March 9, 2011
Prompted by concerns about an unethical U.S.-sponsored study in the 1940s, bioethics advisers to President Barack Obama formed an international panel today that will examine whether current rules adequately protect volunteers in global clinical trials. (ScienceInsider)
March 9, 2011
The burden of making medical decisions for a loved one can cause distress and even post-traumatic stress disorder, according to a report published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. (CNN)
March 9, 2011
Payment for biologically-based needs is often controversial. A case currently before the Ninth Circuit, for example, challenges the constitutionality of the federal ban against the purchase of bone marrow. While this case may ultimately have something relevant to say about … Read More
March 9, 2011
Nancey Murphy of Fuller Theological Seminary has an interesting and challenging essay in a recent book called “Neuroethics.†She argues that the dominant conception of a soul, a spiritual essence separable from the body, is the result of a mistranslation. … Read More
March 8, 2011
Designer Babies…Savior Siblings…Rent-a-Wombs…Egg Harvesting…Sperm Donation… Shocking realities not from the pages of a novel, but from everyday headlines. Paige C. Cunningham, JD, executive director of The Center for Bioethics & Human Dignity, will explore how Aldous Huxley’s fictional vision of … Read More
March 8, 2011
Registration deadline is 11 March 2011 Flooding in Australia. Earthquake in Haiti. Indian Ocean Tsunami. Hurricane Katrina. Disasters generate healthcare needs. Providing for these needs requires research. A Symposium will be held April 4-5, 2011 at the Brocher Foundation to … Read More
March 8, 2011
Statement by the WHO Director-General, Dr Margaret Chan, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day. “This year, we mark a century of women as agents of change to improve their lives, communities and health. . . … Read More
March 8, 2011
A mechanical engineer hopes to restore function to stroke-paralyzed vocal cords, although stimulating the correct nerves could be challenging–and risky. (Scientific American)
March 8, 2011
Researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin are taking pioneering steps to make whole-genome sequencing a standard part of diagnostic testing for children with rare inherited disorders not easily diagnosed by traditional methods. The technology has come far in the … Read More
March 8, 2011
What do you get when you cross DNA, origami and the body’s natural defenses against disease? The Army’s newest way to spot smallpox outbreaks, apparently. (Wired)
March 8, 2011
Wouldn’t it be great if transplant patients could simply order up an organ, like a tailor-made suit of clothes? Better yet, what if they could have the organ created from their own cells so there would be no risk of … Read More
March 8, 2011
University of Virginia bioethics professor John Arras has been named to a new International Research Panel created by the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues to consider the standards for protecting human subjects in scientific studies. (UVa Today)
March 8, 2011
One of the latest advances in stem-cell research might have trumped the tooth fairy. Last year, before oral surgeon Dr. Greg Kewitt extracted the wisdom teeth of a teenage patient, the boy’s father asked him if he could save the boy’s … Read More
March 8, 2011
The fiery subject of medicine based on human stem cells usually evokes roiling controversy, often generating more questions than answers. So, stem cell therapies have yet to catch on among investors — and on Wall Street. No wonder a tiny … Read More
March 8, 2011
Back in the 1940s, the early IT pioneer Claude Shannon fell in love with a computer called Betty, and no one raised an eyebrow. At the time, “computer” was simply the term for a person who performed routine calculations for … Read More
March 8, 2011
In a landmark judgment, the Supreme Court on Monday legalised passive euthanasia, giving thousands of patients living in a vegetative state all over the country the right to have artificial life-support systems withdrawn to enable them to end a life … Read More
March 8, 2011
The Wellcome Trust gives around £700 million to research each year. Naturally, the Trust wants to know where this money is going, and how well it’s being spent. This involves contextualizing Wellcome-funded research, and they’ve just published a fascinating timeline … Read More
March 8, 2011
Researchers at the Institute for Regenerative Medicine at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and colleagues reported today on a new advance in tissue engineering. The team is the first in the world to use patients’ own cells to build … Read More
March 7, 2011
Stem Cells (Volume 29, Issue 2) is now available by subscription only. Articles include: “Molecular and Functional Characterization of Gastrula Organizer Cells Derived from Human Embryonic Stem Cells” by Nadav Sharon, Ishay Mor, Tamar Golan-Lev, Abraham Fainsod, et. al. “Stem … Read More
March 7, 2011
The Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues is hard at work digging up documents in the National Archives about the now infamous experiments by American researchers deliberately infecting Guatemalans with syphilis, commission members said Tuesday at a meeting … Read More
March 7, 2011
A new open-access bioinformatics tool allows researchers to determine the pluripotency of newly derived cell lines by inputting microarray data. (The Scientist)
March 7, 2011
We recently noted that Massachusetts is considering the adoption of a Genetic Bill of Rights. At least two more states are now preparing to consider similar legislation. (Biopolitical Times)
March 4, 2011
Bioethics (Volume 25, Issue 2, February 2011) is now available by subscription only. Articles include: “Publishing Bioethics and Bioethics – Reflections on Academic Publishing by a Journal Editor” by Udo Schuklenk, 57-61. “Personal Genomes: No Bad News?” by Ruth Chadwick, … Read More
March 3, 2011
“The human person is not an it – but an I – some-one who must never be treated as an object.” In his words to the Pontifical Academy for Life the Pope acknowledged the threats arising out of what he referred … Read More
March 3, 2011
The burden of making medical decisions for a loved one can cause distress and even post-traumatic stress disorder, according to a report published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. (CNN)
