January 16, 2025
(Science) – Result could be first success at stitching a curative gene into a chromosome’s “safe harbor,” reducing cancer and other risks A little-known gene editor, tested with help from a disgraced gene therapist seeking redemption, may have cured a … Read More
January 16, 2025
(Associated Press) – The genetic mutation linked to Huntington’s has long been known, but scientists haven’t understood how people could have the mutation from birth, but not develop any problems until later in life. New research shows that the mutation … Read More
January 15, 2025
(The Atlantic) – Thanks to more sophisticated genetic-testing techniques, IVF—an expensive, invasive treatment originally developed to help people with fertility troubles—is becoming a tool for optimizing health. A handful of companies offer screening for diseases and disorders that range from … Read More
January 9, 2025
(Ars Technica) – Since 2016, Microsoft has required all Windows devices to include a strong, trusted platform module that enforces Secure Boot. To this day, organizations widely regard Secure Boot as an important, if not essential, foundation of trust in … Read More
January 7, 2025
(Wired) – Treatments for rare diseases are hard to create and expensive to deliver, but there is new hope for editing the software of the genome. For progeria and thousands of other genetic diseases, there are two reasons why this … Read More
December 27, 2024
(ABC) – From a pig kidney transplant to restoring genetic deafness, 2024 was a year full of medical breakthroughs. The breakthroughs include the discovery of a cause of an autoimmune disease, the development of a “game-changing” drug and potential hope … Read More
December 27, 2024
The New England Journal of Medicine (vol. 391, no. 20, 2024) is available online by subscription only. Articles include:
December 25, 2024
European Journal of Human Genetics (vol. 32, no. 12, 2024) is available online by subscription only. Articles include:
December 23, 2024
(CNBC) – “Is curing patients a sustainable business model?” analysts ask in an April 10 report entitled “The Genome Revolution.” “The potential to deliver ‘one shot cures’ is one of the most attractive aspects of gene therapy, genetically-engineered cell therapy … Read More
December 17, 2024
(Associated Press) – An Alabama woman is recovering well after a pig kidney transplant last month that freed her from eight years of dialysis, the latest effort to save human lives with animal organs. Towana Looney is the fifth American … Read More
December 13, 2024
(NPR) – “The for-profit sector is focusing on conditions, such as sickle cell disease, such as cancer, which are commercially viable because there are just enough people with them,” Urnov says. The problem is, “that leaves 99.5% of folks outside … Read More
December 12, 2024
(Knowable Magazine) – Short sleepers cruise by on four to six hours a night and don’t seem to suffer ill effects. Turns out they’re genetically built to require less sleep than the rest of us. Everyone has heard that it’s … Read More
December 11, 2024
(Wired) – “People don’t always realize they are creating a human being and not a piece of furniture.” For years now, aspiring parents have been designing their children. Screening embryos for disease-causing genes during IVF, selecting their future baby’s sex, … Read More
December 10, 2024
(Undark) – New dialogues are emerging about what comes next in biology, 25 years after completion of a draft of the human genome. In today’s world, post-genomic is built on two important ideas: that, as previously mentioned, doing genomics is … Read More
December 6, 2024
(MIT Technology Review) – The UK is seen as a global leader in regulating reproductive technologies. Some worry that onerous paperwork is causing embryos to be wasted. IVF is a success story for embryo research. But today, valuable embryos that … Read More
December 6, 2024
(Live Science) – Dozens of people in the United States have caught bird flu from animals this year, but there’s no evidence that the viral disease has spread from one person to another. However, a single mutation in the virus … Read More
December 4, 2024
(The Guardian) – I gave away my genetic information to a now imploding company for results that inspired nothing but ambivalence 23andMe is facing implosion. As the once-promising genetic testing company flounders – losing 98% of its $6bn value, all … Read More
December 2, 2024
European Journal of Human Genetics (vol. 32, no. 11, 2024) is available online by subscription only. Articles include:
November 26, 2024
(Wired) – The genome-editing technology can be supercharged by artificial intelligence—and the results are already being felt. In my field, Crispr gene editing and genomics more broadly, we often deal with enormous datasets—or, in many cases, we can’t deal with … Read More
November 25, 2024
(New York Times) – Labs around the world are trying to turn cells into autobiographers, tracking their own development from embryos to adults. Dr. Stadler’s lab and others around the world are trying to turn cells into their own historians, … Read More
November 21, 2024
(MedPage Today) – Australian study explored screening for hundreds of genetic conditions Couples who were found to be genetic carriers for autosomal recessive or X-linked genetic conditions often opted to change their reproductive strategy, a large Australian population-based study found. … Read More
November 20, 2024
(The Atlantic) – The BRCA genes became inextricably linked with breasts, as much as the pink ribbons that have become an international symbol of breast cancer. And in driving more women to find out if they have BRCA mutations, it’s … Read More
November 15, 2024
(Wired) – It’s been a year since the gene-editing treatment Casgevy was approved for sickle cell disease and a related blood disorder. It’s finally being infused into patients. When WIRED followed up with Vertex via email, spokesperson Eleanor Celeste declined … Read More
November 14, 2024
(Nature) – Deleting just two genes that control sugar production makes a more succulent fruit. Rotten tomatoes no more: growing sweeter tomatoes is possible by editing just two of the fruit’s genes. Deleting the genes increased the engineered fruits’ glucose … Read More
November 14, 2024
(Gizmodo) – Doctors say that Richard Slayman’s body did not reject a pig kidney modified to become more compatible with human biology. A historic medical accomplishment that ended in tragedy may yet have a silver lining. Doctors say that Richard … Read More
