Knowing our genetic structure is just the tip of understanding what makes us.
A public health victory in the time of COVID
The trees are talking to one another
For some, the gift of blood is more of a saleable commodity
epigenetics
A very disturbing paper published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases proposes that vaccines can have unexpected side effects. Some are good, such as protecting against unrelated diseases, while some are bad, such as increasing all-cause mortality. This is highly useful and potentially life-saving information that must not be hijacked by anti-vaxxers.
How old is your dog, in dog years? The widely used rule of thumb – human years x 7 – is apparently incorrect. The science behind the new formula tells us something about extrapolation and a lot about how both we, and our canine friends, age. And the Hanks-dog graph is kinda cool, too.
We already offer pre-natal maternal vitamins. Should we offer pre-natal paternal ones? A study looks at the transmission of "health" from father to sons, making use of data from the U.S. Civil War and providing interesting support for sperm's acquisition of epigenetic information. Who knew they were so busy?
Researchers found that students who exhibited signs of paranoid thinking – specifically, the tendency to interpret random coincidences as highly meaningful, or to believe others are plotting against them – had a particular genetic profile.
Obesity is not as simple as avoiding exercise or overindulging with food. It's been known for some time that genetics are also involved. A new study shows that not only are there epigenetic factors at play, but they're also present at birth.
Sara Gottfried "re-gifts" the standard advice about exercise, sleep and diet behind a new facade devoid of scientific evidence. The doctor and author claims that her regimen – which includes trips to a sauna and red wine – will reprogram our genes and help us live longer. Too bad that it's based on a premise that does not exist.
http://acsh.org/news/2016/10/25/kathleen-gyllenhaal-health-meets-hollywood-qa-10351Welcome to our three part series discussing the science behind director Kathleen Gyllenhaal's latest documentary, IN UTERO. This article takes a deeper look at the health ramifications of toxic stress in prenatal life and its role in contributing to adult disease. Part I of our Q&A with Gyllenhaal emphasizes health, Hollywood, how a story gets told and the parallels between funding for film and scientific research. In the concluding Part II Q&A, we explore her insights into motherhood and the impact of her recent film.
The term epigenetics is being thrown around by many who incorrectly believe "genes are our destiny" by deliberately misinterpreting data. What is epigenetics, really? And how much stock should we place on its importance?
Epigenetics is the all the rage in the scientific community, in that all that we know or don't know seems to be a result of this field of study. Researchers from Georgetown University published a study recently linking pre-conception influences in the father as a significant contributor to epigenetic changes in offspring.
Researchers at the University of Michigan have developed a drug which blocks messages that direct stem cells to differentiate, forcing them to reverse course to a more embryonic state.