The ability to specifically target and modify genes in the mouse allows researchers to use this small rodent to study how certain genes contribute to human disease. A common method used to make genetic changes in mice and cells is called site-specific recombination, where two DNA strands are exchanged.

Researchers at North Carolina State University and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have produced the first link between a species of bacteria most commonly found in sheep and human illness.

The mysteries of the human genome are slowly being revealed – but the more we uncover the more complicated the picture becomes. This was one key message to emerge from the European Science Foundation's 3rd Functional Genomics Conference held in Innsbruck, Austria, on 1-4 October.

The University of Washington and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have been awarded a four-year $4.8 million contract by the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) of the National Institutes of Health to coordinate activities for several whole-genome studies of human disease.

Researchers have sequenced the genome of the relatively ancient rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta), providing perspective into how humans are genetically different from our primate relatives. In addition to benefiting human health research in areas as diverse as HIV and aging, the genome enhances understanding of primate evolution.