Faculty Bibliography

"Bioethics in America: Origins and Cultural Politics" by M. L. Tina Stevens is reviewed

The sequence of many genes has been conserved during evolution, offering insights into gene function and new opportunities for research in pharmacology and drug development. The many ethical issues surrounding genetics have the potent tial to halt the genomic revolution unless society strives to understand and resolve these issues. Advances in pharmacogenomics hold significant promise for improved health care, such as by enabling clinicians to select the optimal medications and dosages for individual patients.

So now the world knows what I have known for more than a year: A good chunk of the DNA used to map the human genome belongs to J. Craig Venter, the scientist who led the effort at Celera Genomics (racing against the National Institutes of Health) to come up with the first rough look at our genes. Four years ago, when the possibility of mapping the human genome was first discussed, Dr. Venter asked my advice about the ethics of this undertaking. I said that a crucial issue would turn out to be whose genes were selected for mapping. From a scientific point of view anyone's genes would be fine; the detail of the first map would be relatively crude, making the tiny genetic differences that exist among human beings irrelevant. But, as I've often found -- and as the current battle over cloning human stem cells for medical research is making clear -- much more than pure science is at issue when genetics is the subject