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.
First genomic survey of human skin fungal diversity
The following is an excerpt. While humans have harnessed the power of yeast to ferment bread and beer, the function ...
Schizophrenia symptoms eliminated in genetically modified animal model
The following is an excerpt. Overexpression of a gene associated with schizophrenia causes classic symptoms of the disorder that are ...
Italy: Parliament approves stem cell testing
The following is an excerpt. A controversial Italian stem cell therapy that scientists say is unproven will undergo its first ...
Biologists engineer custom flu vaccine in a week
The following is an excerpt. A copy of the genetic code of an H7N9 avian flu—similar to, but not exactly ...
Genome sequencing should be universal, benefitting all
The following is an excerpt. The promise of personalized medicine with genome sequencing might soon imbue humanity with terrific powers ...
Human genes: Has science outgrown patents?
The following is an excerpt. Is it right to patent human genes? Both sides in a US law case have ...
The curious case of human gene patents
The following is an excerpt. Critics who think the U.S. Patent Office has been too liberal in awarding protection for ...
Researchers feud over Jewish genes
The following is an excerpt. Are Jews genetically homogenous? Though it’s certainly been a loaded question historically, the quandary has ...
Personal genomics and accidental paternity tests
What happens when your 23andMe results reveal that your brother is your uncle and your father isn't your father? ...
Detective story: How genomics found the culprit in Ireland’s Great Famine
In an impressive bit of genomic sleuthing, researchers have used dried potato leaves to decode the genome of the fungus-like ...
Long-running stem cell lobbying group ending
The following is an edited excerpt. In a sign of how much the controversy over human embryonic stem cells has ...
Genetic markers predict postpartum depression
The following is an edited excerpt. Researchers say that pregnant women may soon be able to take a blood test ...
Scientists must lead human cloning stem cell debate
The following is an edited excerpt. Last week’s announcement in Cell that a team in Oregon successfully derived stem cells ...
Biologists find RNA molecule protects stem cells during inflammation
The following is an edited excerpt. When infections occur in the body, stem cells in the blood often jump into ...
Scientists identify ‘bad’ cholesterol genes
A team of researchers from the Texas Biomedical Research Institute reporting online in the Journal of Lipid Research has identified ...
Gene linked to improved survival of pulmonary fibrosis
The following is an edited excerpt. New research, released in the New England Journal of Medicine, suggests that a common ...
The coming human cloning controversies
The following is an edited excerpt. I learned about the first successful human cloning last Monday, but couldn’t write about ...
10,000 hours may gain you little if you have no talent
The following is an excerpt. A few years ago Malcolm Gladwell made the “10,000 hour rule” famous in his book Outliers. In practice (e.g., discussions ...
Authors urge importance of patients’ rights in genome sequencing
Upcoming paper in ‘Science’ pushes back against recent recommendations from the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics. (News-medical) ...
Ethical path to artificial stem cell technology
Australian research has created a molecular roadmap that shows how any cell in the human body can be turned into ...
Body clock genes linked to depression
Genes believed to regulate sleep rhythm are expressed abnormally in people with major depressive disorders, scientists say ...
Stem-cell treatment restores sight to blind man
The following is an excerpt. An experimental stem-cell treatment has restored the sight of a man blinded by the degeneration ...
Only way to prevent human clones is to prohibit new stem cell cloning technique
The following is an excerpt. The Los Angeles Times has waded in to the junk biology game, assuring us that no embryos ...
Stem cell tech may help mitochondrial disease
The following is an excerpt of a longer story. Last week's big news about production of genetically matched human embryonic stem ...
Microbiome: How the bacterial genes in our gut impact us
For every human cell that is intrinsic to our body, there are about 10 resident microbes ...
Scientists sequence genome of ‘sacred lotus,’ which likely holds anti-aging secrets
The following is an excerpt. A team of 70 scientists from the U.S., China, Australia and Japan today reports having ...
Angelina Jolie’s cancer decision highlights row over genetic technology
The following is an excerpt. Angelina Jolie's decision to speak out about her decision to have a preventive double mastectomy ...
