Decoding Genomics: Separating Rhetoric from Reality

The study of genetics emerged in the latter half of the 19th century with Gregor Mendel’s study of heritable traits in pea plants. Over the course of the next century, Darwin developed his theory of evolution by natural selection, scientists determined DNA to be the physical substrate of heredity, and the biological code written in chemical bases was cracked. Just decades later in 2003, an international team of researchers declared the sequencing of the human genome complete. In the research community, our understanding of genomics has since shifted from genetic determinism to an appreciation for the complexity of genomic architecture and traits. This is exemplified in a change in the metaphors we use to describe the genome from a “blueprint” or “book of life” to a “map.”

In this talk, Madeline Couse will discuss her research into the regions of the genome formerly written off as “junk DNA”: the non-coding genome. The objective of her research is to find disease-causing mutations in such genomic regions in patients with intellectual disabilities. Madeline will also address the social implications of genomics research more generally: eugenics, genetic discrimination, how genomic metaphors may have led to public misconceptions, and the perpetuation of an ableist ideology.