Naked Genetics - Taking A Look Inside Your Genes

Across the natural world, cells organise themselves into a wonderful array of shapes and structures. But how do they do this? Plus, building bones, plant sex in space, and a rather plump gene of the month. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

All living cells are made up of protein molecules - but how do they organise themselves into structures? Plus bee sex, tough mice, and a happily married gene of the month. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

The heart is a vital biological pump, beating around a billion times in a lifetime. But faulty genes can cause big problems. Plus, taming the tiger genome, solving citrus sickness, and our gene of the month is for all you hopeless romantics out there. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Who do you think you are? And is the answer in your genes? This month we're delving into genes and genealogy. Plus, putting an end to genetic determinism, and an ancient Egyptian gene of the month. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Why can some people stay fit as a fiddle, while other seem to catch every bug that's going? As you might expect, the answer lies in our genes. Plus, a multitude of mutant mice, the state of gene therapy for epilepsy, and an unseeing gene of the month. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Summer loving is in the air, so what better time to think about sex? But we're not going to get graphic - we're talking about the genetics of sex determination. Plus, why turkeys need a wingman, figuring out fingerprints, and a leggy gene of the month. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Our genes are our unique calling card, and DNA analysis has been used to solve crimes and resolve paternity disputes for decades. Now new genetic technology promises to revolutionise medicine. Plus, we meet the man who invented genetic fingerprinting, discuss Angelina Jolie's breasts, and savour a cheesy gene of the month. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Genetic technology is expanding at a pace that few can keep up with, with huge amounts of data being generated every week. But is this explosion of information delivering meaningful advances for patients? Plus, how one scientist tracked down the gene fault behind his own disease, what sequencing the HeLa genome means for genetic privacy, and a Pythonesque gene of the month. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Almost every single cell of your body is packed with more than two metres of DNA, containing your genes. But not only does it have to be packed up to fit in there, it also has to be organised and read. Plus, how genetic variations are linked to cancer risk,analysing dinosaur DNA, and an adventurous gene of the month. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

It's thought that around one in a hundred children in the UK is somewhere on the autistic spectrum - a complex range of disorders that can be challenging to understand and live with. But recent advances in genetics are bringing hope for new therapies that might help. Plus, we look at the genes underlying Specific Language Impairment, find out why cancer has the X factor, and meet a hopeless-sounding gene of the month. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

You've probably heard of DNA, but what do you know about RNA? As well as being the molecule that shuttles information from our genes into our cells, it also plays a huge number of other roles in all cells, from bacteria and viruses to tiny worms, plants and humans. Plus we delve into quadruplex DNA, wonder about the wolf genome, speculate on skin colour and our gene of the month has a literary twist. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

The gym is full, the pubs are empty - it can only be January, as a good proportion of the population resolves to shape up and lose weight. But are your efforts going to help you fit into your jeans (with a J), or are you just fighting against your genes (with a G)? Plus, we discuss how genes might jump between cows and snakes, and we've got gout, goats, giant pandas and a glass bottom boat.This is the Naked Genetics podcast for January 2013 with me, Dr Kat Arney, brought to you in association with The Genetics Society, online at genetics.org.uk. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Cancer is literally the enemy within us -it starts when our own cells get damaged and go rogue, multiplying out of control and spreading around body. But how can we use new genetic knowledge to beat it? Plus, decoding the wheat genome, finding out where birds came from, and our gene of the month is more art than science. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Our world - and our bodies - are teeming with bacteria. And although some of them are friendly, many of them are not. Plus, electrifying news about bacterial nanowires, cuddly koalas, and counting chromosomes, and our gene of the month is the mindblowing Mind Bomb. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

They suck your blood, hitch-hike on your luggage, and are a growing threat to the hotel industry. Bedbugs are a growing problem in the modern jet-set world, and scientists are using genetic techniques to try and understand why. Feeling itchy yet? Plus, we look at the genetics of some other annoying insects, get to the bottom of the recent controversy about junk DNA, and our gene of the month is none other than Superman and his weedier alter-ego Clark Kent. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

We've all heard of the genetic code - the letters that spell out the instructions in our DNA. But that's not the whole story. Researchers are increasingly digging into the epigenetic code - the marks that tell cells which genes to use and which to ignore. Plus, we take a look behind the headlines about older fathers and autism, find out what chimps can tell us about our cancer risk, and our gene of the month might be mistaken for a heavy metal band. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

It's now over a decade since the human genome was first sequenced, costing over a billion pounds and taking 13 years. Today, we're close to the thousand dollar genome. But what's in a genome, and what can it tell us about our risk of disease? Plus we'll be arguing the age of polar bears, and finding out about fish with skin cancer. And our gene of the month is one for the Trekkies out there - it's Tribbles. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Every biology student is familiar with DNA - the ladder-like blueprint of life built on a backbone of the sugar deoxyribose. Scientists are now hacking this structure to make entirely new DNA-like molecules built on different sugar skeletons, opening an exciting new world of synthetic genetics. Plus, we find out what happens when music has sex, discover why the X chromosome is more than just a number, and our gene of the month is the unfortunate Ken and Barbie. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Complex, mysterious and currently incurable - the challenge for researchers working on neurodegenerative diseases is huge. We'll be finding out how scientists are using genetic approaches to understand these distressing illnesses. Plus we find out why claims of a male contraceptive pill are somewhat premature, discover how a 16th century mummy has revealed the history of hepatitis B, and investigate whether your genes could predispose you to life in orbit. And our gene of the month is the hollow-sounding Tinman. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This month we're taking a look at the world of top models - not the kind that won't get out of bed for less than ten grand, but the model organisms used by researchers all over the world to answer some of the most challenging questions in biology. We'll also be hearing about the origins of polar bears, the extinction of Tasmanian tigers, fitter frogs with faster-changing genomes and promiscuous bees. And move over Beyonce, because our gene of the month is the curvaceous Callipyge - Greek for beautiful buttocks. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists