What Will it Take to Make Covid-19 Vaccines Variant-Proof?
As emerging mutations threaten the progress made against the pandemic, scientists and regulators are racing to figure out a process for updating shots.
In Embryos, Crispr Can Cut Out Whole Chromosomes—That’s Bad
The DNA-cutting tool has been hailed as a way to fix genetic glitches. But a new study suggests it can remove more than scientists bargained for.
What to Wear When Battling the Venomous Asian Giant Hornet
The suits worn by Washington state entomologists aren't "official" hornet-fighting armor. But they were affordable—and came up in an Amazon search.
Covid-19 Vaccine Makers Turn to Microchip Tech to Beat Glass Shortages
We'll need millions of vials to distribute the vaccine. The US government thinks manufacturing methods from the semiconductor industry can help.
Measles Had Been Eliminated. Now It’s Nearly a Daily Threat
The US declared measles eliminated in 2000, but it could lose that status in September—entering a darker era of heightened infectious disease risk.
The Gene Mutation That Could Cure HIV Has a Checkered Past
The same genetic defect used to cure two men of HIV was the target of unethical edits made by He Jiankui to produce the Crispr babies. New research on CCR5 suggests eliminating it in adults could be part of an ethical, practical cure.
Hackers Listen In on What Synthetic DNA Machines Are Printing
Some of those sequences are worth millions of dollars, but fortunately the hack isn’t easy to deploy—yet.
Gene Editing Is Trickier Than Expected—but Fixes Are in Sight
A popular gene editing technique may produce lots of unintended changes to DNA, but the good news is we now have a better way of finding such errors.
This Viral Therapy Could Help Us Survive the Superbug Era
When one man fell into a coma, his wife sought out a Soviet-era medical technique called phage therapy that ended up saving his life.
Sunscreen Regulations Haven’t Aged Well
So now, the FDA has announced proposals to update the process for regulating sun protection products.