DNA Network Tweet Cloud

by Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei
Posted November 29, 2009 in DNA Fun, DNA in General

FYI. I tweet about genetics and related science topics under The DNA Network Twitter account @DNAnetwork. Are you on Twitter?

by Tweet Cloud

(>> Start a discussion!)

DNA{wesome}

by Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei
Posted November 15, 2009 in DNA Fun

That’s right, baby!

via Buzzfeed

(>> Start a discussion!)

Larry David’s DNA Test

by Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei
Posted November 13, 2009 in DNA Fun, DNA Podcasts and Videos

Larry David found out last night on Lopez Tonight that he “fails as a European” being only 63% European according to a DNA ancestry test. David seemed genuinely surprised by the remaining 37% of his ethnicity. Watch the video to find out more about the 37% or click on this link from Twitter.

(1 comment)

Lopez Tonight First Late-Night Show to Offer DNA Testing

by Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei
Posted November 12, 2009 in DNA Fun

Now we know that claim is misleading. Maury Povich and other talk shows have been offering DNA paternity testing for years but I guess those shows are on during the daytime. In any case, Larry David of Curb Your Enthusiam will get the results of his DNA test tonight 11/10c on the Lopez Tonight show on TBS. Probably not as entertaining as the Maury Show but interesting nonetheless.

via Orlando Sentinel

(>> Start a discussion!)

DNA in the Wild – NTUC Income

by Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei
Posted October 30, 2009 in DNA Fun

NTUC Income, an insurance provider in Singapore, has been running an ad prominently featuring the DNA double helix.

Their Facebook fan page is even running a photo contest asking people to post photos of themselves with one of their DNA ads. Very fun to see DNA in the wild.

Here’s one of my favorites.

(>> Start a discussion!)

Regulatin’ Genes Video

by Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei
Posted March 18, 2009 in DNA Fun, DNA Podcasts and Videos

With a cameo from my favorite Stanford professor, Robert Siegel.

(>> Start a discussion!)

Eye on DNA Links for 9 January 2009

by Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei
Posted January 9, 2009 in Eye on DNA Headlines

Thanks to the following sites for linking to Eye on DNA recently! It’s good to be back.

• Technology Review BioTech News
• Blogging to Get Girls Interested in Science at Murray Women’s Center Graduate Women, a New Jersey Institute of Technology blog
• Uncertain or Uninformed and An Extra Layer at Genome Technology’s Daily Scan
• Tracing the Tribe: The Jewish Genealogy Blog
• The Decision Tree, a new blog from Thomas Goetz that is sort of a rough draft for his upcoming book about predictive medicine

Also, congratulations to Dr. Val on her move to Better Health. Check out her interview with Dr. Joanne Armstrong, senior medical director for Aetna, and assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, about the current state of genetic testing. Here’s an excerpt:

Dr. Val: In your view, what are some legitimate and appropriate genetic tests?

Dr. Armstrong: There are about 1200 genetic tests available now, and most of them are not medically appropriate or clinically valid. “Medically appropriate” tests have a few common characteristics: 1) they have to be useful for the direct treatment or prevention of an illness. Some tests on the market are medically trivial – they test for things like eye color for example. 2) The information from the test should affect the course of treatment of the disease or condition, and 3) treatment should improve the outcome of the disease.  Those are the characteristics of a genetic test that would be useful or appropriate in a healthcare setting.

There are 100s of useful and appropriate tests, and they’re used for the prediction of diseases like hereditary colon cancer, breast cancer and its recurrence, and metabolic diseases that affect people as infants.

(2 comments)

Genetically Engineered HTC Touch Diamond Phone

by Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei
Posted November 12, 2008 in In Your DNA

Fantastic! A phone “genetically engineered for your thumbs.” I’d like one genetically engineered for my brain, please.

(>> Start a discussion!)

My Son, The Genetic Epidemiologist

by Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei
Posted September 16, 2008 in DNA Fun, DNA and Disease

My six-year-old’s reading and mark-up (in purple) of a paper in Nature Genetics authored by my friend, Dr. Linda Kao.

Press Release – New gene variant identified for nondiabetic end stage renal disease in African-Americans

Scientists at Johns Hopkins schools of Public Health and Medicine have, for the first time, identified variants in the gene MYH9 that are associated with increased risk for non-diabetic end stage renal disease (ESRD,) which is the near-loss of kidney function leading to either dialysis of transplant. MYH9, located on the 22 chromosome, is the first gene identified for common forms of kidney disease. The study was published online September 14 in the journal Nature Genetics and will be published in the October print edition. In a separate study published in the same issue, researchers at the National Institutes of Health reported similar findings.

(5 comments)

Digitized DNA Blasting Off Into Space

by Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei
Posted September 5, 2008 in DNA Fun, Personalities with DNA

Three Silicon Valley celebrities are set to send their digitized DNA into space via NCsoft’s Operation Immortality project. Game designer Richard Garriott will deliver the DNA to the International Space Station on October 12. A digital time capsule is being created that includes “messages from people around the world along with the digitized DNA samples from some of Earth’s brightest minds, musicians, and athletes.”

The Silicon Valley celebrities participating are:

• Kevin Rose of Digg
• Robert Scoble of Scobleizer
• Tim Draper of Draper Fisher Jurvetson

Draper’s desire for his DNA:

My hope is that aliens get a hold of my DNA so my clones can spread entrepreneurship to galaxies throughout the universe.

Some might wish for peace throughout the universe but I guess entrepreneurship ain’t too bad.

Photo credit: feastoffools

(>> Start a discussion!)