£25 million to study genetics of African diseases
The Wellcome Trust has joined forces with the US National Institute of Health (NIH) to coordinate a major new genetics study in Africa....
Ben Jones was previously a Volunteer Writer at BioNews and an Adviser to the charity that publishes it, the Progress Educational Trust (PET). His BioNews article 'Lord Winston labels egg freezing an expensive confidence trick' is reproduced in Reproductive Ethics (buy this book from Amazon UK). He is currently studying for a DPhil at the University of Oxford's Centre for Socio-Legal Studies. Previously, he studied Philosophy and the Biological and Biomedical Sciences at the the University of Cambridge, where he went on to obtain an MPhil. His research at Cambridge concerned the social construction of the human admixed embryo in the UK, with a particular focus on media coverage of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008.
by Ben Jones
The Wellcome Trust has joined forces with the US National Institute of Health (NIH) to coordinate a major new genetics study in Africa....
by Ben Jones
The Ohio (US) State Senate has passed legislation banning the creation of any embryo that would contain both human and animal DNA or tissues. Bill 243 proposes to ban the creation of 'human-animal hybrids'...
by Ben Jones
The UK's Foundation for Genomics and Population Health (PHG Foundation) has called for the Government to improve its policies for using genomic medicine to treat patients...
by Ben Jones and 1 others
Should egg and sperm donors be rewarded with souvenir mugs and T-shirts? An independent think tank has launched a consultation to consider this and other radical ideas for increasing donations...
by Ben Jones
An Australian insurance firm has become the subject of criticism after offering customers reduced price genetic tests while providing in the small print that the results are to be made available for consideration by life insurance providers should they desire them....
by Ben Jones
The Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society and the UK Stem Cell Foundation (UKSCF) have announced a funding competition for a million pounds of seed capital to help research into multiple sclerosis in the UK. The money, which has been contributed from the budgets of both organistations is to be employed to 'pump-prime and speed up stem cell research' in relation to the condition in the hope of bringing novel stem cell technologies to the clinic sooner than would otherwise be possible....
by Ben Jones
The UK's Department of Health (DH) has made public a new website to help stem cell researchers in adhering to statutory, regulatory and best practice requirements. The UK Stem Cell Tool Kit, (accessible at www.sc-toolkit.ac.uk), provides an online questionnaire covering the source of the stem cells to be used, whether genetic modification of the cells will occur and the extent of human contact with the materials generated. Answering these questions - which can be completed eith...
by Ben Jones
The Irish Supreme Court has ruled that a 42-year old man should have access to a lesbian couple's son who was conceived using his donated sperm. The highest court in Ireland ruled that the man has 'natural rights' over the son and that while he should not be entitled to guardianship over the boy it is in the child's best interests for the father to be granted contact....
by Ben Jones
A Missouri Republican State Representative has proposed legislation to block public spending on embryonic stem cell (ES cell) research in the state. The proposed amendment to the Missouri constitution called for an end to public funding of any research that involved the destruction of embryos. The pro-life Republican representative, Cynthia Davis, also included a ban on funding for abortion and any use of cloning technologies...
by Ben Jones
The US Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act 2008 (GINA) has come into force introducing new protection against discrimination on the basis of genetic predisposition to disease. The act, signed into law in March of last year by President Bush, outlaws the usage of 'genetic information' to discriminate in the provision of health insurance and prohibits the usage of such information in the making of employment-related decisions such as hiring, firing or promoting....
BioNews, published by the Progress Educational Trust (PET), provides news and comment on genetics, assisted conception, embryo/stem cell research and related areas.