Human 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
The perils of neurocentrism
The issue with fMRI and other neuroscience techniques is "neurocentrism" -- "the view that human experience and behavior can be ...
Faroe Islands aim to sequence genes of entire country
The Health Ministry of the Faroe Islands plans to sequence the genomes of every interested citizen ...
Synthetic blood may introduce a host of complications
The pending arrival of synthetic blood is likely to come with some serious socioeconomic and ethical issues ...
GM foods grow up
Critics of transgenic crops often focus on the seemingly unnatural act of adding something new and alien to a plant's ...
Mother Jones: Is synthetic biology something to fear?
The funded synthetic biology Glowing Plant kickstarter campaign raises questions and fears for some ...
Supreme court limits gene patents in mixed ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court has restricted the ability of companies to patent human genetic sequences ...
Artwork highlights legal debate over ‘abandoned’ DNA
A provocative art project creates "facial reconstruction" sculptures based on DNA found on trash. Is it legal? ...
No, this is not how the human face might look in 100,000 years
One artist’s vision of what humanity will look like in 100,000 years includes huge eyes and foreheads. Apparently, we’re all ...
Scientists identify mutations associated with intelligence for first time
In the first study of its kind that has generated a reproducible result, researchers report on ten variations in DNA ...
Geneticists push for global data-sharing
69 institutions in 13 countries are working to enable the free flow of information in genomic medicine ...
Clinical geneticists oppose some direct-to-consumer genetic testing
A majority of European clinical geneticists oppose direct-to-consumer genetic tests for serious or untreatable health issues ...
The complexity of cancer genetics
To develop cancer-specific drugs, we need to distinguish cancer cells from healthy cells -- but it’s not so easy ...
Centenarian genetics: The search for longevity-enhancing biotech
People who live past age 100 develop diseases at much later ages than the rest of us. Scientists are working ...
Discovery of liquid mammoth blood fuels cloning hopes
A remarkably intact 10,000-year-old female mammoth buried in Siberian ice raises hopes of cloning the extinct beast ...
Synthetic blood: First human trials to take place in Scotland
Researchers in Scotland have received the go-ahead to set up a facility to manufacture synthetic blood from stem cells, bringing ...
The biology of identity
Are your talents, traits, and insecurities so deeply embedded in your genes that they’re basically inevitable? ...
Marketing to the big data inside us
Start-up "Miinome" plans to create a club that stores the DNA data of genome-sequenced people ...
Hacking biotechnology: Do-it-yourself wonders and worries
What happens when you mix the do-it-yourself ethos of hacker culture with the ethically and emotionally fraught landscape of biotechnology? ...
Errors cast doubt on landmark stem cell cloning paper
Sloppy mistakes cast doubt on claim of first-ever human stem cell cloning success ...
Ask a geneticist: Race and IQ?
This Q&A with a geneticist offers a crash-course in genetics, race, and intelligence for the curious layperson ...
Personal genomics and accidental paternity tests
What happens when your 23andMe results reveal that your brother is your uncle and your father isn't your father? ...
Detective story: How genomics found the culprit in Ireland’s Great Famine
In an impressive bit of genomic sleuthing, researchers have used dried potato leaves to decode the genome of the fungus-like ...
Microbiome: How the bacterial genes in our gut impact us
For every human cell that is intrinsic to our body, there are about 10 resident microbes ...
Genetics continues to garner attention as conservation tool
Genetics continues to make headlines in conservation efforts, even if it's not the species-saving panacea some hope for ...
Stem cell therapy deserves a dose of skepticism
Stem cells are at risk of becoming "the new snake oil peddled by 21st century charlatans" without better regulation and ...
Breakthrough GE potato doesn’t brown or produce potentially carcinogenic compound
Biofortified interviews the man behind a new genetically engineered potato that doesn’t brown when cut or fried nor make acrylamide, ...
Jason Richwine affair raises prickly policy issues on IQ
The firing of Jason Richwine from the Heritage Foundation for his controversial 2009 thesis on race and IQ reflects poorly ...
