Personal Genetics: Discussions about Technology, Inheritance, Medicine, and Society (Spring 2009)

Personal Genetics: Discussions about Technology, Inheritance, Medicine, and Society.
(This nanocourse is sponsored by the Department of Genetics. For more information on other courses offered by the department, click here)

Course Lecturers: George Church, Ting Wu, Marcy MacDonald, and Dana Waring

This nanocourse will focus on the advances in genetics, epigenetics, genomics, and medicine that are bringing researchers, physicians, and the public at large closer to understanding the full nuance of information encoded in our personal genomes. George Church will discuss personal genome sequencing, methylation, immunoglobulin repertoires, and microbiomes, touching on both the technology and the biology. Ting Wu will survey complexities of inheritance, including the implications of somatic mosaicism, allelic skewing, meiotic silencing of unpaired DNA, nonrandom chromosome segregation, and paramutation. Marcy MacDonald will examine why genotype is not phenotype in a discussion that will address genome instability, the impact of disease modifying therapies and disease management, and the implications of genetic information for families. Dana Waring will address the societal ramifications related to personal genomics in fields such as medicine, law, insurance and public policy, and education. The aim of this nanocourse is to augment the capacity of our communities to make informed choices as we enter a new era of personal genetics.

Session 1 (open to all without prior registration)
Friday, April 3, 1:00-4:00pm
Location: Armenise Amphitheater

Session 2 (limited to registered students)
Friday, April 10, 2:00-4:00pm
Location: TMEC 448