The Zen of Bass

Creating Designer Babies: Screening for Disease and Desirable Traits

Pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, or PGD, has been used to screen for genes that lead to diseases such as cystic fibrosis and cancer.  Now, the lab procedure that screens for diseases in embryos is being offered to create designer children. Two articles on the topic have appeared recently; they both address the medical and ethical implications.

Last month, the New Scientist reported that the first UK baby genetically selected to be free of a form of breast cancer caused by BRCA1 was born in London.  It was reported that the parents underwent IVF, and the resulting embryos were screened with PGD, where a small number of cells are removed and tested. Only embryos free of the BRCA1 gene were implanted. Five  embryos tested were found to be free of the gene and were implanted; one resulted in the pregnancy.

Gautam Naik reported in February 12 issue of The Wall Street Journal that LA- based Fertility Institutes, will soon help couples select both gender and physical traits in a baby when they undergo fertility treatment. Dr. Jeff Steinberg, director of the clinic, claims that trait selection “is a service” that he intends to offer soon.  According to Naik:

For trait selection, Steinberg is now betting on a new approach for screening embryos. It involves taking cells from an embryo at day five of its development, compared with typical PGD, which uses cells from day three. The method potentially allows more cells to be obtained, leading to a more reliable diagnosis of the embryo.

Many countries have banned the use of PGD for gender selection; it is permitted in the U.S. According to a 2006 survey by the Genetics and Public Policy Center at Johns Hopkins University,42% of 137 PGD clinics offered a gender-selection service.

DNA and Your Personal Health -- Is Too Much Knowledge Good?

In the coming era of consumer genetics, your DNA will have much to tell you about the biological bases of your health, your physique and even your personality. But will this knowledge really amount to self-knowledge? asks Steven Pinker in his article My Genome, My Self, which appeared in the January 11, 2009 issue of the Sunday New York Times.

We've entered the age of personal genomics -- where Pinker says "the plunging cost of genome sequencing — will soon give people an unprecedented opportunity to contemplate their own biological and even psychological makeups".  For example, 23andMe provides a genetic report card and directs customers to a web page which displays risk factors for 14 diseases and 10 traits. This page also provides links additional diseases and traits which according to Pinker, have iffier scientific substantiation.

This latest "do it yourself genomics" trend coincides with the new promise of personalized medicine - where drugs are being tailored to an individual's genetic makeup.  The downside to this trend ranges from dubious companies which prey on hypochondriacs, to insurance and ethical isues.

For now, the jury is out on the benefits of personal genomics. I like Pinker's concluding thoughts:

So if you are bitten by scientific or personal curiosity and can think in probabilities, by all means enjoy the fruits of personal genomics. But if you want to know whether you are at risk for high cholesterol, have your cholesterol measured; if you want to know whether you are good at math, take a math test.

The Internet is accelerating biomedical progress in understanding and treating disease. Personally, I believe in the potential of services like 23andme -- it empowers individuals to take control of their medical destinies and enables them to create virtual cohorts for clinical research and trials.  With tools like these, personalized medicine will evolve even faster.

Mindfulness Can Make You Healthier and Live Longer

Happy New Year -- is it resolution time for you? Alex Williams asked the question in today's New York Times. Research shows that many people who try to make major lifestyle changes, like losing weight, don't succeed. Why? They are "hard-wired not to change quickly," said Dr. Marion Kramer Jacobs. On the other hand, Alan Deutschman, the author of "Change or Die," says some strategies are more likely than others to bring positive results. Here are Deutschman's four steps to success:

1. Start with big changes, not small ones.
2. Act like the person you are trying to become.
3. "Reframe" the situation.
4. Don't do it alone.

  
Dr. Dean Ornish of UCSF  is more optimistic. He believes that by changing your lifestyle you can change your gene expression. In fact, his studies have shown that people who are motivated to make and maintain bigger, healthier changes in lifestyle also achieve better clinical outcomes and even larger cost savings for the healthcare system.

In his recent interview with Edge-The Third Culture, Ornish says  that if stress reduces telomerase (an enzyme that repairs and lengthens damaged telomeres, which are the ends of our chromosomes that control how long we live) and makes telomeres shorter, then stress management techniques, exercise and good nutrition should be able to increase these. 

Ornish later says that "the more inwardly-defined you are, the more you can quiet down your mind and body and experience more of an inner sense of peace and well being, the more empowered you are... people only have power over you if they have something that you think you need. The more inwardly-defined you are, the less you need, so the more powerful you become". And healthier too!

For more, check out this video from last year's TED Conference:

Arnold Schwarzenegger At UCSF Stem Cell Event

Today, Eli Broad made a $25 million gift to fund UCSF's stem cell program. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger addressed the audience of distinguished guests. The Governor said that Broad's donation should offer hope to the "millions of people who suffer from spinal cord injuries, diabetes, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis and many other illnesses." The funding is the largest single private donation to the university's stem cell program and is a major source of funding for the $123 million  Institute for Regeneration Medicine building which will open in 2010. Read the press release here.

Beyond the Gene

SCIENCE

Now: The Rest of the Genome

By CARL ZIMMER

Published: November 11, 2008

Only 1 percent of the genome is made up of classic genes. Scientists are exploring the other 99 percent and uncovering new secrets and new questions.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/11/science/11gene.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

23andme + Navigenics Panel at Health 2.0 Conference

Genomics panel featuring 23andme and Navigenics. Navigenics launches 20 year study with Scripps. New wave of personalized medicine to come.