Skip to main content
Premium Trial:

Request an Annual Quote

Momentum Slow Down?

Some health advocates are concerned that the departure of Scott Gottlieb, the commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration, will stall efforts he has backed, the Washington Post reports.

Gottlieb, who announced earlier this week that he would be stepping down from his position, has pushed for eliminating menthol in cigarettes, increased regulation of e- cigarettes, addressing the opioid crisis, and regulating the stem cell industry.

"I'm definitely concerned," Joshua Sharfstein, who was principal deputy FDA commissioner during the Obama administration, tells the Post.

There's also worry, the Post adds, about whether or not Gottlieb's position will be permanently filled after he departs. It notes that President Donald Trump has said that he is in "no hurry" to replace Cabinet members who have departed and that officials with "acting" status have greater flexibility.

Still, the Post reports that a few names have been bandied about as potential replacements, including Ned Sharpless, the National Cancer Institute director; Brett Giroir, assistant secretary for health at the Department of Health and Human Services; and Amy Abernethy, principal deputy commissioner at FDA.

The Scan

ChatGPT Does As Well As Humans Answering Genetics Questions, Study Finds

Researchers in the European Journal of Human Genetics had ChatGPT answer genetics-related questions, finding it was about 68 percent accurate, but sometimes gave different answers to the same question.

Sequencing Analysis Examines Gene Regulatory Networks of Honeybee Soldier, Forager Brains

Researchers in Nature Ecology & Evolution find gene regulatory network differences between soldiers and foragers, suggesting bees can take on either role.

Analysis of Ashkenazi Jewish Cohort Uncovers New Genetic Loci Linked to Alzheimer's Disease

The study in Alzheimer's & Dementia highlighted known genes, but also novel ones with biological ties to Alzheimer's disease.

Tara Pacific Expedition Project Team Finds High Diversity Within Coral Reef Microbiome

In papers appearing in Nature Communications and elsewhere, the team reports on findings from the two-year excursion examining coral reefs.