Gene bashing – dilemma of black geneticists working on the National Institute of Health’s Human Genome Project

Black Scientists on Prestigious Genome Project Voice Concerns

Each step forward in the quest to unlock the mysteries of human life and its diseases takes genetics researchers deeper into an ethical, legal and financial minefield.

Consider the following hypothetical multiple choice item:

Advances in genetic research:

(a) reveal life’s biochemical infrastructure and gain precious ground for scientists in the search for cures for diseases that can be linked to hereditary traits;

(b) provide lawmakers with new justification for mandating desirable behavior, law enforcers with tools to predict who’ll commit crime and lawbreakers with more excuses;

(c) allow insurance companies to reduce their liabilities;