tailieunhanh - Chapter 001. The Practice of Medicine (Part 7)

The Twenty-First Century Physician: Expanding Frontiers The Era of Genomics In the spring of 2003, the complete sequencing of the human genome was announced, officially ushering in the genomic era. However, even before this landmark accomplishment, the practice of medicine had been evolving as a result of the insights gained from an understanding of the human genome as well as the genomes of a wide variety of microbes, whose genetic sequences were becoming widely available as a result of the breathtaking advances in sequencing techniques and informatics. Examples of the latter include the identification of a novel coronavirus as the etiologic. | Chapter 001. The Practice of Medicine Part 7 The Twenty-First Century Physician Expanding Frontiers The Era of Genomics In the spring of 2003 the complete sequencing of the human genome was announced officially ushering in the genomic era. However even before this landmark accomplishment the practice of medicine had been evolving as a result of the insights gained from an understanding of the human genome as well as the genomes of a wide variety of microbes whose genetic sequences were becoming widely available as a result of the breathtaking advances in sequencing techniques and informatics. Examples of the latter include the identification of a novel coronavirus as the etiologic agent of the severe acute respiratory syndrome SARS and the tracking of the evolution of a potentially pandemic influenza virus found in birds. Today gene expression profiles are being used to guide therapy and inform prognosis for a number of diseases the use of genotyping is providing a new means to assess the risk of certain diseases as well as variation in response to a number of drugs we are understanding better the role of certain genes in the causality of certain common conditions such as obesity and allergies. Despite these advances we are still in the infancy of understanding and utilizing the complexities of genomics in the diagnosis prevention and treatment of disease. Our task is complicated by the fact that phenotypes are generally determined not by genes alone but by the interplay of genetic and environmental factors. Indeed we have just begun to scratch the surface of possibilities that the era of genomics will provide to the practice of medicine. The rapidity of these advances may seem overwhelming to the practicing physician. However he or she has an important role to play in ensuring that these powerful technologies and sources of new information are applied with sensitivity and intelligence to the patient. Since genomics is such a rapidly evolving field physicians and .