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.
French book examines why black sprinters dominate the Olympics
Ever since American runner Jesse Owens took the 1936 Berlin Olympics by storm, black athletes have generally reigned supreme in ...
Doom and DNA: Why we shouldn’t always overreact when it comes to DNA- Positive advances in genetic testing
While society should be careful about its uses of genetic testing and its efforts to modify the genome, some people ...
Why ‘race’ matters in determining who is the fastest man on earth
Lightning-quick reactions. In most sports, they form the foundation of victory. Nowhere is this more cut and dry than in ...
Malaria genome provides treatment roadmap
Genetic variability revealed in malaria genomes newly sequenced by two multi-national research teams points to new challenges in efforts to ...
Can genetic testing tell you about your child’s Olympic future?
As I watch the Olympics this week I’m particularly interested in the stories about some of the athletes as kids, ...
Epigenetics discovery aids prostate cancer diagnosis
A lot of attention has been placed on the genetics of cancer, including looking at the mutations that occur that ...
How do brain stem cells know when to act?
Working with mice, Johns Hopkins researchers say they have figured out how stem cells found in a part of the ...
Genes tell intricate tale of Jewish diaspora
A new genetic map paints a comprehensive picture of the 2,000 or so years in which different Jewish groups migrated ...
Can there be a reality of genetically modified Olympians?
There have been "marathon mice", "Schwarzenegger mice" and dogs whose wasted muscles were repaired with injected substances that switch off ...
Human stem cells found to restore memory
A California biotech company announced that its human stem cells restored memory in rodents bred to have an Alzheimer's-like condition—the ...
Synthetic biology expands beyond bacteria
Synthetic biology is getting a boost. So far, most researchers have designed their synthetic circuits using transcription factors found in ...
Scientists work to develop human organs from stem cells
Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania have teamed up with their counterparts all over the world, working to develop human ...
Acid-burn victim gets rare stem cell surgery
A group of local doctors on Wednesday injected grown stem cells into a severely-burnt Malaysian woman to repair her skin ...
Why women live longer then men: It’s in the genes
THE reason women live roughly four years longer than men in Australia may not solely be down to their reduced ...
Genetic screening identifies genes linked to human skeletal disease
A genetic screening approach to studying bone disease has found nine new genes associated with bone health and suggests a ...
Genetics test reveals your cat’s ancestry
Ever wondered whether your feline hails from eastern Asia or the eastern Mediterranean? No need to rack your brain anymore ...
Explaining obesity: Diet, lifestyle or genes?
Modern lifestyles are quite different from those of our hunter-gatherer ancestors. That seems obvious. People looking to apply blame for ...
Personalized medicine closer to reality: Using stem cells to study variants of Parkinson’s disease
A nationwide consortium of scientists at 20 institutions, led by a principal faculty member at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute ...
Your diet affects your grandchildren’s DNA, scientists say
You are what you eat, the saying goes. And, according to two new genetic studies, you are what your mother, ...
Sick from stress? Blame your Mom, and epigenetics
If you're sick from stress, a new research report appearing in the August 2012 issue of The FASEB Journal suggests ...
Fat stem cells from liposuction used to form functioning blood vessels
Liposuction may yield more than just a leaner figure – it can potentially produce stem cells for tissue reconstruction. Researchers ...
In defense of synthetic biology: Can it help create a better future for all?
Synthetic biology means different things to different people. Its leading scientists want to create, characterise and, crucially, standardise individual pieces ...
Get ready for a new genre of medical tests for the era of personalized medicine
A new genre of diagnostic tests – which determine whether a medicine is right for a patient’s genes – are ...
New evidence for stem cells that spur cancer’s growth
For a decade, it’s been one of the most hotly debated questions in cancer: do tumors return despite powerful treatments ...
Are stem cells delivering on their potential therapeutic benefits?
Since stem cells have the potential to become almost any cell in the body, these cells offer tremendous potential to ...
Company seeks FDA approval for personal DNA test
Genetic test maker 23andMe is asking the Food and Drug Administration to approve its personalized DNA test in a move ...
Genetic tests could explain why some children and teens die unexpectedly
Characterized by a hidden defect in certain cardiac cells, the syndrome had several bizarre variants. One type results in cardiac ...
