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Regulate? Don't Regulate? Let's Do Both!

Will regulation of the direct-to-consumer genetic testing industry kill the personal genomics initiative, or will it protect consumers from companies with products of questionable value? To regulate or not to regulate has been the question on everyone's minds. Genomes Unzipped's Jeff Barrett and Katherine Morley say the solution should fall somewhere in the middle. While government regulation sometimes imposes a cost on innovation, it also enhances public safety, they write. The solution could be "light- or self-regulation on providing people with readouts of their genomes, but heavier regulation on selling a medical interpretation of those data." If consumers want to know what their genome is, and can pay for it, they should be able to get it. But if the companies are also selling a medical interpretation of the raw data, Morley and Barrett say, then they should be more heavily regulated.

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.