Rana Semaan, Science in Society editor On June 7, 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the drug Aduhelm™ (aducanumab-avwa) for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease under its accelerated approval pathway. I felt overjoyed and excited reading this news. I’d seen the disease up close and lost my grandmother to Alzheimer’s. I immediately […]
Katie Compton, Policy & Politics editor When it comes to the plants and plant-derived foods that we eat, what does novel mean? When is something so different from the existing items on grocery shelves that regulators need to assess its safety before it goes to market? In the world of plant breeding, the line between […]
Amanda Maxwell, Science Borealis editorial coordinator Writing about science is a great way to explore new subject areas and make cool discoveries. Often, you follow what interests you and get to tell everybody else what’s so fascinating about it. But sometimes, you find out things that aren’t so great. For example, who wants to learn […]
by Rick Gierczak, guest contributor CRISPR-Cas9 technology was accidentally discovered in the 1980s when scientists were researching how bacteria defend themselves against viral infection. While studying bacterial DNA called clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR), they identified additional CRISPR-associated (Cas) protein molecules. Together, CRISPR and one of those protein molecules, termed Cas9, can locate […]
Nahomi Amberber, Policy & Politics co-editor Do you remember how many times you’ve been prescribed an antibiotic or used an antifungal cream for an unexplained rash? Most people don’t either, which speaks volumes about the role antimicrobials play in modern healthcare. It also highlights the threat of antimicrobial resistance to global health. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR), […]
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