“Watermarks” written in first artificial genome

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A team at the J Craig Venter Institute in Rockville, Maryland, announced recently how it has successfully created the largest man-made DNA structure, the circular genetic code – genome – of an artificial bacterium as a precursor to breeding a synthetic organism in the lab.

Now a table in the online supplemental materials for the Science paper that announced the feat reveals it contained a secret message embedded in the DNA: the code carries the name of the head of the institute, Dr Craig Venter, that of his research institute and co-workers. Read more… via telegraph.co.uk.