As revelers across the country gear up for the holidays, the federal government remained busy with two major reports released this week. The first, published by the Institute of Medicine, is already changing the way chimpanzees are used in research. While the second, drafted by the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical issues, makes new recommendations for human subjects compensation. Learn more in this week’s ‘Science Times’ synthesis and share your thoughts in our comment section!

Week of December 20
The US will not finance new research on chimps:  In response to an Institute of Medicine report that concluded that chimpanzees are not necessary for most biomedical research, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has suspended all new grants for research involving chimpanzees.

Elevation of the chimp may reshape research: New York Times journalist James Gorman analyzes the NIH decision to suspend all new grant funding for research involving chimpanzees.

Studies suggest acetaminophen-asthma link: Physicians and researchers debate whether acetaminophen has played a role in the increased prevalence of asthma over the past 30 years.

And, because the world of human subjects protections also had a big week, we would like to share an article from The Washington Post…

Bioethics panel urges system to compensate those hurt in medical experiments: The Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues released a report that concluded existing regulations adequately safeguard human subjects, while recommending compensation for volunteers who participate in medical research.

Week of December 13
Rats to the rescue in cage experiment: In a lab experiment, rats freed their trapped counterparts from a caged enclosure, leading scientists to attribute empathy with the rodents.

Headers may be hard on soccer players’ brains: Researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine found a pattern of white matter loss among soccer players who frequently bounced balls off of their heads.