranscriptomics: RNA's Own Epigenetic Layer

Epitranscriptomics: RNA's Own Epigenetic Layer

In 1974, scientists discovered something curious about DNA. The nucleotide bases—the A, T, G, C that encode genetic information—weren't always plain. Sometimes they had chemical groups attached. Methyl groups, mostly, stuck onto cytosine bases. This methylation didn't change the genetic sequence, but it changed

The Mitochondria Mythos

The Mitochondria Mythos

Two billion years ago, a bacterium crawled inside another cell and never left. That's the origin story of every complex cell on Earth. The invader—or maybe the guest—became the mitochondrion. It gave up its independence in exchange for protection. The host cell gave up some autonomy

Synthesis: RNA as Information Processor

Synthesis: RNA as Information Processor

Let's pull it together. Over the past seven articles, we've traced the RNA renaissance from its roots to its frontiers. We've seen RNA transform from a simple messenger—a tape carrying instructions from DNA to ribosomes—into something vastly more complex: a regulator, a

Phase Separation: The Liquid Physics of Cells

Phase Separation: The Liquid Physics of Cells

In 2009, Cliff Brangwynne and Tony Hyman published a paper that would quietly reshape cell biology. They were studying germline granules in C. elegans—small structures inside cells that contain RNA and proteins and are involved in early development. Scientists had known about these granules for decades. They'd

Circular RNA: The Newly Discovered Layer

Circular RNA: The Newly Discovered Layer

In 1976, researchers studying plant viruses found something strange. Some viral RNA molecules weren't linear chains with two ends—they were closed loops. Circles. The RNA's 3' end was covalently bonded to its 5' end, forming a continuous ring. This was interesting but seemed

Mitochondrial DNA: Your Other Genome

Mitochondrial DNA: Your Other Genome

You have two genomes. One sits in the nucleus of every cell—about 3 billion base pairs spread across 23 chromosome pairs, inherited from both parents, encoding roughly 20,000 genes. This is the genome everyone talks about. The one 23andMe analyzes. The one that carries most of your hereditary

ATP: The Energy Currency of Life

ATP: The Energy Currency of Life

Right now, as you read this sentence, your body is producing about 40 kilograms of ATP. Not over your lifetime. Not per year. Per day. Every single day, you synthesize roughly your body weight in adenosine triphosphate—the molecule that powers nearly every energy-requiring process in your cells. You don&