Biomedicine & Disease
Mystery of immune system infections slowly unravels
The mutations were familiar, but the patients’ conditions seemed baffling at first. A team lead by Rockefeller University researchers had ...
Amish and other ‘insular populations’ template for understanding evolution of diseases
Weeks after his birth in 2001, Benjamin Glick was stricken with a mysterious illness. He would vomit and pass out. He wouldn't ...
Robyn O’Brien defends anti-GMO crusader Don Huber: Whistleblower or crank?
Following news that Dr. Huber was in a car accident, food activist Robyn O'Brien paints a picture of a scientist ...
Media overhypes stem cell breakthrough for Type 1 diabetes
As the Harvard Stem Cell Institute announced it's cured diabetes in mice with stem cells reprogrammed to produce insulin, the ...
Can’t start the day without a cup of Joe? Zest for coffee linked to genes
The number of cups of coffee you have in a day is informed by your genetics as a combination of ...
“Bubble boy” breakthrough cure shows how some viruses can save lives
Beneath all the bad news about viruses this week lies a good virus: the one that underlies gene therapy for ...
Slow progress in unlocking clues to the impenetrable genetics of cancer
Researchers studying cancer’s DNA have made recent leaps forward in understanding two aspects of the disease. The first has been ...
Rebel doctor challenges ban on HIV-positive organ donors
An estimated 12,000 people in the U.S. contracted HIV from transfusions between 1978 and 1984, leaving the public terrified. In ...
Is ‘Frankenbacteria’ our best hope to defeat future bioterrorism?
Bioterrorism is terror by science, the intentional release of toxins, bacteria or toxins to cause illness, death and panic. When ...
‘Gene drives’ could circumvent anti-GMO hysteria but present unique risks
Wouldn't it be great if scientists could genetically engineer mosquitoes to be immune to the malaria parasite, thus protecting people ...
Can psychology explain strident opposition by some to GMOs?
Strident opponents of crop biotechnology often claim that they can actually taste the difference between foods with genetically modified ingredients ...
Proposed Ebola vaccine trials will use volunteer health care workers as subjects
When Ripley Ballou came to a Geneva, Switzerland, meeting about Ebola vaccines last week, he had a tough message to ...
Promising new gene therapy for “bubble boy” disease
More than a decade ago, doctors showed dramatic progress in helping infants born with a severe deficiency in their immune ...
Are pesticides responsible for farmer depression, suicides?
On his farm in Iowa, Matt Peters worked from dawn to dusk planting his 1,500 acres of fields with pesticide-treated ...
Tall Genes: Thousands found responsible for height differences
There are more 600 of spots on the genome responsible for about a fifth of the variation in human height ...
Scientists track progression of disease to predict risk
A new study, based on 6.2 million Danish patients, could soon allow scientists to predict what illnesses each individual is ...
Cost barriers limit promising GM blood cancer treatments
Cancer treatments that genetically modify patients’ blood cells to target the disease have shown amazing results in clinical trials. Now ...
Consumer acceptance of GMO rubber more likely than of GMO oranges
For crops that are grown in monocultures, especially trees and vines that take years to bear fruit and can't be ...
Our GPS brain: What is the ‘doorway effect’ and how do we orient ourselves
How does memory and what amounts to a GPS system in our brain root us in the world? That's the ...
Leaked memo highlights new axis of pseudoscience between Dr. Oz and Consumer Reports?
Are Consumer Reports and Dr. Oz teaming up to spread pseudoscience? The GLP has obtained an in house Consumer Reports ...
Science fiction meets Julia Child: An elegant cookbook for lab-grown meats
Although they've not yet hit the market, a Dutch art collective has created the definitive volume on how to cook ...
Social stigma of anorexia distracts from exploring genetic causes
Social pressure to be as slender as a catwalk model, as sylph-like as a Hollywood star, is said to be ...
Uses of CRISPR/Cas9 genome engineering expand to editing RNA
The CRISPR/Cas9 system, a powerful tool for genome engineering and gene regulation, has been thought to be incapable of targeting RNA ...
Controversial fetal cell transplants revived for Parkinson’s trials
Fetal brain cell transplants fell out of favor as a potential therapy for Parkinson’s disease after mixed reviews from trials ...
Is climate change reducing the number of boy babies?
Parents are selecting the sexes of their children and they are often choosing males. But there are other forces at ...
Will Starbucks bump latte prices to placate anti-GMO protestors?
Anti-GMO organic activists are again fanning fears about genetic modification as part of a campaign to pressure Starbucks to dump ...
‘Corporate interests’ making us sick, warping food and medicine policies
Money in politics is making our nation sicker, threatening our national security, and ultimately destroying the very economic prosperity the ...
