| Ban on embryonic stem cell patents by European Court of Justice |
| 24 October 2011 - by Antony Starza-Allen |
| The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled that stem cell processes which require the prior destruction of human embryos or are based upon the use of human embryos are not patentable. The decision may have wide implications for scientists engaged in embryonic stem cell research.... [Read More] |
| Drastic changes to sperm and egg donation policy made by the HFEA |
| 24 October 2011 - by Sandy Starr |
| The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has decided that donors should be paid fixed sums, and that these sums should be £35 per clinic visit for sperm donors and £750 per cycle of donation for egg donors... [Read More] |
| Premier League club tests players' DNA |
| 24 October 2011 - by Luciana Strait |
| An unnamed Premier League football club has had DNA tests carried out on its players to determine which of them may be susceptible to injury. The tests were carried out by leading molecular geneticist and assistant professor at Yale University School of Medicine Dr Marios Kambouris, who was told neither the name of the club nor the identities of the players... [Read More] |
| Does your DNA 'remember' your childhood? |
| 24 October 2011 - by Dr Rebecca Robey |
| Living conditions during childhood may have a long-term effect on DNA, according to new research by British and Canadian scientists. The findings, published in the International Journal of Epidemiology, may explain why some people who grow up in socioeconomic deprivation have health disadvantages later in life, despite improvements in their living conditions in adulthood... [Read More] |
| World's oldest woman's DNA sequence revealed |
| 24 October 2011 - by George Frodsham |
| Researchers have fully sequenced the genome of a woman who lived to be 115 years old. She is the longest-surviving person to have their DNA sequenced and the data may help to unlock the secrets of longer life. Initial investigations suggest that the woman may have had genes which provided protection from diseases such as dementia... [Read More] |
| New embryo test to improve IVF success rate |
| 24 October 2011 - by Dr Rosie Morley |
| Researchers at Oxford University have developed a test that may help to improve IVF success rates by checking the health of embryos. The team, led by Dr Dagan Wells, has apparently developed a test which checks embryos during IVF for abnormal numbers of chromosomes... [Read More] |
| Safer prenatal test for Down's syndrome launched in US |
| 24 October 2011 - by Julianna Photopoulos |
| A new prenatal test that can detect Down's syndrome by using a sample of the mother's blood was launched in twenty US cities last Monday.... [Read More] |
| IVF increases risk of pre-eclampsia by 40 percent, study claims |
| 24 October 2011 - by Dr Louisa Petchey |
| Women who have conceived through IVF may be more likely to develop pre-eclampsia during pregnancy than pregnant women who have not, according to a recent study in the US... [Read More] |
| Young genes in young humans provide clue to brain evolution |
| 24 October 2011 - by James Brooks |
| Genes that other species do not possess may play a crucial role in making the human brain what it is. Until recently scientific consensus held that the different use of genes shared across most of the animal kingdom gave each species' brain its unique character. However this hypothesis may need some revision following a study led by Professor Manyuan Long of the University of Chicago... [Read More] |
