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Family Health History and the Holidays

family watching TV

During the holiday season, many of us will be watching our favorite holiday movies for the umpteenth time.  Some of our favorites (according to Gayot, Moviefone and Yahoo  are Home Alone, A Christmas Story, A Charlie Brown Christmas, and It’s a Wonderful Life. Most holiday movies seem to have relatives as central characters and family gatherings

Posted on by Ruta Sharangpani MD, MPH, Bureau of Disease Control Prevention and Epidemiology, Michigan Department of Community Health & Debra Duquette, MS, CGC, Genomics Coordinator, Michigan Department of Community Health1 CommentTags ,

Beyond Base Pairs to Bedside: A Community Consultation on Closing the Gap between Genomic Discoveries and the Public’s Health

Priorities for Public Health Genomics 2012-2017

In June 2011, the CDC Office of Public Health Genomics launched a community wide consultation process to develop priorities for the field of public health genomics in the next 5 years. This process was initiated as part of strategic visioning for integrating the emerging tools of genomics into practice and assuring the success of these

Posted on by Muin J Khoury, Director, Office of Public Health Genomics, Centers for Disease Control and PreventionLeave a commentTags , ,

Can We have Our Genome and Eat It Too? Deploying the Whole Genome Sequence In Medicine and Public Health, One Base Pair At A Time.

cake with double helix decoration - text: One base pair at a time

This post was originally published November 3, 2011 but is still very much applicable in 2013! The popular proverbial saying “you cannot have your cake and eat it too”  implies that one cannot consume something and preserve it at the same time–in other words, we cannot have it both ways.  Well, for once, maybe we

Posted on by Muin J Khoury, Director, Office of Public Health Genomics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention4 Comments

Think (Again) Before You Spit: Readers Weigh In

woman looking at test tube thinking (text: Think (Again) Before You Spit

We thank our readers for their thoughtful comments on our recent post, which discussed the validity and utility of personal genomic tests for improving health. Clearly, this topic engenders a range of reactions as reflected in a recent scientific discussion. Several people I know have sought testing for various reasons, including curiosity, genealogic research, or just

Posted on by Muin J Khoury, Director, Office of Public Health Genomics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention1 CommentTags , , ,

Think Before You Spit: Do Personal Genomic Tests Improve Health?

Think Before You Spit- a woman looking at a test tube

Campaigns against public spitting in the 19th century were largely driven by concerns about the spread of tuberculosis. However, at the beginning of the 21st century, spitting seems to be making a comeback.  Over the past few years, several companies have begun offering personal genomic tests online to the public. There have been famous images of

Posted on by Muin J Khoury, Director, Office of Public Health Genomics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention11 CommentsTags , ,

Shall We Have Pie or Stew?

a pie cut in almost half with the smaller piece labeled Environmental and the larger piece labeled Genetic

 Understanding Genetic and Environmental Causes of Human Disease A recent article in the Archives of General Psychiatry by Hallmayer et al. discussed the role of genetic and environmental factors in autism and autism spectrum disorders (ASD).  The study was a heritability analysis of 192 pairs of twins, which attributed 37 percent of the variation in

Posted on by Scott Bowen, Office of Public Health Genomics, Centers For Disease Control and Prevention15 CommentsTags , , ,

Muin J. Khoury

Dr. Khoury is the founding director of the CDC’s Office of Public Health Genomics. The Office was formed in 1997 to assess the impact of advances in human genetics and the Human Genome Project on public health and disease prevention.  CDC’s Office of Public Health Genomics serves as the national focus for integrating genomics into


Feeling the Genomic Pulse of the United States

CDC doctor with DNA stethoscope checking the pulse of the US map

A healthcare provider takes a good clinical history, feels the patient’s pulse, performs a good physical examination, and orders laboratory tests to diagnose and manage a health problem. In a similar manner, public health programs feel the pulse of the population by collecting data through population surveys, surveillance systems and health statistics to assess the

Posted on by Muin J Khoury, Director, Office of Public Health Genomics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention3 CommentsTags ,

Tell Me More about Telomeres

chromosome showing telomeres

Researchers, journalists, and inquiring minds want to know more about telomeres, which seem to hold clues to human aging and age-related diseases. Could telomeres provide an answer to questions like “How long will I live?” or “Will I get cancer?” What are telomeres? Telomeres are structures at the ends of chromosomes  that contain repetitive stretches

Posted on by Marta Gwinn, Consultant, McKing Consulting Corp, Office of Public Health Genomics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention2 CommentsTags , ,

What is Public Health Genomics? A Day in the Invisible Life of Public Health Genomics

Public health usually works behind the scenes and many people aren’t even aware of public health programs. When you get sick you visit your doctor and get advice and treatment to make you feel better. Doctors and other medical professionals work to improve health one person at a time, but public health professionals focus on improving

Posted on by Muin J Khoury, Director, Office of Public Health Genomics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention11 CommentsTags ,