Development in a Dish: Scientists Grow a Combined Brain and Eye Organoid
Researchers have grown a miniature brain that also develops eye-like structures. Continue reading Development in a Dish: Scientists Grow a Combined Brain and Eye Organoid
Tag: personalized medicine
From Genes to Disease: the release of the UK Biobank
by Layla Siraj figures by Rebecca Senft Imagine if you could tell, through some combination of your environment and your genetics, what illnesses you might develop. This could give you the ability to either prevent these illnesses before they even happen or catch and treat the illnesses early enough to prevent long-lasting effects. This reality is one step closer with the release of the UK … Continue reading From Genes to Disease: the release of the UK Biobank
What’s in Your Genes: Newly approved genetic testing for disease risks
by Catherine Weiner figures by Michael Gerhardt A decade ago, the idea of analyzing your DNA from the comfort of your own home seemed like science fiction. Tests required several weeks, thousands if not millions of dollars, and a lab of highly specialized PhDs. Today, thanks to technical advances and companies like 23andMe, you can perform this analysis for $199. The U.S. Food and Drug … Continue reading What’s in Your Genes: Newly approved genetic testing for disease risks
A new medical implant might greatly reduce the risk of chemotherapy treatment
Chemotherapy is a common and dangerous cancer treatment due to the negative effects on everything that is not a tumor cell. Researchers from Columbia University have invented a soft medical implant capable of administering drugs from inside the body. The ability to place this device close to the target area allows for a significant (90%) reduction of the drug dosage to be used. Similarly, avoiding body-wide administration of the drug can greatly reduce the damage inflicted by normal chemotherapy dosages. Continue reading A new medical implant might greatly reduce the risk of chemotherapy treatment
Printing Pills: FDA Approves First 3-D Printed Drug
Additive manufacturing – colloquially known as 3-D printing – can generate complex objects like firearms and human organs, but its latest technical milestone revolves around something much more unassuming: a pill. Earlier this month, the FDA approved an anti-epileptic drug called Spritam that has the same active ingredient (levetiracetam) as a drug that was approved in 1999. So why is this noteworthy? It turns out … Continue reading Printing Pills: FDA Approves First 3-D Printed Drug