Frederick Sanger, who died recently at the age of 95, won two Nobel prizes in chemistry for his methods for sequencing proteins and DNA. Proteins were of more direct interest to many people because many…
The market for personal genome services is facing a reality check. While the most prominent and innovative company 23andMe has flourished so far, in the past few years many of its competitors have gone…
Genetic testing is a powerful tool. Two years ago, with the help of my colleagues, it was this tool that helped us identify a new disease. The disease, called Ogden Syndrome, caused the death of a four-month…
What are my chances of developing a big head and might my eyes change colour?
Micha
The price of gene sequencing has plummeted in the last few decades. Now we can know what our DNA looks like, and discover what our bodies may have in store for us in the future. We can know medical information…
Angelina Jolie’s double mastectomy has sparked a series of reports about preventative surgery.
PA/Alastair Grant
Following Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie’s revelation last week that she’d undergone a double mastectomy to prevent breast cancer, it has emerged that a 53-year-old man had his prostate removed after…
By making it possible to screen for gene variants linked to a higher risk of disease, gene testing has the potential to transform the way we manage health. It opens up the possibility of routine screening…
Finding out that you a genetically predisposed to depression can make you feel worse.
Lloyd Morgan
A friend of mine is currently undergoing chemotherapy treatment following surgery for breast cancer. Recently, she told me that she would happily pay the AUS$4000 for a genetic test to detect whether she…
Learning more about the contribution of multiple risk factors to major depressive disorder will help predict risk.
Iris Shreve Garrott
The possibility of harnessing genetic science to head off major depressive disorder, the world’s leading cause of disability, is getting closer. But molecular intervention for this common multifactorial…
OVER-DIAGNOSIS EPIDEMIC – Today Jacqueline Savard talks about the growing prevalence of genetic testing and what impact they have on over-diagnosis. Genetic testing and screening is increasingly becoming…
Yesterday on The Conversation, Timothy Smith from the Florey Neurosciences Institute argued that in order to improve genetics research, we need free and open access to genetic information. But while the…
A whole genome test is meaningless unless you can interpret it.
Dave Faryam
Rony Duncan, Murdoch Children's Research Institute e Martin Delatycki, Murdoch Children's Research Institute
It’s now possible to access genetic testing from your living room or office, without the need to visit a health professional. There are many reasons why you might like to get a genetic test. Maybe someone…
A positive result from predictive genetic testing can give rise to mental health issues, such as depression and suicide.
pedro veneroso/Flickr
Genetic mutations are the cause of many incurable diseases and we now have tests to predict the likelihood of people developing inherited diseases. But predictive genetic tests for neurodegenerative diseases…
Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne
Visiting Professor in Biomedical Ethics, Murdoch Children's Research Institute; Distinguished Visiting Professor in Law, University of Melbourne; Uehiro Chair in Practical Ethics, University of Oxford