Health 2.0 News: DNA Robots and Collaborative Prezi Editing May 28, 2010
Posted by Dr. Bertalan Meskó in DNA, Health, Health 2.0, Medicine, Medicine 2.0, presentation, Second Life, Ted Talks, Video, Web 2.0.add a comment
- A History of the Future of EHRs (Intelligent healthcare): The heterodox Mayan timeline for the history of the future of EHRs is revealed.
- Social media and bookmarking (Pharma Marketing Blog): Packrati.us follows your tweets and whenever you mention a url, it will add it to your del.icio.us account.
- Prezi Shows Off Collaborative Presentation Editing in Google Wave:
- The cool side of Science and Technology: DNA robots (Pharma Marketing Blog):
“For the first time, microscopic robots made from DNA molecules can walk, follow instructions and work together to assemble simple products on an atomic-scale assembly line, mimicking the machinery of living cells, two independent research teams announced Wednesday.”
- The Boom of Big Infographics (Flowing Data): A guide about creating stunning infographics.
- Second Life Refresh: In Case You’ve Forgotten Why (Dusan Writer’s Metaverse):
- William Li: Can we eat to starve cancer?
DNATwist: Teaching Students About Pharmacogenomics April 18, 2010
Posted by Dr. Bertalan Meskó in DNA, Education, genetics, Genome, Medicine, Medicine 2.0, Pharmacogenomics, Web 2.0.add a comment
Berlin et al. published a very interesting paper in Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics about DNATwist which is an online tool for teaching middle and high school students about pharmacogenomics.
DNATwist is a Web-based learning tool that explains pharmacogenomics concepts to middle- and high-school students. Its features include (i) a focus on drug responses of interest to teenagers (e.g., alcohol intolerance), (ii) reusable graphical interfaces that reduce extension costs, and (iii) explanations of molecular and cellular drug responses. In testing, students found the tool and topic understandable and engaging. The tool is being modified for use at the Tech Museum of Innovation in California.
DNA Art and Video Genome April 14, 2010
Posted by Dr. Bertalan Meskó in Art, DNA, Medicine, Medicine 2.0, Video, Web 2.0, What's on the web?.add a comment
- Pharma twittersphere- who is following you- Part III (whydotpharma)
- FDA Launches a New Website to Make Information about the Work of FDA’s Program Offices Available (FDA)
- DNA-Images.com: DNA art in your house…
- How to run an unconference: an introduction to #hcsmeucamp: I’ve already covered the unconference that took place in Berlin this March.
- Sequencing the Video Genome (Wired Science)
Think organisms are the only ones with genomes? Researchers at the Israel Institute of Technology are sequencing the “video genome” to put an end to video piracy on the internet.
The technique works by detecting features that remain basically unchanged by typical color and resolution manipulations. Current methods rely on action recognition algorithms, which match video sequences by the movement they contain.
DNA Test for Chinese Children to Find Genetic Gifts August 5, 2009
Posted by Dr. Bertalan Meskó in DNA, Genetic testing, genetics.5 comments
I couldn’t believe what I read in the newest CNN headline. Let’s see what happened:
At the Chongqing Children’s Palace, experts are hoping to revolutionize child-rearing with the help of science. About 30 children aged 3 to 12 years old and their parents are participating in a new program that uses DNA testing to identify genetic gifts and predict the future.
The test is conducted by the Shanghai Biochip Corporation. Scientists claim a simple saliva swab collects as many as 10,000 cells that enable them to isolate eleven different genes. By taking a closer look at the genetic codes, they say they can extract information about a child’s IQ, emotional control, focus, memory, athletic ability and more.
Source: CNN.com
Let’s be clear here, they analyze 11 genes for 880$.
Not to determine, but to at least predict such features as IQ, focus, emotional control or height, you need to analyze not 11 but significantly more genes. And in such features, the envorinmental factors play a major role (sometimes bigger than genetics). So determining capablitities based on 11 genes is not hard, but impossible. From another point of view, even if you find many genes predicting the child will be tall, plus the environmental factors are positive as well, not all tall players are NBA stars.
I believe it was a clear advertisement of a Chinese biotechnology firm trying to prove that they can do the same thing as Navigenics or 23andMe.
So be skeptic when you read such headlines…
What’s on the Web (6 July, 2009): Extract Your DNA at Home and Pubmed Tips July 6, 2009
Posted by Dr. Bertalan Meskó in DNA, Health, Health 2.0, Medical Search, Medicine, Medicine 2.0, twitter, Web 2.0.add a comment
- 10 + 1 PubMed Tips for Residents (and their Instructors) (Laikas MedLiblog): One of the best list of instructions ever.
- Twitter: Growing Virally But Can It Stop Viruses?: This link is from Chris Thorman, who normally blogs about EMR softwares.
Imagine this. Doctors around the world are conducting their rounds and examining patients on electronic medical records, which document diagnosis codes. As the physician makes a diagnosis or documents symptoms, he has the option to “tweet” that observation. This allows other doctors to follow that feed and observe trends. Even better, epidemiology-specific analytics can be layered on top of the feeds to recognize patterns as they develop.
- First twitter photo-consult in the world? Zorg 2.0? Make 2.0? (AcuteZorg.nl)
New Part of DNA and DIY Genetics May 12, 2009
Posted by Dr. Bertalan Meskó in DNA, genetics, Personalized medicine.add a comment
It seems today I serve as an aggregator but I also found 3 genetics-related articles that you might find interesting.
- Do-it-yourself genetic sleuthing (boston.com)
Aull is scouring her own genes in pursuit of a potentially lethal mutation that she may have inherited from her parents – and she has transformed her bedroom closet into a makeshift scientific laboratory to conduct the hunt.
The 23-year-old MIT graduate uses tools that fit neatly next to her shoe rack. There is a vintage thermal cycler she uses to alternately heat and cool snippets of DNA, a high-voltage power supply scored on eBay, and chemicals stored in the freezer in a box that had once held vegan “bacon” strips.
Once upon a time, researchers knew that DNA contained four nucleotides: A, T, C and G. Then they found a fifth. And now they’ve found a sixth.
The discovery helps to explain why species with very similar genetics can be so different. Humans and chimpanzees famously share 96 per cent of their DNA.
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Studying Extreme Genomes (Technology Review)
In 2002, Richard Lifton, a geneticist at Yale who specializes in genetic analysis of human outliers–people with extreme phenotypes–discovered that a mutation in a gene called LDL-related receptor protein 5 was responsible for the man’s high bone density, a condition shared by about half of his family.
DNA Day 2009 April 26, 2009
Posted by Dr. Bertalan Meskó in Blogging, DNA, genetics, Web 2.0.1 comment so far
April, 25 is officially the DNA Day when we write about DNA-relates issues. Yesterday, I was offline but now I would like to mention a few articles that focused on DNA on this important day.
In recognition of National DNA Day on April 25, the National Society of Genetic Counselors (NSGC) will be participating in several community outreach iniciatíva to promote the importance of knowing one’s family health history and consulting with a genetic counselor who can help answer questions about genetic testing.
Blogs about the DNA Day:
Labtutorials in Biology: How to extract DNA? March 14, 2009
Posted by Dr. Bertalan Meskó in Biology, Blogging, DNA.4 comments
A few days ago, I wrote about a new blog that focuses on tutorials about molecular biology. Labtutorials in Biology is going to be a unique blog providing step-by-step tutorials in molecular biology and descriptions that can be really useful for students.
The first posts:
Now the author, Bálint L. Bálint, posted new instructions:
Navigenics: What my genome tells me to do March 7, 2009
Posted by Dr. Bertalan Meskó in Biotechnology, DNA, e-patient, eHealth, Genetic testing, genetics, Genome, Health, Medicine, Personalized medicine, science, Web 2.0.Tags: genetic test, genetics, Genome, Navigenics, Personalized medicine, SNP
20 comments
A few months ago, Navigenics.com offered me to analyze my saliva sample and genome. I happily accepted the offer and was curious to see what they could tell me. After graduating from medical school, I will start PhD training in personalized genetics this September so I’m quite into this emerging field of medicine.
I sent my saliva sample back to their laboratory this January and received the results in about 3-4 weeks.
I clicked on View my results and saw what kind of risks I have for certain medical conditions such as glaucoma, heart disease, prostate cancer, Crohn’s disease or osteoarthritis (9 conditions all together).
When I check one medical condition, I see something like that:
They tell me my risk compared to the whole population.
And how that medical condition is affected by environmental and genetic factors.
And if I’m interested in the particular single nucleotide polymorphism they analyzed, I can check the details.
Pros:
- The information this service provided me with was useful and I will change some things in my lifestyle.
- I can talk with a genetic counselor to discuss the results of my genetic variations.
- I can print the results and share it with my doctor through an understandable report that mentions the references on which they based my risk percentages.
- They help me what I can do in order to lower my risks for specific conditions. They also let me know things that prevent multiple conditions on the Navigenics panels.
- Each condition is covered in details (causes, symptoms, treatments, etc.). This information is powered by Mayo Clinic.
- I can find support groups or more information on prevention.
Cons:
- Let’s say 3 SNPs tell me I have elevated risk for heart disease. But next year, they will discover 4 new ones that defend me from this condition. So Navigenics, just like any other similar companies, can only tell me risk percentages that might change a lot in the future.
- For example, if based on my genomic results, I have elevated risk for heart disease, what I can do to lower this risk? Exercises, healthy lifestyle, etc. Things you can tell me without analyzing my genome. Though it’s not the fault of the service, but of the state genetics is in at the moment.
- It’s still way too expensive compared to what I get for my money as the results cannot really be used for medical decisions (I got a free package so I know I shouldn’t say that).
- Well, a few genetic tests can be useful when making medical decisions, but such tests should be ordered only by medical professionals. Or if not, at least genetic counseling should be for free as patients need serious guidance when reading the results of their genomic variations. (Update: Navigenics provides free genetic counseling for all Health Compass members and 1 hour of free counseling for all Insight members. And you can order the tests through a medical professional or on your own.)
- I think I can handle many things but it was almost impossible for me to understand which documents I have to send back to the lab with my saliva sample. A step-by-step video tutorial would be useful.
I’m thankful to the Team of Navigenics.com for showing me how their service works in action. I’m impressed and looking forward to seeing how they can make their service even better.
AccessDNA: Know Your Genetics January 10, 2009
Posted by Dr. Bertalan Meskó in DNA, Genetic screening, Genetic testing, genetics, Genome, Web 2.0.Tags: Genetic testing, genetics, Genome
13 comments
I’ve recently discovered AccessDNA on Twitter and I thought I should give it a try. On the main page, it says I should create my personalized report. Well, let’s do so.
It asked me about the medical conditions that occurred in my family; environmental factors I have to face; tests I would be interested in, etc. And then I received the personalized genetic report; actually a list of genetic tests that might be useful for me.
What can I do with that information? Yes, of course I want full genome scanning. But should this be my decision? Not the decision of my doctor? Just beacuse I reported to be of Caucasian descent, I should order genetic tests that cost several thousands of dollars?
You know what? I would love to hear the opinion of Steve Murphy here. And yours!
