research

Scientists are convening to debate whether experiments that make some viruses more contagious in order to advance understanding of potential outbreaks are worth the risk of creating one.

A tool for modifying genes is spreading through the biomedical research world like wildfire. As part of the series Joe's Big Idea, NPR's Joe Palca explores why CRISPR-Cas9 is becoming indispensable.

The wave of mass shootings in the U.S. is renewing a debate over treating gun violence as a public health issue. Congress has stood in the way of federal funding for studying injuries and deaths.

One revision would crack down on studying tissue and blood samples without getting a person's consent. Another change would make it easier to conduct studies in many locations at once.

Differences in the patterns of genes that are turned on in brains of people and mice suggest glial cells may have helped humans develop brains that can acquire language and solve complex problems.

The National Institutes of Health has issued a moratorium on funding work that puts human stem cells into nonhuman embryos. The concern is that hybrids might develop human brain cells, sperm or eggs.