Biomedicine & Disease
Massachusetts biotech incentives eclipsed by competitive states
Massachusetts has made its way over the past half-dozen years to being an undisputed leader in biotechnology and life sciences ...
Using genetic risk and math, scientists predict which teen drinkers will develop problem
Scientists have pinpointed lots of factors that increase the risk of alcohol misuse — a bit. Adolescents who are anxious ...
GM mosquitoes could breed to extinction, leaving malaria parasite no host
Kill the mosquito and you kill the disease. That is the usual approach to controlling malaria. And if done properly, ...
Sherpas inherited ability to thrive in high altitudes from extinct humans
A new study shows that Nepalese people who live at high altitudes have a gene variant inherited from human’s ancient ...
Genetically engineered red blood cells could be drug delivery drones
Red blood cells may one day do more than carry oxygen around the body – they have been genetically engineered ...
Controversial stem cell papers finally, officially retracted
Following months of controversy, editors at the scientific journal Nature have retracted two high-profile studies that purported to demonstrate a ...
Univ of Florida scientists say anti-GMO public sentiment having ‘detrimental’ effect on crop research
University of Florida researchers are making significant advances in genetic engineering — breeding strawberries, papayas and tomatoes that are disease-resistant ...
Gene modification of adult cells offers more hope for Type 1 diabetes than stem cells
By deleting a single gene in human gut endocrine progenitor and serotonin-producing cells, researchers reported that they were able convert ...
Developmental brain gene protects against Alzheimer’s disease
More than five million people in the U.S. have Alzheimer's disease. Scientists at Harvard Medical School and their colleagues have ...
Rare genetic disorder that ended college star’s pro hoops career hopes shines light on Marfan syndrome
Four days before Baylor University basketball star Isaiah Austin hoped to be drafted into the NBA, his dreams of playing ...
Anti-GMO advocates try to scare diabetics off life-saving genetically engineered drug treatment
Usually food-obsessed anti-GMO advocates have turned their sights toward one of modern technology’s must prized successes: genetically engineered synthetic human ...
Faced with a sick brother, reporter wonders whether to get DNA tested
In the fall of 2010, as my brother was dying of colon cancer, I learned a terrifying secret. He also ...
Call for integrity for stem cell research amid global controversy
Scientists around the world are campaigning in favor of sensible regulation of stem-cell therapies. We have two reactions: (1) kudos ...
Shaking up science with transgenerational epigenetics and blurred species boundaries
A "top five ideas shaking up science" list from The Guardian and author Michael Brooks hits on two of the ...
Rust threatening wheat crops worldwide could be thwarted with genetics, but anti-GMO fervor remains challenge
Scientists worldwide are racing to develop rust-resistant wheat varieties before wheat crops worldwide succumb to the deadly disease, wheat rust ...
Genesis and ethics of embryo’s conceived with help of a third parent
In August 1996, at St. Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, N.J., a 39-year-old mechanical engineer from Pittsburgh named Maureen Ott ...
Picture of risk: One family’s story of the threat of genetic disease
When a fetus may have a genetic condition, parents face a great deal of uncertainty when evaluating risk for their ...
T-cells trained to fight viruses offer hope for bone marrow transplant patients
A team at the Baylor College of Medicine in Texas has devised a much more efficient method for 'training' killer ...
Superchicken? Researchers turn to genetics to breed global warming tolerant fowls
For all the concern about how climate change may affect people in cities, people in cars, people and their flood ...
Reverse reefer madness? Schizophrenia genes predict heavy pot use
Does marijuana smoking cause psychosis? Or could psychosis drive pot smoking? If you believe the panned and parodied 1936 film ...
Fetal genome sequencing must strike balance of too much information
Once you go beyond looking for specific genetic mutations—such as those that cause Down syndrome or cystic fibrosis—and begin exploring ...
Nature vs. nurture affects how we age
What makes us age biologically? We have always been intrigued by this question. Yet, it remains a fundamental research challenge ...
What is ‘precision medicine’?
The future of precision medicine means every patient will have treatments and prevention tailored to his or her genes and ...
Shitty story: Oldest-ever human fossil feces suggests Neanderthal’s omnivory
Poop is the 'perfect evidence' when it comes to answering questions about diet, and a record-setting new find of fossilized ...
Herbicide-resistant crops can exacerbate ‘superweeds’ but new GM versions can help control problem
The growing problem of herbicide-resistant weeds has weed scientists and regulators pushing for more solutions to tackle the problem, including ...
Brain cancer may have rogue stem cell origin, option for treatment
Glioblastoma and other related malignant glioma tumors including diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) are some of the most devastating of ...
Stem cells responsible for fat in bone marrow and consequent disease
Our bones are not stagnant, rock-like things. They change. Marrow—the tissue inside bones—is full of various kinds of cells. And ...
