Human Genetics Features
The GLP tackles innovations in human genetics and biotechnology. We highlight the work of our own writers, as well as that of contributors from around the Web. The GLP does not take a position on genetics-related issues; any opinions expressed belong to the authors.
Categories include:
- CRISPR and gene editing
- Gene therapy
- Stem cell research
- Genetic diseases
- Synthetic biology
- Epigenetics
- Biodrugs (pharmacogenetics)
- Personal genomics
- Ancestry and evolution
- Ethics and regulations
Closer examination of risk factors for Latinos underscores cultural diversity
Investigations into the genetics of disease in Latino populations are yielding interesting patterns of risk and protection from disease. The ...
Mutagenesis: One way Europeans wish it was 1936 again
Want to use ionizing radiation and mutagenic chemicals to create herbicide-resistant crops without the messy GMO protests? Mutagenesis is the ...
Natural Resources Defense Council sues EPA to block rollout of Dow Enlist Duo GMO system
The NRDC filed what is expected to be the first of numerous suits challenging the EPA's approval of Enlist Duo, ...
Sperm mislabeling causes consternation for all-white family with mixed race child
Sperm is a product, but not a well-regulated one. After receiving donor sperm from an African American donor, a Caucasian ...
Why random walks in evolution lead to the same place–and why biotechnology opponents should take note
A recent study found that evolution is not as random and chaotic as critics of biology like to contend. In ...
Beyond universal donors, some people are programed with no blood type at all
People genetically coded with the RH-null blood type have a blood type more rare than extremely rare disease. Their numbers ...
Ebola infographic: Is this outbreak poised for pandemic?
A second Texas healthcare worker tests positive for the virus amid predictions that as many as 10,000 people a day ...
If not for the NIH, we might have an Ebola vaccine
Because it is election season, government-funded academia and science media have been claiming that politics can be blamed for the ...
CDC faced a nearly impossible balancing act with Ebola, and failed
In an attempt to claim public concerns from turning into mass hysteria, the CDC made some major blunders--some medical and ...
Is organic agriculture leading to an increase in antibiotic resistance?
Conventional agriculture is under attack by organic and anti-GMO activists for contributing to antibiotic resistance as the result of animals ...
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 ...
Peer review on controversial science issues letting all of us down
There have been a slew of reports raising questions about the reproducibility of peer reviewed studies. But there is another ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
National Resource Defense Council reverses course, acknowledges ‘factory farms’ do not overuse antibiotics
Advocacy groups often claim antibiotic use on 'factory farms' is soaring, hurting animals and even humans who are developing resistance ...
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 ...
Beware of the biomedical industrial complex
Dr. Steve McKnight, President of the American Society For Biochemistry And Molecular Biology, has written an article that must be as ...
DIY fecal transplant: Taking love of the microbiome a bit too far
Anthropologist Jeff Leach ended his last trip to Africa with a bit of self-experimentation. He gave himself a fecal transplant ...
Are Ebola drug researchers developing ‘death drugs’ that could wipe out humanity? Yes, by logic of anti-GMOers
It's perplexing that strident anti-GMO critics who regularly harp on the "danger" of harvesting a "foreign" gene from one species ...
Personal genomics company says it will solve puzzle of Welsh origins
A British genetics company is asking for Welsh participants to help discover the mysterious genetic origins of the famously redheaded ...
Single dose of anti-depressant alters brain? Maybe, but what does that mean?
All drugs "alter" the brain's connectivity, so that's hardly a surprise. But what does that mean? Are the changes ongoing ...
Do mysterious ‘jumping genes’ fast track evolution?
Genomes have a lot of moving parts. Some stretches of DNA try to assimilate and copy themselves in novel places, ...
What’s life like for the transgendered after sexual reassignment surgery?
People who identify with a gender other than the one they were born with often suffer from societal pressures and ...
Intelligence genes: Elusive but real
The question of the degree to which genes control intelligence has been so controversial that many geneticists avoid pursuing it ...
