Can bacterial expand the genetic code?

The genetic code that creates all life on Earth consists of four nucleotide bases: Adenine, Thymine, Cytosine, and Guanine. In the double-stranded helix of DNA, these bases pair up with each other in a certain way. In recent years, researchers have been able to expand the genetic code with new, synthetic bases.

These novel bases have long chemical names, but they’ve been abbreviated X and Y. They are called xeno nucleic acids or XNAs. It took many years for researchers to figure out how to pair them properly within a genome. Now they’ve been able to do it, opening up many possibilities for creating synthetic organisms. Learn more about the potential uses of such organisms from the video.

Posted by Dr. Tim Sandle, Pharmaceutical Microbiology