Tag: "genetics"
Turkey Trouble: Genetics Gone Too Far?
No, this isn’t a blog about genetically modified organisms — that has been argued enough lately! Instead, in honor of Thanksgiving, I want to talk about regular old selective breeding and the monsters it can create.
Post on Nov 19, 2012 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Genome 3.0: ENCODE Takes Our DNA From Junk to Treasure
New research is making us rethink how our DNA works – again.
Post on Sep 24, 2012 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
The Results Are In For My Genetics Quiz
In my last blog entry, I wrote a quiz that tested some basic knowledge about genetics that experts have found the public struggles with. What I found from the responses I received is that the QUEST public doesn’t struggle with them or, more likely, people only answer quizzes like this if they are pretty confident [...]
Post on Sep 10, 2012 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Arm Yourselves for the Upcoming (Genetics) Revolution
As a nation, we aren’t teaching the right genetics in our schools. And for those of us out of school, the situation is, if anything, even worse. By and large we lack the fundamental knowledge needed to properly interpret the avalanche of data headed our way.
Post on Aug 20, 2012 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Pregnant Women Face Big Questions With Cheaper DNA Sequencing
In the very near future, a pregnant woman will be able to learn a whole lot more than she currently can about the fetus she is carrying. And she can find out in a way that poses no risk to the fetus.
Post on Jul 23, 2012 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Tackling the Cause of Cystic Fibrosis One Mutation at a Time
There was big news in the cystic fibrosis (CF) field recently: a new CF drug called ivacaftor (or VX-770 or Kalydeco) has been approved that does more than target the symptoms of CF. It actually works to get the broken gene working again. The good news is that this is the first treatment that has [...]
Post on Jun 11, 2012 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Why Your Newfound Uniqueness is a Nightmare for Your Doctor
A couple of new studies confirm what many of us have feared: each of us is surprisingly unique genetically. This is to be feared because of the impact it will have on the future of personalized medicine.
Post on May 28, 2012 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Personalized Medicine: A Potential Tool for Predicting Disease?
We may finally be at the threshold of the age of personalized medicine. In a recent study, scientists were able to predict that a man was at a higher risk for developing Type 2 diabetes and over a two-year period tracked his health as he developed the disease.
Post on May 14, 2012 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Desperately Seeking Autism Genes
Autism is incredibly frustrating from a genetic point of view. Every study clearly shows that genetics plays an important role in this disease. But when these studies try to find a cause, they keep coming up short.
Post on Apr 30, 2012 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Divining Human History with DNA
Everyone knows about how genetics is changing how we look at and treat human disease. But what may be less appreciated is what it can tell us about human history.
Post on Apr 16, 2012 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Why Don't We Get Cancer More Often?
Dr. Mina Bissell of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory is one of the world’s leading researchers on breast cancer. Her group recently found that normal breast cells provide an innate defense mechanism against cancer by secreting a protein to actively and specifically kill breast cancer cells without harming normal ones.
Post on Apr 09, 2012 by Jennifer Huber from QUEST Northern California
Geneticists Solve Van Gogh's Mutant Sunflowers After 125 Years
Most admirers of Vincent van Gogh's iconic "Sunflower" paintings gaze upon the golden inflorescences without any awareness of the scientific conundrum they pose. But researchers from the University of Georgia have finally cracked the case with a paper published in PLoS Genetics.
Post on Apr 03, 2012 by Danna Staaf from QUEST Northern California
Evolution, Easy as Can Be
Evolving from something simple like a single celled beast into a slug, mushroom, cactus or a human seems impossibly hard. The series of precise DNA changes you need is mind-boggling to think about. Unless, of course, the changes are easier than we imagine.
Post on Feb 20, 2012 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
The Benefits of Radioactive Fallout
Wildlife seems to be thriving in the radioactive areas around Chernobyl. For now it looks like if animals had to choose, they'd choose radioactivity over humans.
Post on Jan 09, 2012 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
We Don’t Want the Funk (in our Wine)
Scientists are using DNA sequencing to protect our wines by keeping future sulfite-resistant forms of the yeast Brettanomyces bruxellensis at bay.
Post on Dec 26, 2011 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Gaming to Understand Disease
By playing Phylo, you help scientists better understand human disease and you get to have fun. Doing good by having fun is a win-win for scientists and the public.
Post on Dec 12, 2011 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Living Longer
Using a genetic trick, scientists were able to increase the lifespan of a worm by changing how it used its genes. This extended lifespan was passed on to its kids and grand kids but not to its great grand kids.
Post on Nov 28, 2011 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Sniffing Out Mr. Right
Biology may have made it so that women prefer the smell of men with different immune systems from their own. Disturbingly, the pill may turn this on its head so that women like the way men with similar immune systems smell.
Post on Nov 07, 2011 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Will He Have My Nose?
I get these kinds of questions all the time. And except for a few traits, I have to pretty much say I don’t know.
Post on Oct 24, 2011 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
Sequencing Within Reach
The cost of figuring out what someone’s DNA looks like is dropping like a stone. For casual consumers, though, affordable DNA sequencing can be less than useful. In fact, it might even make a difficult situation worse.
Post on Oct 10, 2011 by Dr. Barry Starr from QUEST Northern California
