Human Genetics Features
The GLP tackles innovations in human genetics and biotechnology. We highlight the work of our own writers, as well as that of contributors from around the Web. The GLP does not take a position on genetics-related issues; any opinions expressed belong to the authors.
Categories include:
- CRISPR and gene editing
- Gene therapy
- Stem cell research
- Genetic diseases
- Synthetic biology
- Epigenetics
- Biodrugs (pharmacogenetics)
- Personal genomics
- Ancestry and evolution
- Ethics and regulations
Organ shortage and genetic modification: Tissues from 3D-bioprinting and GM pigs could address organ shortages but over-regulation causes lags
Modern medicine has produced many kinds of high-tech miracles, among them gene therapy to correct malfunctioning genes, electrical stimulation devices to restore ...
Genetic justice: Polygenic scores and ethnic differences
Polygenic risk scores (PRSs) are powerful tools. They gauge how likely you are to have a given trait based only ...
Russia’s shadowy disinformation war against the United States and its allies — Here are some of its key targets
Russia’s decades-old propaganda machine seeks to damage the health and prosperity of the country's adversaries. Ukraine and the United States ...
Viewpoint: Rejecting hysteria — ‘Alarmism’ over phthalates illustrates importance of embracing established risk measures
In October, in what could turn into a landmark case, a Missouri woman sued cosmetics company L'Oréal, claiming that her ...
Probiotics are ‘enticing target’ for gene editing — but is CRISPR up for the challenge?
Every morning I pop a Pearl probiotic. I try hard not to drop it, for the tiny, slippery yellow sphere ...
GLP podcast: Neuralink chip in your brain? CNN’s bunk COVID booster headline; Obesity drugs—the long-term effects
Neuralink has successfully implanted its "brain–computer interface" in a human patient. Elon Musk says the results so far are "promising." ...
Viewpoint: No, the data do not show that using sex toys release cancer-causing phthalate microplastics into your body
Microplastics are a kernel of biological concern that gets magnified by hype, like endocrine "disrupting" chemicals or weedkillers detectable in ...
Here’s how your immune system synthesizes its own antiviral drugs in response to infections
Your immune system makes its own antiviral drug—blocking viruses from replicating their RNA is one way antivirals work ...
Viewpoint: ‘I’m not anti vaccine, I’m pro-vaccine safety’ — Debunking Robert F. Kennedy’s lies about vaccine beliefs
CNN host Kasie Hunt interviewed antivax presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Although she did better than most journalists confronting ...
Viewpoint: Big Tech-Federal government conspiracy or sound science? A government agency just canceled its $30 million dollar study designed to tell us whether cell phones can cause cancer
Since the introduction of cell phones en masse in the 1990s, a small but vociferous faction of health advocates has ...
Darwin’s legacy: A popular new guide through the sometimes obtuse world of evolution
The study of Charles Darwin is a useful exercise in the history of science, as it teaches us that the ...
Is Alzheimer’s disease transmissible?
Five people treated for pituitary dwarfism decades ago with human growth hormone (hGH) pooled from cadavers have shown cognitive decline ...
GLP podcast/video: Too much cleanliness makes us sick? Protect your genetic data; Against ‘green-neocolonialism’
Good hygiene is important, but too much of it might be contributing to chronic disease in developed countries. A data ...
Biological exceptionalism: How two Italian sisters lived to 100
In my endless email about COVID-19 popped up a new paper analyzing the health of two Italian sisters who lived ...
Viewpoint: As concerns about plastic pollution in the ocean mount, there is a yet untapped solution — genetically-engineered bacteria that “eat” plastic. Will activists and the government block it?
Spain’s northern coast has been fighting a months-long assault from a ‘white tide’ of plastic pellets dumped by a Dutch-registered ...
Filling the gaps of what we know about the first days and weeks of the developing human embryo
Several recent reports are filling in the gaps of what we know about the earliest days and weeks of human ...
Video: 10 of the most prominent anti-vaccine celebrities, from Jim Carrey to Jenny McCarthy
Why do many celebrities reject science? Watch the video below to find out which Hollywood stars are anti-vaccine. 1. Jenna ...
How the FDA decimated the entire biotech sector of genetically engineered animals — and what needs to be done to revive it
In part 1, we learned that avian flu is killing birds globally in record numbers, has crossed the species barrier ...
Regulatory death march: As the avian flu crosses the species barrier and targets animals and humans, a gene editing solution is in focus. Here’s why it’s unlikely US regulators will embrace the moment
Avian influenza is surging again, but with an even deadlier twist: the scourge that has led to hundreds of millions ...
Viewpoint: Anti-biotechnology, pro-organic dark money web — Tort lawyer-funded, Charles Benbrook-created Heartland Health Research Alliance co-opts academic and government institutions to subvert independent science
The Heartland Health Research Alliance (HHRA) an ideologically-focused research groups funded by ‘dark money’ support from the organic industry and ...
Viewpoint: The ‘culture wars’ infection of anthropology and archaeology grows
In 1941, at the height of World War 2, troops stationed on Hoy in the remote Scottish Orkney Islands made ...
Viewpoint: Here’s what happens when legislators pander to activists by over-regulating science and medical practice in an ill-advised effort to ‘protect the public’
It is bad enough when unqualified pundits offer dumb opinions about science, but bad legislation can cause real damage. The COVID ...
Another lesson from the news coverage of COVID: How poorly-written headlines can adversely impact the lives of readers
Two friends independently emailed me a recent article from CNN’s website with this headline, which prompted both to ask whether they should ...
Nether region science—What’s the allure for cats of fellow feline rear ends?
Anyone who lives with more than one member of Felis catus knows that our beloved felines love to smell each other’s ...
Does the recently approved Novavax COVID vaccine offer any unique benefits?
Erin Kissane, a co-founder of the COVID Tracking Project, rolled up her sleeve for the Novavax covid-19 vaccine in mid-October ...
GLP podcast/video: What causes autism? Treating PTSD with psychedelics; Alcoholism could be in our genes
Speculation persists about the causes of autism thanks to an explosion in the number of cases that have been diagnosed ...
Can coffee drinking prevent COVID infection?
Coffee has undergone a dramatic rehabilitation since it was designated as a “possible” bladder carcinogen by the International Agency for ...
