Skip to main content
Premium Trial:

Request an Annual Quote

Tokyo Versus the Superbug

The Japanese Health Ministry has found the country's first case of bacteria carrying a drug-resistance gene, which allows microbes to become "superbugs" untouchable by normal antibiotics, reports the Associated Press's Shino Yuasa. The gene, NDM-1, was found in a man who went to India for medical treatment — the gene, which was first reported in a Lancet study in August appears to be circulating widely in India, Yuasa says. The man went to Dokkyo Medical University Hospital after returning from India, and when the doctors read the Lancet study, they reexamined bacterial samples they'd taken from the patient and found them to have the NDM-1 gene, Yuasa says, adding that "researchers say that since many Americans and Europeans travel to India and Pakistan for elective procedures like cosmetic surgery, it was likely the gene would spread worldwide."

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.