Study the forest, not only the trees: Environmental exposures, not genomes, generate most health disparities
As sequencing and analysis techniques provide increasingly detailed data at a plummeting cost, it is increasingly popular to seek the answers to medical and public health challenges in the DNA sequences of affected populations. This is methodologically attractive in its simplicity, but a genomics-on...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2022-08-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Genetics |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2022.817899/full |
| _version_ | 1811339908951834624 |
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| author | Taylor V. Thompson Katherine C. Crocker |
| author_facet | Taylor V. Thompson Katherine C. Crocker |
| author_sort | Taylor V. Thompson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | As sequencing and analysis techniques provide increasingly detailed data at a plummeting cost, it is increasingly popular to seek the answers to medical and public health challenges in the DNA sequences of affected populations. This is methodologically attractive in its simplicity, but a genomics-only approach ignores environmentally mediated health disparities, which are well-documented at multiple national and global scales. While genetic differences exist among populations, it is unlikely that these differences overcome social and environmental factors in driving the gap in health outcomes between privileged and oppressed communities. We advocate for following the lead of communities in addressing their self-identified interests, rather than treating widespread suffering as a convenient natural experiment. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T18:34:28Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-99862781686c4d889825f53ee3d70344 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-8021 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T18:34:28Z |
| publishDate | 2022-08-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Genetics |
| spelling | doaj.art-99862781686c4d889825f53ee3d703442022-12-22T02:34:57ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Genetics1664-80212022-08-011310.3389/fgene.2022.817899817899Study the forest, not only the trees: Environmental exposures, not genomes, generate most health disparitiesTaylor V. Thompson0Katherine C. Crocker1Genetics Department, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, NY, United StatesBiology Department, University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, WA, United StatesAs sequencing and analysis techniques provide increasingly detailed data at a plummeting cost, it is increasingly popular to seek the answers to medical and public health challenges in the DNA sequences of affected populations. This is methodologically attractive in its simplicity, but a genomics-only approach ignores environmentally mediated health disparities, which are well-documented at multiple national and global scales. While genetic differences exist among populations, it is unlikely that these differences overcome social and environmental factors in driving the gap in health outcomes between privileged and oppressed communities. We advocate for following the lead of communities in addressing their self-identified interests, rather than treating widespread suffering as a convenient natural experiment.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2022.817899/fullgenomicsenvironmental exposurehealth disparitiesenvironmental racismhealth equity |
| spellingShingle | Taylor V. Thompson Katherine C. Crocker Study the forest, not only the trees: Environmental exposures, not genomes, generate most health disparities Frontiers in Genetics genomics environmental exposure health disparities environmental racism health equity |
| title | Study the forest, not only the trees: Environmental exposures, not genomes, generate most health disparities |
| title_full | Study the forest, not only the trees: Environmental exposures, not genomes, generate most health disparities |
| title_fullStr | Study the forest, not only the trees: Environmental exposures, not genomes, generate most health disparities |
| title_full_unstemmed | Study the forest, not only the trees: Environmental exposures, not genomes, generate most health disparities |
| title_short | Study the forest, not only the trees: Environmental exposures, not genomes, generate most health disparities |
| title_sort | study the forest not only the trees environmental exposures not genomes generate most health disparities |
| topic | genomics environmental exposure health disparities environmental racism health equity |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2022.817899/full |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT taylorvthompson studytheforestnotonlythetreesenvironmentalexposuresnotgenomesgeneratemosthealthdisparities AT katherineccrocker studytheforestnotonlythetreesenvironmentalexposuresnotgenomesgeneratemosthealthdisparities |