CGS in the News

23andMe’s DNA database is up for sale. Who might want it, and what for?

By Anumita Kaur [cites CGS’ Katie Hasson], The Washington Post | 03.25.2025

Genetic information company 23andMe has said that it is headed to bankruptcy court, raising questions for what happens to the DNA shared by millions of people with the company via saliva test kits.

Sunday’s announcement clears the way for a new...

Genomics

The couple who want to make America procreate again

By Anne Branigin, The Washington Post [cites CGS' Marcy Darnovsky] | 02.04.2025

Photo by TeggorMindFish via Wikimedia Commons, licensed under
the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license

It's a...

Genetic Selection

Should We Use Gene Editing to Create Super Babies?

By Staff [cites CGS' Katie Hasson], The New York Times Upfront | 02.17.2025

A young couple wants to have a baby, but they’re worried it’ll carry a disease that runs in the family...

Bioethics
Depiction of CRISPR--purple strand of DNA being cut from them middle of two orange strands

Call For Global Moratorium On Creating Gene-Edited Babies

By Rob Stein , National Public Radio [cites CGS' Marcy Darnovsky] | 03.13.2019

A group of prominent scientists and bioethicists is calling for a global moratorium on any new attempts to bring gene-edited...

Human Genetic Modification
Microscopic picture of egg cells and embryos

New U.S. Experiments Aim To Create Gene-Edited Human Embryos

By Rob Stein, National Public Radio [cites Marcy Darnovsky] | 02.01.2019

A scientist in New York is conducting experiments designed to modify DNA in human embryos as a step toward someday...

Human Genetic Modification
United Nations logo in black.

WHO to Create Global Advisory Panel on Human Gene Editing

By Marcia Frellick, Medscape [cites CGS' Katie Hasson] | 12.18.2018

The World Health Organization (WHO) is creating a global panel to study human gene editing and the scientific, legal, social...

Genetic Selection
researches removes DNA from a test tube.

Editorial: California shouldn’t keep DNA from hundreds of thousands of innocent people

By Chronicle Editorial Board, San Francisco Chronicle [cites CGS' Marcy Darnovsky] | 12.14.2018

California is being sued over its DNA collection practices, and the only thing that’s surprising is how long it took...

U.S. States
Pregnant woman holding her belly.

Scientists Say Gene-Edited Babies Claim Is 'Wake-Up Call' For World

By Rob Stein, NPR [Cites CGS' Marcy Darnovsky] | 12.13.2018

Three of the most influential scientific organizations in the world are calling for an urgent international effort to prevent scientists...

Genomics
A row of test tubes in a plastic holder

Watchdogs sue California over keeping DNA from arrests with no conviction

By Robert Salonga, The Mercury News [cites CGS' Marcy Darnovsky] | 12.10.2018

SAN FRANCISCO — Accusing the government of violating constitutional privacy rights, a trio of civil liberties groups is suing the...

U.S. States
A close-up on a hand with a pen writing on pieces of paper on a desk.

Be Wary of the Techno-Fix

By Marcy Darnovsky, Boston Review | 11.19.2018

In her essay, Merve Emre declares that “all reproduction . . . is assisted.” Few feminists of any wave or...

Assisted Reproduction
Pipet in test tubes

Government using ancestry websites to deport immigrants: lawyer, court documents

By Emanuela Campanella, Global News [Cites CGS' Katie Hasson] | 11.01.2018

The Canadian Border Services Agency is collecting the DNA of immigrants and using ancestry websites to find long-lost family members...

Genomics