The age of genomes
Subtitle: tales from the front lines of genetic medicine
By: Steven Monroe Lipkin ; with Jon R. Luoma
Contributors: Luoma, Jon R., contributor
Published: 2016
Language: eng
Number of pages: 234
ISBN-13: 9780807008775
Subjects: Genetic engineering; Genetic disorders; Genetic screening; Case studies
Description: "A leading geneticist explores what promises to be one of the most transformative advances in health and medicine in history. Almost every week, another exciting headline appears about new advances in the field of genetics. Genetic testing is experiencing the exponential growth once seen with the Internet, and the plummeting cost of DNA sequencing makes it increasingly accessible for individuals and families. Dr. Steven M. Lipkin suggests that today's genomics is like the last century's nuclear physics: a powerful tool for good if used correctly, but potentially dangerous in the wrong hands. DNA testing is promising in treating serious disease, but Beijing Genomics, one of the world's largest genomics centers, is quietly developing gene tests to predict intelligence and athletic prowess in prenatal embryo selection. DNA testing could also lead to unnecessary procedures and significantly higher health-care costs. And all too often, sequencing errors diagnose patients with debilitating and fatal genetic diseases. The Genome Generation immerses readers in stories of real patients on the genomics frontier and explores the transformative potential and dangerous risks of genetic technology. It will inform anxious parents increasingly bombarded by offers of costly new prenatal testing products, and demonstrate how genetic technology, when deployed properly, can prevent or treat genetic disorders such as neurological diseases or cancer. Lipkin explains the science in depth, but in terms a layperson can follow"--
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: The Parisian housekeeper; title: The unactionables; title: Altitude sickness; title: The blindfolded poker player and the smoked salmon; title: The evil twin; title: Madonna and Putto, mortar and plaster; title: The DIY genome; title: Generation XX/XY; title: The tilted driver's test; title: Fingerprints, written in blood; title: The decorated genome; title: The age of geneticism.