Spock was always my favorite Star Trek character, and even if Leonard Nimoy was not Spock, it seemed to me that there was much of Nimoy in Spock. And for many of us scientists there was some of Nimoy and Spock in us too. The news of Nimoy’s death was a bit of a shock …
Could Spock Style Stem Cells Have Saved Leonard Nimoy? Read More »
The pieces on my radar screen to read in my ample spare time as I work the weekend on literally 5 different grants include these pieces: NECSS and SfSBM: A weekend of science and skepticism Breaking Down Fat: Trends in adipose cell-based clinical trials PubPeer Selections: Odd citations, “practice makes perfect,” a Nature update Right Turn: …
On Monday, I’ll be doing another Reddit AMA, this time on 3-person IVF also known as 3-parent IVF, mitochondrial transfer, 3-parent babies, etc. You can see the upcoming AMAs including mine listed in the right sidebar here. Mine will start at 10AM PST/1PM EST. I hope to discuss with a wide audience all the key …
Monday, March 2: My Reddit AMA on 3-Person IVF – Mitochondrial Transfer Read More »
The challenge to the WARF/Jamie Thomson patents/IP on human embryonic stem cells (hESC) is at an end. The US Supreme Court declined to hear the case. Earlier, the USPTO had turned down the challenge leading to a winding road in the courts. What do you all think of this stem cell IP challenge and the …
Supreme Court Rejection of WARF hESC Patent Challenge Discussion Read More »
With the House of Lords vote yesterday, the UK officially became the only country in the world to have legalized human genetic modification via 3-Person IVF. The point of this “mitochondrial transfer” or “3-person IVF” technology is not directly to genetically modify humans specifically, but it still will lead to that result in any case. …
There’s been some back and forth between me and some members of the UK Parliament and others in the UK on the issue of mitochondrial transfer or 3-person IVF technology. Some of this has involved the UK equivalent of the Surgeon General, Professor Dame Sally Davies, who at one point apparently called my views “bunk”. I …
Red flags in Sally Davies letter on 3-person IVF mitochondrial transfer Read More »
What is one to do when the equivalent of the Surgeon General of the UK calls one’s concerns about something, in this case 3-person IVF, “bunk”? It sure gave me some pause. What’s going on? First, some brief background. The debate over 3-person IVF/mitochondrial transfer technology has been getting more heated. The epicenter for the discussion …
UK Surgeon General Calls My Concerns on 3-person IVF “Bunk” Read More »
How much do these stem cell treatments cost? Stem cell treatments of various kinds are now widely available in America at more than 100 stem cell clinics offering non-FDA approved interventions for dozens of conditions. American patients are often recruited on the Internet to travel around the US or to Mexico and other countries. How …
Here’s some thought-provoking weekend reading. ALEXEY. CLINICAL CELL PROCESSING NEWS – PART 1, 2015 BIOPOLITICAL TIMES. MITOCHONDRIAL MISSION CREEP AND THE CLONING CONNECTION CALIFORNIA STEM CELL REPORT. CALIFORNIA’S BOB KLEIN PROPOSES $100 BILLION, INTERNATIONAL STEM CELL/GENOMICS VENTURE CARL ZIMMER. A NEW THEORY ON HOW NEANDERTHAL DNA SPREAD IN ASIA DN LEE. YOU SHOULD KNOW: MICHELLE HUNTER AND EXPLORING NEUROSCIENCE THROUGH …
23andMe CEO, Anne Wojcicki, just emailed 23andMe customers (me included) with the big news that the FDA has approved the company to offer Bloom syndrome carrier status reporting. As Wojcicki points out, this is the first time ever that the FDA has granted authorization of a direct-to-consumer genetic test. This is a huge deal. Why …
Landmark decision: FDA Approves 23andMe Genetic Test Read More »