ACMG statement: Statement on storage and use of genetic materials
The sensitivities of DNA analytic methods have increased dramatically in the past several years. Use of such tests to analyze an individual`s genome could reveal parental origin or provide forensic evidence, as well as determine an individual`s complement of normal and abnormal genes. Some of the abnormal genes detected cause diseases in infancy, while the effects of others may become manifest only in adulthood. Finally, detection of specific, acquired genomic changes may indicate increased susceptibility to or herald the onset of certain malignancies. Many health professionals as well as lay people may not appreciate how frequently biological samples are stored and how easily samples that have been stored for an unrelated reason could be used for genetic analysis in the future. The potential problems posed by such uses were explored at length in a Workshop sponsored by the National Center for Human Genome Research and the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention. ACMG members, recognizing these issues, may have concerns about access by insurers, employers, and others to samples or test results. Developing practices to be used at the time samples are obtained could alleviate problems that might arise in the future as the breadth and scope or potential genetic analyses increase. 6 refs.
- OSTI ID:
- 186220
- Journal Information:
- American Journal of Human Genetics, Vol. 57, Issue 6; Other Information: PBD: Dec 1995
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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