DNA Science PLOS Blog

Ricki Lewis is a geneticist who shares insights from the forefront of genomics through her blog. Her topics include genetic testing, stem cell research, gene therapy, and more. With a PhD in genetics, Ricki is an accomplished science writer. She has authored numerous textbooks and written thousands of articles for various scientific, medical, and consumer publications. Her debut narrative nonfiction book, "The Forever Fix: Gene Therapy and the Boy Who Saved It," was released by St. Martin’s Press in March 2012. Alongside her writing, Ricki offers genetic counseling for expectant parents at CareNet Medical Group in Schenectady, NY, and teaches an online course called "Genethics" for master’s students at the Alden March Bioethics Institute at Albany Medical Center.

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Articles

A Trio of Novels Based on Rare Genetic Disease: Middlesex, The Covenant of Water, and The Sirens

1 week ago | dnascience.plos.org | Ricki Lewis

I love when fiction unfurls a compelling tale whose protagonist has an ultrarare genetic disease. My most recent favorite is The Sirens. Author Emilia Hart weaves a powerful tale of genetic memory manifest in two pairs of sisters, one aboard a doomed ship transporting women convicts from England to New South Wales circa 1780, the other contemporary. But before The Sirens came Middlesex and The Covenant of Water.
CRISPR Gene Editing Outpaces Gene Therapy: The Groundbreaking Case of KJ Muldoon

2 weeks ago | dnascience.plos.org | Ricki Lewis

Nine-month-old KJ Muldoon made global headlines following a report in The New England Journal of Medicine, from Kiran Musunuru and Becca Ahrens-Nicklas and their team at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and Penn Medicine. They used a highly precise form of CRISPR gene editing to correct a mutation – swapping out one DNA base for another – that lay behind the boy’s inability to break down proteins in food.
How Flowers Came to Smell like Rotted Flesh: Another Genetic Just-So Story

1 month ago | dnascience.plos.org | Ricki Lewis

Not all flowers emit odors that are enticing to humans. Three types of flowering plants – Asarum simile, Eurya japonica, and Symplocarpus renifolius – smell like decaying meat or excrement, thanks to an enzyme, disulfide synthase. It’s the enzyme implicated in halitosis (bad breath) in humans and brings to mind Lynyrd Skynyrd’s classic “Ooh, that smell.
The Absurdity of Governments Defining Biological Sex

1 month ago | dnascience.plos.org | Ricki Lewis

It’s odd for me, as a long-time author of college biology textbooks, to witness governments rule on the nature of biological sex, perpetuating an oversimplified, binary definition.
Nixing the Newborn Screening Advisory Committee Is Ill-Advised

1 month ago | dnascience.plos.org | Ricki Lewis

Next month, families affected by the rare genetic disease metachromatic leukodystrophy (MLD) will meet in Washington. They will be protesting the April 4 dissolution of the committee of experts that advises Health and Human Services (HHS) leadership on which conditions to include on the Recommended Uniform Screening Panel, aka the RUSP. The ListRUSP is a state-by-state roster of up to 61 “actionable” metabolic conditions.
“De-extincted” Dire Wolf Pups Have a Few Genetic Tweaks – That’s It - DNA Science

1 month ago | dnascience.plos.org | Ricki Lewis

The images of “de-extincted” fuzzy white dog-wolf pups festooning the media this week accompany reports that are so hyped that the technical feat is hidden in the hoopla. Claimed the company, Colossal Biosciences:“On October 1, 2024, for the first time in human history, Colossal successfully restored a once-eradicated species through the science of de-extinction. After a 10,000+ year absence, our team is proud to return the dire wolf to its rightful place in the ecosystem.
The Sunflower House Reveals the Horror of Himmler’s Lebensborn Program

2 months ago | dnascience.plos.org | Ricki Lewis

Hitler’s “final solution” attempted to strip the German population of Jewish people and others deemed not white. At the same time, the Lebensborn program sought to purify the Aryan gene pool and counter a plunging birthrate through “homes” where “hereditarily healthy” Aryan women conceived, carried, and bore the “racially valuable” children of SS men.
Why I Deleted My 23andMe Data. Will an Ancestry Chart Become a Yellow Star?

2 months ago | dnascience.plos.org | Ricki Lewis

When I heard that 23andMe had filed for bankruptcy, I wasn’t alarmed, at first. I’d taken a test from the company, years after I did one for AncestryDNA at a genetics meeting – I hadn’t even remembered taking that first test. I knew 23andMe would someday be in trouble, despite the yearly blitz of ads at holiday time, because of the ephemeral value of their DNA tests – there wasn’t a viable way to keep customers on the hook. Privacy hadn’t bothered me.
Measles Erases Immune Memory, Stifling Protection from Other Infections

2 months ago | dnascience.plos.org | Ricki Lewis

Measles virus has long occupied a top spot on a list of most dangerous pathogens, for in addition to spreading easily, it can temporarily cancel immunity against other infectious diseases. A powerful vaccine has vanquished measles since 1963, offering close-to-lifetime immunity. But the disease is returning, thanks to vaccine hesitancy and apparent lack of knowledge of basic biology. I was too young to remember having measles.
Study Identifies 7 Genes Associated with Brain Aging and 13 Drugs that May Help Extend the Healthspan

2 months ago | dnascience.plos.org | Ricki Lewis

Consider two 70-year-olds. Cliff seems slightly confused and forgetful, and has difficulty following conversations and instructions. Roxanne is always alert and leads conversations, bringing up new topics and easily adding details to other’s ideas. They are the same age, yet far apart in cognition. Researchers call the difference between age in years and age in behavior and physical condition the brain age gap, or BAG.