"Tweezing" Apart DNA

Close-up of a microscope objective with a slide on the stage - Michael Longmire, Unsplash
Victoria Blute, Arizona Daily Star

University of Arizona researchers figured out a way to manipulate the genetic information of cells by "stretching" it. A team including Drs. Koen Visscher, Bennett Kalafut and Gary Skinner has discovered that the expression of genes can be controlled by causing enzymes that read genetic information to fall off DNA strands. Dr. Visscher, a professor a physics, is able to use optical "tweezers" and the power of a microscope to manipulate DNA molecules and ultimately understand how cells function at the most fundamental level.