Daily Human Digest
Every day, the staff of the Genetic Literacy Project scours the Web for stories on a range of human genetics issues, including gene editing, regulations and bioethics, gene therapy, epigenetics, personal genomics, evolution, ancestry and artificial intelligence. We publish excerpts of those stories and encourage our readers to visit the original publications for the complete stories.
IQ is mostly inherited, new research suggests
How smart you are doesn’t depend on how your parents raised you, a new study concludes. Their reading to you, ...
Cyclists test healthier, physically younger than average
A study of fit amateur cyclists aged 55 to 79 found that many were physically and biologically much younger than ...
‘Abominable Snowman’ hairs match DNA of ancient polar bear
Last year, Oxford University genetics professor Bryan Sykes revealed the results of DNA tests on hairs said to be from ...
Genes have a time clock, new obesity study reveals
Although genes drive many human behaviors, new research suggests their impact changes over time—when the environment changes so does the ...
To women looking for sperm donor, does personality trump career?
A study of online sperm markets shows women value more than just money when it comes to choosing a father ...
What are the implications of the ‘bad luck’ cancer study?
It’s not every day that a scientific paper forces us to re-examine long-held views on a topic of great importance ...
Does it make sense to sequence the genome of all new born babies?
This is coming, Genome Sequencing in Babies to Begin as Part of Study, with high risk cases first: "Stephen F ...
Microbiome and your vagina: How race, age and lifestyle create a unique inner world and may impact pregnancy
For years, researchers characterized the microbial community of women’s vaginas as being dominated by Lactobacillus bacteria, which ferment carbohydrates to lactic acid, ...
Worriers more likely to be smart
Worriers can be kept awake at night replaying the day, or imagining all the possible worst case scenarios in their ...
Malaria vaccine? Genetic engineering turns parasite into vaccine candidate
By knocking out key genes, researchers have created a version of the Plasmodium falciparum parasite that is harmless yet still ...
What will advances in genetics during 2014 mean for future of medicine?
No question that 2014 has been a year to celebrate for the field of genetics. Stem cell therapy, gene therapy, ...
Is cancer brought on by genes, environment or simply bad luck?
The chances are that, if you follow news articles about cancer, you’ll have come across headlines like “Most Cancers Caused ...
Signs of mother’s diet, birth delivery mode in human milk microbiome
The human microbiome project was a major undertaking by the National Institutes of Health, with a fairly simple mission: understand ...
Can this year’s flu vaccine quell the present pandemic?
As you’ve likely heard by now, the 2014-2015 influenza season is on a fast pace, now defined as a pandemic ...
Push for Ebola cure continuing into new year
Global health experts are preparing to test new treatments for Ebola in West Africa that they hope will eventually vanquish ...
Can chemicals evolve? Testing recipes for the origin of life
Scientists are testing the ability of simple chemicals to evolve under the guidance of a robot. Could this be one ...
Court overturns EU ban on stem cell patents
Today the European Court of Justice (CJEU) ruled that human embryonic stem cell patents could be allowed if organisms can't ...
What’s the genetic ancestry of average Americans?
In the United States, almost no one can trace their ancestry back to just one place. And for many, the ...
What world has learned about limits of science and medicine from Ebola epidemic
People in affected communities were understandably fearful; some were distrustful of health workers and resisted going to treatment centers, where ...
Researchers teach computer to interpret genome with video game-based technology
Sequencing of the human genome in 2003 was a monumental achievement. But it left us with more questions than answers: ...
Does neuroscience need to revise how it looks at the brain?
How much of our brain do we actually need? A number of stories have appeared in the news in recent ...
Only two percent of genome codes for genes, so what’s the rest for?
The so-called “streetlight effect” has often fettered scientists who study complex hereditary diseases. The term refers to an old joke ...
What Charles Darwin got wrong
It’s hard to overstate just how brilliant and huge an idea Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection was ...
Why we see faces in inanimate objects
Most people are obsessed with faces. We see faces everywhere, even in things that are most definitely not faces. The most ...
Harvard stem cell researchers challenge accusations of scientific misconduct
Two embattled and highly controversial stem cell researchers are suing the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School for ...
Reconstructing ancestors’ genomes using DNA data from descendants
David Speegle was a preacher in Alabama in the 1800s. Apparently he was very serious about the Bible's charge to ...
New method for clearing donated blood of viruses gains FDA approval
The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday approved the first system that could be used by blood banks to destroy ...
