Matthew Herper
Viewpoint: ‘What’s the biological equivalent of an atomic bomb’? Here’s how the gene editing revolution could go astray
We now sequence the genes of people, animals, plants and tumors routinely. We’re starting to edit DNA, not only in ...
Merck’s experimental drug molnupiravir cuts COVID hospitalizations and deaths in half
A five-day course of molnupiravir, developed by Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, reduced both hospitalization and death compared to a placebo ...
In an unprecedented move hoping to quell criticism, FDA releases documents detailing messy internal debate over Biogen’s dementia drug Aduhelm
[A] series of documents [were released June 22] by the FDA to explain its decision to use a truncated pathway, ...
‘Crisis of confidence’: What’s causing the panic around AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine?
AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine is facing a crisis of confidence, with one European country after another, as if seized by a ...
Coronavirus treatment breakthrough? Eli Lilly’s monoclonal antibody drug shows promise in preventing COVID-19 spread
In November, the antibody bamlanivimab was authorized for emergency use by the Food and Drug Administration in treating patients with ...
Now there are two: Modern’s mRNA COVID-19 vaccine 94.5% successful, joins Pfizer-BioNTech collaboration in targeting pandemic
The Moderna vaccine reduced the risk of Covid-19 infection by 94.5%. There were 95 cases of infection among patients who ...
Assessing Operation Warp Speed: What’s working, what’s not
Is [Operation Warp Speed] working? Roughly five months after top U.S. health officials coalesced around the idea of a public-private ...
‘A huge amount of wasted effort’: Most COVID-19 studies too small to yield real results
1,200 clinical trials aimed at testing treatment and prevention strategies against Covid-19 [have been designed] since the start of January ...
Adverse reactions in COVID-19 vaccine trial illustrates rocky road to developing therapies for diverse populations
Patients in clinical trials are usually faceless. But as the experimental Covid-19 vaccine being developed by Moderna Therapeutics has begun ...
Viewpoint: US failure to ‘study drugs more quickly’ means more people are dying from coronavirus
When medical historians look back at the Covid-19 pandemic, they will reckon with how the United States, with its vast ...
Gilead’s remdesivir offers little benefit for coronavirus patients in early trial
The antiviral medicine remdesivir from Gilead Sciences failed to speed the improvement of patients with Covid-19 or prevent them from ...
When will experimental coronavirus drugs will be ready for the clinic?
Is there hope that something will be available soon to help us fight this virus, known as SARS-CoV-2? Here’s a ...
CRISPR pioneer Jennifer Doudna turns lab into coronavirus test center
A team of academic and industry researchers led by Jennifer Doudna, the researcher best known for her role in the ...
Consumer genetic health-test market expands: Ancestry launches new service, paired with professional counseling
Ancestry, the consumer genetics company that has until now focused on helping people understand their family history, on [October 15] ...
HPV vaccines are not just for women: Throat, mouth cancer rates rising for men
Earlier this year, the biotech community mourned the loss of Michael Becker, a former pharmaceutical industry executive. … Becker’s cancer was ...
Can a blood test lead to more precise treatments for lung cancer patients?
Could a blood test help more lung cancer patients get drugs that are targeted to the genetic weaknesses of their ...
This small startup wants to change FDA clinical trials by making control groups unnecessary
Could a startup founded by two guys in their 20s change the way medical researchers study patients? The Food and ...
Muscular dystrophy targeted with promising gene therapy
An experimental gene therapy appeared to dramatically increase the production of a muscle-making protein in three young boys with Duchenne ...
Biotech executive facing end-stage cancer and the seduction of experimental drugs
For years, Michael Becker was one of the drug executives navigating swarms of cancer doctors at the annual meeting of ...
Can a drug help us grow old without our bodies falling apart?
The idea behind [Biotech startup] Unity—preventing aging—sounds crazy, but it’s backed by dozens of scientific papers, the key two in Nature ...
Color Genomics’ cholesterol and heart disease test: Are expensive genetic screens worth it?
[Color Genomics] is releasing a genetic test for a condition called familial hypercholesterolemia, or FH, which causes sky-high cholesterol levels and ...
Decoding death: Craig Venter’s quest to uncover secret to immortality in our DNA
Craig Venter, the man in the late 1990s who, frustrated by the slow progress of the government-funded Human Genome Project, ...
American philanthropist Bill Gates announces support for gene drive
The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis. Bill Gates says that ...
Media hype aside, do cell phones really cause cancer?
The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis. Some bracing headlines have been ...
Illumina, Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos look to make universal cancer test reality
The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis. What if a simple ...
Experimental cancer treatment literally dissolves tumor
The 49-year-old woman had had three melanoma growths removed from her skin, but now the disease was spreading further. A ...
FDA approval of 23andMe’s genetic test positive sign for the genomics industry
On February 19, the Food and Drug Administration approved a test made by 23andMe, the Mountain View, Calif.-based personal genetics company, ...
23andMe enters biopharmaceutical business with Genentech deal
A deal being announced today with Genentech points the way for 23andMe, the personal genetics company backed by Facebook billionaire ...