Human Genetics 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
Is Elvis in your children’s DNA future? Furor develops over possible use of ‘celebrity’ genes
A British artist’s plan to create a mouse with Elvis Presley’s DNA as part of a larger project to exploit ...
Is IQ in the genes? The PC hypocrisy of intelligence studies.
In his new book, the brilliant psychologist James Flynn, of Otago University in New Zealand, has revealed that, for the ...
Foods of the future: What you’ll be eating in 2035
In a new book, The Taste of Tomorrow: Dispatches from the Future of Food, author Josh Schonwald examines how foodies, ...
Are Ethiopians descended from the Queen of Sheba?
Razib Khan of Discover Magazine’s Gene Expression blog, challenges the facile reporting in a slew of articles based on an ...
New GM apple that won’t turn brown stirs concerns from NGOs, conventional growers
A genetically engineered apple that does not turn brown when sliced or bruised is in development. But it has much ...
Genetic gamble: A new cancer treatment’s tantalizing promise brings heartbreaking ups and downs
Mrs. McDaniel, the 69-year-old wife of a retired corporate executive, had gambled on the ultimate in personalized medicine, an approach ...
The genetic legacy of “Jewish Catholics”
At the time of the expulsion of 1492, Sephardi Jewry comprised the vast majority of world Jewry, totaling about 400,000 ...
The black is a better athlete?
Michael Johnson, the 4-time Olympic Gold Medal winning sprinter, is standing by his assertion that black athletes have a "speed ...
Genetic breakthrough could spell end to supermarket tomatoes that taste like mush
A new discovery from partners at UC Davis and Cornell University reveals that the same genes that account for the ...
Can GMOs save us from climate change?
Malnutrition and starvation are problems that occur all over the world, primarily in developing countries. In coming years, as climate ...
First farmers: 7,000 year old caveman bones found
Spanish researchers have discovered the complete mitochondrial DNA of an individual that lived 7000 years ago. This discovery is the ...
How did species evolve? Giants of genetic theory go mano a mano
A disagreement between the twin giants of genetic theory, Harvard University's Richard Dawkins and EO Wilson of Oxford University, is ...
Personal Genomics: DNA helps Michelle Obama discover white ancestral roots, provides window into history of slavery
One of the remarkable innovations brought on by the DNA revolution is the ability to trace our personal and family ...
GM crops: Bring on the beneficial bugs
Chinese scientists have developed a new type of GM cotton engineered to make its own chemical protection against cotton pests ...
A brief history of stem cell research
The stories of research involving human embryonic stem cells and the policy governing that work are intertwined and stretch back ...
Can genes accurately predict human health?
One of the most controversial aspects of the genetic screening revolution is the proliferation of gene tests by such organizations ...
How do you live knowing you might have an alzheimer’s gene?
Though as much as 99 percent of all Alzheimer’s cases are not a result of a known genetic mutation, researchers ...
Scientist knocks view of genes as “blueprints” for development
The report that sequencing of a fetal genome demonstrates that we have a crude "blueprint" for adulthood has spawned the ...
DNA blueprint for fetus built using tests of parents
For the first time, researchers at the University of Washington have determined almost the complete genome of a fetus, using ...
Rainbow papayas: First GM fruit to resist virus- now on sale in Japan
A breakthrough in Japan, which has been historically precautionary about GM foods: “Rainbow” papayas–genetically modified to withstand the deadly ringspot ...
Personalized medicine: Blood tests combined with genome sequencing yield breakthrough therapy
In a remarkable new story, one professor, who sequenced his own genome, found that he was a high risk for ...
Gene find suggests hormone-free male birth control possible within 5 years
Scientists have found a gene that plays an integral part in male fertility, giving researchers hope for the future development ...
Biotech a drug discovery engine
We sometimes hear about diminishing returns in cancer research and development in the big pharmaceutical companies. They tell us, traditional ...
Radical life extension is already here, but we’re doing it wrong
Over the past twenty years, biologists have begun to set their sights on the aging process itself, in part by ...
The biology of political narcissism: Donkey brains vs. Elephant grey matter
Anti-Republican science writer Chris Mooney stirred a hornets nest of controversy with the publication of his recent book, The Republican ...
As gene mapping nears $1,000, will it improve our health?
The cost of mapping a person's full genetic profile has been dropping quickly. Now, doctors are struggling with a new ...
FDA approves experimental stem cell therapy to help deaf ear repair itself
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently approved a groundbreaking trial by the University of Texas Medical School at ...
