ROCKVILLE, Md., March 24 (UPI) -- Researchers have created a new species of bacteria using the fewest number of genes possible. It turns out the genetic ingredient list for life is longer than scientists thought.
"Our attempt to design and create a new species, while ultimately successful, revealed that 32 percent of the genes essential for life in this cell are of unknown function, and showed that many are highly conserved in numerous species," John Craig Venter, a biotechnologist and founder of the J. Craig Venter Institute, said in a news release.