Learn.genetics.utah.edu

The Microbiome and Disease

WEBThe Microbiome and Disease. Here are just some of the health conditions that involve our microbes. Click the links or scroll down the page to learn more. Acne. Antibiotic-associated diarrhea. Asthma/allergies. Autism. Autoimmune diseases. Cancer.

Actived: 9 days ago

URL: https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/microbiome/disease/

What is Precision Medicine

WEBPrecision medicine involves understanding how factors from the environment interact with genetic variations to influence health. When combined with information about a person's environment, genetic information becomes even more powerful. In rare cases, diseases come from variations in single genes that have predictable patterns of inheritance

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The Value of Precision Medicine

WEBWithout a doubt, health care is expensive. In 2014, the US spent $3 trillion on health care, averaging $9,500 per person [1]. So how could it be that precision medicine—with its DNA sequencing, high-tech diagnostic tests, and individually targeted therapies—might actually help reduce costs? Many precision medicine approaches are more costly

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How We Study the Microbiome

WEBPeople have been studying microbes for a long time. Early research techniques involved taking a sample from a patient and growing it in the lab, where it could be studied using a combination of culture, microscopy, and staining techniques. This works well for microbes that grow easily in culture, like e. coli, but most microbes can’t be grown

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The Human Microbiome

WEBA collection or community of microbes. Microbiome. Some use “microbiome” to mean all the microbes in a community. We and others use it to mean the full collection of genes of all the microbes in a community. The human microbiome (all of our microbes’ genes) can be considered a counterpart to the human genome (all of our genes).

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Are Telomeres the Key to Aging and Cancer

WEBWithout telomeres, chromosome ends could fuse together and corrupt the cell's genetic blueprint, possibly causing malfunction, cancer, or cell death. Because broken DNA is dangerous, a cell has the ability to sense and repair chromosome damage. Without telomeres, the ends of chromosomes would look like broken DNA, and the cell would try …

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Precision Medicine

WEBThe Value of Precision Medicine. Precision medicine promises to bring better care to patients at a lower cost than traditional approaches.

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The Time of Our Lives

WEBThe Time of Our Lives. Take the red-eye from California to New York, and you'll experience firsthand the effects of your body's internal clock. If you feel drowsy or "jet lagged" after the flight, it's because there's been a disruption to your natural circadian rhythms. Your internal clock is saying it's 3 am, but outside, it's time for breakfast.

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Exploring Genetics Through Genetic Disorders

WEBThis work was supported by a Science Education Partnership Award (1R25GM021903) from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health.

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Epigenetics & the Human Brain

WEBNot surprisingly, epigenetic changes are also a part of brain diseases such as mental illness and addiction. Understanding the role of epigenetics in brain disease may open the door to being able to influence it. This may lead to the development of new and more effective treatments for brain diseases. A segment from a June 2008 lecture given by

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Family Health History

WEBCommon Risk-Associated Diseases. Most common diseases result from a combination of genetic and environmental factors. We inherit genetic factors that make us more or less susceptible to developing a particular disease. But our overall health is also a product of our environment. Learn more about these diseases, who is at risk, and how that risk

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Examples of Aneuploidy

WEBThese including respiratory infections, problems with the gastrointestinal (digestive) tract, leukemia (a blood cancer), eye problems, hearing loss, and hypothyroidism. Many babies are born with heart conditions, and heart problems can also appear later in life.

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The Friendly Side of Fat

WEBLeptin. One of fat's most famous products is leptin, a signaling protein that suppresses appetite, increases energy use, and encourages the body to burn fat. In lean people, fat tissue makes low levels of leptin, prompting them to eat and gain weight. As fat tissue grows, it makes more leptin, suppressing hunger and halting weight gain.

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What is an Environmental Factor

WEBGenetic factors: Many genes affect how a person’s brain works, influencing their susceptibility to addiction. Environmental Factors. Family/culture/peers. The attitudes and behaviors of a person’s friends and family toward smoking, for example, can play a large part in whether he or she will develop an addiction.

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Hemoglobin Disorders

WEBHemoglobin disorders are a group of inherited conditions that affect a person's red blood cells. Red blood cells pick up oxygen from the lungs and deliver it to all of the body's tissues. In people with hemoglobin disorders, red blood cells are fewer in number, less able to do their job, or both. The most common hemoglobin disorders are sickle

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Environmental Risk

WEBIt increases the risk for heart and lung diseases, including cancer. According to the World Health Organization, outdoor air pollution causes an estimated 1.3 million deaths in cities around the world. Air quality standards are established and regulated by governments, but we all influence the quality of the air we breathe.

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Traits Activities

WEBFind the most and least common combination of three traits in your group! Participants mark traits for tongue rolling, earlobe attachment and PTC tasting on paper leaves and organize them on a large "tree of traits". This activity works best with medium to large groups. For a description of many of the traits used in these activities, visit

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