Yesterday doesn’t seem so far away when there are updates right in front of you. Here’s the latest on a few stories we’ve been following.
The Daily Dose – Friday Flashback
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Monthly Archives: May 2010
Synthetic genome sparks ideas for medicine
The science world is buzzing today over a study in Science, announcing the successful creation of an entirely synthetic genome. Researchers at the J. Craig Venter Institute in Rockville, Maryland inserted a complete DNA sequence into an emptied bacterial cell to form what some are calling artificial life.
While the implications for genetics, evolution, and the very philosophy of life are already garnering debate, medicine might also enter the fray. The proper use of this new technology could yield, for example, therapeutic bacteria. University of Pennsylvania bioethicist Arthur Caplan comments on MSNBC that synthetic bacteria could be created to go after specific human infections or maladies, even things such as cholesterol in our system. (That idea could also be bolstered by the findings of another new Science study, this one on the first genetic sequencing of the human microbiome.)
A BBC News Q&A on the Venter study also mentions the possibility of creating bacteria to produce new vaccines. Surely, it’s just one of many ideas we’ll be hearing about in the coming days and years. With this advance, what do you expect to see down the pipeline? How would you like to see the synthetic genome applied to medicine? Let us know in the comments.
Images of synthetic (top, expressing blue reporter genes) and wildtype (bottom) Mycoplasma mycoides courtesy of Science/AAAS
NIH mulls revising conflict of interest rules
The US National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced a set of proposed new rules today that will increase transparency surrounding potential conflicts of interest among funded researchers.
NIH director Francis Collins said in a morning teleconference that the proposal, while not stemming from widespread problems, is reflective of the fact that “public trust is essential going forward, and we can’t afford taking any chances with researchers’ integrity.” When finalized, the changes would mark the first major revision since 1995.
In the current proposal, the NIH lowers its threshold for reporting private payments to researchers from $10,000 to $5,000. Also, individual universities and institutions are given the responsibility of collecting information on significant contributions from their researchers, and then reporting potential conflicts to the NIH. This funneling process will likely require new offices within universities to coordinate and communicate data; they will also be responsible for posting researchers’ financial disclosures publically online.
Collins recognized that this could end up a burden for institutions, but said it is “outweighed by the necessity to attain and maintain the public trust.”
The NIH proposal will be published in tomorrow’s Federal Register and be up for public comment for 60 days.
The Daily Dose – Turn of the TIDE
A rising tide lifts all boats, but GSK’s Avandia trial looks to be sinking fast. Fortunately, surfs up for children’s medication, which is riding a wave of increased spending.
Research reform is in the air
Cross posted from Nature’s The Great Beyond blog.
British medical scientists may be getting closer to the reform of the frustrating, money-sapping, research-controlling bureaucracy they have long demanded.
Today the UK’s Academy of Medical Sciences held a press conference in London to outline their review of research regulation, commissioned by the previous government. David Willetts, the new minister for science, offered his support.
“In the current fiscal climate, throwing money at a problem is simply not an option,” he said in a statement. “Creating a better, smarter operating environment for our leading science-based sectors is essential. I look forward to hearing the recommendations of this distinguished group.”
The Daily Dose – Specter no longer looms over research
Today’s dose is full of losses, from Senator Arlen Specter to Novartis. Fortunately, there’s also some new potential for fat loss.
The Daily Dose – Dr. Varmus goes (back) to Washington
Heads of journals and institutes may come and go, but you’ll never take away my stretchy ‘I heart boobies’ bracelet.
Myriad ‘after-math’ (subscription)
When a US federal judge rejected patents by Myriad Genetics on the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes in late March, it put many in the biotech industry on edge after years of making similar claims of their own. (Click here to continue reading)
The Daily Dose – Rocket power
Need some fuel for your Monday morning? Let today’s dose rocket you into the week with news on an unusual pill, biosimilars, tuberculosis and the Medical Council of India.
Telemedicine has more than a remote chance in prisons (subscription)
Telemedicine is at a tipping point in the US. Correctional systems in more than two dozen states are already relying on the approach, which uses video and other transmittable information rather than direct patient-doctor contact. Now, California, home to the largest correctional system in the country, is considering whether to make telemedicine a key part of health care for its more than 160,000 inmates.
Image: California Department of Corrections