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
Quest for a cure: Gene therapy offers hope for children with rare form of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease
A couple strives to help their daughter, who was born with a rare form of Charcot-Marie-Tooth, a muscle-wasting disease that ...
Epigenetics Around the Web: Oprah Magazine fumbles ‘inherited trauma’ story, and more
This week’s features: Writer for Oprah Magazine falls for classic epigenetics pitfalls; life insurance company is using methylation data to ...
DNA forensics is not an infallible tool — but not because of science
DNA has revolutionized how crimes are solved. But blunders by investigators have thrown a cloud over the use of genetic ...
Weird world of DNA: What’s the best way to help patients with genetic diseases that are not inherited?
The stories of two children, Millie and Hannah, highlight ways that genetic disease can seem to veer from the predictions ...
Epigenetics Around the Web: Dolly the sheep and aging. Epigenetics is not genetics. Obstacles to gene editing.
This week’s features include: a clinic that doesn't know the difference between epigenetics and genetics; lessons about aging from Dolly ...
Avoiding the unexpected: Zika, malaria-fighting gene drive in mosquitoes has built-in safety net
Concerns about CRISPR gene drives and other CRISPR applications have to do with the possibility that something could go wrong ...
Fighting cancer by shifting the body’s immune system into overdrive
Gene-targeted treatments and immunotherapy offer great promise to cure cancer, but they work in less than half of patients and ...
‘Brain fingerprints’: Will semantic memory identification replace fingerprints and passwords?
Semantic memory identification is an emerging ID technology based on the patterns of electrical signals that your brain puts out ...
Epigenetics Around the Web: Engineering better humans? Fearmongering in Canada? Fake autism treatments?
Epigenetics Around the Web is a weekly roundup of studies and news in the field of epigenetics presented by GLP ...
Proceed with caution: National Academies offers ‘qualified support’ for gene editing ‘abnormal’ embryos
The door to gene-edited humans was opened a crack by a joint National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of ...
Enhancing humans: Becoming a cyborg could end up as a privilege of the wealthy
Within the next 200 years, humans will have become so merged with technology that we’ll have evolved into “God-like cyborgs” ...
Epigenetics Around the Web: Chemo affects sperm? Cancer causes. Younger looking skin?
Epigenetics Around the Web is a weekly roundup of studies and news in the field of epigenetics presented by GLP ...
Could life have emerged multiple times on Earth, in the universe?
If we discover that life forms on Mars or Europa do not share an origin with Earth life, we'll have ...
Battle over America’s waistline: How obesity affects having children and their health
On one side are social forces behind a “fat acceptance” movement seeking to normalize obesity or at least reduce discrimination ...
Resurgence in ‘mad cow disease’? Recent death sparks focus on mystery prion protein
The original wave of mad cow only infected a limited number of people with a very specific genetic signature. Can ...
Epigenetics Around the Web: The dangers of romance?
Epigenetics Around the Web is a weekly roundup of studies and news in the field of epigenetics presented by GLP ...
Collateral damage from Trump’s family planning aid ban? What it means in fight against thalassemia blood diseases
Reversal of current US policy that provides aid for countries around the world for family planning, including abortion counseling, could ...
Star Trek-like ‘tricorders’ promise DNA analysis on the go
We are rapidly approaching a time when Star Trek-style "tricorders" will offer rapid handheld analysis of genetic samples. It could ...
Epigenetics Around the Web: Can changes acquired during an organism’s life be passed on?
Epigenetics Around the Web is a weekly roundup of the latest studies and news in the field of epigenetics presented ...
Genetics for public health: A lost cause?
Its power for discovering rare diseases is well proven. But genetics’ impact on public and preventative health has a long ...
Can probiotics help those suffering with metabolic syndrome, obesity?
In recent years, efforts to manage metabolic syndrome have fallen in with the lucrative, but untested weight loss market. Chief ...
Epigenetics Around the Web: Alzheimer’s drug moves closer to patients
Epigenetics Around the Web is a weekly roundup of the latest studies and news in the field of epigenetics presented ...
Moderate drinking improves heart health? Genes say ‘not so fast’
While research has shown that drinking alcohol in moderation may help lower the risk of congenital heart defects, other data ...
Piltdown Man evolution hoax reminds us about danger of confirmation bias
A 100-year-old hoax involving the "discovery" of a missing link in the human evolution chain provides insights into the pitfalls ...
Genetics may have played a part in electing Trump president
Do our genetics influence whether we lean to the political left or right? It's obviously more complicated than that, but ...
The future is here: 3 ways technology can improve sustainability
Generating energy and using more land for crops increases atmospheric greenhouse gas levels. So does livestock farming. But there are ...
What genetics reveals about traditional Chinese medicine
Can Chinese medicine impact the human genome, and deliver on its promises? A variety of individual responses to these therapies ...
