Abraham Lincoln's DNA: And Other Adventures in Genetics

by Reilly, Philip R.

• ISBN13: 9780879695804
• ISBN10: 0879695803
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2000-09-01
• Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Pr

Summary

Twenty-four true, wide-ranging tales of crime, history, human behavior, illness, and ethics, told from the personal perspective of the author, an eminent physician-lawyer who uses the stories to illustrate the principles of human genetics and to discuss the broader issues.

Author Biography

Philip Reilly is CEO of Interleukin Genetics, Inc. in Waltham, Massachusetts. From 1990 to 2000 he was the Executive Director of the Shriver Center for Mental Retardation, Inc. Dr. Reilly has held faculty appointments at Harvard Medical School and Brandeis University. He is currently an Assistant Professor at Tufts University School of Medicine. He is also President of the American Society of Law, Medicine, and Ethics

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
Introduction	xiii
Part 1 History: Using DNA to Understand the Past
Abraham Lincoln: Did He Have Marfan Syndrome?	3	(12)
Kings and Queens: Genetic Diseases in Royal Families	15	(12)
Toulouse-Lautrec: An Artist despite His Genes	27	(12)
Old Bones: DNA and Skeletons	39	(14)
Part 2 Justice: The DNA Revolution in the Courts
DNA Detectives: The New DNA Evidence	53	(12)
Cold Hits: The Rise of DNA Felon Databanks	65	(14)
Genes and Violence: Do Mutations Cause Crime?	79	(14)
Wrongful Birth: What Should the Doctor Know?	93	(12)
Part 3 Behavior: Do Genes Make Us the Way We Are?
Mental Illness: How Much Is Genetic?	105	(12)
Personality: Were We Born This Way?	117	(14)
Talent: Nature or Nurture?	131	(14)
Gay Genes: What's the Evidence?	145	(12)
Part 4 Plants and Animals: Genetic Engineering and Nature
Genetically Modified Organisms: The Next Green Revolution?	157	(16)
Transgenic Animals: New Foods and New Factories	173	(14)
Endangered Species: New Genes Beat Extinction	187	(12)
Xenotransplantation: Animal Organs to Save Humans	199	(14)
Part 5 Diseases: The Genetic Revolution in Medicine
Cystic Fibrosis: Should Everyone Be Tested?	213	(10)
Breast Cancer: The Burden of Knowing	223	(12)
Alzheimer Disease: Are You at High Risk?	235	(12)
Gene Therapy: The Dream and the Reality	247	(16)
Part 6 Dilemmas: Genetic Technologies and Individual Choice
Genetic Testing and Privacy: Who Should Be Able to Know Your Genes?	263	(14)
Frozen Embryos: People or Property?	277	(12)
Cloning: Why Is Everyone Opposed?	289	(14)
Eugenics: Can We Improve the Gene Pool?	303	(14)
Bibliography	317	(14)
Index	331