Science Controversies
Viewpoint: US, EU decisions pave way for ‘more consistent and rational’ regulation of gene-edited foods
Genome engineering using CRISPR–Cas9 technology has come a long way in a very short time. ... Now, CRISPR–Cas9 has passed another ...
Viewpoint: Uganda’s promising GMO crops blocked by anti-science NGOs
Though Uganda's scientists, working with international partners, have now developed better staple crops, their hands have been tied by the success ...
If we can keep bodiless brains alive, do they deserve special protection?
Researchers at Yale University have restored circulation to the brains of decapitated pigs, and kept the organs alive for several ...
Is it time to discuss what we should or shouldn’t do with ‘lab-grown blobs of human brain tissue’?
Rusty Gage and colleagues at the Salk Institute [recently] announced that they had successfully transplanted lab-grown blobs of human brain tissue ...
Controversial biohacker found dead in sensory deprivation tank
A controversial biotech engineer was found dead Sunday [April 29] in a sensory deprivation tank at a spa in downtown ...
Canadian plant scientists anxiously await word on how gene-edited crops will be regulated
Canadian breeders and seed technology companies are anxious about how regulators will handle new crops developed through gene editing. Gene ...
USDA might not meet July deadline for GMO labeling rule, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue says
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue told representatives from the National Association of Farm Broadcasting [April 24] that his agency may not ...
Treating severe autism with a controversial marijuana compound
UC San Diego will try to alleviate severe autism in children by giving them a non-psychoactive chemical found in marijuana, ...
Viewpoint: USDA made right decision to not over-regulate CRISPR gene-edited crops
The future of farming just got a lot brighter. On March 28, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced that his department ...
Are we moving closer to detecting cancer through blood tests?
The elusive dream is that a simple blood test could detect a small tumor growing in your body, giving doctors ...
Viewpoint: Regulating CRISPR gene-edited livestock as ‘drugs’ hinders innovative research in US
In one of the final actions of the outgoing Barack Obama administration, the Food and Drug Administration announced it would ...
Singapore considering genetic modification to treat mitochondrial genetic disorders
The Bioethics Advisory Committee (BAC) is reviewing its current stand against genetic modification with regards to genetic disorders passed on ...
Video: Ethical considerations when using CRISPR gene editing
This animation was produced by Massive and the Director of Sciences at Pioneer Works, Janna Levin. The beautiful animation was hand-cut and ...
Implanted artificial mole could be early warning system for prostate, lung, colon, breast cancer
[R]esearchers at ETH Zurich have developed a novel early warning system for four common types of cancer. An implant keeps ...
Precision medicine to tackle ‘world’s biggest killer’ cardiovascular disease
While there have been significant gains against cancer, precision medicine has produced far less progress in the world’s biggest killer—cardiovascular ...
Why the FDA and USDA can’t agree on the definition of a GMO
The regulatory concerns about genetic modification of animals that I wrote about a while ago have moved towards a Congressional spotlight. Pigs ...
Gene editing and a new age of athletic cheating
Think cheaters never prosper? Lance Armstrong won the Tour de France seven times. Manny Ramirez won two World Series championships ...
So we can clone our pets—are we moving closer to humans?
The story that sent shivers up my spine...was about Monni Must, a Michigan portrait photographer who paid to clone Billy ...
Treating lung cancer with combination of chemotherapy, immunotherapy
Patients with newly diagnosed advanced lung cancer who received an immunotherapy drug plus standard chemotherapy lived significantly longer than those ...
Understanding the difference between eugenics and genetic tests that predict intelligence
Polygenic scores ... can predict a person’s intelligence or performance in school. Like a credit score, a polygenic score is ...
With the age of biotechnology here, China’s spotty history with bioethics raises concerns
As China’s advances in biotechnology come closer to the secrets of life, they pose tantalizing prospects for the future. But when standards ...
Viewpoint: CRISPR technology poses genuine risks, but that doesn’t justify crushing regulations
The advances made possible by CRISPR could bring vast benefits to society, but the technology also poses risks. An out-of-control gene ...
AI personhood? European Parliament under fire for proposing recognizing legal status of robots
Over 150 experts in AI, robotics, commerce, law, and ethics from 14 countries have signed an open letter denouncing the ...
Battling malaria: Bill Gates backs gene editing of mosquitoes, acknowledges ethical concerns
Gene-editing technologies that alter mosquitoes’ DNA could prove critical in the fight against malaria, Bill Gates said on [April 18], ...
Gene therapy and rare diseases: ‘Is curing patients a sustainable business model?’
An analyst at Goldman Sachs asked a troubling question...about gene therapy. “Is curing patients a sustainable business model?” In social media, reactions ...
Transhumanist super athletes: CRISPR and ‘gene doping’ therapy poised to roil sports
[In the 1990s], gene therapy -- defined as the technique of using and manipulating genes in order to treat or ...
Viewpoint: Regulating dangerous biological weapons research ‘not an impossible task’
With current advances in biology, we can’t afford to avoid the topic any longer. It is high time the international ...
