This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer's Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
YourekaScience
It's hard to imagine a time when we didn't know about DNA, what it is made of, and how important it is in biology. Avery, MacLeod and McCarty conducted this seminal experiment to discover the molecule of heredity: DNA! This fundamental discovery formed the basis for biology as we know it, and all that has come from it: DNA double helix structure, process for DNA replication, understanding our development, diseases, genetic engineering, developing medicines, and the list goes on.
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer's Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer's Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
updated 6 years ago
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer's Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
To learn more about how the cell processes its messenger RNA before translation, watch our previous video on RNA splicing, a clever mechanism where gibberish portions of RNA are cut out to create a coherent message as well as produce protein variants from a limited set of genes. youtu.be/CCGX05JKtSU
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content! explorebiology.org
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
If you enjoyed learning about the macromolecules and want to keep learning about cell biology, check out our previous video "Explore the Organelles of the Cell" where we zoom out just a little bit and give you a tour of the intricate structures that make up our cells!
youtu.be/3jS715O3_NQ.
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
If you enjoyed learning about myelin's importance in the nervous system, check out our previous video on Metachromatic Leukodystrophy (MLD), a devastating genetic disease that comes in multiple forms and affects the myelin around neurons in the brain and spinal cord.
youtu.be/_QNy1bT8VKs
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
Evolution is the change in a population that is inherited over generations. In this video, we will explain what evolution is and discuss the factors that drive micro-evolution.
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
Learn how scientists use mouse models to understand how our genes contribute to biology and disease.
Understanding the exact role a gene plays in biology or disease is challenging because multicellular organisms, like humans, are complex. Just over thirty years ago a group of scientists made a pivotal discovery that led to the development of an important tool that changed the way scientists could study the role of a single gene and its impact on an entire biological system: the knockout mouse.
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
www.yourekascience.org/videos/coiled-what-is-chromatin
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
Our DNA sequence encodes information to make proteins. However, this video reveals that the protein coding information in genes (exons) can be interrupted by non-coding information (introns) that needs to be removed by the process of RNA splicing. Find out what this means for our biology!
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
explorebiology.org/videos
Learn about homeostasis, or how our bodies maintain optimal conditions for our numerous biological processes to run smoothly.
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
explorebiology.org/videos
How do we have enough energy to do a high jump or run a mile? Learn how our bodies turn food into fuel, what happens in some metabolic diseases, and how we study metabolism!
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
explorebiology.org/videos
Journey through the many steps involved in the drug development process, including 1) high through put screening to find compounds that might be drug candidates, 2) animal trials to examine safety and efficacy, 3) an Investigational New Drug (IND) application, and 4) phase I, II and III clinical trials in humans. If a medicine makes it through all steps, it can be approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat a disease.
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
explorebiology.org/videos
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
What is bioinformatics? Learn how bioinformatics can help us better understand our genes!
From sequencing to bioinformatic analysis, we cover all of the basics!
Bioinformatics is a field that uses computers, software tools, and statistics to analyze large data sets of DNA sequence information, leading to a revolution in genomics and personalized medicine. This video describes how bioinformatic tools can be used to compare genes between species, analyze mutations in the cancer genome of a specific patient, and has been used to uncover interesting new biology such as the CRISPR system.
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content! explorebiology.org
Take a tour to explore the different parts of the cell that allow our bodies to function so seamlessly! Learn about the functions of eukaryotic organelles, including the nucleus, nucleolus, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus, endosomes, lysosome, mitochondria as well as the role of the cytoskeleton (actin and microtubules) in organizing these organelles.
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
Discover the experiments that led to this intriguing hypothesis.
This video is based on a recent publication by Shah et al. in Cell Stem Cell, May 2021 titled Pathogenic LMNA variants disrupt cardiac lamina-chromatin interactions and de-repress alternative fate genes.
cell.com/cell-stem-cell/fulltext/S1934-5909(20)30600-7
http://yourekascience.org/portfolio/how-the-3d-organization-of-dna-controls-cell-identity
We use maps almost every day. Researchers have also created maps of our genome to help us navigate and find genes of interest!
Join us and explore the discovery of gene linkage which has led to the development of the ultimate high resolution map of the human genome, and important implications for human health! Thanks to these findings, we have been able to isolate genes of interest, identify genes that cause disease, and sequence the entire human genome!
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology explorebiology.org/videos to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology explorebiology.org/videos to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
In the 1970's, two scientists questioned the central dogma and made one of the most important discoveries in biology: that RNA could be turned back into DNA using an enzyme called reverse transcriptase! Now the reverse transcriptase enzyme is widely used in scientific research and as a therapeutic target for diseases like HIV. But it wasn't always so obvious that RNA could be transcribed back into DNA...
Take a trip back in time to make this fundamental discovery alongside the scientists!
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer’s Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content! explorebiology.org
http://yourekascience.org/portfolio/herd-immunity
You may have heard of cancer immunotherapies. But what are they and how do they work? Learn how a T cell is able to recognize the difference between our own healthy tissues and foreign things that need to be destroyed, like cells infected by bacteria or viruses. Immunotherapies are designed to help T cells find and eliminate cancer cells to fight off cancer. They have provided benefits to many cancer patients.
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, visit Explorer's Guide to Biology to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
This video was first released as part of the Explorer’s Guide to Biology. If you enjoyed watching this, go to explorebiology.org/videos to see more Youreka Science videos and educational content!
This video was produced in collaboration with Team Telomere teamtelomere.org
References:
Synlogic Therapeutics: synlogictx.com
Isabella et al. Nature Biotechnology volume 36, pages 857–864 (2018)
Ozdemir et al. Cell Systems volume 7, issue 1, pages 5-16 (2018)
NY Times. Scientists are retooling bacteria to cure disease. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/04/health/synthetic-biology-pku.html. Accessed March 19, 2019.
Mayo Clinic. Phenylketonnuria (PKU). mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/phenylketonuria/symptoms-causes/syc-20376302. Accessed March 19, 2019.
Ongoing clinical trial information: clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03516487?cond=phenylketonuria&draw=4&rank=38
Here is what we created!
Why do certain species reproduce sexual and others reproduce asexually?
Learn how and why sexual and asexual reproduction have evolved and how they have contributed to the genetic diversity we see today!
This video was produced in collaboration with iBiology
Genetics mini-course: What is the Hardy Weinberg Equilibrium?
Learn all about the concept of combining Darwinian evolution and Mendelian genetics to study populations using fun practical examples!
This video was produced in collaboration with iBiology
Find out how scientists are using stem cells to attempt to repair the neuronal highways that are damaged in multiple sclerosis (MS).
This video was produced as part of the Americans for Cures Foundation's Report Back to the Public program. For more information about Multiple Sclerosis disease, check out the Americans for Cures website, and follow us on Facebook or Twitter for live updates.
Have you ever wondered where medicines come from? Or how medicines are tested for efficacy and safety before becoming commercially available?
Find out what clinical trials are and the purpose of this rigorous testing process.
This video was produced as part of the Americans for Cures Foundation's Report Back to the Public. For more information about clinical trials, check out the Americans for Cures website, Facebook or Twitter for live updates.
Here is what we created!
The fundamental mechanisms governing how cells form an identity such as becoming a muscle cell or a nerve cell are not fully understood. Multiple diseases, such as cancer, have been linked to cells going down the wrong developmental path during maturation. This new study suggests that the ability of a stem cell to turn into a heart muscle cell depends on the 3D organization of the DNA in the nucleus which controls what portions of the DNA are available for activation
This video was produced in collaboration with Americans For Cures and explains how stem cell research, funded by California's Proposition 71: the California Stem Cell Research and Cures Initiative, is leading to groundbreaking advances in SCID.
This video was produced as part of the Americans for Cures Foundation’s Report Back to the Public program. For more information about stem cells, check out the new Americans for Cures website, Facebook, YouTube, or Twitter accounts.
Sources:
http://csdd.tufts.edu/news/complete_story/pr_tufts_csdd_2014_cost_study
Lamberti Mary Jo. 2015 Profiles of New Approaches to
Improving the Efficiency and Performance
of Pharmaceutical Drug Development. Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development. http://csdd.tufts.edu/files/uploads/CSSD_PhRMAWhitePaperNEWEST2.pdf
Torjesen Ingrid. 2015. Drug development: the journey of a medicine from lab to shelf. The Pharmaceutical Journal.
Guest voiceover: Dr. Larry Goldstein
ALS is caused by the destruction of motor neurons. Find out how scientists are attempting to use stem cells as trojan horses to repair the injured motor neurons and produce new healthy motor neurons!
This video was produced as part of the Americans for Cures Foundation's Report Back to the Public program. For more information about Lou Gehrig's disease, check out the Americans for Cures website, and follow us on Facebook or Twitter for live updates.”
The Dynamic Regulatory Genome of Capsaspora and the Origin of Animal Multicellularity
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4877666
To attempt to treat the disease, researchers are trying to bypass the effect of the damaged PMM2 by cleverly disguising sugars to enter the cell and hopefully repair the dysfunctional proteins.
This video was produced with support from the Amour Fund.
This video was produced in collaboration with Americans For Cures and explains how stem cell research, funded by California's Proposition 71: the California Stem Cell Research and Cures Initiative, is leading to groundbreaking advances in sickle cell disease.
This video was produced as part of the Americans for Cures Foundation’s Report Back to the Public program. For more information about stem cells, check out the new Americans for Cures website, Facebook, YouTube, or Twitter accounts.
PrEP, short for pre-exposure prophylaxis, is a relatively new HIV prevention strategy in which an HIV-negative person takes a daily pill to reduce the risk for HIV infection.
PrEP has made headlines recently—and the messages haven't always been clear. Watch this video to get the facts about how PrEP works and see three PrEP myths busted.
This video was produced in collaboration with Americans For Cures and explains how stem cell research, funded by California’s Proposition 71: the California Stem Cell Research and Cures Initiative, is leading to groundbreaking advances in spinal cord injury.
This video was produced as part of the Americans for Cures Foundation’s Report Back to the Public program. For more information about stem cells, check out the new Americans for Cures website, Facebook, YouTube, or Twitter accounts.
In order to make protein, the gibberish portions of RNA are removed to create a coherent message. This is called RNA splicing. RNA splicing of a specific gene is defective in Spinal Muscular Atrophy. Find out how a new drug called "nusinersen" is attempting to repair this splicing defect.
This video was produced in collaboration with Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory.
Why do some people age more quickly than others?
This video describes pioneering research performed by the biologist Cynthia Kenyon, who hypothesized that genes could control the rate of aging. To figure out which genes regulate aging, scientists in Dr. Kenyon’s lab made mutations in the DNA of a tiny worm called C. elegans and looked to see which mutations caused the worms to live longer, healthier lives.
Amazingly, modifying just one gene, called Daf-2, allowed the worms to live twice as long as normal. Daf-2 is a conserved gene found in flies, mice, and humans, so its activity may regulate aging in our species as well.
Proteins are the building blocks of our bodies, including our cells and organs. Do you know how proteins are made?
In order to make protein, the gibberish portions of RNA are removed to create a coherent message. This is called RNA splicing and it is responsible for the creation of the wide array of proteins we produce from a limited set of genes.
This video was produced in collaboration with Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory.
A new hypothesis for how we as humans evolved from single cell organisms.
We all come from unicellular organisms. However, it is still unclear how we evolved into such complex multicellular organisms with the same DNA building blocks.
This new research suggests that the key to explaining the evolution of multicellular organisms may come from how our genes are turned on and off.
Stem cells are the builders and the repairmen of the world's most complex construction project: the creation of a human body!
Find out what stem cells are, where they come from, how they are used in medicine today, and what promise they hold for medicine tomorrow!
This video was produced in collaboration with Americans For Cures and explains how stem cell research, funded by California's Proposition 71: the California Stem Cell Research and Cures Initiative, is leading to groundbreaking advances in stem cells.
This video was produced as part of the Americans for Cures Foundation’s Report Back to the Public program. For more information about stem cells, check out the new Americans for Cures website, Facebook, YouTube, or Twitter accounts.


