GENOMIC RESEARCH

Disparities in Health: Biomedical Research and the Latino Community

Only by making sure that every community’s voice is heard, can we be sure that personalized genetic medicine will truly be personalized.

STEM CELL RESEARCH

Appeals Court Reverses Decision Striking Down Stem Cell Funding

A Divided D.C. Circuit panel reversed Judge Lamberth’s decision to ban federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. It appears very likely, if not entirely certain, that stem cell research will ultimately be upheld against future challenges.

STEM CELL RESEARCH

Genetic Errors in Human Stem Cells: Should We be Worried?

Recent studies have found small errors in the DNA of stem cells used in research, but we shouldn’t jump to conclusions, says an author of one of the studies.

NEUROSCIENCE

A Light Revolution in Neuroscience

Optogenetics opens the door to understanding how specific types of neurons contribute to brain function, but the ethics of using it in humans needs serious consideration.

Bioethics

The Proper Ends Do Justify the Means

Arthur Caplan reviews Worst Case Bioethics, and advances the case for a national philosophy of medicine for bioethics.

LIFE SCIENCES

Drug Regulation in all the Wrong Places

The FDA’s myopic focus on early-stage testing and lack of emphasis on phase four human clinical trials has led to many safety-related drug recalls in recent years, meriting a reexamination of our regulatory system.

BIOETHICS

Is it Time to Change the Model for Tissue Donation?

The idea of informed consent has grown up, and it’s time to rethink the reasoning behind the consent system for tissue donation, writes Jonathan Moreno.

Synchronized Disclosure

Last week, the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors issued a new policy for the transparent disclosure of conflicts of interest for the authors of papers published by journals in the consortium. A coalition of advocates have been pushing for [...]

Two Studies Demonstrate Selective Publication Trends and Gaps in Clinical Trial Reporting

Researchers running clinical trials are required to submit information to the NIH-run ClinicalTrials.gov database. But two recent reports indicate that compliance with this transparency mandate is spotty at best for trials that lead to published biomedical research. What’s more, many [...]

RESEARCH ETHICS

Lab Bench Ethics

The ethics of data selection, the potential conflicts of peer review, the “soft money lifestyle” of grant recipients, and other issues facing researchers.

Financial Conflicts of Interest 101

Conflicts of interest are a special concern in biomedical research because they have the potential to influence the outcome of study results or clinical trials, leading to results that favor certain products or unnecessary risks for patients. New rules may curb the undue influence.

NIH By the Numbers: Challenge Grants, Stem Cell Comments, and Conflict of Interest Rules

A flood of grant applications for Recovery Act funds, a heap of comments on the proposed stem cell policy, and feedback on how to manage conflicts of interest among researchers—here’s a look at some of the key numbers related to [...]

RESEARCH ETHICS

Can We Bank on Objectivity?

Managing financial conflicts of interest is a complicated policy matter, as researchers and their institutions often receive both public and private funding to support research that leads to new treatments. But research also indicates these conflicts are widespread and ingrained. How far should we go in addressing the issue?

IOM Report: Disclosure “Critical But Limited” to Addressing Conflicts of Interest

Conflicts of interest in the realm of biomedical research are nothing new. In 1984, a study found that half of the surveyed biotech companies provided financial support for university research. But as Institute of Medicine President Harvey Fineberg said yesterday [...]

FDA Redraws the Rules for International Drug Trials

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently decided to no longer hold pharmaceutical companies to the standards of the World Medical Association’s Declaration of Helsinki while conducting human drug trials. The change poses bioethical dilemmas when U.S. companies conduct trials on foreign soil. Merrill Goozner is currently reporting from Russia, which could become “ground zero” for discussion about the shift in policy.

Going Off-Label to Get On the Wagon

The University of Virginia is being accused of encouraging doctors to prescribe Johnson & Johnson’s anti-seizure and migraine drug Topamax “off-label” to treat alcoholism. But is the medicine safe for treating alcoholics without FDA approval?

Nature NeuroPod: Neuroscience Meets Military Technology

Jonathan Moreno tells Nature podcast host Kerri Smith about what happens when neuroscience meets warfare. Be prepared for soldiers who don’t need sleep and detainees who can be chemically induced to trust their captors.