Today’s #MeetTheTeam: Writer Sandhyaa Venkatachalam, a science and travel writer, is interested in how genetics carry evolutionary information. She was inspired to join GeneBites from her childhood reading of the book “Tell Me Why”. Sandhyaa also loves travel literature ✈️!

Be on the lookout 👀 for our upcoming #MeetTheTeam posts, where we’ll be introducing you to the writers and editors behind many of our exciting recent articles!

It’s time for our periodic call for authors! If interested, please DM us for the link to the form by April 10.

Congratulations to GeneBites Senior Editor @jpflores.rbind.io for successfully defending his PhD 🎉! JP’s thesis work focused on how a type of cellular stress impacts the 3D structure of chromatin.

You can read a preprint from his thesis work here: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

#GoodNews #PhD

For the Love of Genetics: Our DNA’s Impact on Relationship Health We usually think of DNA as a blueprint for physical traits like eye color and height. But our genes also quietly shape how we experience the world, respond to stress, and form and sustain relations…

What do genetic predispositions have to do with your relationships ♥️? GeneBites writer Emily Faulkner discusses research into associations between genetic variants and marriage 💍 patterns.

#genetics #relationships #scicomm

Check it out here: genebites.org/2026/02/27/f...

The Hidden Science of Parrot Colors Parrots display dramatic colors, from the famous green and red, to the less familiar blue, yellow and brownish tones. Although acknowledged as genetically inherited, the genes resulting in these di…

Polly 🦜 want a…pigment? GeneBites writer Sandhyaa Venkatachalam describes how gene mutations 🧬 affect the colors of parrots’ feathers.

Check it out here: genebites.org/2026/02/25/t...

#genetics #parrots #scicomm

Happy #InternationalDayofWomenandGirlsinScience!

The Cells That Help the Gut Keep Time A good song depends on more than hitting the right notes. It depends on timing. Somewhere in the background, a metronome keeps the beat steady so everything else can fall into place. New research s…

How do your intestines push their contents forward ▶️? Senior Editor @jpflores.rbind.io writes about a preprint study that discovered the previously unknown role of a group of gut cells in synchronizing 🕜 the process.

#intestines #glia #scicomm

Check it out here: genebites.org/2026/02/05/t...

Translating research into play: design insights for evidence-based science games in museum settings Digital games in museums face the challenge of translating complex scientific concepts into engaging experiences that facilitate both individual learning and peer discussion. This practice insight exa...

New Practice Insight in JCOM explores how evidence-based game design can translate complex science into play. Using a museum touchscreen game on the human microbiome, the study shows what works, and where social learning still falls short: jcom.sissa.it/article/pubi...

Answer the (KlebPha)Col: a new community resource for Klebsiella phage research As bacteria evolve to become more resistant to antibiotics, scientists are revisiting “phage therapy” (using natural viruses that destroy bacteria) as an avenue for treating infections. A new commu…

The rise of “superbugs” 🦠 poses a major public health threat. Social Media Editor @amandan-weiss.bsky.social describes a new scientific community-based resource for researching viruses that kill bacteria.

#genetics #scicomm #openscience

Check it out here: genebites.org/2026/01/30/a...

Rewriting the Cycle: How a New Model Could Transform Women’s Health For more than a century, scientists said one thing with certainty: mice do not menstruate. A new study has now rewritten that rule, and with it, how we study one of the most common biological proce…

Who says mice 🐁 can’t menstruate? Senior Editor @jpflores.rbind.io discusses a preprint study where scientists genetically engineered mice for menstrual-like bleeding to study the uterus’s rebuilding. That’s innovative, period.

#genetics #scicomm

Check it out here: genebites.org/2026/01/29/r...

Decoding Life: The Echo of Trauma It’s time to dig a little deeper into some newer genetics concepts. Previously in this series, we have explored the ins and outs of cell division and other genetic processes as a way to dive …

Trauma has lasting biological effects. GeneBites writer @pattersonhabitat.bsky.social explores a study that found that part of the biological impact of living through a massacre persisted through multiple generations 👪.

#epigenetics #empathy #scicomm

Check it out: genebites.org/2026/01/27/d...

Promoting speaker panel called "Scaling Public Trust in Science Through Journalism: Lessons from the AAAS MMF" featuring Michal Ruprecht, Chad Small and Peter Hall

🌵 Join us on February 14 at @aaas.org Annual Meeting to hear from our fellows! @michalruprecht.com, @smallthoughts.bsky.social and @peterha2l.bsky.social will be sharing their experiences as #MassMediaFellows, bringing their scientific expertise to newsrooms across the country.

The #DNADay26 Essay Contest is HERE! 🧬This year’s challenge: Analyze a genetic treatment or therapy developed or widely used in recent years. Teachers—help your students share their ideas with the world! Submit by March 4 👉 https://www.ashg.org/dna-day/ #ASHG

The X and Y Divide Isn’t Binary The X and Y chromosomes split hundreds of millions of years ago and seem to live very different lives. But new research shows they still regulate the same genes across the genome, quietly shaping b…

X and Y chromosomes don’t drive binary opposing outcomes. Senior Editor @jpflores.rbind.io discusses a study that found additional Y or inactive X chromosomes in cells affect activity of some genes 🧬 similarly.

#genetics #BeyondTheBinary #scicomm

Check it out here: genebites.org/2026/01/08/t...

One small gene therapy, one big advancement for muscular dystrophy While there are no drugs to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy, there is still hope for a treatment that can alleviate its cause and symptoms. A new gene therapy approach that introduces a mini vers…

Some gene therapies give patients a new, functional, version of the gene 🧬 that’s mutated. GeneBites writer Ethan Honeycutt describes the use of a miniaturized dystrophin gene to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy 💪.

#genetics #genetherapy #scicomm

Check it out here: genebites.org/2025/12/17/o...

Decoding Life: Spit Take…the Downfall of 23andMe And Our DNA Future Stories bring people together, help learners see deeper meaning, and provide much needed context to learning. Here we examine the different sides of the home genetic revolution, and how something t…

When thinking about data privacy 🔒, does your mind go to genetics 🧬? GeneBites writer @pattersonhabitat.bsky.social describes the political and ethical implications of 23andMe’s bankruptcy and sale of clients’ genetic data.

#genetics #data #scicomm

Check it out here: genebites.org/2025/12/13/d...

Sailing across the ocean: Bluebottles are found to have four distinct populations The ocean is full of biodiversity; however, with no apparent geographic barriers to initiate speciation we do not fully understand how new species form in the ocean. Blue bottles shed some light in…

Wave 🌊 hello to genetic discoveries about ocean-dwellers 🪼! GeneBites writer @ecoevodanny.bsky.social describes the finding that there are genetically-distinct populations of bluebottles with unique body shapes.

Check it out here: genebites.org/2025/12/03/s...

#genetics #marinebiology #scicomm

The Scientific American Staff’s Favorite Books of 2025 Here are the 67 books Scientific American staffers couldn’t put down this year, from fantasy epics to gripping nonfiction

It's the most wonderful time of the year, best-of book list time! At @sciam.bsky.social we do a fun spin, highlighting a ton of books individual staffers read this year and loved, and it's always a pleasure to contribute. Check out this year's list (with lots of entries from yours truly): 📚💙

An illustration of a woman wearing an axolotl costume in front of an audience, with text: Embracing my silly side makes me a better scientist. I wish I’d done it sooner

"In the end, I have come to realize that being authentic at work is not a weakness, but rather a strength." #ScienceWorkingLife https://scim.ag/49B7hRv

🧪 ✏️Apply for the 2026 Diverse Voices in Science Journalism Internship with
@science.org! 🧪 ✏️

This could be for you if you're a student from a community historically underrepresented in #journalism who's interested in in covering science for general audiences: recruiting.ultipro.com/AME1123ASEM/...

A New Flu Variant May Make Cold Season Brutal This Year U.S. flu rates remain low, but experts are keeping an eye on a new strain that’s been linked to unexpectedly early and severe seasons in several other countries

"Influenza is no joke."

Here's what we know so far about this coming flu season. It's not too late to vaccinate 💉 @sciam.bsky.social

www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-...

Micro Cause, Macro Effect: How Micronutrients Effect Human Evolution We know how important it is to get our protein, but what about our magnesium or selenium? This new study explores how living in areas lacking specific micronutrients could influence human genetics.

There’s a saying: "you are what you eat" 🍴. GeneBites writer Sarah Lester describes research into how lack of micronutrient availability can impact human evolution 🧬.

#genetics #evolution #scicomm

Check it out here: genebites.org/2025/11/20/m...

Code of the Nectar: How Flowers make their Sweet Deal Nectar, produced by specialized glands called nectaries in flowers, is instrumental in attracting pollinators and enabling plant reproduction. Its composition and production are determined by a com…

How sweet! GeneBites writer Sandhyaa Venkatachalam describes nectar release in flowering plants 🌼 and how pollinators 🐝 impact the evolution of nectar-releasing structures.

#genetics #plants #scicomm

Check it out here: genebites.org/2025/11/11/c...

Gene editing can restore hearing in mice with a form of genetic deafness A method known as CRISPR allows scientists to edit the DNA of living organisms. A recent paper shows that this method can be used to restore hearing in adult mice with a form of genetic deafness.

Gene editing is showing promise even in its ear-ly days 👂. GeneBites writer Olivia Fish describes a study where scientists used CRISPR gene editing 🧬 to restore hearing in mice 🐁 that were deaf due to a genetic mutation.

#genetics #CRISPR #scicomm

Check it out here: genebites.org/2025/11/07/g...

From Wolves to Woofs: How DNA Made Dogs So Friendly Long before dogs became part of our families, they were wild wolves. A small change in their DNA may have helped them take the first step toward friendship with humans.

Is “jumping DNA” the key to dogs' 🐶 friendliness? GeneBites writer Emily Faulkner describes the finding that the lack of a mobile DNA 🧬 sequence in a gene in most dogs may explain social behavioral differences from wolves.

#genetics #dog #scicomm

Check it out here: genebites.org/2025/10/20/f...

CRISPR editing has an unwanted passenger Written by: Guest Writer Olivia Conway Stray bits of DNA can slip into our genomes without warning—not from an invader, but from our own mitochondria. These genetic stowaways, called NUMTs, may cau…

Gene editing 🧬 can have side effects. Guest writer Olivia Conway describes the finding that CRISPR gene editing ✂️ is associated with an increase in mitochondrial DNA pieces being incorporated into the nuclear genome.

#genetics #CRISPR #scicomm

Check it out here: genebites.org/2025/09/30/c...

Profiling genomic openness offers insights into the biology of major depressive disorder A new study by Chawla et al. characterized changes in DNA openness associated with major depressive disorder in human brain samples. They identified cell type-specific changes and linked genetic va…

Gene sequence 🧬 variants aren’t the only factor impacting health. GeneBites writer @amandan-weiss.bsky.social describes a study profiling genomic openness in brain samples 🧠 from people with major depressive disorder.

#epigenetics #MDD #scicomm

Check it out here: genebites.org/2025/09/17/p...

Happy #Halloween 🎃! Did you know that genomic studies have suggested that digestive system toxins may play a role in how Ophiocordyceps fungi turn ants 🐜 into zombies 🧟?

Here are some studies about it: doi.org/10.1111/mec...., doi.org/10.1038/s415...

What’s your favorite eerie science fact?

Sex and the city (of termites) Sexual reproduction offers many evolutionary advantages. However, in some cases, female asexual reproduction reigns supreme. Yahshiro et al. explore how and why queens overthrew kings in certain te…

Did you know that some animals 🐛 use asexual reproduction? GeneBites writer Ethan Honeycutt discusses a study that found female-only termite colonies in Japan 🌏!

#genetics #insects #scicomm

Check it out here: genebites.org/2025/09/08/s...