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
GLP podcast/video: Artificial wombs coming soon? The dangers of ketamine; Banning glyphosate would be disastrous
Premature babies might complete their gestation in artificial wombs called "biobags" in the coming years. The anesthetic ketamine might be ...
Why worthless drugs sometimes seem to work — What we can learn from the FDA’s withdrawal of the decongestant phenylephrine
Last month, some of the most iconic over-the-counter name brand medicines took a hit. The FDA’s Nonprescription Drug Advisory Committee (NDAC) unanimously ...
‘Judges as gatekeepers’: Court rejects ‘predatort’ lawyers’ claim that Lexapro used during pregnancy led to children’s autism
Judicial opinions don’t evidence a clear enough understanding of the scientific method and invite push-back from an aggressive bar ...
Unraveling the mystery of who gets lung cancer and why
Why do some heavy smokers never get lung cancer? And why do some people who never smoke get lung cancer? ...
Perpetuating the ‘nerd’ stereotype: Why I won’t watch Apple TV+’s ‘Lessons in Chemistry’
Lessons in Chemistry, set to debut on Apple TV+ October 13, is based on the best-selling 2022 novel by Bonnie ...
GLP podcast/video: The case for weight-loss drugs; It’s immoral to oppose CRISPR animals? Bad science and ‘forever chemicals’
We don't always know why anti-depressants and obesity drugs work, but that shouldn't discourage patients from taking medications that can ...
Viewpoint: Ketamine for mental health is being abused. We need more regulatory oversight
While some extol the psychological benefits of psychedelics and bemoan their unavailability, at least one FDA-approved agent with psychedelic properties, ...
Are you cranky if you don’t eat? This explains that ‘hangry’ feeling
Neuroscientists think a cluster of cells in the brain that stimulate appetite could be a target for eating disorder therapies ...
Considering the controversy over the safety and effectiveness of vaccines, is it worth getting the seasonal flu shot this year? How well do they really work?
It's that time of year again. No, I am not referring to the latest COVID-19 vaccines, which are now available ...
Podcast: The science and history behind the term “placebo effect”
Henry Beecher’s paper paved the way for sounder drug trials and pushed scientists to better understand how we process painSloppy ...
What do ‘non-identical’ identical twins have to do with COVID-19? Mutations!
Identical twins Stella and Desiree Vignes were born in 1938 in a Louisiana town so small that it wasn’t on ...
On the edge of life and death: CPR patients report vivid near-death experiences
NYU researchers measured signals of brain activity and collected stories from patients on the edge of death ...
Treating mental health disorders: Is CRISPR a long-hoped-for silver bullet?
“I was born with the murder gene.” That’s the chilling statement in a true-life story featured in Esquire years ago ...
Multiple evolutions? Does all life on Earth descend from the primordial soup or have different insects, plants and animals evolved separately but concurrently?
Did life evolve more than once? The origin of life is a central question in modern biology, and probably the ...
‘Unlocking creative potential’: Why the first 10 minutes of sleep are so important
There is a stage of sleep where we still have a toe in the waking world — remaining able to ...
Could a cup of yogurt replace a colonoscopy? Engineered bacteria can detect and deliver treatment for some pre-cancerous colorectal polyps
A cup of yogurt — containing engineered bacteria that can detect and deliver a treatment for colorectal polyps or cancer ...
The Transcendent Brain: How spirituality and science can work together to explain the human experience
We may have mystical moments science can’t explain, but Alan Lightman still believes in a universe ruled by natural law ...
GLP podcast/video: Nutrition myths, debunked; Could ChatGPT spread vaccine misinfo? Treating mental illness with CRISPR might be a bad idea
The public accepts a lot of myths about nutrition. Let's examine 10 of the most common, but scientifically dubious ideas ...
With COVID cases rising, grand-standing legislators propose criminalizing mRNA vaccines or banning mask-wearing
It is not uncommon for legislators to introduce bills that they know won’t pass but that have symbolic value of ...
Sweetness and bitterness: The evolutionary story of how our sense of taste evolved
The sweetness of sugar is one of life’s great pleasures. People’s love for sweet is so visceral, food companies lure ...
Genetic doppelgängers? Identical twins separated apart can be very much alike or very different. Here’s why
What do the lives of twins tell us about heritability, selfhood and the age-old debate between nature and nurture? ...
Mask up again? As COVID cases rise, look to science and not pundits
I can’t believe we’re having this discussion in September 2023, just as the fall respiratory virus season commences, but the ...
Science vs spirituality: The case of the severed head
There’s a ghastly severed head in St Robert’s Roman Catholic church, just down the road from me in Catforth, northern ...
Viewpoint: ‘Public fixation on human extinction from AI could distract from AI’s more immediate harms’
A public fixation on extinction from AI could empower industry insiders and distract from AI’s more immediate harms ...
Viewpoint: AI is evolving too fast for existing regulatory frameworks to keep pace. Here’s a possible solution
AI is evolving too fast for existing regulatory frameworks to keep pace. Intellectual property law may hold a solution ...
GLP podcast and video: Curing deadly diseases with mRNA; COVID killed more Republicans than Democrats? WaPo promotes ‘acupuncture pseudoscience’
The same technology behind the mRNA COVID shots could also yield groundbreaking treatments for wide-ranging diseases. A new study posits ...
First synthetic human embryo to live past 14 days was made from stem cells
A Cambridge University scientist says her research lab has used stem cells to create a human embryo that developed past ...
