Here are the most popular Bioethics News items from last week based on average clicks per day:
1. Formula could aid preemie decisions
(New York Times) The formula is based on a study published in NEJM that looked at which factors contribute to the success of very premature babies. About 40,000 of these babies are born each year in the US.
2. Regrowing lost limbs
(AFP) The Pentagon is participating in a $250 million research institute focused on regenerating tissues and whole limbs. The Army’s surgeon general says he can see a future in which stem cells taken from soldiers will be used to replace limbs lost during combat.
3. Yale student’s abortion art was faked
(Washington Post) Word that the senior’s art project used tissue from her own abortions sparked outrage on and off campus. The work is now being described as “creative fiction.” (This drama took another turn after the student called the university’s denials “ultimately inaccurate.”)
4. Feds expand DNA database
(Washington Post) The federal government will soon begin collecting DNA samples from all citizens arrested for involvement with a federal crime. Samples from detained illegal immigrants will also be collected. The new policy is projected to increase the federal DNA database by one million people a year.
5. Genetic testing goes retail
(New York Times) A company offering tests of a person’s DNA for genes related to 18 diseases has opened up a storefront in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood. One catch (or one of many): New York residents can’t actually be tested just yet.