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.

Bootstrap Bio...

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
ivf graphic

How Christian Conservatives Are Planning for the Next Battle, on I.V.F.

By Elizabeth Dias, The New York Times | 08.14.2024

Republicans may be backing away from abortion, but these activists have a strategy, with or without Trump.

The pivot seems...

Policies
a building with rubble

War halts IVF treatment in Gaza as parents mourn ‘miracle’ children

By Aseel Mousa and Emma Graham-Harrison, The Guardian | 08.13.2024

Image by Emad El Byed from Unsplash

Airstrikes have killed children born from IVF, while shelling of fertility clinic’s lab...

Other Countries
scientist in white coat touching purple and pink DNA

The Power and Potential of Gene Tuning

By Fyodor Urnov, Time | 08.12.2024

After a lifetime in the field of epigenetics, and nearly 20 years after my colleagues and I coined the term...

Human Genetic Modification
a piece of DNA being taken out of a larger part

China’s ethics guidelines – A new era for human genome editing?

By Joy Zhang, BioNews | 08.12.2024

What do China’s new ethical guidlines tell us about the country's changing attitude to human genome editing? Professor Joy Zhang...

Human Genetic Modification
a graphic of the ivf process on a blue background

I.V.F. Threats in Alabama Drive Clinics to Ship Out Embryos

By Azeen Ghorayshi and Sarah Kliff, The New York Times | 08.12.2024

An emerging movement against in vitro fertilization is driving some doctors and patients in red states to move or destroy...

Assisted Reproduction
a humanoid robot with blue skin surrounded by other similar robots

Go West, Weird Man. The oddballs of the MAGA movement have nothing on Silicon Valley transhumanists.

By Émile P. Torres, Truthdig | 08.08.2024

Image by Julien Tromeur from Unsplash

The latest Democratic line of attack targeting Trump, his running mate JD Vance...

A "Post-Human" Future?
sickle cells graphic

Sickle cell disease in India: The quest for a cure

By Priyanka Runwal, Chemical and Engineering News | 08.05.2024

Saritee Sanodiya, 26, has spent countless days wondering if she’ll ever live a “normal” life. Growing up, Sanodiya often missed...

Stem Cells
Image of Sam Altman speaking in front of a purple background

OpenAI’s Sam Altman is becoming one of the most powerful people on Earth. We should be very afraid

By Gary Marcus, The Guardian | 08.03.2024

Image by TechCrunch from Flickr licensed under CC by 2.0

On 16 May 2023, Sam Altman, OpenAI’s charming, softly...

Biotech & Pharma