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The Next Top Doc

Jul 14, 2009

President Obama has named Regina Benjamin to be the surgeon general. Benjamin opened a rural health clinic in a small shrimping village on the Gulf Coast of Alabama; the clinic was subsequently destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, rebuilt, and then burned down the day before it was to re-open, says the New York Times. Benjamin was also one of the 2008 recipients of the MacArthur Foundation's $500,000 genius awards. The Wall Street Journal Health Blog points out that the role of the surgeon general is mainly symbolic.

Breaking News
The Scan

Rise of BA.5

The New York Times reports that the Omicron subvariant BA.5 has become the dominant version of SARS-CoV-2 in the US.

UK Health Secretary Resigns

Sajid Javid, the UK health secretary, resigned along with Chancellor Rishi Sunak, saying they cannot work with Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government, CNN reports.

Clones From Freeze-Dried Cells

A team in Japan has cloned mice from freeze-dried skin cells, according to the Guardian.

Genome Research Papers on Craniosynostosis, Macaque Retrotransposition, More

In Genome Research this week: structural variants in craniosynostosis, LINE-1 activity in rhesus macaque brain, and more.