Health & Medicine
Through the study and use of genetics, we can identify measures that could lead to the improvement of human health and wellness. These methods and procedures aim to prevent years of chronic disease and thousands of dollars in health care costs, and provide families and communities with knowledge of how to live healthier.
Below is the complete archive of related articles sorted by date.
Too tall or too short? There could be 83 genetic reasons for it
Researchers have pinpointed 83 rare genetic variants that may directly affect a person’s height. These variants...don’t occur very often, but ...
How to stem farmer suicides in India? Help farmers expand farm size
Editor's note: GMO critics, most notably philosopher Vandana Shiva (Read her GLP profile here), have long contended that the introduction of Bt ...
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 ...
How will CRISPR, gene editing be regulated?
[Editor's note: University of Virginia professor Randall Lutter talks about CRISPR and its regulation.] Now a member of the faculty at UVA’s ...
Friends of the Earth activist campaigner calls for increased regulation of ‘GMO 2.0’ gene edited food
Editor's note: Dana Perls is the senior food and technology campaigner for Friends of the Earth, you can read GLP's profile ...
UK votes support for first GMO crop since 1998, breaking with EU
A UK vote to approve EU proposals to authorise the first new GM crops for cultivation since 1998 suggests the ...
Cheaper blue jeans that are better for the environment? Genetic engineering can make it happen
Editor's note: This piece is written by Dr. Miller, a physician and molecular biologist, who was the founding director of the ...
Tom Brady, ‘super human’? How genetics may contribute to his success
[NFL quarterback Tom Brady's] age-39 season was statistically among the best of his 17-year career with the New England Patriots...What’s ...
Why some autistic people can tolerate severe pain? Gene mice studies yielding answers
The gene SHANK3, a leading candidate for autism risk, helps sensory neurons respond to pain, according to a study in mice ...
Wisconsin farm couple to Rachel Ray: Stop spreading pseudo-science about antibiotics in milk
Scientists are increasingly alarmed about the junk science passed along in America's talk shows. Here, a celebrity nutritionist, encouraged by ...
Regrowing heart muscles without cancer risk, using synthetic stem cells
A new revolutionary stem cell technique is being used to treat those suffering from damaged muscles without the cancer risk ...
Disease risks as we age may be tied to size of our chromosome telomere ‘caps’
People who had more infections as babies harbor a key marker of cellular aging as young adults, report researchers. The ...
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 ...
How evolution is dampening disease-fighting effectiveness of gene drives
[Gene drives] can quickly disseminate genetic modifications in wild populations through an organism’s offspring, prompting some activists to call for ...
WHO’s much-criticized agency IARC’s quizzical flip flop on whether coffee poses cancer hazard
For decades, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) warned coffee drinkers that their favorite beverage might cause cancer ...
Two baby girls with leukemia ‘cured’ using gene-editing therapy
Two children treated with gene-edited cells to kill their cancers are both doing well more than a year later. The ...
Leading plant scientist says he’s skipping Science March on Washington: Here’s why
[Editor's note: Kevin Folta, a molecular biologist and chairman of the Horticultural Sciences Department at the University of Florida, offers ...
Thinking of having kids? Take advantage of genetic testing
Genetic testing is often looked upon with suspicion by parents-to-be. However, this stigma often shields parents from being able to ...
Human-pig embryos could offer more for us than their organs
Embryos that are less than 0.001% human - and the rest pig - have been made and analysed by scientists ...
Genetically engineered mosquitos reducing Zika threat in Cayman Islands test run
The release of some 8 million genetically modified mosquitoes in West Bay [Cayman Islands] has had a significant impact in reducing ...
NASA twins study: Year in space altered how one twin’s genes worked
Preliminary results are in from NASA’s unprecedented twin study— a detailed probe of the genetic differences between astronaut Scott Kelly, ...
Glyphosate-based Roundup herbicide linked to liver disease in rats? Researcher Séralini under fire again
Animal geneticist Alison Van Eenennaam walks us through a new study by controversial researcher Giles-Eric Séralini, who once again links ...
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 ...
Chemical companies: Reform WHO’s ‘rogue’ IARC cancer-designating agency
Launching what it called a campaign for accuracy in public health research, the American Chemistry Council, which represents U.S. chemical ...
California can place cancer warning label on the herbicide glyphosate, judge ‘tentatively’ rules
California can require Monsanto [and other manufacturers of glyphosate] to label its popular weed-killer Roundup as a possible cancer threat ...
Smartphone app diagnoses genetic diseases with a snapshot
[When Omar Abdul-Rahman, a clinical geneticist at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, had to provide a diagnosis for a young ...
Heart attack victims: Stem cell therapy offers promise
Stem cell technology has produced some very exciting advances in medicine recently. Now a recent study from Penn State details ...
