The author, Francis S. Collins, is the man responsible for the successful completion of Human Genome Project (HGP). HGP is an international multidisciplinary scientific research project which was involved in mapping and sequencing human DNA and determining the various aspects of its function. With this incredible expertise to his credit, Dr. Collins in the book ‘The Language of Life’ talks about personalizing medicine by understanding the DNA of each individual. The author starts by narrating some real life incidents of his family members which threw light on the importance of DNA sequencing, then the author goes to talk about various situations and conditions which all implicate the importance of personalized medicine in today’s world. In this book, the author focuses on cancer, microbiome, brain disorders, aging and the genetics related with them. The main underlying point in explaining the genetics of each of the conditions is to reiterate the importance of sequencing DNA beforehand so that a personalized medicine for the disease can be developed and the disease can be treated well before its advanced stage with serious effects.
The book talks about many fascinating facets of DNA and the important message they contain which when understood can help us to make significant contributions to the field of medicine. The topic which aroused my interest the most in this book is the last chapter called ‘A Vision for the future’. As the chapter’s heading suggests this chapter is
Genetics can help answer questions about our traits and why we look different and advance in different ways from each other in the world. Chapter 1 explains the basics about how genes work, and the portrayal of DNA and RNA. Chapter 2 describes RNA more in detail and it consist of the explanation of the human genome. Specifically, Chapter 3 clarifies how evolution works and how it relates to genetic and medical research. Furthermore, Chapter 4 and 5 explains the knowledge researchers have about genes role in health and diseases, and how society is affected with the advances in medicine and science given approximate credit to these researchers.
This paper explores the history and some interesting facts about DNA. The last couple centuries have seen an exponential growth in our knowledge of DNA. The history of the DNA can be traced back to multiple devoted scientist. This article attempts to summarize, and review the basic history of DNA while providing some fascinating information about it.
Nelkin and Lindee identify the three themes of understanding the human genome as “the essence of identity, a promise to enhance prediction of human behavior and health, and a image of the genome as a way to define natural order” (p. 340). Genetic research has recently started to function as way for people to understand past performance and future potential. The power of the genome is represented by words often used to label it like the Bible, a dictionary, a map, and a blueprint. A lot of research has been done to prove that genetic prediction will help control over behavior and disease. However, there is also the continuing question of the effects of nature and
In 2010, Francis S. Collins penned The Language of Life: DNA and the Revolution in Personalized Medicine. At that time, he was the director of the Human Genome Project and now currently serves as the head of the National Institutes of Health. Collins is an American geneticist who was influential in discovering the genes responsible for cystic fibrosis and type II diabetes. The Language of Life: DNA and the Revolution in Personalized Medicine begins with a rough overview of genetic principles that will be used in further chapters. The book delves into dominant and recessive genes, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and other genetic mutations, as well as, various conditions that arise from the previous genetic circumstances.
in chapter 23, Bobbette learns from her brother-in-law that part of Henrietta is still alive. Her cells are being used in laboratories all around the world and Bobbette had no clue. She raced home telling Lawrence and Day her news. It didn't make sense how was part of Henrietta still alive after all this time. They had seen her being buried, did someone did up the body? Or maybe it was from the autopsy? In June 1973 at Yale the first steps toward the Human Genome Project was held. One of the main problems was the HeLa contamination but in order to sort everything out they needed to test for the specific markers which they needed Lacks family cooperation. Victor McKusick, one of the scientist to first publish Henrietta's name, worked at John Hopkins so he could get the information to contact the family. With access to the family cells it would allow HeLa to be studied in a new way. With accents and education as barriers when a Hopkins assistant called Day said yes because why refuse a doctor. Years later Howard Jones admitted that not enough effort to tell the Lacks family and because they were only taking blood samples no consent forms were needed. The family assumed that since it was a doctor that the tests were needed. Deborah was especially worried since her thirtieth birthday neared the same age her mother died at. She worried often about getting cancer or being injected with cancer like Southam had done to people. She had read about the Tuskgee trials and was very
The Human Genome Project was an international research effort of the human genome, conducted in an effort to map out the ladder of human DNA. This project was ran by the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Department of Energy. These agencies allowed researchers to truly understand the blueprint of a person, having major impacts on the fields of medicine, biotechnology, and life sciences. However, this project has had a few legal implications, and has caused serious concerns regarding their privacy and ethical guidelines. The Human Genome project should have more ethical restrictions on its applications, because it is a violation of privacy and has the potential for misuse and discrimination.
First, human medical advances are discovered each day. One way of achieving these goals are comprehending the human DNA and how it functions. Another scientific approach is to uncover the potential key to the genetic break down that causes biological aspects to human diseases. The encoding of this information could give insights of the causes and may allow advance medical treatment to intervene earlier in the disease pathways and possibly find a cure. These advances may be the significant aspects to regulating
While many diseases and viruses are caused by outside sources, some diseases occur from within the human body. Regular ailments can be cured with medicine, or fought off overtime by getting a vaccine, but certain diseases and anomalies cannot be directly treated. This is because they are genetically inherited by certain parts of one’s DNA. DNA stands for Deoxyribonucleic Acid, and is inherited from the parents of a person. These strands, found within the nucleus of all cells, determine the appearance and genetic structure of a person. Through one’s DNA, there may be diseases inherited from the parents, such as sickle cell anemia, Gaucher’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. In order to heal and fix patients, doctors needed to learn more about the Human Genome. In 1990 work began on the Human Genome Project, which would map the entirety of the genes in the human species. However, the participants would not have been able to work without the discoveries made by those before them.
As molecular genetic data became available, studies used them to understand human behaviors. Below I briefly summarize the structure of human genome and introduce the genome-wide association studies (GWAS). In humans, 23 pairs of chromosome constitutes the human genome. For each chromosome, the nucleotides on the opposite strands connected together to form tens of thousands of base pairs. Normally, the bonds are either adenine-thymine (A-T) or guanine-cytosine (C-G). These construct the double helix DNA structure. A chunk of a chromosome that relates to certain functions is a gene. The lengths of genes (i.e., a region of DNA) differ. Mutations of genetic variants in genes can lead to diseases or variations in phenotypes. Genetic variants
Genetically modifying the human genome is a topic that has been discussed for several decades, but just recently it is becoming a reality. Through many advancements of technology, the CRISPR method has emerged, and it is providing the opportunity for genetically modifying the human genome to take off. However, allowing the use of the CRISPR method is not just a black and white decision. Modifying the human genome is a hot debate in the science and medical fields todays. Arguments in support of modifying the human genome including the following; offers the opportunity to cure genetic diseases, improves the value of life, it is similar to any other intrusive medical therapy, and it provides beneficence. Nevertheless, although we have this type of technology at our fingertips, there are many concerns with editing the human genome. Some of the concerns include the following; the potential safety issues, the unknown consequences that may evolve from a procedure of this kind, sacrificing human dignity, and finally nonmaleficence. There are arguments in support of modifying the human genome to cure genetic diseases, and there are arguments in opposition of modifying the human genome to cure genetic diseases because of the ethicality of the procedure.
The Human Genome Project (HGP), an international scientific research project, has educated the public tremendously on various topics concerning DNA and genetics. This study has been beneficial to communities alike. As stated, the HGP sought to identify all the genes in human DNA, determine the sequences of the three billion chemical base pairs that make up human DNA, store this information in databases, improve tools for data analysis, transfer related technologies to the private sector, and address the ethical, legal, and social issues that may arise from the project. In favor of achieving these goals, scientists studied the genetic makeup of several nonhuman organisms (Human Genome Management Information System, 2011).
The Human Genome Project has aimed to provide us with detailed information about the Human Genome. This will be extremely effective towards studying people with specific diseases such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, hypertension and cystic fibrosis. The DNA sequences of any two people are actually very alike. The little difference is those that cause a high risk of an individual developing a certain disease. During the course of
The Human Genome Project basically was a research program that worked on a goal to get an image of human genome and get a better understanding of all a human beings genes. DNA is founded on 4 chemical bases, they turn into twisted ladder shaped DNA molecules. And all the the four bases are what create the genes just placed in different ways and different lengths. One revelation of the human genome project was when they learned that there are about 20,500 genes. The Human Genome Project brought many scientist together around the world and each one was an important factor for the project. It was a publicly funded organization and got funds and support from the Department of Energy and US National Institutes of Health
The human genome project is something that I have been very interested with ever since first learning of it. I had heard bits and pieces of what it is about, but my interest was greatly stimulated by Dr. Whited in basic genetics 311 last spring. The discussion that we had regarding the project left me with several ideas and questions about not only the process and ethics involved, but the future of the study of genetics as a whole.
DNA is an acronym, which stands for deoxyribonucleic acid. Every cell in an individual’s body, with the exception of red blood cells and eggs or sperm, contains the full genetic program for that individual in its DNA. The human genome, which consists of about 3 billion base pairs, harbours genetically relevant information that is essential for the characterization of each individual. [1] By continuous researches it has been seen that every person has a unique DNA i.e. no two persons have the same set of DNA sequence. For a long time only