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.
Epigenetics study finds cancer risks double from exposure to “safe” levels of two carcinogens
The following is an excerpt. Science knows that arsenic and estrogen can cause cancer. At certain very low levels, the ...
A word of caution before the rush for genetic testing
The following is an edited excerpt. In striking down patents on human genes, the recent Supreme Court decision is widely ...
Gene defect ‘switched off’ in human tissue
Scientists have for the first time been able to switch on and off the effects of a genetic disease, myotonic dystrophy, ...
Britain moves toward “three-parent” IVF babies
Three-parent IVF could head off inherited mitochondrial disease in babies in Britain ...
James Watson: ‘DNA was my only gold rush’
The following is an edited excerpt. Having shared the Nobel Prize for the discovery with Crick and Maurice Wilkins in ...
‘Don’t touch my junk DNA!’ says gene signal sequence
The following is an edited excerpt. Almost all of the human genome is made of noncoding, or "junk" DNA, that ...
UCSF study identifies thousands of previously unknown RNA molecules
The following is an excerpt. A new UC San Francisco study highlights the potential importance of the vast majority of ...
Genomic medicine for astronauts
Personalized genomics could be used to ensure that astronauts are in the best possible condition before they go into the ...
Neuroscience: Big promises, big problems
Neuroimaging is widely regarded as the key to understanding everything we do -- but is this wrong? ...
DNA transfer in human eggs prevents disease
The following is an excerpt. Scientists have for the first time transferred DNA between human eggs. The success at Newcastle ...
700,000-year-old horse genome shatters record for sequencing of ancient DNA
The following is an excerpt. By piecing together the genetic information locked inside a frozen, fossilized bone, scientists have deciphered ...
The key to female longevity is in the genes
The following is an excerpt. Across countries and species, females live longer than males. It’s true in Canada, where a ...
Two genetic code tweaks 500 million years ago caused evolutionary jump
The following is an excerpt. Modern day reproductive systems are the result of changes in two letters of genetic code ...
Physicists tease out twisted torques of DNA
The following is an edited excerpt. Like an impossibly twisted telephone cord, DNA, the molecule that encodes genetic information, also ...
Link shown between Crohn’s disease and intestinal virus
The following is an edited excerpt. A new study reveals that all children with Crohn’s disease that were examined had a commonly ...
Scientists to analyze the DNA of Australia’s most famous racehorse
The following is an excerpt. Scientists will map the genome of Australia's greatest racehorse, Phar Lap, hoping to unlock the ...
Scientists study kidney cancer genome from many angles
The following is an excerpt. An integrative genomic analysis by Japanese researchers has identified critical genes linked to kidney cancer, ...
DNA vaccine for Type 1 diabetes looks promising
The following is an excerpt. A clinical trial for a Type 1 diabetes vaccine has resulted in promising findings, suggesting ...
The DNA data deluge
Computing, not sequencing, is now the limiting factor when it comes to genomics research ...
Coffee in crisis: Transgenics to the rescue?
Central American coffee production is on red alert because of the coffee rust fungus. We need transgenics to create resistant, ...
The race to a $100 genome
The following is an edited excerpt. Sequencing is a way of "reading" DNA molecules -- two strands twisted together to ...
We’re carrying evolution’s excess baggage – why can’t we let go?
The following is an excerpt. For 150 years or so, biologists have studied the human body for the vestiges of ...
Genetically modified silkworms spin fluorescent silk
The following is an edited excerpt. Silkworms in a Japanese lab are busy spinning silks that glow in the dark ...
Gene testing to screen astronauts for DNA damage risk
The following is an edited excerpt. Humans in space are at risk of a variety of ailments, from brittle bones ...
Mouse cloned from drop of peripheral blood from its tail
The following is an edited excerpt. From obesity to substance abuse, from anxiety to cancer, genetically modified mice are used ...
Father searches daughter’s DNA to understand her condition
The following is an edited excerpt. Hugh Rienhoff says that his nine-year-old daughter, Bea, is “a fire cracker”, “a tomboy” ...
Ancient horse genome sequenced: Ancient humans next?
Researchers have assembled a draft of the genome of nearly 700,000-year-old horse. Can they do it for pre-neandertal humans? ...
