Innovations in human genetics education. Medical student elective in clinical genetics.

The fourth-year medical student elective in clinical genetics has been enhanced by the addition of a problem-solving project. The assignment requires students to pose and answer a practical question about a professionally relevant genetic problem. Exemplary questions and the details of the exercise are given. Six of 10 students choosing an elective in clinical genetics have undertaken the project. Their feedback suggests that the requirements of decision making, library research, discussion with consultants, and medical writing in a limited time period are beneficial additions to the standard elective.     

Medical genetics: Towards precision medicine

正Medical genetics is defined as a branch of medicine that involves the diagnosis and management of hereditary disorders by applying genetics to medical care.The Human Genome Project,initiated in1990 and completed in 2004,has profoundly changed biology and is rapidly catalyzing a transformation of medical genetics and medicine in general(Collins and McKusick,2001;Green and Guyer,2011).Before the Human Genome Project,researchers     

Medical and human genetics 1977: trends and directions

Our field is in a rapid state of evolution. The broader concerns of human genetics not of immediate medical interest such as behavioral genetics are often investigated by persons not trained or identified as human geneticists. Both medical genetics and human genetics in general have prospered when various biologic techniques have been applied to genetic concepts. A search for novel biologic methods may provide new insights and may bridge the gulf between Mendelian and biometric approaches in studies of behavior and of common diseases. Medical geneticists need to broaden their fields of interest to encompass other fields than those of pediatric interest alone. We need to attract more basic scientists. Our field is evolving from a largely research oriented science to a service-oriented specialty. This logical development is a sign of increasing maturity and makes available to the public the results of our research. The resulting stresses and strains need careful watching to prevent their slowing the momentum of our science which can contribute continued insights into the many problems of behavior, health, and disease.