First 3D Embryo-Like Model Has Limits But Allows Researchers To Study Birth Defects, Diseases
Scientists say this model could be a workaround in face of longstanding legal and ethical restrictions on researching embryos. Other science news focuses on trials for inherited blood disorders, sickle cell research, publications of academic research, and anxiety screening in women.
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New Embryo-Like Model Could Help Scientists Study Early Development
Researchers have developed the first-ever embryo-like model from human embryonic stem cells, a workaround that will let them examine birth defects and diseases they couldn’t otherwise, given ethical and technical issues with studying a human embryo in the lab. The model resembles a human embryo around 18 to 21 days old — complete with the layers of the cells that will eventually form the nervous system, muscles, the gut, and other cells and structures in the human body. It offers far more insights into the organization and decision-making processes of early-stage embryos than other models, but experts caution it still differs from human embryos in key ways. (Ortolano, 6/11)
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Agios Drug Shows Strong Response In Patients With Inherited Blood Disorder
Agios Pharmaceuticals on Friday reported positive results from the first clinical trial of its lead pipeline drug in patients with two different types of thalassemia, an inherited blood disorder. Overall, 12 of the 13 patients treated with the Agios drug called mitapivat achieved meaningful hemoglobin responses in the Phase 2 study. The results are still preliminary but set up a pivotal Phase 3 studies starting next year, the company said. (Feuerstein, 6/12)
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New Data In Sickle Cell Show Biotechs Tackling Disease In Novel Ways
Sickle cell disease features prominently at this year’s virtual meeting of the European Hematology Association, which kicks off Friday. The 32 research abstracts being presented are highlighted by early-stage studies of experimental drugs that target the inherited blood disorder in new ways. (Feuerstein, 6/12)
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MIT Ends Negotiations With Elsevier Over Research Access Dispute
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has ended negotiations over a new contract with the major journal publisher Elsevier, making it the latest high-profile academic institution to walk away from Elsevier amid an escalating fight that could shape the way that academic research gets read and paid for. The decision, announced on Thursday, is the result of an ongoing dispute over open-access research, which is made freely available to the public online. (Robbins, 6/11)
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All Women Should Be Screened For Anxiety Disorders, Health Group Says
All adult and adolescent women and girls should be screened for anxiety, according to a new recommendation from a coalition of women's health groups. The guidelines, issued by the Women's Preventive Services Initiative, advise primary care doctors and other health providers to screen all female patients for anxiety disorders beginning at age 13. (McCammon, 6/11)
