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
South African tribes recover ancient heritage using DNA and genetic analysis
Scientists believe Africa is where modern humans first emerged. For the past decade, our team of genetic researchers from the Henn Lab have worked among the ...
Podcast: Time to quit ‘baby’ aspirin? Tobacco-industry science denial; Dutch farmer protests
Is it time to give up low-dose aspirin as a heart-attack prevention tool? New evidence suggests that the risks may ...
Back from the dead? How OrganEx technology revived pigs dead for one hour, and why it could revolutionize transplants
Transplant medicine could take a giant leap forward if donor organs could soak up oxygen for longer and decay delayed ...
What is the hottest temperature and highest humidity the human body can tolerate?
Heat waves are becoming supercharged as the climate changes – lasting longer, becoming more frequent and getting just plain hotter. One question ...
Killer herbal remedy: White mulberry leaf herbal treatment marketed for diabetes and weight loss blamed for death of US Rep. Tom McClintock’s wife Lori
The wife of a Northern California congressman died late last year after ingesting a plant that is generally considered safe ...
Podcast: Non-GMO Project loves ‘GMO’ watermelon; Glyphosate in breastmilk; Junk nutrition studies
The Non-GMO Project recently endorsed seedless watermelon on Twitter, thereby giving an accidental thumbs up to many other genetically engineered ...
Getting drunk without the hangover? There may be a pill for that?
A new anti-hangover supplement has just gone on sale in the UK. It is marketed by Swedish firm Myrkl as “the pre-drinking ...
Did you follow COVID lockdown rules? Whether or not you did is partially driven by your DNA
All over the world, people suffered the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on their wellbeing. However, the impact was not ...
Podcast: Industry funding doesn’t corrupt science; COVID lab leak refuted? Dicamba controversy revisited
Should agricultural scientists take research funding from corporations? A pair of studies suggests that a 'lab-leak' origin for SARS-CoV-2 looks ...
Far-fetched idea of ‘head transplants’ sparks an ethical debate
Far from being far-fetched, human head transplantation is theoretically possible and merits an entry in Wikipedia. One neurosurgeon claims this will be a doable ...
Revising my genetics textbook: A PC exercise or an appropriate evolution of science and sensitivity? Or both.
Beyoncé is facing a lot of criticism for using an ableist slur in her new co-written song Renaissance. She used ...
Categorizing people based on physical traits like hair texture feeds racial stereotypes. Genetics challenges that prejudice
In an undergraduate biological anthropology class in 2011, Tina Lasisi heard a lesson about human skin tones that would change the course ...
Lax peer review + social media + confusing and misinterpreted data: Why so many COVID-era studies presented incomplete science
The pandemic has upended many practices, among them peer review of technical medical and scientific articles. Lax peer review + ...
Podcast: Sri Lanka’s disastrous fertilizer ban; Bees are fish in California; More pesticide lawsuits incoming
Organic activist groups led Sri Lanka's economy over a cliff by pushing a ban on pesticides and fertilizers. Will they ...
Could celibacy have an evolutionary advantage?
Many religious institutions around the world require celibacy. The practice has led anthropologists to wonder how celibacy could have evolved ...
Why the new malaria vaccine is just a first step in fighting this deadly scourge
With the Covid pandemic now in its third year, it is perhaps hard for the media and the public to ...
Humans arrived in Europe significantly earlier than previously estimated
Perched about 325 feet (100 meters) up the slopes of the Prealps in southern France, a humble rock shelter looks ...
Podcast: CRISPR can cause cancer? Vitamin B6 may fight depression; COVID ‘groupthink’
CRISPR gene editing has already proved to be a useful biomedical tool, but a recent study indicates it may damage ...
In the wake of Biden’s COVID-19 infections, here’s what regulators should do to limit Paxlovid rebound
When he headed the Food & Drug Administration, Dr. Frank Young used to admonish his minions that sometimes regulations need ...
Do ‘bionic’ reading devices actually work?
What if something as simple as bolding parts of a word could make reading a breeze, improving your focus, speed ...
Exploring Prophet Muhammad’s Hebraic descent
In the West, the discussion on the origins of Prophet Muhammad has been the subject of limited studies. Traditional and ...
GLP Podcast: EPA’s political weedkiller rules; GMO-derived beer on sale; Anti-glyphosate webinar review
The Biden Administration just overruled its own scientists at the EPA, mandating regulations that effectively ban the low-risk, effective weedkiller ...
IVF success rate is 30%. Genetic factors more than environment may explain why it’s so unsuccessful
It has been almost 44 years years since the first in vitro fertilisation (IVF) procedure was successfully performed in 1978 ...
The hapless male Y chromosome finally has a purpose
I’ve never been fond of the human Y chromosome. Yes, the all-important SRY gene sets the early embryo on a path towards ...
Transhumanism to humankind’s rescue? A new book claims we face a ‘make or break’ century, so let the technological remake begin
Ageing cured. Death conquered. Work ended. The human brain reverse-engineered by AI. Babies born outside of the womb. Virtual children, ...
Health and autonomy: How COVID has challenged already-tenuous balance among public health, religion and personal values
Exactly two years ago, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic. At the time, 118,000 cases and 4,000 deaths ...
Podcast: Guardian’s glyphosate hysteria debunked; Intensive farming and pandemics; Where did dogs come from?
There's probably minute quantities of weedkiller in your urine. Should you panic? No. Will technological advances in farming reduce or ...
