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This Lab Project Needs a Hack

Over at Science in the Open, Cameron Neylon poses a challenge to readers following on Jonathan Eisen's Friendfeed discussion about "what an electronic research record should look like." Neylon voices support for "simple systems that make it very easy to capture digital research objects as they are created and easy-to-use tools that make it straightforward to connect these objects up." But thinking theoretically about how to pull all this information together in a feasible manner is one thing -- Neylon wants to move this debate into the prove-it realm. "What about building something this weekend at ScienceHackDay?" he writes. He contends that a couple of pieces -- DropBox and Freebase, for instance -- might be commandeered to accomplish this, and lays out a plan of attack to urge readers to get involved.

The Scan

Positive Framing of Genetic Studies Can Spark Mistrust Among Underrepresented Groups

Researchers in Human Genetics and Genomics Advances report that how researchers describe genomic studies may alienate potential participants.

Small Study of Gene Editing to Treat Sickle Cell Disease

In a Novartis-sponsored study in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers found that a CRISPR-Cas9-based treatment targeting promoters of genes encoding fetal hemoglobin could reduce disease symptoms.

Gut Microbiome Changes Appear in Infants Before They Develop Eczema, Study Finds

Researchers report in mSystems that infants experienced an enrichment in Clostridium sensu stricto 1 and Finegoldia and a depletion of Bacteroides before developing eczema.

Acute Myeloid Leukemia Treatment Specificity Enhanced With Stem Cell Editing

A study in Nature suggests epitope editing in donor stem cells prior to bone marrow transplants can stave off toxicity when targeting acute myeloid leukemia with immunotherapy.