Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Kevin Davies

Jonathan D. Grinstein, PhD @grinsteinj.bsky.social · Aug 21

Hear David Liu share his approach/philosophy to solving biological problems on IPM's BTB podcast

Apple podcast link:
itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/i...

Spotify link: open.spotify.com/show/03X80PT...

Acast: shows.acast.com/67105af84872...

@broadinstitute.bsky.social
@harvard.edu
@broadinstitute.org

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Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · Aug 20

The Baby KJ story earlier this year certainly showed gene editing's potential in rare diseases. Doudna has long insisted the biggest impact will be in agriculture: www.genengnews.com/topics/genom...

From Pharma to Farm: Can CRISPR Feed the World?

Now entering its second decade, CRISPR genome editing technology is poised to revolutionize agriculture—just in time to help us adapt to climate change.

www.genengnews.com

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Reposted by Kevin Davies

Matthew Cobb @matthewcobb.bsky.social · Jun 20

We went to the rehung National Gallery. This painting, from around 1460, could easily have been painted for the cover of a 70s British prog-rock album.

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Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · Jun 11

"The State of CRISPR & Genome Editing" virtual summit starts today at 11 am ET/8 am PT.
FIVE hours of great talks including:
- Feng Zhang
- Fyodor Urnov
- Nicole Gaudelli & Alexis Komor
- Neville Sanjana
- Julie Makani & Johnny Mahlangu
- and Beth Shapiro
Registration free: bit.ly/CRISPR25

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Reposted by Kevin Davies

Carolyn Bertozzi @carolynbertozzi.bskyverified.social · Jun 10

Seems a good time to invite Sen Britt to watch an NIH review panel (aka study section) analyze piles of grants over several days to identify the <10% that win funding. Applications that scientists spent months preparing, whose peers spent weeks poring through in advance of review mtg at NIH.

Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · Jun 10

Republican Senator Katie Britt: We need to create a system "where the beat idea wins... This is our opportunity to make a dollar go further and to make it have a greater impact."

(NIH already generates $2.56 for every $1 spent it spends on research.)

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Reposted by Kevin Davies

Carl Zimmer @carlzimmer.com · Jun 9

N.I.H. Workers Denounce Trump’s ‘Harmful’ Health Policies. Gift link: nyti.ms/4kxstdt

N.I.H. Workers Denounce Trump’s ‘Harmful’ Health Policies (Gift Article)

In a scathing public letter, employees of the National Institutes of Health accused the administration of undermining the agency’s work and endangering people’s health.

nyti.ms

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Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · Jun 6

“Believe in America solutions” — Highlights from today’s extraordinary FDA roundtable, featuring almost two dozen cell and gene therapy leaders and patient advocates presenting to the new FDA/HHS leadership — RFK, Bhattacharya, Oz, Makary and Prasad:
www.genengnews.com/topics/genom...

Cell and Gene Therapy Leaders Tell FDA: “Believe in American Solutions”

Leaders from the world of cell and gene therapy shared their personal stories and policy recommendations in an extraordinary roundtable conducted by the FDA in front of its recently-appointed top offi...

www.genengnews.com

Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · Jun 5

Former!

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Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · Jun 5

Good name for a band…

Kevin Mitchell @wiringthebrain.bsky.social · Jun 5

Welp, the grifting eugenicists are out in full force... mynucleus.com/embryo

Nucleus Embryo

Genetic optimization is here.

mynucleus.com

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Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · Jun 5

Livestream of @fda.gov roundtable on cell and gene therapy - starts 9 am ET:
www.youtube.com/live/0qDhRtn...

FDA Roundtable on Cell and Gene Therapy

Captioning Link: https://bit.ly/4dQaNaz

www.youtube.com

Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · Jun 4

”I’m overwhelmed to see the pictures of KJ at home, with his family…Somehow that hits harder.. it just increases my determination to find ways to do the same for as many kids as possible.”
- @kiranmusunuru.bsky.social

Story @grinsteinj.bsky.social

www.insideprecisionmedicine.com/topics/preci...

First Personalized CRISPR Gene Editing Therapy Patient Baby KJ Discharged

Three hundred and seven days after he was first admitted to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), KJ Muldoon went home after being treated.

www.insideprecisionmedicine.com

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Reposted by Kevin Davies

Ed Yong @edyong209.bsky.social · May 30

I urge everyone to read Unbreaking’s new page on everything the govt is doing to destroy & diminish medical research funding.

It’s the best thing I’ve read on this topic: @lizneeley.bsky.social & co have such done an incredible job.

unbreaking.org/issues/medic...

Medical Research Funding — Unbreaking

How the administration is breaking the government, and what that means for all of us.

unbreaking.org

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Reposted by Kevin Davies

Kaustuva Das @kaustuvadas.bsky.social · May 29

US supercomputer named after Nobel laureate Jennifer Doudna @jenniferdoudna.bsky.social @innovativegenomics.bsky.social to power AI and scientific research
apnews.com/article/nvid...

US supercomputer named after Nobel laureate Jennifer Doudna to power AI and scientific research

A new supercomputer named after a winner of the Nobel Prize in chemistry will help power artificial intelligence technology and scientific discoveries from a perch in the hills above the University of...

apnews.com

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Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · May 24

The CRISPR Journal has published a series of 18 Perspectives from a wide array of authors to accompany the Global Observatory for Genome Editing summit this week:
www.liebertpub.com/toc/crispr/0/0

Here is the closing statement:
www.summit.global-observatory.org/statement/

Statement - Global Observatory International Summit

Statement Global Observatory for Genome Editing Summit Statement: Call for a Charter on Emerging Technologies and Human Dignity May 23, […]

www.summit.global-observatory.org

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Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · May 15

Excellent story from @faylinphd.bsky.social on the hot news from #ASGCT2025 — @kiranmusunuru.bsky.social and colleagues tailor the world’s first bespoke gene editor to treat KJ, an infant with an ultra-rare genetic disease, heralding a new era in precision med.
www.genengnews.com/topics/genom...

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Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · May 9

Natalie Portman To Play Pioneering DNA Scientist Rosalind Franklin In ‘Photograph 51’ For Director Tom Hooper & FilmNation @deadline.com
deadline.com/2025/05/nata...

Natalie Portman To Play Pioneering DNA Scientist Rosalind Franklin In ‘Photograph 51’ For Director Tom Hooper & FilmNation — Cannes Market Hot Project

Oscar winner Natalie Portman is set to star in Photograph 51 for The King's Speech director Tom Hooper.

deadline.com

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Reposted by Kevin Davies

Albert Vilella, PhD. @albertvilella.bsky.social · May 7

This means that the $200 genome has now gone up to $210 in price. And you can only have #TwoDolls.

Albert Vilella, PhD. @albertvilella.bsky.social · May 6

Illumina $ILMN is adding 5% price increase on consumables in the US due to tariffs.

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Reposted by Kevin Davies

Julie Makani @juliemakani.bsky.social · May 6

Tanzania and South Africa will participate in "The State of CRISPR & Genome Edoting" virtual summit on 11 June 2025.

Registration
webinars.liebertpub.com/e/the-state-...

@kevinadavies.bsky.social

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Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · May 5

Join GEN on June 11 for:
"The State of CRISPR & Genome Editing" virtual summit.
Guests include:
Feng Zhang, @urnov.bsky.social , @juliemakani.bsky.social
@nevillesanjana.bsky.social; Alexis Komor & Nicole Gaudelli,
and Beth Shapiro
Registration is free!
webinars.liebertpub.com/e/the-state-...

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Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · May 3

Giving away translations of some of my books — please get in touch if interest:

- Breakthrough (1995) 🇬🇧
- Cracking the Genome (2001) 🇯🇵🇵🇹🇪🇸🇳🇱🇨🇿🇩🇪🇸🇪🇮🇹🇸🇦
- The $1,000 Genome (2010) 🇰🇷🇧🇷
- Editing Humanity (2020) 🇰🇷🇷🇺🇯🇵🇮🇹

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Reposted by Kevin Davies

Lisa Jarvis @lisamjarvis.bsky.social · Apr 17

Read the full piece here (gift link): www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...

NIH Grant Cuts Aren't Saving Money. They're Wasting It.

The Trump administration says the canceled funding is about cost efficiency, but data shows that the opposite is happening.

www.bloomberg.com

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Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · Apr 15

It's there -- writing and editing :)

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Kevin Davies @kevinadavies.bsky.social · Apr 12

The George R.R. Martin among the co-authors on the latest ⁦‪@colossal‬⁩ preprint —
“On the ancestry and evolution of the extinct dire wolf”
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

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Reposted by Kevin Davies

Paul Knoepfler @stemcells.bsky.social · Apr 9

Calling out colossal baloney on supposed dire wolf de-extinction ipscell.com/2025/04/call... #stemcells #stemcell Colossal Biosciences blew it by hyping this

Calling out colossal baloney on supposed dire wolf de-extinction - The Niche

Professor discusses hype by Colossal Biosciences on their supposed dire wolf de-extinction, which is harmful to science.

ipscell.com

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Reposted by Kevin Davies

Yasin Dagdas @plantophagy.bsky.social · Apr 6

“To me, slashing funding and people from science in the United States is like burning your seed corn. It’s not even eating your seed corn. It’s just destroying it,”
www.theguardian.com/science/2025...

Biologist whose innovation saved the life of British teenager wins $3m Breakthrough prize

Prof David Liu is among the winners of 2025’s ‘Oscars of science’, with honours also going to researchers for landmark work on multiple sclerosis, particle physics and ‘skinny jabs’

www.theguardian.com

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