Biomedicine & Disease
Regulation gaps a double-edged sword for GM foods
Scientists and entrepreneurs have found some gaps in regulatory pathways that allow them to get their GM products to market ...
As prenatal testing for Down syndrome increases, so do concerns about genetic counseling
Noninvasive prenatal tests provide early-pregnancy information about genetic abnormalities. Can genetic counseling keep pace? ...
Scientists help deliver genetic one-two blow to deadly wheat disease
A new gene that will equip wheat plants to resist the deadly stem rust disease has been discovered by an ...
Dentist buys John Lennon’s tooth at auction in hope of creating a clone
Dr. Michael Zuk didn’t blow $30,000 on John Lennon’s tooth for its medical significance or second-hand value. When the Canadian dentist purchased ...
Nobel laureate: Personalized medicine is already here
Professor Aaron Ciechanover, a faculty member of the Ruth and Bruce Faculty of Medicine and Nobel Laureate in Chemistry (2004), ...
Genetics used to tailor cancer treatment
A British Columbia Cancer Agency study of 26 terminally ill patients is using genomic information from both tumours and normal ...
Major study links aging gene to blood cancer
Scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, found a genetic variant that influences the ageing process among four new ...
US health insurer to require genetic counseling before allowing BRCA1 and BRCA2 tests
Cigna Corp. will become the first U.S. health insurer to require genetic counseling nationwide before it pays for tests for hereditary ...
Could the world love pesticide-free GM crops?
For many consumers, GMOs are a no-go. But, what about GMO seeds that could radically reduce the use of pesticides, ...
What’s it like to get genetic testing
Why do genetic testing? A genetic test is generally performed so a person can find out if they suffer from ...
Mediterranean diet reduces genetic stroke risk
Eating a Mediterranean diet may lower the risk of stroke and offset other negative effects associated with a genetic variant ...
Glowing bunnies: Why they matter
The technique behind glowing rabbits may someday create animals that make biological pharmaceutical products ...
The old and new eugenics
Was "negative eugenics" truly something on the margins of society? Kirk Allison, Director of the Program in Human Rights and ...
Gaming with genes for the sake of a tree
The public are being asked to help in the fight against ash tree dieback by playing a computer game that ...
Malicious harm to a devastated orange industry
"Are you ready for a tall glass of GMOs? If they move forward with GMO oranges, you need to know ...
Bunnies and other animals that glow in the dark
When a litter of bunnies was born in Istanbul, scientists were pleased.Two of the bunnies have been successfully genetically engineered to glow ...
Unhidden traits: Genomic data privacy debates heat up
Is addressing genetic privacy concerns for scientific study participants essential, impossible, or maybe undesirable? ...
Genetic switch to guard against escaped ‘superviruses’
Flu scientists disagree over experiments to make the H7N9 bird influenza virus even more dangerous. Some argue that "gain of function" experiments ...
How would you stop a vineyard apocalypse?
Imagine a bacterial scourge that was silently spreading from vineyard to vineyard, striking down grapevines in their prime, bankrupting wineries ...
Oil palm gene may be step to sustainable plantations
Scientists have identified the gene responsible for determining the yield of oil palm fruits. The discovery is being hailed as ...
Is it time to test your baby’s genetics?
You're expecting. Got the baby crib? Check. Diapers and baby formula? Check. More diapers? Check. A prenatal, non-invasive test with ...
Genetic map of cancer reveals trails of mutation that lead to disease
The first detailed map of genetic faults that cause cancers was published on August 14, 2013. It offers profound insights ...
Remnants of ancient viruses in human genome may play role in cancer
According to an international team of scientists from the United States, Europe and Russia, non-coding parts of the human genome ...
New Hampshire House subcommittee begins work on GMO labeling bill
Two months after his state passed legislation requiring labels on genetically engineered foods, Maine Rep. Lance Harvell, the bill’s chief ...
Whose stem cells are they anyway?
How should we regulate treatments that use cells taken from a patient's own body? If the cells are grown in ...
Bioengineering modular viruses to fight disease
Imagine fitting viruses together like Lego pieces and using them as a vehicle to deliver gene therapy. Scientists at Rice ...
Gene breakthroughs spark a revolution in cancer treatment
Researchers have identified fifteen lung-cancer variants, most of them in just the past four years, by decoding DNA in tumors—akin ...