There is a lot of genetics in the news. This site focuses on those stories that also have ethical, social, legal or political implications, or that we consider to be major new breakthroughs.
This site is maintained by Professor Lee Bardwell at the University of California at Irvine. He updates it when he has time. He welcomes suggestions. Any opinions expressed on this site are his personal opinions.
I also post some news to the “Quick Post” page.
2019 News
Congress is debating -again- whether genes can be patented
See also here
First U.S. patients treated with CRISPR as gene editing human trails get underway
Gene therapy and gene editing treatments for sickle cell disease have started, with some initial success
2018 News
Chinese Scientist Claims to Use Crispr to Make First Genetically Edited Babies
This is BIG NEWS. Also see
- Genetically Modified People are Walking Among Us,
- Why Are Scientists So Upset About the First CRISPR Babies?
Scientists develop genetically-modified “Super Tomato”
Scientists used gene editing to attempt to put flavor back into commercial tomatoes.
A DNA test said he was 4% black. Now he’s fighting to count as a minority business owner
His lawsuit raises complicated questions about how race is defined.
3 scientists sped up evolution in a lab. Their work just won a Nobel Prize
This article in Vox does a great job of explaining how the prize-winning techniques of directed evolution and phage display work. This work was very much about genetics: Recombinant DNA, mutation/mutagenesis, selection, and evolution. See also: New York Times article; Official Announcement on Nobel Prize website.
How Genome-Wide Association Studies Work
Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) are used to understand traits (such as height and weight) and diseases (such as diabetes and schizophrenia) that are controlled by many many different genes. For instance, There are hundreds of locations in the genome that influence the risk of diabetes. (In genetics jargon, traits controlled by many different genes are called ‘polygenic traits’, and those that are also controlled by environmental factors are called ‘multifactorial traits’.)
Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) can cause cancer. You should get vaccinated!
If you are younger than 27, ask your doctor for the HPV vaccine.
‘Roundup’ Herbicide found in Breakfast Cereal
Roundup (glyphosate) is an herbicide that is sprayed on crops that have been genetically modified to be resistant to it. (For background, see here and here).
The Future of Food
Are gene edited ingredients already in your food? Scientists at a French pharmaceutical firm have developed a new strain of soybean by using CRISPR to turn off the genes responsible for the trans fats in soybean oil.
Ancestry, 23andMe and others say they will follow these rules when giving DNA data to businesses or police
Under the new guidelines, the companies said they would obtain consumers’ “separate express consent” before turning over their individual genetic information to businesses, insurers, etc. However, the companies’ adherence to these guidelines in voluntary.
Years of Education Influenced by Genetic Makeup, Enormous Study Finds
More than a thousand genetic variants were found to contribute to how long people stayed in school, but the effect of each gene was weak. Environmental influences, which may include family wealth or parental education, together play a bigger role. See also here.
Potential Off-Target Mutations from CRISPR
New studies, such as this one in Nature Biotechnology, raise concerns that could limit medical applications of gene editing.
A Simple Guide to CRISPR, One of the Biggest Science Stories of the Decade
It could revolutionize everything from medicine to agriculture (and lead to designer babies). Better read up now.
Controversial CRISPR “Gene Drives” Tested in Mammals for the First Time
Gene drives are engineered to pass a desired trait to all of a mouse’s (or a person’s) kids.
IVF: 6 Million Babies Later
40 years ago, Louise Brown, the world’s first ‘test-tube baby’, was born. Since then, in vitro fertilization has enabled the birth of 6 million babies.
Genetically modified babies given go ahead by UK ethics body
They said that changing the DNA of a human embryo could be “morally permissible” if it was in the future child’s interests and did not add to the kinds of inequalities that already divide society.
Genetic genealogy: The technology that found the Golden State Killer is being used to crack other cold cases
The unlikely crime-fighter cracking decades-old murders? A genealogist.
The Unpredictability of Heredity
A new book explores the history and future of what we know—and think we know—about heredity
“I watched an entire Flat Earth Convention —hereʼs what I learned”
Unfortunately, there are many science deniers out there. Some don’t believe in global warming. Some don’t believe in Darwinian evolution. Some don’t believe that U.S. astronauts landed on the moon. Some even think the earth is flat!
The Golden State Killer is Tracked Through a Thicket of DNA, and Experts Shudder
DNA data collected by consumer genealogy companies (ancestry.com, 23andme, etc) has also become a weapon for police. But customers may not realize that they may be giving police keys to linking their relatives to evidence that could convict them.
Inside the Country Where Down Syndrome is Disappearing
Iceland’s attempt to eradicate Down Syndrome by prenatal screening is causing controversy.
Allowing 23andMe to Test for BRCA May Do More Harm Than Good
23andMe will now tell you whether you have certain disease-causing variants of BRCA1 or BRCA2. But it does not test for all disease-causing variants (variants = alleles). In this opinion piece, the writer worries that consumers may misinterpret a negative result.
Why One Scientist is Quitting GMO Research
Although she believes that we must continue GMO research if we are to feed 20 billion people by 2050, she’s exhausted by the overwhelming negative response the topic evokes in so many people.
Bad science puts innocent people in jail — and keeps them there
How discredited experts and fields of forensics (bite marks, etc.) keep sneaking into courtrooms. (By comparison, DNA testing is MUCH more reliable, although it too has its issues.)
Decoding the Redwoods
As climate change threatens California’s giant redwoods, the key to their salvation might be in their complex genetic code.
Selected News 2017 and before
The False Promise of DNA Testing
This article from 2016 tells the story of how gross incompetence at a DNA testing lab got an innocent young man sentenced to 25 years in prison, and how a UCI Law Professor helped get him freed.
How Square Watermelons Got Their Shape, and Other G.M.O. Misconceptions
This 2016 article is an amusing look at misconceptions about GM crops.
Doubts About The Promised Bounty of Genetically Modified Crops
Some of the anticipated benefits (higher yields, fewer pesticides) may not be occurring (from 2016)
‘Gene drive’ Mosquitoes Engineered to Fight Malaria
This article describes a 2015 paper from UCI’s Tony James, in collaboration with Ethan Bier and Valentino Gantz at UCSD. But gene drives are a bit scary: they are designed to rapidly spread through wild populations. See also “Mosquitoes engineered to pass down genes that would wipe out their species“.
Fallible DNA Evidence Can Mean Prison or Freedom
From 2011, this article covers potential problems with DNA evidence, from ‘drop in’ and ‘drop out’ of bands to biased technicians.
Just ‘Regret’ for Sterilizations
The story of a future war hero who was sterilized at age 16 under Virginia’s horrific eugenics program, which sterilized 7,400 people accused of epilepsy, alcoholism, immorality, etc. between 1924 and 1979. The future hero’s “crime”: repeatedly running away from home to avoid beatings by his father. In all, more than 60,000 Americans were forcibly sterilized under laws passed in 30 U.S. states, including California.
Biotech Soybeans Plant Seed of Risky Revolution
This article from 2001 still tells a great story: the origin of the GM crop revolution in a Monsanto laboratory.
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Bioethics.com Genetic Ethics Site
This site has the latest latest news.
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Global Warming and Climate Change in the News
Another website that you may find of interest.