OSHU
The first known attempt at creating genetically modified human embryos in the United States has been carried out by a team of researchers in Portland, Oregon, MIT Technology Review has learned.
The effort,
CRISPR Gene Editing Can Cause Hundreds of Unintended Mutations
Science Daily May 29, 2017 Columbia University Medical Center
As CRISPR-Cas9 starts to move into clinical trials, a new study published in Nature Methods has found that the gene-editing technology can introduce hundreds of unintended mutations into the genome.
“We feel it’s critical that the scientific community consider the potential hazards of all off-target mutations caused by CRISPR, including single nucleotide mutations and mutations in non-coding regions of the genome,” says co-author Stephen Tsang, MD,
The Fertility Doctor Trying to Commercialize Three-Parent Babies
Bioethics.com June 26,2017 MIT Technology Review
A U.S. fertility doctor has started a company with a provocative vision for older women: become pregnant by having their DNA shifted into a young woman’s egg. The company, Darwin Life, was quietly established last year by John Zhang, also founder of a New York City clinic called New Hope Fertility Center, to deploy a cutting-edge fertility technology called “spindle nuclear transfer.” Originally developed as a way to prevent …
Restoring Sight: CRISPR Could Reprogram Cells to Treat Retinitis pigmentosa
Genetic Literacy Project 4/28/17 University of California San Diego
Using the gene-editing tool CRISPR/Cas9, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine and Shiley Eye Institute at UC San Diego Health, have reprogrammed mutated rod photoreceptors to become functioning cone photoreceptors, reversing cellular degeneration and restoring visual function in two mouse models of retinitis pigmentosa.
Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a group of inherited vision disorders caused by numerous mutations in more than 60 …
China Unveils Gene Technology to Create Superhumans with Hyper-Muscular Test-tube Dogs
Express.co.uk by Rebecca Flood July 18, 2017
Armies of super-soldiers were a step closer to reality today after China announced it was genetically engineering hyper-muscular super-dogs.
The canine genome has been especially difficult to engineer and replicate – but its close similarity to the human genome means it has long
…First Human Embryos Edited in the U.S.
Rewriting Life by Steve Connor July 26, 2017
Turning Skin Cells into Blood Vessel Cells While Keeping Them Young
Science Daily April 6, 2017
This is a mouse heart section showing human progenitor cells that formed functional human blood vessels. Purple color signifies human blood vessels, red staining signifies the blood vessels of the mouse that received the human cell implants. Credit: Jalees Rehman
Researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago have identified a molecular switch that converts skin cells into cells that make up blood vessels, which could ultimately be used to
This Fluid-Filled Bag Lets Lambs Develop Outside the Womb. Humans Are Next.
Futurism.com Jolene Creighton April 26, 2017
Physicians at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia worked with 23 week-old lambs to in order test a synthetic device that imitates a woman’s uterus, hoping to limit mortality and disease in premature children that are born before 37 weeks
Creating an artificial womb would be a feat of monumental proportions, as premature birth is the leading cause of death for newborns. And this week, Philadelphia physicians made significant strides
…
Unproven Stem Cell ‘Therapy’ Blinds Three Patients at Florida Clinic
Science Daily March 15, 2017 Stanford University Medical Center
Jeffrey Goldberg and his colleagues examined the cases of three women who were blinded after undergoing an unproven stem cell treatment for macular degeneration.
Credit: Norbert von der Groeben
Three people with macular degeneration were blinded after undergoing an unproven stem cell treatment that was touted as a clinical trial in 2015 at a clinic in Florida. Within a week following the treatment, the patients experienced
Is the 14-day Limit on Growing Embryos Out of Date?
BioEdge April 3, 2017 Michael Cook
Both in the US and UK, growing human embryos more than 14 days in a laboratory is banned. Recent developments suggest that it may be possible to grow them for longer and a number of scientists are lobbying to extend the limit. They contend that the limit is out-of-date and too restrictive.
But what if they could create embryo-like structures without creating complete embryos? This possibility is completely unregulated.…
Dutch Health Council Authorizes the Creation of Human Embryos for Research
BioEdge April 3, 2017 Xavier Symons
The Dutch Health Council (Gezondheidsraad) has recommended that scientists be allowed to create embryos specifically for research purposes, in a move that will pave the way for embryo gene editing research in the Netherlands.
In a report submitted Tuesday to Minister for Health Edith Schippers, the Health Council recommended that the government abandon the current regulations that only allow research scientists to use embryos left over from procedures such …