Category Archives: Biomedical

Biomedicine, especially reproductive medicine, embryology

SNPs are Us

Posted on January 9, 2016 by Roger Gosden

It won’t be long before snp is added to the pantheon of approved English words in the OED. It will sit among those rarest of words, those that lack a vowel like the crafty Welsh invented—cwm (a mountain hollow), crwth … Continue reading →

Posted in Biomedical, Health | Tagged 23andme, DNA ancestry, DNA testing, genetic disease, promethease, single nucleotide polymorphisms, SNPs | Comments Off

From DNA to New Cousins & Ancestry

Posted on January 2, 2016 by Roger Gosden

The back of a Cornflakes box is a good deal more absorbing than another person’s family tree. Genealogy is a rather personal game of history. Our interest seems to gain momentum with age, which may unfortunately mean we are too … Continue reading →

Posted in Biomedical, Health | Tagged 23andme, ancestry, ancestry.com, DNA ancestry, Family Tree DNA, Finding Your Roots, genealogy, King Richard III, Queen Victoria, Who Do you Think You Are? | Comments Off

The Strange Tale of a Chimera

Posted on December 12, 2015 by Roger Gosden

The Chimera had a serpent’s tail with the head of a lion and a goat on its monstrous body. That was a Greek myth, but real-life chimeras exist. They originate from the blending of cells from two fertilized eggs into a … Continue reading →

Posted in Biomedical | Tagged Brave New World, chimera, freemartin, transplant | Comments Off

Trust your Microbiome (Gut)

Posted on November 7, 2015 by Roger Gosden

The gut feelings of psychic “scatomancers” who studiously examined the color, shape, and buoyancy of poo to forecast well-being and life prospects were more reliable than palm-reading, tarot cards, and astrology. They had “data,” and now we have the microbiome. … Continue reading →

Posted in Biomedical, Health | Tagged Elie Metchnikoff, Microbiome, probiotics, Robert T. Morris | 1 Comment

Howard W. Jones Jr., M.D. (1910-2015)

Posted on July 31, 2015 by Roger Gosden

Our dear friend and mentor died today in Norfolk after a short illness. Lucinda and I were able to exchange a few words and smiles with him in the hospital yesterday. He asked how our children are doing—so typical of … Continue reading →