- FDA approved the first intentional genomic alteration in domestic pigs—the “GalSafe” line—engineered to eliminate the α-gal sugar that triggers allergic reactions in humans, opening the door to safer xenotransplantation and food products.  
- A Nature paper reported the first in-vitro creation of functional oocytes from male mouse cells, demonstrating that sperm or eggs can now be generated entirely in the lab and accelerating the timeline for “designer babies” via in-vitro gametogenesis (IVG).  
- NPR coverage highlighted how IVG could allow same-sex couples, post-menopausal women, or single individuals to produce genetically related offspring, raising immediate policy and bioethics questions.  
- A newcomer asked whether cortical neurons are genetically pre-specified to process particular stimuli or whether their function emerges from their spatial position between upstream and downstream circuits.  
- fenn argued that cortical neurons are largely interchangeable: embryonic surgery that reroutes eyes to auditory cortex or ears to visual cortex still yields functional perception, implying that location, not genetic identity, determines function.  
- muurkha clarified that while axons can propagate action potentials bidirectionally in principle, any given synapse operates unidirectionally because vesicle release occurs only on the presynaptic side.  
- kanzure invoked GPT-4 to confirm that synaptic vesicles do not traffic retrogradely, reinforcing the asymmetric nature of chemical synapses.  
- The discussion left open the question of how genetically hard-wired subcortical circuits (e.g., brain-stem reflexes or instincts) differ from the more plastic cortical wiring rules.