Tags: genetics
Blog Posts (28)
Feb 29, 2012
Meet Our New Associate Editor, Richard Sharp, PhD
The AJOB Editorial Office is proud to announce its has added five new members to its editorial group. Over the next few days, we will introduce the members of our new editorial group to you, including our new co-Editors in Chief, our two new Associate Editors and our new Book Review Editor.…
Oct 18, 2011
Genetic Testing for the Injury Prone
Professional soccer teams (football to the rest of the world) are using high-powered science to give them a competitive edge. The most recent venture into the world of professional sport and science involves an “unnamed Premier League club” [that] has commissioned Yale University scientists to genetically test its players and attempt to identify genetic indicators that can serve as a warning sign to whether an athlete is prone to injury.” According to Bleacher Report, scientists claim that there are more than 100 genetic factors linked to being prone to injury.…
Feb 15, 2011
Eugenic or Not, Sterilization Makes Sense for "P"
The current case before a British judge as to whether a mentally disabled woman identified only as “P” should be sterilized has raised the ire of medical ethicists and the disability community.…
Jun 24, 2010
New Website is Match.com for Your Genes
Before I even describe the services purportedly offered by BeautifulPeople.com, let me quote Art Caplan who has summed it up better (characteristically so) than anyone else could: “It’s pure, utter nonsensical baloney, at best.…
Sep 03, 2009
There's Something Different About You. And You. And Everyone Else You've Ever Met. They Are All Mutants.
It turns out it wasn’t all a bunch of rubbish when our parents told us as children that each one of us was very special, in fact unique, from everyone else.…
Jun 10, 2009
Who Cares About Preventive Care? Who Should?
The role and scope of preventive care in our healthcare system has been a perennial issue for decades. Emily Willingham raises the issue and its role in healthcare reform and are larger healthcare system in light of a recent encounter on Facebook and more:
I received a Facebook invitation today to join in signing a petition to require insurance coverage for genetic testing for breast cancer.…
Apr 24, 2009
Moooove Over Elsie. We Know Your Entire Genome Now.
The Saint Louis Post Dispatch says that the sequencing of the cow genome is going to lead to more milk and better beef, but all I can say for sure is that it certainly is an interesting step forward in the world of genomics.…
Apr 17, 2009
Racing For a Cure--And Taking Genetic Samples at the Same Time?
As a woman and a supporter of research of all kinds, I still have a hard time swallowing this request: “You are healthy.…
Dec 10, 2008
Feeling Lonely? Blame Your Genes!
According to a recent study reported on CNN, part of the reason you may be feeling lonely this holiday season could be due to your family–but not because they left you high and dry at the holidays or because they ditched you for other relatives.…
Oct 20, 2008
Letting the Genome Loose? No Biggie.
Announced today in the NYT, Harvard Medical School unveiled the first 10 participants in their Personal Genome Project.
Ranging from entrepreneurs to academics to healthcare execs, the goal of the project is to raise awareness about the possibility of personal genomes for everyone.…
News (37)
May 21, 2012
California considers DNA privacy law (Nature)
California lawmakers are weighing a bill aimed at protecting their state’s citizens from surreptitious genetic testing but scientists are voicing their growing concerns that, if passed, such a law would have a costly and damaging effect on research. The bill, dubbed the Genetic Information Privacy Act, would require an individual’s written consent for the collection, analysis, retention, and sharing of his or her genetic information—including DNA, genetic test results, and even family disease history.
May 20, 2012
Genetic Testing May Not Drive Up Health Costs (MedPage Today)
Having the results of a personalized genetic test did not drive patients to utilize potentially costly follow-up healthcare services, a study from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) found. In the past five years, there have been many new tests marketed to consumers who want to know whether they are genetically susceptible to a range of health conditions and traits, including diabetes and certain types of cancers. The tests, known as multiplex assays when they test for a variety of genetic variations, are marketed by a number of for-profit companies.
May 20, 2012
Many Rare Mutations May Underpin Diseases (New York Times)
The task of finding the genetic roots of common disease seems much harder, dimming the promise of personal genomics and the chances of quick medical payoffs from the human genome project, given new data about the human genome in two reports published online in the journal Science on Thursday. It now appears that large numbers of very rare genetic mutations may underlie common human diseases like schizophrenia and cancer. But because the mutations are so rare, costly studies involving large numbers of patients would be needed to identify their role in each disease.
May 17, 2012
10 Things Exome Sequencing Can’t Do–but Why It’s Still Powerful (Scientific American)
Understanding the limitations of exome sequencing is important because it’s already here. “Be one of the first to get your personal exome sequence,” proclaims 23andMe, about its pilot Exome80x project, offered direct-to-consumer, “for research and educational use only.”
May 17, 2012
Genes are overrated, genetics is underrated (Discover Magazine)
I believe our current culture greatly underestimates the power of genetics in shaping broader social patterns. How can these be reconciled? Do not genes and genetics go together? The resolution is a simple one: when you speak of 1,000 genes, you speak of no genes. You can’t list 1,000 genes in prose, even if you know them. But using standard quantitative and behavior genetic means one can apportion variation in the population of a trait to variation in genes. 1,000 genes added together can be of great effect. The newest findings in genomics are reinforcing assertions of non-trivial heritability of many complex traits, though rendering problematic attributing that heritability to a specific set of genes.
May 16, 2012
What Geneticists Think You Should Know (Wall Street Journal)
Given the rapid drop in price of whole genome sequencing — a technology that allows doctors to get information on your entire DNA — one day relatively soon you may get a chance to find out about your risks for different diseases. But do you really want to know?
May 11, 2012
Patients see benefits and risks to direct-to-consumer genetics tests (Medical Express)
Patients see potential benefits from direct-to-consumer genetic testing, but are also concerned about how test results will be used, and generally are unwilling to pay more than $10 or $20 for them, according to focus groups conducted by researchers at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine.
May 09, 2012
The Unintended Consequences of the NCAA Sickle Cell Screening Policy (UChicago Science Life)
At least 20 deaths of football players with sickle cell trait have been reported since 1974. As part of a settlement with Lloyd’s family in 2009, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) agreed to screen all athletes for sickle cell trait. But does this policy make good medical sense, or does it discriminate against athletes with sickle cell trait and unnecessarily exclude them from sports? Lainie Friedman Ross, MD, PhD, the Carolyn and Matthew Bucksbaum Professor of Clinical Medical Ethics, recently surveyed pediatricians and sports medicine providers about the NCAA policy and found conflicting responses to these questions.
May 02, 2012
Ethics: Withhold Genetic Test Results if Mother Will Abort? (Medscape)
Can a doctor lie about the results of a genetic test if he or she thinks that they might lead to an abortion? The State of Arizona is considering a law that might make it possible to make the answer to that question “yes.” They are passing a law that says they are not going to accept lawsuits for wrongful births. Wrongful birth lawsuits basically say that if a doctor doesn’t offer a test, doesn’t give the results of a test, or gives them inaccurately, the doctor still can’t be sued for making that kind of decision.
Apr 27, 2012
California Considers Criminalizing Unauthorized Collection, Use of Genetic Information (GenomeWeb)
California lawmakers are considering a new proposal that would address concerns about keeping genetic information private by making it illegal to analyze, share, or store an individual’s genetic information without that person’s written consent. The Senate Judiciary Committee in the state, which already has adopted enhanced public protections against discrimination based on genetic information, has now passed the California Genetic Information Privacy Act (SB 1267).