News

'Superbabies' Startup Seeks Funds for Controversial Gene Editing Push

By Sophie Alexander and Ike Swetlitz, Bloomberg | 06.25.2025

A California-startup focused on genetically editing human embryos — a step toward creating so-called designer babies — is raising money as many of Silicon Valley’s ultra-rich turn their attention to one of the most controversial technologies in medicine.

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Patents & Other IP

Can doctors test embryos for autism? And should they?

By Brittany Luse, Liam McBain, and Neena Pathak, NPR [cites CGS' Katie Hasson] | 05.28.2025

A newly available kind of genetic testing, called polygenic embryo screening, promises to screen for conditions that can include cancer, obesity, autism, bipolar disorder, even celiac disease. These conditions are informed by many genetic variants and environmental factors - so...

Genetic Selection

Why Deleting Your 23andMe Data Is a Political Imperative

By Katie Sagaser, The DNA Exchange | 05.27.2025

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this piece are solely my own and do not represent those of my...

U.S. Federal

Trumpian “Common Sense” and the History of IQ Tests

By Pepper Stetler, Los Angeles Review of Books | 05.08.2025

"Donald Trump Signs The Pledge" by Michael Vadon 
is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

This is...

Society
row of books

Literature’s dystopian future is closer than you think

By Bri Lee, The Age | 08.13.2021

The two most famous English dystopian novels — Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World and George Orwell’s 1984 — battle like...

Other Countries
man doing gene therapy

Gene therapies should be for all

By Editorial, Nature | 08.12.2021

More than 200 phase 2 and 3 gene therapy trials are currently underway, which could translate into up to 40...

Human Genetic Modification
group protesting abortion bans

House’s Hyde Amendment Vote Advances Abortion Justice and Racial Equity

By Destiny Lopez, Truthout | 08.12.2021

Congress just took a historic step forward for racial, economic and reproductive justice 45 years in the making. Every year...

U.S. Federal
pill bottles with pills spilled out in front

National Academies’ Report Took Pharma-Friendly Stance After Millions in Gifts From Drugmakers

By Christina Jewett, Kaiser Health News | 08.12.2021

To several U.S. senators, it looked wasteful, even outrageous. Every year, taxpayers pay for at least $750 million worth of...

U.S. Federal

The Wild West of Fertility Clinics

By Madeline Verniero, The Regulatory Review | 08.10.2021

As of 2018, in vitro fertilization (IVF) has resulted in the births of approximately 8 million babies. IVF has also ...

Policies
a man in a wheelchair on the sidewalk

Remote work made life easier for many people with disabilities. They want the option to stay

By Neelam Bohra and AJ Willingham, CNN | 08.10.2021

Gabe Moses prefers to work his eight-hour shift for a call center while lying on his stomach, resting on a...

Bioethics

‘Socialized Research’ and ‘Privatized Profits’: California's Gene Therapy Research and Million Dollar Plus Treatments

By David Jensen, The California Stem Cell Report | 08.09.2021

Only eight days after the California stem cell agency approved its most recent award for its $60 million battle against...

Stem Cells
2 giraffes

Giraffes May Be as Socially Complex as Chimps and Elephants

By Cara Giaimo, The New York Times | 08.07.2021

Photo licensed for use by CC BY-SA 2.5 on Wikimedia Commons

Giraffes seem above it all. They float over the...

Genomics