Science News Roundup: Biden names geneticist Lander for new Cabinet-level post; Bezos' Blue Origin aims and more

Following is a summary of current science news briefs.

Biden names geneticist Lander for new Cabinet-level post, elevating role of science

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden named pioneering geneticist Eric Lander as the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy on Friday, elevating the post to Cabinet-level status for first time. Lander, a Harvard and Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor who helped lead the Human Genome Project, will also serve in the role of presidential science adviser, Biden's team said.

Bezos' Blue Origin aims to fly first space passengers by April - CNBC

Billionaire Jeff Bezos-owned space company Blue Origin aims to carry the first passengers on its New Shepard space vehicle as early as April, CNBC reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. Blue Origin completed the fourteenth test flight of its New Shepard rocket booster and capsule on Thursday, marking one of the last remaining steps before the company flies its first crew to space, the report said. (https://cnb.cx/3sswOEc)

Progress reported on one-dose J&J vaccine; COVID-19 reinfections seen as rare

The following is a roundup of some of the latest scientific studies on the novel coronavirus and efforts to find treatments and vaccines for COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus. Johnson & Johnson vaccine advancing through clinical trials.

South African scientists discover new chemicals that kill malaria parasite

South African scientists have discovered chemical compounds that could potentially be used for a new line of drugs to treat malaria and even kill the parasite in its infectious stage, which most available drugs do not. The research led by the University of Pretoria, published in the Nature Communications journal this week, found that chemical compounds undergoing trials for the treatment of tuberculosis and cancer -- the JmjC inhibitor ML324 and the antitubercular clinical candidate SQ109 -- can kill the disease-causing parasite at a stage when it normally infects others.

(With inputs from agencies.)