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.
Electronic Frontier Foundation goes after warrantless DNA collection
When it comes to searching the most sensitive part of our bodies—our DNA—the Fourth Amendment's prohibition against unreasonable searches and ...
Senator Rand Paul cribs from Wikipedia’s “Gattaca” page
Senator Rand Paul, the Kentucky Republican who is among his party’s top 2016 presidential prospects, has found himself accused of plagiarism. ...
Genome hacker builds largest-ever family tree
To help scientists investigate inheritance, so-called genome hacker Yaniv Erlich has built family tree with over 13 million people, using ...
Biotech could improve sugarcane farming in India and beyond
According to the director of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, scientists and sugarcane farmers should use the tools of ...
Genomics pioneer Craig Venter warns about careless biohackers
In his latest book, genetic guru J. Craig Venter envisions a brave new world where DNA can be teleported between ...
NIH prepares for surge in whole-genome sequencing
The medical community needs a plan for handling the fast-growing knowledge about the health risks identified through whole-genome sequencing, said ...
Whole-exome sequencing IDs disorders when other tests fail
When all else fails, whole-exome sequencing (WES) may succeed at nailing down a tough diagnosis, say investigators. A new review ...
Spain to fast track citizenship for Jews of Spanish descent. Who qualifies?
Last year, Spain announced that it would provide a fast track to citizenship for Sephardic Jews—Jews of Spanish descent (the Jews of Spain were ...
Geneticists map human resistance to AIDS
The key to future HIV treatment could be hidden right in our own genes. Everyone who becomes infected deploys defense ...
Synthetic biology’s malaria promises could backfire
In April, a consortium led by the global health NGO PATH — and comprising the University of California, Berkeley, synthetic ...
Mitochondrial genes affect more than their numbers suggest
For plant and animal cells, the vast bulk of their DNA is tightly packaged and tucked away within a storage ...
Genomic analysis moves to the cloud
Baylor College of Medicine's Human Genome Sequencing Center (HGSC) is looking to the cloud for large-scale genomic analyses. According to ...
Ötzi the Iceman stirs up enthusiasm for genetics
The popularity of recent news reports on the DNA of the mummy Ötzi remind us that genetic breakthroughs are reaching far beyond white-lab-coat ...
Can your genes predict your politics?
Among the first scientists to dig for the roots of political orientation were a couple of pioneering psychologists in California ...
Ancient DNA links Native Americans to Europe
Where did the first Americans come from? Most researchers agree that Paleoamericans moved across the Bering Land Bridge from Asia ...
How personal genomics is like Michelangelo’s David
Personal genomics is awash in stories of genetic discoveries that turned out to be weak or wrong, yet the field ...
Genetic modification may help tobacco find new life as health savior and biofuels source
For decades, tobacco has been maligned as a source of diseases. But in recent years, scientists using genetic modification have ...
DNA suggests dinosaur extinction event also wiped out ancient bees
The ancestors of modern carpenter bees may have vanished from Earth roughly 65 million years ago, around the same time ...
Scientists find genetic basis for slow metabolism, obesity
For the first time, scientists have identified a genetic mutation associated with two major contributors to obesity: increased appetite and ...
Epigenetics may tie diabetes to dementia
Altered genomic regulation of expression of key synaptic proteins may be responsible for the increased risk of dementia seen in ...
How to create alien life? Use human DNA, of course
Five decades after cracking the genetic code, scientists have discovered how to re-code DNA cells and build new proteins. The ...
Study identifies more Alzheimer’s genes
Researchers have taken a major step towards understanding the causes of Alzheimer's disease with the largest study yet into the genetics of the disorder ...
Are humans reversing cat domestication by neutering pets?
When your cat sees a stranger, does he come and snuggle close or hiss and run away? Whether a feline ...
Slave descendant’s genetic quest leads to African apology
African-American businessman William Holland's ancestors were subjected to slavery in Virginia — but they were handed over into slavery by ...
Rare genetic variant reduces heart disease risk from dietary fat
We all know people who seem to have been born with good genes—they may smoke, never exercise, or consume large ...
New technique to amplify ancient DNA for study
Really old human DNA (we’re talking thousands of years) holds amazing secrets about our distant past. What did we look ...
Will the public still fear GMOs in 100 years?
Innovations like aviation and vaccines have been huge contributions to modern society, despite initial public opposition. The same could be ...
