Category: 7. Science

• AlphaGenome can predict how individual DNA changes affect gene expression and protein production across the entire human genome.
• The tool outperformed 22 of 24 other computer models in identifying specific features in DNA sequences.
• Academic researchers can use AlphaGenome free of charge while DeepMind works on commercial availability.

AI model analyzes entire genome

DeepMind has developed AlphaGenome, an AI tool that can explain how genetic changes affect gene function. The model builds on the company’s previous success with AlphaFold, which predicts how proteins fold into their three-dimensional shapes.

AlphaGenome can analyze DNA sequences up to one million base pairs long. The tool predicts where genes start and end, which can vary between different cell types. It also captures how RNA is processed and how much RNA is produced from the genes.

Outperforms other models

In tests, AlphaGenome performed better than 22 of 24 other computer models in identifying specific features in individual DNA sequences. This included coding and non-coding regions as well as transcription factor binding sites. The model also outperformed 24 of 26 models in predicting the effect of genetic variants on gene regulation.

AlphaGenome is the first AI tool that can handle the entire genome, not just the estimated 2 percent that codes for proteins. As Hani Goodarzi from the University of California San Francisco explains, the model can for the first time predict exactly where and how an RNA variant is expressed directly from a DNA sequence.

Helps cancer research

Marc Mansour, cancer molecular biologist at University College London, describes how his laboratory compares genomes from patients’ cancer cells with healthy cells. Thousands of individual letter changes emerge, but it’s difficult to determine which ones have functional consequences. AlphaGenome ranks the variants most likely to be significant, allowing researchers to focus their follow-up studies.

Caleb Lareau from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, who received early access to the AI, calls it the most comprehensive attempt to explain every possible change in the 3-billion-letter sequence of the human genome. Instead of testing hundreds of things, he can focus on a few after being guided to the right spot.

Trained on decades of data

The model builds on massive molecular biology databases produced over decades by publicly funded consortia. These include results from experiments tracking how certain mutations in human and mouse cells affect properties such as RNA production and levels of transcription factors.

By training on these datasets, AlphaGenome has learned to decipher DNA and identify both genes and non-gene sequences that orchestrate gene activity. The model can also identify genetic variants most likely to produce significant changes.

Useful for synthetic biology

The ability to predict how genetic changes affect gene expression becomes equally valuable for synthetic biologists. The AI can suggest whether newly developed genetic sequences would have beneficial effects before testing them in laboratory experiments.

DeepMind plans to release the source code and model weights when a peer-reviewed version of the paper is published. This will enable researchers to customize the tool for their own projects. Pushmeet Kohli, DeepMind’s vice president of research, says the company shared the model with external biosecurity experts who assessed that the benefits far outweigh the risks.

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Stone Age humans living near a lake in present-day Germany ran a “fat factory” to extract nutrients from animal bones, a new study shows. Archaeologists found about 1.2 lakh bone pieces and 16,000 flint tools at a site called Neumark-Nord.

Neanderthals crushed bones to get marrow, boiled them for hours and collected fat from the surface. This process needed planning: hunting, storing and setting up a special area. Fire use was also found at the site.

Scientists say this proves Neanderthals were smart and well-organised. They were not primitive, as often believed. Their skills helped them survive tough conditions with well-thought-out strategies.

“This attitude that Neanderthals were dumb — this is another data point that proves otherwise,” CNN quoted study coauthor Wil Roebroeks as saying.

Neanderthals lived in Eurasia and vanished 40,000 years ago. Earlier studies found they made yarn, glue, jewellery and cave art. New research reveals they also had a clever way of managing nutrition.

At the site in Germany, they boiled bones to get fat, which helped balance their diet. Experts say they likely knew that eating only lean meat without fat could be harmful.

This condition is now called protein poisoning. It causes weakness and can even be fatal. Early explorers called it “rabbit poisoning” when they faced similar problems from fatless meat.

Neanderthals, who weighed between 50 to 80 kg, could only eat a limited amount of protein daily. They ate protein around 300 grams without health problems.

This gave them just 1,200 calories, which was not enough for survival. So, they needed extra energy from fat or carbs. Since animal meat has little fat, they relied on bones for marrow.

Researchers found most bone remains at the German site came from large animals like horses, deer and extinct aurochs. Neanderthals mainly picked long bones with more marrow. It shows they smartly chose fatty parts to meet their energy needs for survival.

Smart survival strategies

Researchers are not fully sure how Neanderthals boiled bones. However, they likely used natural containers like birch bark, animal skin or stomach linings to hold water over the fire.

They might have made a fatty soup or broth, adding plants like hazelnuts, acorns, or wild fruits for taste and nutrition. These findings show that Neanderthals were not just basic hunter-gatherers. They planned well, did complex tasks and made full use of their resources.

Their smart survival strategies helped them get the most energy from their environment. Archaeologists have called these discoveries “exciting”. They believe it’s a big step in understanding early human intelligence and planning.

A space capsule carrying the ashes of 166 people, along with a collection of cannabis seeds, was lost after crashing into the Pacific Ocean during reentry. The capsule, part of a mission called “Mission Possible” by German aerospace start-up The Exploration Company (TEC), launched on June 23, 2025. Its cargo, arranged through Texas-based space burial firm Celestis, successfully completed two orbits around Earth before communication was lost. While the mission aimed to be Celestis’s first to return from orbit, a reentry anomaly led to the capsule’s destruction and the scattering of its contents at sea.

Space burial mission ends in loss after promising start

The Nyx capsule, designed and launched by The Exploration Company, initially performed well. It powered its payloads in orbit, stabilized after launch separation, and briefly re-established communication during reentry. However, the company lost contact just minutes before splashdown. TEC confirmed the capsule crashed into the Pacific Ocean, with no materials recovered. This was Celestis’s first attempt at a return-from-orbit space burial, carrying remains of 166 individuals entrusted by families around the world. The mission also carried cannabis seeds as part of the Martian Grow project, a citizen science initiative aimed at exploring the potential of farming cannabis on Mars. TEC has only launched one other capsule prior to Nyx, and while they hailed several technical milestones, they acknowledged the risks involved and expressed a commitment to relaunching in the future.

Families mourn while celestis promises support

Celestis co-founder Charles M. Chafer expressed disappointment and offered condolences to the families involved. He acknowledged the bravery of those who chose to participate in a first-of-its-kind return mission and emphasized the symbolic value of having their loved ones orbit Earth before their final resting place in the Pacific Ocean. Despite the tragic outcome, he noted that many milestones — launch, orbit, and controlled reentry — had been achieved. The company has reached out to affected families to offer support and discuss possible next steps. In his words, while no technical feat can replace the personal meaning behind such missions, “we remain committed to serving with transparency, compassion, and care.”

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