It’s Rare Disease Week, and this year I’m thinking about it in a new way. My experience with breast cancer has been…
-
post Rare Disease Week Through a New Lens: Having a Common Disease, Breast CancerRead more
-
post How rare is rare? And other common FAQs on “Rare Disease Day”Read more
To mark Rare Disease Day 2018 (Feb 28), we repost this explainer from DNA Science blogger, geneticist and rare disease specialist Ricki…
-
post Tracking RNA to Pinpoint Time of Death: Better Than Bugs?Read more
DNA is a persistent molecule. Genome sequencing is possible for creatures as ancient as mummies and mammoths. But the messenger RNA (mRNA) molecules…
-
post From Blue Lights to Gene Therapy: The Intriguing History of Crigler-Najjar SyndromeRead more
Seeing Crigler-Najjar syndrome among this week’s news releases announcing upcoming gene therapy clinical trials conjured immediate images of an Amish farmhouse with…
-
post Gene Therapy for the “Butterfly Children”Read more
Videos of the “butterfly children” are difficult to watch. The name comes from the delicate skin of people who have epidermolysis bullosa…
-
post CRISPR Gene Editing of Neurons in Prader-Willi SyndromeRead more
I’m happy to see that fears about using CRISPR to edit human genes have dampened over the past year, but it’s still…
-
post A Closer Genetic Look at the Quagga, an Extinct ZebraRead more
Like the dodo bird, heath hen, and woolly mammoth, the quagga vanished so recently that glimpsing its evolution is possible, using DNA…
-
post How Genetic Testing Guided My Breast Cancer Journey – To Eschewing BeefRead more
Two months ago, I joined a club nobody wants to be a member of – the 1 in 8 women who develop…
-
post In “The Power,” Epigenetics Turns Misogyny On Its HeadRead more
I was thrilled to see Naomi Alderman’s dystopian masterpiece, The Power, top Barack Obama’s list of his favorite books of 2017. OK…
-
post DNA Science in 2017Read more
The year has ended for me with an unexpected irony. On December 19, the FDA stamped its final approval on the first gene…
-
post DNA Testing Kits as Holiday Gifts Can Bring SurprisesRead more
Lately people have been sending me their direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing results for help with interpretation. Although companies like 23andMe and ancestry.com do a…
-
post An Argument Against Gene Drives to Extinguish New Zealand Mammals: Life Finds a WayRead more
The mammals of New Zealand have long posed a threat to native species. The Predator Free 2050 program is an effort to rid…