We chat with Dr Tanya Renner from Pennsylvania State University who is interested not only in how these plants evolved but also whether we can add carnivorous genes into non carnivorous plants.
All in Evolution
My milkshake brings all the genes to the yard
While it might not be as dramatic a superpower as being able to live four kilometres up a freezing mountain, the ability of many humans to drink milk in adulthood is certainly handy. As the story goes, the spread of this gene through populations in some parts of the world coincided with the rise in dairy farming. In turn, this enabled people to get more protein and fat in their diets, grow healthy and strong, and outcompete the non-milk drinking populations around them. But the latest research suggests that this neat evolutionary Just So story may not be true.
EPAS1: The mountain gene
Tibetans have lived in the thin mountain air for more than 6,000 years thanks to a gene variant they originally inherited from the ancient Denisovans. The thin air has favoured the persistence of one particular version of a gene called EPAS1, which allows these mountain-dwellers to get along just fine despite the shortage of oxygen. But it’s not only high-altitude humans who have traces of ancestral ‘ghosts’ in their DNA, it’s their pets too.
Svante Pääbo: searching for secrets in ancient DNA
Where did we come from? And how are we related to the ancient species that came before us? Swedish geneticist Svante Pääbo is helping us find out - and, as has recently been announced, his work has led to him winning the 2022 Nobel prize in physiology or medicine “for his discoveries concerning the genomes of extinct hominins and human evolution”. So what did he discover?
Solar powered: the evolution of photosynthesis
Dr Kat Arney is turning the lights on, looking back at the origins of photosynthesis and the mysteries of the chloroplast genome. From The King James Bible to The Great Oxygen Catastrophe, every lungful of air you breathe has a remarkable story.
How to bee a queen
How can you find your place within a rigid social structure, and is it possible to rise up the ranks and the beehive and become queen? Dr Sally Le Page explores the evolution of societies.
Whorls apart: the genetics of fingerprints
We hear a lot about genetic fingerprinting, but what about the genetics of fingerprints? Dr Sally Le Page looks at the evolution of fingerprints in primates and koalas, why we have them, and what they can tell us about life before we were born.
Family dinners: when relatives are on the menu
Cannibalising your relatives doesn’t seem to be a one off, but a behaviour that has been deliberately and repeatedly selected for. So how can eating your family be a good thing for your genes? Presenter, Dr Sally Le Page, explores the gruesome evolution of family dinners, from offspring eating their mothers, siblings eating each other and parents eating their own children. Kids meal, anyone?
Jamie Foster: squids in space
Professor Jamie Foster is sending glow-in-the-dark squid into space to find out more about their microbiome.
Sarah McAnulty: the secret lives of squid
Squid biologist Dr Sarah McAnulty explains what squid are, how they evolved, and why they are so difficult to genetically modify.
Jennifer Raff: A Genetic History of the Americas
Jennifer Raff discusses her new book, Origin: A Genetic History of the Americas, telling the story of how humans first populated the American continents.
Matthew Jarron: the life of D'Arcy Thompson
Matthew Jarron, curator of the D’Arcy Thompson Zoology Museum, tells us the story of this geneticist’s extraordinary life.
Why don’t elephants get cancer? The curious case of TP53
A family trip to the zoo led Josh Schiffman to uncover the reason why elephants hardly ever develop cancer
Genes Down Under
A new platypus genome helps to explain some of the unusual characteristics of this mysterious monotreme
Stealing genes
Researchers have discovered that whitefly have ‘stolen’ protective genes from the plants they feed on
Where did DNA come from?
We explore the ideas behind the origins of RNA and DNA
Making new genes or stealing them?
We discover where genes come from, and how some species steal them
Benjamin Vernot: Digging for DNA in cave dirt
Benjamin Vernot is searching for traces of ancient humans by analysing DNA in cave dirt.
Kieren Mitchell: Direwolves and their DNA
Researchers are studying ancient DNA to understand the evolution and extinction of direwolves - yes, they’re real!
The story of Sonic Hedgehog
From six-toed cats to cyclops lambs, we explore the fascinating story and science behind the Sonic Hedgehog gene.