Genetics for Dummies

[El_Machinae]

Updated necro'd thread with 2011 data

The average and careered adult is currently sitting on a cusp of history when it comes to personalised information about their biology. Additionally, the average adult is woefully uneducated about the science of genetics: what it all means. This is important because the utility of knowing something about genetics is going to become very high, fairly soon. The less a person knows about biological science, the more they'd benefit from picking up (and reading, in their spare time) the book mentioned in the Title. Or some variant on this book.

This is a Kurzweil graph, but it's the best graph I could find on the web showing the price of sequencing DNA. It roughly parallels what I've seen in presentations. Notably, if you extended this graph to 2007, the line would be below the bottom of the graph. We're almost at the stage of "100 base pairs per penny" and will be by the end of the year. We're approaching the stage of where a careered adult has to decide whether knowing about their genome sequence will be worth it.

Additionally, at some point you're better off having the knowledge sooner rather than later. Any gene's predictive power (when it comes to diseases associated with that gene) becomes much more useful, the earlier you can apply the knowledge.

What do you think is going to happen to the graph below? Look at the rate of change when the cost is at 2000 levels. It's currently about a thousand times cheaper to sequence those genes. (the number in parentheses are polymorphisms).

The common citizen would be greatly advantaged by knowing the basics of genetics, something you can get by buying a good book and spending some evenings reading. If you have time for prime-time TV, you have time for this.

 

[GenMarshall]

Erm, I already know about genetics.

 

[Ansar]

Should I, a teenager, already have knowledge about Genetics?
I don't think so.

But what do you mean by: knowing their genome sequence will be worth it.

Worth what? You will sell your genes or something?

 

[puglover]

What would be the value of knowing our genetics? Do you mean something like prediction of likely diseases?

 

[skadistic]

What would be the value of knowing our genetics? Do you mean something like prediction of likely diseases?

That and tailored drugs to pinpoint problems. Say you have illness "X" and 20 drugs to treat it but only one works for you. Understanding the genome and the make up of the drugs would narrow down the right one significantly. It will also help with other things that I can't express in words properly so I wont try.

 

[StarWorms]

I plan to sequence my own genome anyway

 

[Brighteye]

I might be a bit beyond this book. I'll stay with the journals. The price of sequencing is so low that even my lab can afford it now. We're quite excited to be ordering in gene chips.

 

[El_Machinae]

Should I, a teenager, already have knowledge about Genetics?
I don't think so.

But what do you mean by: knowing their genome sequence will be worth it.

You don't need to know, you'll have opportunity to learn at school. The suggestion is targetted to adults who are not in school (i.e, show both your parents the OP). Our society 'feels' that we're done learning at that stage where we're full-time employed (which we all reasonably know is false, but we aren't aggressive enough about continuing learning).

About the value: I mean that you'll be able to use the knowledge of genetics coupled with the ever expanding knowledge ABOUT genetics to get more and more benefit. Every year, there will be more information that will be useful to understand. Every year, the opportunity to sequence parts of your own genome will become cheaper.

That and tailored drugs to pinpoint problems. Say you have illness "X" and 20 drugs to treat it but only one works for you. Understanding the genome and the make up of the drugs would narrow down the right one significantly. It will also help with other things that I can't express in words properly so I wont try.

There's more to it than that, though you're very much correct. Company X will put out a product for Gene Y that could have massive benefit for the person who knows about it. But there's general information too. Last year, for example, they discovered a gene that determines whether coffee is actually GOOD for the heart and another gene that determines that coffee is as bad as heavy smoking (for the heart). That's a HUGE amount of information to have about yourself. Some people could take up coffee (if they're avoiding it for their health), others would realise that it's more important for them to cut down than it is for others.

And the number of these discoveries is not only going to increase, but it's going to increase a LOT. A beginner's knowledge of genetics will be very, very useful to people: it will allow you to cut through the crap news reports and zone in on the useful discoveries.

 

[Brighteye]

The same could be said about medicine and biology in general. There's a lot of rubbish, a great many misleading news reports, and only a few interesting discoveries.

 

[Heretic_Cata]

I don't really see much of a point to learning more than the very basics about genetics. And even if we do learn the basics, it will be more of a general culture thing like "Oh, so the liver is on the right side."
(and no i didn't read the whole first post )

Should I, a teenager, already have knowledge about Genetics?

Well, over here they teach us genetics at 15. So you should be almost there.

 

[Ansar]

Well, over here they teach us genetics at 15. So you should be almost there.

Yeah, I think they cover that in Biology (beginning in August for me).

 

[Dida]

I plan to genetically engineer a few slaves for personal use. Would knowing some genetics be useful?

 

[Ansar]

I plan to genetically engineer a few slaves for personal use. Would knowing some genetics be useful?

Well, of course!

You would need to know (to name a few):
Genes which make a person submissive
Genes which make a person strong

 

[Atlas14]

You don't need to know, you'll have opportunity to learn at school. The suggestion is targetted to adults who are not in school (i.e, show both your parents the OP). Our society 'feels' that we're done learning at that stage where we're full-time employed (which we all reasonably know is false, but we aren't aggressive enough about continuing learning).

About the value: I mean that you'll be able to use the knowledge of genetics coupled with the ever expanding knowledge ABOUT genetics to get more and more benefit. Every year, there will be more information that will be useful to understand. Every year, the opportunity to sequence parts of your own genome will become cheaper.



There's more to it than that, though you're very much correct. Company X will put out a product for Gene Y that could have massive benefit for the person who knows about it. But there's general information too. Last year, for example, they discovered a gene that determines whether coffee is actually GOOD for the heart and another gene that determines that coffee is as bad as heavy smoking (for the heart). That's a HUGE amount of information to have about yourself. Some people could take up coffee (if they're avoiding it for their health), others would realise that it's more important for them to cut down than it is for others.

And the number of these discoveries is not only going to increase, but it's going to increase a LOT. A beginner's knowledge of genetics will be very, very useful to people: it will allow you to cut through the crap news reports and zone in on the useful discoveries.

Isn't proteomics the new choice amongst pharmaceutical researchers for tailoring drugs, since the genomic sequencing doesn't provide accurate enough answers? Clearly to know the protein result you have to know the gene sequence, but proteins are much more valuable in the lab now than knowing raw gene sequences. That is why the HGP was a bit more hype than was previously thought.

 

[El_Machinae]

When it comes to diagnosing diseases and drug design, proteomics is the bomb. Sometimes I wish I had had the foresight to get into proteomics, because it will be such a fun field to work in. We're getting the analytical software and the computer interfaces such that we can really get to the meat and bones of biology. Importantly, even non-expert biologists (i.e., not Ph.Ds) will be able to make discoveries and useful strides in this field. There is SO much to discover, due to the complexity, that it will be awesome.

But for sheer predictive value, I think we'll be working with genomes. People will check to see what their basal genetic indicators mean and change their lives to get better optimisation.

For diagnosis of diseases, though, we'll still be working off of blood samples. A person's DNA doesn't tell us if he has cancer, you need protein samples to tell you that. But a person's DNA gives you so much biological history, predictive power, that it will be worth it.

But the ability to tap this ever-expanding predictive power will be hugely a function of being familiar with the science and theories of Genetics. This is why I recommend that careered adults go and spend a dozen hours or so getting a beginner's knowledge.

It's like the computer revolution all over again. Think of all the lost utility because an entire generation couldn't be bothered to learn how to figure out how to program a VCR.

 

[Brighteye]

Proteins give us information about how pathways work, and how drugs affect pathways, so for pharmaceuticals we will need this.
However, genes are where we actually vary, and so this is where many of our relevant differences will arise. Differences caused solely by environment or activity will be rare, not usual.
After all, our genes may well control how our bodies respond to environmental conditions. That's what I hope to be looking at soon (or one example of this).

 

[Urederra]

Welcome back El_machinae.

Do you think Craig Venter deserves a Nobel Prize?

 

[El_Machinae]

Welcome back El_machinae.

Do you think Craig Venter deserves a Nobel Prize?

Thanks for the welcome!
Venter is a real dilemma, about liking him. Every time we hear about him regarding his pushing of science, he seems awesome. But when we hear about his financial wranglings, he seems not-so-nice.

He's certainly pushing the whole field forward, with great insight. But I don't know if he's pushing the field forward with the intent of future progress.

I don't know.

 

[JoeM]

The common citizen would be greatly advantaged by knowing the basics of genetics, something you can get by buying a good book and spending some evenings reading

How? Without sounding too flippant, it won't help them pay their taxes, buy their homes or raise their children...?

 

[bhsup]

I'd think it would definitely help them raise their children, at least from a medical, food, and possibly even prod into the proper field of study POV. Though, looking at that graph, even once it hits $0.01 per base pairs, at 3 billion base pairs in the average human, we're still talking only multi-millionaires being able to afford it.

Another frightful possibility is what can happen if an enemy gets your base pair. What hard to detect poison would our President be most suseptible to? Well, now our enemies will be able to figure that out if they can get their hands on our CIC's DNA.