Summit agrees genome editing to proceed, with caution
An international summit has agreed conditions under which human genome editing, using techniques like CRISPR, should proceed...
News
BRCA1 link to Alzheimer's disease
Scientists have identified a link between the product of the BRCA1 gene, variants which can cause breast and ovarian cancer, and Alzheimer's disease...
US court refuses Sequenom appeal for prenatal test patent
The US federal court of appeals has declined to rehear arguments on the patentability of a prenatal blood test, saying that it remains bound by the Supreme Court to determine the claims as non-patentable...
Poland to cut state IVF funding
The newly elected conservative government in Poland plans to cut state funding for IVF, two years after the scheme was introduced...
Gene influences ability to quit smoking
A gene involved in the brain's reward system has been found to affect people's ability to quit smoking, according to a new study...
Epigenetic changes in sperm linked to obesity in offspring
Danish researchers have identified that weight gain and loss can result in different epigenetic markers in sperm, suggesting a possible explanation for why children of obese fathers are more prone to obesity themselves...
Reviews
Radio Review: Newshour Extra - Editing the Human Genome
This 50-minute radio broadcast provides an 'appetiser' on CRISPR and the ethics surrounding genome editing...
TV Review: Jodie Marsh is Making Babies
This documentary shows that assisted reproduction is a huge and real business. Unfortunately, it does so without asking the necessary critical and ethical questions that would make it genuinely worth watching...
Comment
Aspirin is no wonder drug for fertility
by Richard Kennedy
The 'wonder drug' aspirin has proven benefits in cardiac disease and stroke, and it is increasingly thought to have a role in cancer prevention, but its wider use in support of infertility and assisted reproduction is controversial...
What should we do about surrogacy in the UK?
by Professor Kirsty Horsey
The results of the Surrogacy UK survey are in. Following an unprecedented response, the overwhelming message is that surrogacy law in the UK needs to be reformed...