LATEST NEWS & PUBLICATIONS

Recent research has raised hopes that new drugs can help slow or reverse the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease.

The Masonic Cancer Center, a Consortium member, has announced its first Chainbreaker Breakthrough Cancer Research Grant, which was awarded to a multidisciplinary group of scholars at the University of Minnesota. The team will focus on the connections between microorganisms and cancer, as both potential causes of and treatments for the disease, and will be co-led by Timothy K.

The perils of the Big Data era seem to increase every day. The most recent area under scrutiny is the use of personal data by health insurers to track "race, education level, TV habits, marital status, net worth. . . what you post on social media, whether you're behind on your bills, [and] what you order online," according to a new investigative report by ProPublica and NPR.

The advocacy group Public Citizen has filed a complaint with the FDA and Office for Human Research Protections about trials conducted at Hennepin Healthcare (formerly Hennepin County Medical Center), in which paramedics used the sedative ketamine to treat "prehospital agitation." The letter is signed by dozens of bioethicists and medical experts, including Carl Elliott and Leigh Turner of the University of Minnesota Center for Bioethics

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine have released a new consensus report on returning individual research results, which offers a process-ori­ented approach that considers the value to the participant, the risks and feasibility of return, and the quality of the research laboratory. The committee that created the report was chaired by 

The University of Minnesota Board of Regents has approved the appointment of Jakub Tolar to the newly created position of Vice President for Clinical Affairs at the University's Academic Health Center (AHC). Prof.

According to an article in Scientific American, "Several DNA testing companies have volunteered their services to help reunite immigrant families separated at the southern U.S. border. But scientists and ethicists warn broad-based genetic tests are 'overkill' and do not make sense for making such matches." Consortium chair Susan M.

An article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune describes concerns over a program in which paramedics from Hennepin Healthcare administer the sedative ketamine when responding to reports of extremely aggressive or agitated people.

An article published in Slate as part of their Future Tense project provides a valuable overview of the current state of privacy protections ​for those who use direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic tests: "There’s a basic asymmetry at work in genetic testing: It takes just a few minutes to put some spit into a vial, sign a few disclosure forms, and pop your saliva in the mail.

Michael T. Osterholm has been honored with the position of Science Envoy by the US Department of State. Through the Science Envoy Program, eminent scientists and engineers leverage their expertise and networks to forge connections and identify opportunities for sustained international cooperation, championing innovation and demonstrating America’s scientific leadership and technical ingenuity.