Montreal doctors' breakthrough discovery about causes of cerebral palsy giving hope
A breakthrough discovery made by doctors at the Montreal Children's Hospital about the causes of cerebral palsy is giving new hope to one West Island family.
DNA researchers have given us a glimpse of what Ancient Egyptians may have looked like.
Researchers from Parabon NanoLabs, a Virginia-based DNA technology company, have created 3D reconstructions of the faces of three men after processing DNA samples from mummies.
The mummified men -- named JK2134, JK2888 and JK2911 -- are estimated to be between 2,000 and 2,800-years-old. They come from Abusir el-Meleq, an ancient Nile River community in Egypt. JK2134 is thought to date back from 776 to 569 BC and JK2888 is estimated to be from 97 to 2 BC, while JK2911 is from approximately 769 to 560 BC.
The researchers shared their findings at the 32nd International Symposium on Human Identification earlier this month.
Using a process called DNA phenotyping, they were able to extract genetic information about the men's physical characteristics and ancestry to generate 3D models of what they may have looked like when they were around 25 years of age.
The researchers found that the three men were primarily of Middle Eastern ancestry, with some Southern European ancestry mixed in. Their ancestry turned out to be more similar to modern Mediterranean and Middle Eastern people rather than present-day Egyptians.
Because the DNA samples were so old, some key genetic information was missing or damaged, so the researchers had to make a few predictions to fill in the gaps. The samples were missing the genetic information associated with eye colour and hair colour, so researchers applied dark brown hair and eyes -- the most common hair and eye colors in the Middle Eastern population.
Much of the genetic information for skin colour was also missing, so the researchers similarly predicted that the men had light brown complexions.
"It's great to see how genome sequencing and advanced bioinformatics can be applied to ancient DNA samples," said Ellen Greytak, Parabon's bioinformatics director, said in a news release.
Many police departments around the world use this technology to generate reconstructions when unidentified remains are found. Parabon researchers say it's the first time that such DNA analysis has been done on specimens that are this old.
A breakthrough discovery made by doctors at the Montreal Children's Hospital about the causes of cerebral palsy is giving new hope to one West Island family.
Warnings of up to 60 millimetres of rain and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces and one territory ahead of the Easter weekend.
An Ontario man who built a garage on his property has been locked in a battle with his electricity provider for a year and half over a severed power line.
Austin Hunter Turner died in 2017, on a night that his mother has rewound and replayed again and again, trying to make sense of what happened.
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
The estate of minimalist contemporary artist Donald Judd filed a lawsuit against Kardashian this week, claiming the fashion and beauty mogul promoted 'cheap knockoffs' of his furniture designs.
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Louis Gossett Jr., the first Black man to win a supporting actor Oscar and an Emmy winner for his role in the seminal TV miniseries 'Roots,' has died. He was 87.
B.C. conservation officers recently seized a nine-foot-long Burmese python from a home in Chilliwack.
A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.
The Ontario government is introducing changes to auto-insurance, but some experts say the move is ill-advised.
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff.
Newfoundland’s unique version of the Pine Marten has grown out of its threatened designation.
A Toronto man is out $12,000 after falling victim to a deepfake cryptocurrency scam that appeared to involve Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
It started small with a little pop tab collection to simply raise some money for charity and help someone — but it didn’t take long for word to get out that 10-year-old Jace Weber from Mildmay, Ont. was quickly building up a large supply of aluminum pop tabs.
There’s a group of people in Saskatoon that proudly call themselves dumpster divers, and they’re turning the city’s trash into treasure.
Ontario is facing a larger than anticipated deficit but the Doug Ford government still plans to balance its books before the next provincial election.