CRISPR brakes could accelerate its use

CRISPR works (in broad strokes) by finding particular chunks of DNA and then cutting them out via a protein called Cas9. It makes gene editing easy. The trouble, though, is making sure that Cas9 doesn’t stay around longer than it’s needed because it can potentially start cutting where it shouldn’t.

Now, led by research from grad students at UC San Francisco, biologists have found “kill switches” or “anti-CRISPRs” that can shut down the process.

This is a Very Big Deal, because one of the roadblocks to widespread CRISPR adoption (and investment) were the fear of unintended consequences. Interesting? Read the long story from Nature.

Two-percenters don’t live as long

A study out of Brigham Young University found that “people who drink low-fat (1% and skim) milk experience several years less biological aging than those who drink high-fat (2% and whole) milk.”

Why? Apparently consumption of higher-fat milk seems to lead to shorter telomeres — the chromosome endcaps that act like a biological clock, shortening with age.

Lopsided antibiotic prescriptions

A Tennessee study found that fewer than 2% of prescribers there accounted for about 25% of the broad-spectrum antibiotic prescriptions for kids. But here’s a twist:

Female pediatricians and pediatricians who graduated medical school prior to 2000 were more likely to be high antibiotic prescribers.

What to make of that? No idea. But with the southeast part of the country having the highest number of antibiotic scripts, it’s worth noting.

Needles, schmeedles

A new glucose sensor uses artificial intelligence to detect hypoglycemia via a wearable ECG sensor — no pricks necessary. It’s only 82 percent accurate at the moment, but heck, it’s brand new. Two immediate benefits: Less trouble getting little kids to wear it, and it’s useful even when a person is sleeping.

Pot-free pregnancy

You wouldn’t think it needs to be said, but apparently it does: Don’t take* pot when you’re pregnant.

[T]he researchers found that 9.1% of babies from marijuana users were at risk, compared to 3.6% of babies whose mothers didn’t consume the drug while pregnant.

All right, there is a caveat: There’s no cause and effect proven, so “It’s possible that women who consume marijuana during pregnancy have other traits that cause their children to perform poorly on developmental screenings.”

* The report refers to “consuming,” so we assume the takeaway is “Don’t take the stuff into your body, period.”

An inconvenient truth?

Here’s an interesting perspective on Generation Z — the people in their late teens and early 20s. They have “radically different views from the older population on what privacy, trust and relationships mean in the digital world.”

What that means for pharmacy and healthcare overall is that Gen Z is all about convenience — convenience over privacy and convenience over relationships.

“Baby boomers—and even older millennials—grew up with the idea that trust should be established between two people when transacting a service. Whether it was at the bank with a teller and customer, or with a doctor and patient, there was a face-to-face relationship. That is no longer the case.”

Melanoma-fighting molecule

Add this to the alphabet soup you need to keep track of: IncRNAs. Biologists aren’t quite sure what they do in general, but a particular one (“DIRC3”) seems to have a useful quality: It suppresses melanoma tumor growth. Granted it’s only in the lab, but finding a potential tool like this opens up a bunch of doors.

Outbreak Watch

“WHO says new China coronavirus could spread, warns hospitals worldwide”

“Japan confirms case of new Chinese virus, spread is ‘concerning’“