December 3, 2025
A New Edition of Bioethics Is Now Available
Bioethics (vol. 39, no. 9, 2025) is available online by subscription only. Articles include:
Genetic Ethics
December 2, 2025
They Found Relatives on 23andMe—and Asked for a Cut of the Inheritance
(WSJ) – A year later, she was suing the Brown sisters and their mother. Thomas wanted a share of a multimillion-dollar medical-malpractice award they had won after Joe Brown died of an undiagnosed aortic aneurysm. After all, she was his … Read More
November 24, 2025
Boy with rare condition amazes doctors after world-first gene therapy
(BBC) – A three-year-old boy has astounded doctors with his progress after becoming the first person in the world with his devastating disease to receive a ground-breaking gene therapy. Oliver Chu has a rare, inherited condition called Hunter syndrome – … Read More
November 24, 2025
Elective IVF gains traction. Doctors have concerns.
(Axios) – In vitro fertilization has exploded across America. The number of babies born through assisted reproductive technologies — most of them via IVF — jumped 45%from 2013 to 2022. A more recent part of the surge is elective IVF … Read More
November 19, 2025
A New Edition of European Journal of Human Genetics Is Now Available
European Journal of Human Genetics (vol. 33, no. 10, 2025) is available online by subscription only. Articles include:
November 14, 2025
F.D.A. Sharply Limits Use of Drug Linked to Two Teen Deaths
(New York Times) – A gene therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy caused complications to the liver, prompting a review of its use for younger patients. The Food and Drug Administration said on Friday that it would narrow approval of a … Read More
November 10, 2025
A Gene-Editing Therapy Cut Cholesterol Levels by Half
(Wired) – An experimental gene-editing therapy developed by Crispr Therapeutics is showing promise for treating heart disease. In a step toward the wider use of gene editing, a treatment that uses Crispr successfully slashed high cholesterol levels in a small … Read More
November 10, 2025
A New Edition of Theoretical Medicine and Bioethics Is Now Available
Theoretical Medicine and Bioethics (vol. 46, no. 5, 2025) is available online by subscription only. Articles include:
November 7, 2025
James Watson, who co-discovered the structure of DNA, has died at age 97
(NPR) – For James Watson, DNA was everything — not just his life’s work, but the secret of life itself. Over his long and storied career, Watson arguably did more than any other scientist to transform a once-obscure biological molecule, … Read More
November 3, 2025
Personalized gene editing helped one baby: can it be rolled out widely?
(Nature) – In a world first, a bespoke gene-editing therapy benefited one child. Now researchers plan to launch a clinical trial of the approach. Late last year, dozens of researchers spanning thousands of miles banded together in a race to … Read More
October 31, 2025
Here’s the Latest Company Planning for Gene-Edited Babies
(MIT Technology Review) – A West Coast biotech entrepreneur says he’s secured $30 million to form a public-benefit company to study how to safely create genetically edited babies, marking the largest known investment into the taboo technology. The new company, … Read More
October 27, 2025
Pig Kidney Removed From Transplant Patient After Nine Months
(New York Times) – Tim Andrews, 67, lived with a genetically modified organ longer than any other recipient. Surgeons removed a genetically modified pig kidney from a 67-year-old man last week, nearly nine months after he received the pioneering procedure … Read More
October 24, 2025
Common IVF test misses some genetic abnormalities in embryos
(New Scientist) – Human embryos formed with in vitro fertilisation can develop genetic abnormalities in the time between genetic testing and implantation – though this may not affect their viability During in vitro fertilisation (IVF), embryos undergo genetic testing before … Read More
October 22, 2025
Sperm From Older Men Have More Genetic Mutations
(Wired) – Researchers confirmed that sperm accumulate mutations over the years, increasing the risk of transmitting diseases to offspring. Human semen not only accumulates genetic mutations with age; as the percentage of sperm carrying potentially serious mutations increases, so does … Read More
October 22, 2025
A New Edition of Developing World Bioethics Is Now Available
Developing World Bioethics (vol. 25, no. 3, 2025) is available online by subscription only. Articles include:
October 21, 2025
The Astonishing Embryo Models of Jacob Hanna
(MIT Technology Review) – Instead of relying on the same old recipe biology has followed for a billion years, give or take, Hanna is coaxing the beginnings of animal bodies directly from stem cells. Join these cells together in the … Read More
October 17, 2025
The Race to Make the Perfect Baby Is Creating an Ethical Mess
(MIT Technology Review) – Genetics experts have been highlighting the potential deficiencies of this testing for years. A 2021 paper by members of the European Society of Human Genetics said, “No clinical research has been performed to assess its diagnostic … Read More
October 16, 2025
Exposure to any germs could’ve killed her. 11 years later, she’s living a normal life thanks to a gene therapy treatment.
(NBC News) – New research found that gene therapy for children with a form of severe combined immunodeficiency was successful in 95% of trial participants. Scientists have identified about 20 gene variants that cause SCID. Eliana’s form of the disease, … Read More
October 15, 2025
A New Edition of European Journal of Human Genetics Is Now Available
European Journal of Human Genetics (vol. 33, no. 9, 2025) is available online by subscription only. Articles include:
October 14, 2025
He Was Expected to Get Alzheimer’s 25 Years Ago. Why Hasn’t He?
(New York Times) – Scientists are searching for the secret in Doug Whitney’s biology that has protected him from dementia, hoping it could lead to ways to treat or prevent Alzheimer’s for many other people. For 14 years now, Mr. … Read More
October 14, 2025
Should genetically modified wildlife be banned? Scientists weigh the risks
(Nature) – Conservationists debate the pros and cons of using synthetic-biology techniques to alter wild species. The global conservation community is debating whether to ban the release of genetically modified organisms into the wild. Dozens of non-governmental organizations have called … Read More
October 14, 2025
Scientists identify key reason people may use or get addicted to cannabis
(The Washington Post) – The study builds on growing genetic research into cannabis use, as policymakers grapple with the risks and benefits of the drug’s soaring popularity. The tendency to use cannabis is associated with genes linked to impulsive behavior, … Read More
October 10, 2025
World’s first pig-to-human liver transplant keeps patient alive for 171 days
(Euro News) – The liver performed key bodily functions, proving that pig organs can temporarily support human life, though serious complications eventually arose. In what researchers are calling a “landmark” in medical science, surgeons implanted a genetically engineered pig liver … Read More
October 9, 2025
Women carry a higher genetic risk of depression, new study says
(The Guardian) – Researchers in Australia find 16 genetic variants linked to depression in women but only eight in men Women carry a higher genetic risk of depression, a new study has found. Claiming to be the largest genetic study … Read More
October 7, 2025
The AI Genetics Revolution Is Coming
(The New Atlantis) – We’re worrying about the wrong arms race with China. A curious feature of the last few years of anxieties about AI has been how they favor some dystopian fears over others. Right now, because of ChatGPT’s … Read More
