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.
Mouse hepatitis virus may help end chimp research
The following is an excerpt. A newly discovered rodent virus that resembles hepatitis C could give research chimps a break ...
What if Darwin had never existed?
The following is an excerpt. What would a world without Darwin look like? Many have argued that science would have ...
Fainting runs in families, new study says
The following is an excerpt. As a neurologist, Dr. Sam Berkovic sees many patients who frequently faint. These people say ...
Lab-grown kidneys work in rats, offer hope for human transplants
Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital report a medical first: lab-grown kidneys successfully transplanted into rats, where they functioned properly -- ...
Mummy genetics study may be prelude to widespread genome mapping of ancient Egyptians
The following is an excerpt. The ancient Egyptians could soon be getting their genomes sequenced as a matter of routine ...
Supreme Court gene patent decision could affect every patient
The following is an excerpt. The legal question at the heart of the US Supreme Court’s debate over the patenting ...
Gene swapping makes new China bird flu a moving target
The following is an excerpt. A new bird flu virus that has killed 13 people in China is still evolving, ...
Genetic counseling and the customer service model of healthcare
The following is an edited excerpt. Genetic counselors wake up every morning and go to work because we are driven ...
Who should own DNA? All of us
The following is an excerpt. [The] case coming before the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday challenging two patents is a different animal, ...
US supreme court to decide if companies can patent human genes
The following is an excerpt. The US supreme court will hear oral arguments next week to decide whether companies can patent human ...
Confusion reigns on genes, race, and Alzheimer’s
The following is an excerpt. Wildly divergent headlines about a study of Alzheimer’s disease vividly illustrate the depth and breadth ...
Selected books on genetics
The following is an editorial summary. Featured books in this review article include: “Regenesis: How Synthetic Biology Will Reinvent Nature ...
The future of gene patenting
Are human genes patentable? The question is becoming less relevant as biotech patents move more toward completely synthetic genes and ...
Will synthetic biology benefit or threaten wild things?
The following is an excerpt. Will synthetic biology help or hinder conservation efforts? This was the question asked at a ...
IVF pioneer Robert Edwards dies at age 87
Robert Edwards, whose pioneering in vitro fertilization research led to the first test tube baby and has since brought millions ...
Economic recession can effect your genes
New insights into how genes are triggered in times of stress suggest that we should be paying attention to the ...
Rare mutation could lead to the next blockbuster cholesterol drug
Mutations in a gene called PCSK9 give African Americans extremely low ‘bad cholesterol’ and a 90 percent reduced risk of ...
Video: Synthetic biology explained
The following is an excerpt. What do you know about synthetic biology? In this video by TechNyou, you'll learn all about how syntehtic ...
Don’t forget parents share genes with their offspring
The following is an excerpt. In 2002 I read The Blank Slate. With all due respect to Steven Pinker one of ...
‘Smart’ stem cells help heart failure patients
The following is an excerpt. Treating heart failure patients with a special type of stem cell can improve their condition, ...
Genetic fatalism in mental disorders
The following is an excerpt. In the spirit of keeping the conversation on mental health going, I would like to ...
No need for genetic testing for most thyroid cancers
The following is an excerpt. In the majority of patients with papillary thyroid cancer, the most common form of thyroid ...
Study identifies four new genetic markers for severe childhood obesity
The following is an excerpt. Unhealthy food environments and sedentary lifestyles certainly contribute to obesity, but they can’t entirely explain ...
Genetic master controls expose cancers’ Achilles’ heel
The following is an excerpt. In a surprising finding that helps explain fundamental behaviors of normal and diseased cells, Whitehead ...
Turtle can freeze solid and survive, and we have those same genes
The following is an excerpt. Look beyond the western painted turtle's colorful stripes and you’ll find an animal that seems ...
Electronic health records aren’t ready for genomics-driven healthcare
The following is an excerpt. Current electronic health record (EHR) systems are not designed to work with genomic data, but ...
Tamiflu-resistance gene in bird flu spurs drug tests
The following is an excerpt. A gene mutation known to help influenza resist Tamiflu was found in the first of ...
