Free Republic

Prince Frederik of Luxembourg, the youngest son of Prince Robert of Luxembourg and Princess Julie of Nassau, has died after a lifelong battle with a rare genetic disorder known as POLG mitochondrial disease. He was 22.

Mitochondrial transfer could reduce the risk of childhood disease. Researchers say that technology to shuffle genetic material between unfertilized eggs is ready to make healthy babies. The technique could allow parents to minimize the risk of a range of diseases related to defects in the energy-producing cell organelles known as mitochondria. Mitochondrial defects affect an estimated 1 in 4,000 children, and can cause rare and often fatal diseases such as carnitine deficiency, which prevents the body from using fats for energy. They are also implicated in a wide range of more common diseases affecting children and adults, such as multiple...

Reviewed by Brunilda Nazario, MD Federal Officials Say Vaccines Worsened Condition That Led to Autism Spectrum Disorder in Georgia Girl Federal officials say a Georgia girl is entitled to compensation from a federal vaccine injury fund because she developed autism-like symptoms after receiving childhood vaccines in 2000. Hannah's father, Jon, tells WebMD he was not surprised by the compensation decision. "When you are talking about the courtroom versus science, the burden of proof is different," Poling says. "(But) we showed there was a plausible mechanism. We showed that an injury occurred shortly after her vaccination. Her growth curve went flat...