A drug that could make you grow sensory whiskers (and penis spines)

Vibrissae near the nose and above the eyes of ...

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“Only a few molecules separate you from having sensory whiskers and a penis spine. That’s right – evolution has cheated you out of those whiskers that make your cat a super-sensor and the spines that, well, make your penis super-sensitive. A study published today in Nature reveals that human DNA still bears traces of genes that could, if tinkered with slightly, cause the next generation of Homo sapiens to have new sensory organs. And penis spines. How would that work?” (via Gizmodo).

A virus so large it gets viruses

OBERSCHLEISSHEIM, GERMANY - MAY 04:  A medical...

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“Last year, researchers uncovered the largest virus yet discovered. With a genome that is over 700,000 base pairs long, the CroV virus has more DNA than some bacteria. Fortunately, it infects a small, unicellular organism that’s very distantly related to humans. Now, the same research team is back, this time announcing that they’ve discovered a virus that attacks CroV, and may just have given rise to all transposable elements, sometimes known as jumping genes.” (via Nobel Intent)

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