Meredith Knight
Transcranial magnetic stimulation: Can strong magnetics revive your sex drive?
If TMS, which is already FDA approved to treat depression, can reverse sexual dysfunction, it would be a boon particularly ...
Vampire therapy: Can blood from the young fight aging?
Billionaire venture capitalist Peter Thiel has expressed his reluctance to age quite vocally. He has also put his money where ...
Big chill: Extreme exposure from cryotherapy probably doesn’t enhance athletic performance
Cryotherapy is quite the rage among pro-athletes as a means to improve performance and stave off injury. Lebron James reportedly ...
One family’s story of misdiagnosis reveals harsh reality: DNA tests aren’t perfect
Personal genetic tests and precision medicine are becoming increasingly popular tools but caution is appropriate. The technology is still evolving ...
Questions about wisdom of early mammograms raise stakes for genetic profiling
Conflicting screening recommendations are sure to confuse women — which raises the importance of factoring in genetic factors in risk ...
IVF doesn’t cause low sperm counts in boy babies—Genes do
Media coverage of a recent study about infertility among boys who were conceived through IVF highlights that many misunderstand how ...
23andMe: Alt-right mistaken, DNA tests can’t ‘prove their whiteness’
A trend among members of the ultraconservative 'alt-right' movement is posting genetic test results online to prove their ‘whiteness.” They ...
Hillary Clinton: Evolutionary “grandma hypothesis” meets the grandma candidate
Grandmothers played an important role in the evolution of human social relationships and as generational knowledge sinks. Now women of ...
Nutrigenomics: Can custom diets based on personal genetics help you lose weight?
Several companies offer services that will match you with the best diet based on your genes. But can genetic information ...
Matching brain with genitals: Complicated neuroscience of gender identity
Finger length, empathy levels and even brain size don’t determine our gender identity. But what does? ...
Should FDA crack down on stem cell clinics?
Stem cell clinics operating in the U.S. market cures for nearly every kind of disorder without evidence they work or ...
Is crowdsourcing key to finding cures for genetic-based diseases like depression?
Fifteen gene loci are linked to depression using 23andMe user data in the most comprehensive study of the disease yet ...
Humans who can’t feel pain pointing way to non-addictive painkillers
Genes linked to pain detection and perception may be physiological targets for new, non-addictive painkillers ...
How many genomes is enough for US Precision Medicine Initiative?
FDA head says Precision Medicine Initiative should sequence one in every four Americans. Where will that money come from? And ...
ACLU to Myriad Genetics: Patients, not companies, own personal genetic data
Myriad Genetics is back in another legal dispute. This time it's in hot water for denying patients a portion of ...
Discovery of stalagmites, burned bones provides insights into pre-modern Neanderthal culture
A new cache of artifacts found in a French cave are evidence of a rich Neanderthal culture and a reminder ...
Mosquito mysteries: Genetics of bite vulnerability
Scientists think there is a genetic component to who gets bitten most, but popular reports ignore a slew of other ...
Microbe genes key to minimizing environmental damage from Deepwater Horizon spill
Bacteria were instrumental in cleaning up the largest oil spill in world history. Does this mean a future for microbes ...
What can sequencing da Vinci’s genome teach us about genius?
A team of scientists wants to sequence Leonardo da Vinci’s genome using DNA taken from his works of art and ...
It’s not cancer: Removing cancer label from some conditions may greatly improve care
A common thyroid tumor is reclassified as ‘not cancer.’ Will our growing knowledge cancer genetics lead to more reclassifications? ...
Genetics may contribute to when we lose our virginity, but other factors still dominate
Data now suggest genes involved in puberty and psychological development also affect when we start having sex, but how believable ...
Life insurance companies deny coverage to those with cancer genes like BRCA
US law bars discrimination against based on a person's genetics, but the law only protects in certain areas, which is ...
Can we treat aging? Anti-aging supplements make big promises based on little science
New compounds that slow cellular aging in experiments are emerging in the dietary supplement market. But with no studies in ...
Reflections on Craig Venter’s synbio creation: Life, from scratch
A high profile team creates a bacteria by building its genome block by block, but what's the point? ...
Boy’s death highlights need for reform, more oversight in medical genetics
A lab mischaracterizes a rare genetic mutation and a boy dies. The boy's case shows how our standards for reporting ...
Making monkeys just to suffer: Is new autism model ethical?
Genetic engineers created monkeys that model autism. But some question the ethics of creating such a model when our own ...
IVF: Safe method of conception for those with infertility or ‘evolutionary experiment’
An evolutionary biologist called IVF an ‘evolutionary experiment’ and alleges IVF kids will have more health problem. Evidence for these ...
Ultimate personal diet plan? Follow your genes
As the obesity problem in America continues, some scientists are looking at how food influences the way our genes behave ...