Kyoto University investigator has been fired for research misconduct, while Nobel Laureate Shinya Yamanaka has been penalized for lack of oversight, Retraction Watch reports.

The US Department of Agriculture says it won't regulate genome-edited plants.

The Washington Post notes that some health professional are wary of complex direct-to-consumer genetic testing.

In Science this week: protein destabilizing mutations can drive evolution, and more.

A UK team sequenced the exomes of 16 fetuses and their parents, delivering a molecular diagnosis for 13.

The technology will measure cancer-associated miRNAs using optical amplification with quantum dots and photonic crystals.

Under the draft determination, the test would be covered to help assess which treatments to use in patients with advanced prostate cancer.

A brief recap of Genetics/Genomics news the week of Mar 30, 2018: Pacific Biosciences, Interpace Diagnostics Group, Metabolon, CareDx, QuantuMDx, and Thermo Fisher Scientific

Human Longevity this week launched Health Nucleus X and Health Nucleus X Platinum, direct-to-consumer membership-based health products that combine whole-genome sequencing with MRI and other modalities to reveal insights into four disease areas: cancer, cardiac, metabolic, and neurodegenerative/neurovascular. The Health Nucleus is a clinical research and discovery center that relies on the bioinformatics, machine learning, and other technical expertise of the HLI team. By integrating all the data generated through a Health Nucleus visit, clients are given actionable insight into their health, Human Longevity said. The HNX Membership product is $4,950 for the initial membership and $2,950 for subsequent years, and includes WGS, whole-body MRI, and eight other tests. The HNX Platinum Membership is $25,000 for the initial membership and includes two additional years of membership, with membership in subsequent years costing $6,000. In addition to WGS and MRI, the platinum product also includes 15 other tests.

Foundation Medicine's FoundationOne CDx is now available in the US, following approval by the US Food and Drug Administration last year and finalization of a national coverage determination by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services earlier this month. The test is available for patients with advanced solid tumor cancers. It assesses genomic alterations in 324 cancer genes and serves as a companion diagnostic for patients with certain types of non-small cell lung cancer, melanoma, colorectal cancer, ovarian cancer, and breast cancer to determine if they could benefit from one of 17 on-labeled therapies, of which 12 are approved as first-line therapy for their respective indication. In addition, the test reports genomic biomarkers, such as microsatellite instability and tumor mutational burden that can help inform the use of immunotherapies.

Lancet, developed by the New York Genome Center, uses colored de Bruijn graphs to jointly analyze tumor and normal reads.

Emilia Pinto and her colleagues are parsing the genetic landscape of adrenocortical tumors and collecting data in a registry.

The DocUBuild tool grew out of the eMERGE network and helps institutions curate and manage genomic educational material for clinicians and patients alike.

With the help of electronic health record data, researchers searched for common variants linked to hundreds of diseases or clinical lab measurements.

Prospective panel sequencing on colorectal cancer patients picked up Lynch syndrome with sensitivity and specificity that met or exceeded gene-by-gene tests.

With its technology, the company hopes to connect more cancer patients being treated in community-based practices to beneficial clinical trials based on genomic biomarkers.

Cancer researcher James Holland has died at 92, the New York Times reports.

Craig Venter and Human Longevity aim to uncover disease through sequencing and other tests to increase lifespans, CNBC says.

NPR's Goats and Soda blog examines bias against research in Africa.

In Nature this week: sequencing strategy for quantifying clonal origin and cell type at single-cell level, and more.

Speakers at HudsonAlpha's Genomic Medicine Conference said while sequencing results sometimes result in a diagnosis and change in care, they often have no consequence.

The firm said it will use the funding to consolidate its position in clinical diagnostics, establish a US office, and enter new diagnostic markets.

The firm offers two clinical assays, and is in discussions with Qiagen about developing its assays for the GeneReader.

The company recently disclosed that the commercial launch of its liquid biopsy lung cancer diagnostic had been delayed.