Transducing the Genome: Information, Anarchy and Revolution in the Biomedical Sciences - Hardcover

Zweiger, Gary

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0071369805 ISBN 13: 9780071369800

Publisher: Schaum Outline Series, 2001

Synopsis

This text provides a behind-the-scenes look at the sequencing of the human genome project and the birth of the science of genomics. It explains genomics as an information science and traces its history back further than standard histories and news accounts to the early visionaries who saw the gene as as information carrier. It covers the early protein work of leigh Anderson and John taylor to the entreprenerial ideas of protein chemist Randall Scott and his vision of mining the database of gene sequences for pharmaceutical riches. The book also looks at the developments that have come out of the human genome project and the birth of genomics, and how they will be influencing the world of science for years to come.

About this title

Review:

What has made the Human Genome Project so deeply appealing? In one sense, it's just another large-scale, big-budget effort to keep a gang of nerds busy and out of trouble for a few years. Geneticist Gary Zweiger looks askance at this and explains how the confluence of information systems, big science and business (exemplified by the HGP) is actually accelerating the pace of beneficial change for all people. Transducing the Genome: Information, Anarchy and Revolution in the Biomedical Sciences draws deeply on Zweiger's experience in biological science and biotech commerce to illuminate the scientific, economic and legal issues relevant to the search for a more complete understanding of human genetics. Brimming with pro-capitalist optimism, he believes that the information revolution spawned the biotech explosion and will soon lead to better, cheaper solutions to a very broad range of health problems:

Knowledge of our internal information network will come mostly from an explosion of new genomic database analyses. A growing army of mathematicians and information scientists will develop increasingly powerful and more useful algorithms and computational processes for finding biomedical knowledge in these databases. A growing regiment of biologists and medical professionals with training in mathematics and information sciences will lead these knowledge discovery missions.

Zweiger assuages the reader's fears of gene patents with a brief foray into intellectual property law. It does seem unlikely that biotech patents will pose any more problems than standard pharmaceutical company practice. Combining scientific, legal and business expertise, Transducing the Genomeprovides the most comprehensive overview of the birth of biotech yet written. --Rob Lightner

Review:

"Gary Zweiger...provides a bracing insider's account of why gene structure matters to science and commerce. His focus is on transducing the information content of DNA into useful form. He teases out a powerful theme of genomics: its focus on methods of creating massive databases quickly." - American Scientist; "Transducing the Genome is a captivating overview of genomics. Geneticist Zweiger provides a clearly written and interesting account of the Human Genome Project, major players at the center of genome research, the origin of the genomics industry, the role of leading genomics companies, and the future prospects of the Genome Project.... This enjoyable and compelling story on genomics is har to put down." - Choice

About this edition

• Publisher: Schaum Outline Series
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0071369805
• ISBN 13: 9780071369800
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 256