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.
Risk genes show up in newborns’ brain scans
Brain scans of newborns show the same brain changes that appear in adults with gene variants linked to Alzheimer’s, schizophrenia, ...
Could genetic diseases be treated prenatally?
Last week we introduced the reality that our genetic technology is far surpassing our ethical ability to deal with the ...
Consumer DNA testing kits: The new front line of genetics
For the price of a night out, individuals can learn key elements of their genetic composition, hence take life-saving treatment, ...
It’s time to stop obsessing about the dangers of genetic information
The personal genomics horse has bolted, yet many members of the medical community are still trying to shut the barn ...
Personality-influencing gene may be a key to long life
The human genome is like a roadmap for the body, but our understanding of the road signs that point some ...
Using your 23andMe data: How inbred are you?
South Asian populations exhibit a lot of between population genetic distance, and not simply as a function of geography. But ...
Harvard scientists sequence entire genome from single cell
The notion that police can identify a suspect based on the tiniest drop of blood or trace of tissue has ...
The Silk Road delivered a genetic disease alongside goods and culture
Researchers have identified four new regions on the human genome associated with Behcet's disease, a painful and potentially dangerous condition ...
Bacterial “immune system” used to engineer human DNA in human cells
Precisely engineering the genome of human cells remains largely in the realm of science fiction. It's possible, with the right virus, ...
Genetic tests could pave way to ‘personalised’ asthma drugs
The GuardianGenetic tests could pave way to 'personalised' asthma drugsThe GuardianRoutine and inexpensive genetic testing could save a significant number ...
Education doesn’t increase intelligence
Education does not increase your intelligence. It’s the other way around. A subcategory of the last common misconception about intelligence ...
Stem cells and sight: “And the blind shall see again”
Some days the future arrives faster than others—this is one of those days. Researchers from Oxford University just announced that ...
Public health genomics: 15 years on
Genomic research was widely expected to transform medicine, ushering in a new era of personalized healthcare and disease prevention, but ...
Pharmacology may host genome revolution
Genomic research will transform medicine but progress has been slower than expected, leading critics to charge that the promise of ...
Stem cell showdown: Small business vs. the FDA
Celltex’s venture raises some of the most vexing, emotional issues in the business of medicine. Stem cells hold enormous promise, ...
Korean scientist intends to clone mammoths
Could Ancient Giants Be Cloned?Valley News“From what I understand of the process of cloning,” Slivensky continued, “Mr. Hwang doesn't have ...
Gene therapies target rare diseases
The Western world's first drug to fix faulty genes promises to transform the lives of patients with an ultra-rare disease ...
Why we have a right to consumer genetics
It’s hard to get straightforward health guidance from personal genome tests, which are banned in some places. But one way ...
In epigenetics, location is everything
In a novel use of gene knockout technology, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine tested ...
Desperate patients seek stem cell miracles, but scientists warn of hidden dangers
Boca Raton parents Gary and Judy Susser say they know the hope and promise of stem-cell therapy. Nine years ago they ...
Company aims to screen ‘virtual progeny’ from sperm banks
When economic development consultant Anne Morriss and her partner were looking for a sperm donor, genetics was an afterthought. “We trusted ...
Adam Lanza’s DNA could be compared to forensic databases
Days after the Newtown shootings of December 14, 2012, headlines trumpeted the state medical examiner’s request of University of Connecticut geneticists to ...
Nature creates genetically modified organisms — including humans
Despite some concerns over the transfer of DNA from one organism to another to create genetically modified crops and animals, ...
Genes are no guarantee you’ll get the kids you want
Some people are concerned about genetically modified food, with good reason, but I’m more concerned about genetically modified kids. One ...
Oldest man in world has “genetic edge”
Jiroemon Kimura, who became the world's oldest man on record last week, can thank a combination of luck early in ...
Tool developed to evaluate genome sequencing methods
Advances in bio-technologies and computer software have helped make genome sequencing much more common than in the past. But still ...
Gene determines how much of a “reward” people get from booze
One in six U.S. adults binge-drinks four times a month, consuming an average of eight drinks per session, according to ...
