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Private companies own your DNA – again

September 10, 2011 By

Cartoon (c) by Cathy Wilcox

Steven Salzberg, Forbes Contributor

Many scientists cheered last year when a federal judge ruled that human genes couldn’t be patented. The case involved Myriad Genetics, which holds the patent rights on two genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2, that are associated with increased risks for breast and ovarian cancer. Thanks to these patents, you can’t look these genes in your own body without paying a fee to Myriad. Sounds ridiculous, right? Well, that was the state of gene patents until last May, when judge Robert Sweet ruled that the Myriad’s patents were invalid.

But now the courts have reversed themselves again. In a 105-page decision, two federal judges decided that the whole matter comes down to the meaning of the word “isolated.” I kid you not.

Judge Sweet’s ruling last year was based on the obvious scientific fact that genes are a product of nature, not an invention, and therefore they could not be patented. Patent lawyers were very upset over Sweet’s ruling. Why was this controversial? Well, because the U.S. Patent and Trade Office has been granting gene patents for decades. Basically, once the USPTO decided to allow one gene patent, they never looked back, and they’ve now given out patents for over 4,000 human genes.

But this past week, an appeals court reversed last year’s ruling and said yes, Myriad Genetics does indeed own the rights to the BRCA genes. The decision by Judge Alan Lourie reveals an astounding lack of understanding of DNA, genes, and genomes. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, but I had been hopeful that after the earlier ruling throwing out these patents, science and logic would prevail. I guess I should never underestimate the scientific ignorance of judges, though I should add that one of the three judges voted against his colleagues.

What was their contorted reasoning? They decided that “isolated DNA” is not the same as the natural DNA in your body, and that this distinction allows companies to patent it. (The word “isolated” occurs 219 times in the decision.) The judges wrote:

“According to Myriad, isolated DNA does not exist in nature, and isolated DNAs, unlike native DNAs, can be used as primers and probes for diagnosing cancer.”

The mind boggles. Following this nugget, Judges Lourie and Moore give us a little mini-lesson in molecular biology:

“Native DNA exists in the body as one of forty-six large, contiguous DNA molecules…. Isolated DNA, in contrast, is a free-standing portion of a native DNA molecule, frequently a single gene…. Accordingly, BRCA1 and BRCA2 in their isolated state are not the same molecules as DNA as it exists in the body.”

This is scientific nonsense, but the court bought it. (Over at TechDirt.com, Mike Masnick made the colorful analogy that this is like “arguing that because a severed finger is not attached to a hand, the finger is not naturally occurring, and, thus, is patentable.”) Wrote the judges:

“we conclude that the challenged claims are drawn to patentable subject matter because the claims cover molecules that are markedly different—have a distinctive chemical identity and nature—from molecules that exist in nature.”

Among other problems, Judges Lourie and Moore don’t understand a basic fact of genetics: that genes are “isolated” by our body’s own genetic machinery when they are copied into RNA and then translated into proteins. Or perhaps they do understand, but they don’t care because they just want an excuse to keep gene patents around. This is what can happen when lawyers (judges) make scientific decisions: they go on for pages and pages about the semantics of a word (“isolated”), and produce a result that is scientifically meaningless.

Judge Bryson makes much more sense in his dissent, writing:

“the question in this case is whether an individual can obtain patent rights to a human gene. From a common-sense point of view, most observers would answer, `Of course not. Patents are for inventions. A human gene is not an invention.’ The essence of Myriad’s argument in this case is to say that it has not patented a human gene, but something quite different—an isolated human gene.”

So that’s two judges (Sweet and Bryson) against human gene patents, and two in favor. This case isn’t over yet; last week’s ruling by the 3-judge panel will likely be appealed to the full appeals court next. It’s hard to predict what they will say. Meanwhile, Myriad charges $4000 to run tests on BRCA1 and BRCA2, as I wrote last year. This means that if a woman wants to test her own DNA for any mutations in the BRCA genes – including mutations that weren’t even known when Myriad got the patent – she must pay Myriad merely to look at her own genes.

I’m not a lawyer, but I already see one way around Myriad’s patents in this flawed decision. The judge’s (and Myriad’s) reliance on “isolated BRCA genes” refers to the process of isolating and copying the genes using a laboratory method called RT-PCR, and then sequencing just the isolated bits. Today, though, we can sequence a person’s entire genome, without “isolating” any particular genes, for under $5000, and then we can test for mutations in the BRCA genes without ever “isolating” them. In fact, a colleague and I published a paper just last year describing how to do this, and we released a free software package that allows anyone to test their BRCA genes at home on a desktop computer. Genomics Law Report has a detailed legal analysis of what our software means for the Myriad case.

Scientifically, it shouldn’t matter how the judges define “isolated” DNA. And as two federal judges have now ruled, genes are not inventions, full stop. What’s more, gene patents slow down science by throwing legal barriers in the path of anyone who wants to work on those genes. Finally, I’m amazed at the hubris of companies like Myriad – or anyone else – who claim they “own” a gene. Let’s hope the full appeals court will reverse the tortured reasoning of Judges Lourie and Moore, and get the patent lawyers out of the laboratory.

 

 

 

 

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Writing Our Family’s Story

September 9, 2011 By

Hola amigos:

To start your thinking about writing your family’s story and to awake your creative side, read this article.
In my case I wrote two historical genealogies, one from my father’s  and one from my mother’s side.

 

– Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL, FASG

There are, in fact, many ways to tell our family’s story. Genealogy has room for all sorts of writers, because genealogy is a search for identity and identities wear many faces. The one constant is that identities be real and faces authentic.

Surveying Your Options

Wherever you are right now, the roadmap reads the same. Know your options. Know their standards. Know your family—what the live ones like as well as what the dead ones were like. Know your talents. Then plan a journey that gets you where you want to go.

Free Family Tree Template – Interactive! Kimberly Powell. About.com.

Family historians have at least five ultimate destinations: (1) a traditional genealogy; (2) a genealogical history; (3) a thematic family history; (4) a biography; and (5) historical “faction.”

Genealogy (Bare bones)
Genealogies are often called compiled genealogies for a reason. Most are compilations of raw facts—names, dates, and places—rather than creative works. Modern genealogists who find collecting easier than writing are blessed with software into which they can type raw data and, with the click of a mouse, produce ancestral bare bones arranged as a narrative (hopefully, with documentation). Of course, this isn’t really a family history. It’s a reference work. Even our mothers won’t sit down and read it from cover to cover.

Genealogical History (Some flesh on the bones)
More appealing is a genealogy that places everyone into historical context—social, economic, and so on. A genealogical history sticks to proved facts and well-built cases. Of course, it may include traditions; along with the efforts we’ve made to verify each; and all assertions carry reliable documentation. However, we can’t expect our genealogical software to produce that history. We have to transport our bare bones into a word-processing program to mold the flesh, build the muscle, and trim the fat—efforts otherwise known as writing and editing.

Thematic Family History (Flesh on some bones)
A thematic family history is a newer, more academic approach. First, we define a theme that represents the family. Then we develop that theme, using a limited number of family members who embody those family traits. Here, too, we adhere to proved fact, skillfully analyzed, interpreted, and placed on the broader stage of time and place—with thorough documentation, of course.

Biography (Flesh on a single set of bones)
A meaningful biography reconstructs an individual in all dimensions. It puts that life into both historical and family context, with dispassionate objectivity. It, too, adheres to proved fact, well interpreted, and provides thorough documentation. In genealogical literature, the biography is definitely a genre begging to be used.

Historical Faction, a.k.a. “My Family Saga” (Heart and soul, as well as flesh and bones)
Of all the approaches, historical faction is the most challenging. Its foundation and framework, windows into the past and cobwebbed crannies should all be molded from fact. After all, our ancestors were real people, deserving respect for who and what they actually were.

Having defined a family theme, we develop the plot by drawing upon the actual lives of those forebears. We streamline our cast of characters, culling thousands of kinfolk and known associates to those who best drive that plot. Then we shape the chosen few into vivid, robust characters who personify the family story. But that calls for dialog, and there lies the quicksand where we sink deep into fiction, even though we try to pull dialog from our documents. Even more challenging: that dialog—like plot, stage, and scenery—needs to be rich and varied in context, language, and tone to evoke all the human senses.

A “Do-Able Plan”
The path you decide upon will depend upon your talents, time, and intended audience. If the thought of writing anything scares you, you’re not alone. Even the best writers leave sweat, coffee stains, and chewed-up fingernails on their keyboards. If that’s no comfort, you may decide to let your genealogy software provide the skeletal framework for the family and leave it to more creative cousins to clothe the people you have found and put feathers in their bonnets.

But if your family story has truly gotten under you skin and you know it won’t let go until you actually tell it, there is a Do-able Plan:
Step One: Conduct your research using everything available.
— Thoroughly document every fact; explain every conclusion.
— Build a Context File, filling it with those descriptive nuggets of ancestral times and places that you find in the course of your research.

Step Two: Choose your favorite ancestor and write a biography. Length doesn’t matter. What’s important here is substance and soul.
— Research that life from birth to death.
— Put that life into context—every kind possible—with documentation, of course.
— Move out of your database! Use a word processor for real writing and editing.

Step Three: Write more biographies, one at a time.
— Dress them up. Add illustrations. Format them nicely. Create little booklets.
— Share these with your family. They’re wonderful presents, easily digested, and they’ll build interest in your work.

Step Four: Create a Genealogical History.
— Move your database into your word-processor, merging it into those biographies you’ve written for key individuals.
— Then rewrite and edit—massage and shape it all—to create a real family history.

So What about the Great American Novel?
For most of us, that Genealogical History will fulfill our dreams. For others, it won’t quite scratch the writer’s itch. Some families we encounter—perhaps our own, perhaps their neighbors—burrow under our skin and into our psyche, demanding more. Start with those Steps One to Four of the Do-able Plan. We owe that to our families—to research their lives, document their stories, and put provable facts into print as a permanent reference work. Not until then should we consider taking the creative license that storytelling requires.

Nurturing Our Creative Self
Storytelling is a craft of its own. Many masters of that craft have put their wisdom into print. Lawrence P. Gouldrup’s Writing the Family Narrative (Ancestry, 1987) will help you hone your skills on such fun projects as character sketches and short stories.

As with genealogy, there are societies and support groups for those who relish historical novels as both a profession and a hobby.

Writing a family story—regardless of the approach we take—is as much a discovery process as the research itself. Amid trying to explain what we’ve found, we discover new ways those findings fit together to create mosaics we had not seen before. In struggling to articulate the meaning of ancestral lives, we discover neglected nooks within our own selves.

As you craft your family’s story, you’ll discover many of your own.

So long as our family’s story remains untold, our ancestors remain forgotten. By immortalizing them, regardless of the format we choose, we’ll fill a need within ourselves, inspire our kin and, perhaps, help society itself better understand the tangled past that has led us to our present.

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Generations

September 6, 2011 By
Generation, from the Latin generāre, meaning “to beget” also known as procreation , is the act of producing offspring. A generation can also be a stage or degree in a succession of natural descent as a grandfather, a father, and the father’s son comprise three generations.
We have to distinguish  between familial and cultural generations. A familial generation is  the average time between a mother’s first offspring and her daughter’s first offspring. The generation length is 25.2 years in the United States as  of 2007. As an estimate, thirty years can also be used as an average generation length for humans.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Five generations of one Armenian family: in the center, a child; on the far left, her mother; on the far right, the child’s grandmother; second from the left, the child’s great- grandmother; and second from the right, the child’s great-great-grandmother.

Cultural generations are  people who were born in the same date range and share similar cultural experience. The idea of a cultural generation,  gained currency in the 19th century. Prior to that the concept “generation” had generally referred to family relationships, not broader social groupings.

List of Generations of the Western World:

  • The Lost Generation, primarily known as the Generation of 1914 in Europe, is a term originating  to describe those who fought in World War I.
  • The Greatest Generation, also known as the G.I. Generation, is the generation that includes the veterans  who fought in World War II. They were born from around 1901 to 1924, coming of age during the Great Depression.
  • The Silent Generation born from 1925 to 1945, is the generation that includes those who were too young to join the service during World War II. Many had fathers who served in World War I. Generally recognized as the children of the Great Depression, this event during their formative years had a profound impact on them.
  • The Baby Boom Generation is the generation that was born following World War II, about 1946 up to approximately 1964, a time that was marked by an increase in birth rates.  By the force of its numbers, the boomers were a demographic bulge which remodeled society. In general, baby boomers are associated with a rejection or redefinition of traditional values that. In Europe and North America boomers are widely associated with privilege, as many grew up in a time of affluence. One of the features of Boomers was that they tended to think of themselves as a special generation, very different from those that had come before them.
  • Generation X is the generation generally defined as those born after the baby boom ended, and hence sometimes referred to as Baby Busters with earliest birth dates seen used by researchers ranging from 1961 to the latest 1981 at its greatest extent.
  • Generation Y  is also known as Millennial Generation, Generation Next, or Echo Boomers. The earliest suggested birth dates ranging from mid to late 1970s to the latest in the early 2000s.Today, many follow *William Strauss and Neil Howe’s  theories in defining the Millennials. They use the start year as 1982, and end years around the turn of the millennium.
  • Generation Z, also known as Generation I or Internet Generation, and dubbed the “Digital Natives,” is the following generation. The earliest birth is generally dated in the early 1990s.

To recap:

- The Lost Generation, also known as the Generation of 1914, people who fought In World War II.

- The Greatest Generation, also Known as the GI Generation, fought in the World War II (1901 to 1924).

- The Silent Generation, people born before 1926  (1925-1945).

- The Baby Boomers,  people born before  1947 (1946-1954).

- Generation X, people  born before 1962  (1961-1981).

- Generation Y, people born before  1983. (1982-2000).

- Generation Z Following Internet Generation

*Generational Theory

Strauss & Howe grouped everyone into 18 generations and 4 archetypes. The archetypes are born in order, Hero, Artist, Idealist, Nomad, and the 18 generations stretch back to the first settlers in America. Nobody had done this kind of work until William Strauss and Neil Howe.

http://www.jamesgoulding.com/generations.htm

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My Island Of Enchantment

September 1, 2011 By

From my book  of poetry “Feeling Things Deeply”

My Island Of Enchantment

by Evelyn Santiago

   Puerto Rico My Island Of Enchantment Image

Puerto Rico, my Home Island where I met my Mother Earth,

Where my heart is still residing, right beneath the ocean waves.

Puerto Rico, my Love Island, my beloved Borinquen,

My magnificent  “Fantasy Island”, my Caribbean Eden.

Puerto Rico, Enchanted Island: my complex, captivating land,

My relatively small island, my beautiful motherland.

Puerto Rico, Fortress Island, my waterfront playground,

Heavy surf sweeps your beaches of superb miles stretch of sand.

Puerto Rico, “Virgin” Island of palms, caves and coral reefs,

Of abundant vegetation and mountains covered with mist.

Puerto Rico, “Mother Island” of the “Island Girl” and “Snake”

And all other little islands, your “children islands” as well.

Puerto Rico, Treasure Chest of historic homes and buildings

With San Juan as the oldest city under the American flag.

Puerto Rico, blend of cultures, so inclusive and diverse,

We are proud of our identity and we are proud of the USA!

                                                                                        

Copyright ©2004 Evelyn Santiago

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Gene Testing

August 30, 2011 By

Hello: Today I want to share with you a very interesting subject: gene testing and an article about it:

Gene Testing: Does It Help or Hurt? What Your Genetic History Reveals About Your Future Health

By Diane Wedner, Special to Lifescript  www.LifeScript.com Published August 29, 2011

Worried about what medical conditions are lurking in your family tree? Breast or ovarian cancer? Huntington’s disease? Gene testing, or genetic testing, may offer knowledge but not always comfort. So when is gene testing helpful and when should you steer clear? Read on for the answers…

Seven years ago, when she considered marriage and children, Anna Gorman decided to be tested for the BRCA1 and 2 gene mutations because ovarian cancer killed her grandmother and aunt.

She tested positive for BRCA1, which raises the risk of breast cancer up to 85% by age 70 and ovarian cancer by 55%.

“I wasn’t surprised, but I was upset and overwhelmed,” says Gorman, now a 35-year-old Los Angeles journalist.

So she then married her longtime boyfriend, gave birth to two daughters and had her ovaries removed by age 32. Three years later, she had a double mastectomy.

The surgeries were hard. Still, she was relieved when it was over.

“It’s a dramatic step to take, but … lots of people get cancer and die,” she says. “I could do something about it.”

Like Gorman, many women worry about diseases that lurk in their family trees. In fact, they lead the pack when seeking genetic information.

“Women are drivers of the acquisition of medical care, period,” says Ora Gordon, M.D., M.S., director of the GenRISK Adult Genetics program at Los Angeles’ Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

In fact, women make up 80% of her practice, she says.

Genetic testing is common for pregnant women and those considering pregnancy, but others anxious about hereditary illnesses — sickle-cell disease (a disorder that affects red blood cells), heart disease and diabetes — are also seeking genetic information in far greater numbers.

Screening for cystic fibrosis numbered in the thousands a decade ago; today millions undergo the testing, says Steve Keiles, M.S., president of the National Society of Genetic Counselors and director of Genetic Counseling at Ambry Genetics in Aliso Viejo, Calif.

In 1999, only 415 labs tested for 704 diseases. Today, more than 600 laboratories worldwide are equipped to test for 1,794 diseases; 1,185 clinics provide counseling, according to GeneTests at NCBI, a medical genetics information resource at the University of Washington in Seattle.

What gene testing reveals
Why do so many women go for testing? Besides diagnosing and predicting diseases, genetic tests also:

 

  • Determine if a patient carries gene mutations for disorders that might be passed to children
  • Assess the health of a fetus (if it is at risk for inheriting a condition)
  • Screen fertilized eggs before implantation
  • Screen newborns at risk for genetic disorders that should be treated immediately

Home-testing kits
If you won’t see a physician because of privacy concerns or live in a remote area far from genetic-counseling centers, online companies offer home testing kits for common diseases, such as some breast and colon cancers, autoimmune disorders, macular degeneration and cardiovascular disease.

With the kits, you take a blood test or mouth swab and then send it to a laboratory. (Prices for online kits and mainstream clinical tests vary widely, depending on the services and tests ordered. At-home genetic tests can be pricey, from $295-$1,200.)

But beware: Some online companies offer a look at your genetic background for entertainment, not medical, purposes. And some don’t look for gene mutations, an often vital component when looking for diseases.

Also, home tests may not be accurate for some conditions, such as diabetes.

There’s “no reliable screening for type 2 diabetes,” Keiles says. “You can tell a lot just from your family history.”

How online tests work
But there’s more to DNA testing than just getting results. Some tests are tough to interpret because of the procedure’s complexity and multilayered findings. And not all labs have trained genetics counselors to read them.

Navigenics, a San Francisco Bay Area-based online company, offers genetic counseling along with test kits and advises customers to seek tests the company doesn’t offer when appropriate, says Elissa Levin, director of genetics counseling. Counselors also follow up with phone calls after results are sent, she says.

But women with family histories of diseases such as breast and uterine cancer, Huntington’s disease and muscular dystrophy should seek genetic counseling first to make sure they’re proper candidates for testing, genetic counselors say.

For example, during counseling for Alzheimer’s – which you may not get even if you test positive – counselors sometimes find that you’re at higher risk for a more preventable health problem, such as heart disease. So they may recommend relatively inexpensive diagnostic blood tests along with lifestyle and diet changes.

Getting Tested
If you want counseling or testing, the National Society of Genetic Counselors can provide names of counselors by location, as well as guidelines for choosing a professional and getting the most out of the sessions.

Counseling alone costs about $400 and the cost of genetic tests range from $700-$4,000, Gordon says. It typically takes 2-6 weeks to get results, but some are available in days.

You also can ask your doctor for a referral; it may be covered by your health insurance plan.

The results won’t affect your rates because information the tests glean is private: In 2008, Congress passed the Genetic Nondiscrimination Information Act, which protects patients against discrimination by an insurer or employer based on genetic information. For many insurance plans, the law went into effect in May.

Who should be tested?
But genetic tests aren’t for everyone. For one thing, many of the disorders they detect are rare, Keiles says.

“Most testing is targeted to ethnic groups,” for example, Tay-Sachs for people of Jewish descent and sickle-cell disease for African Americans, he says.

And gene testing for most cancers is unnecessary because about 90% of them aren’t inherited, he says.

With some diseases, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis — commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease — a positive result won’t lead to better treatment or prevention.

“I don’t want to put patients through that if all I’m doing is giving them anxiety,” GenRISK’s Gordon says.

“Sometimes, too much information can be bad,” said Peter Weiss, M.D., a Beverly Hills, Calif. obstetrician and gynecologist. “Patients need to weigh the risks and rewards of the information they get from testing and be ready to deal with [it].”

But that may change with scientific advances. The future of genetic testing centers around whole-genome sequencing, said David Stillman, a pathology professor at the University of Utah.

That process — which may be routine in 10-15 years — will allow scientists to sequence not just for one gene, such as the BRCA mutation or cystic fibrosis carriers, but all of a person’s DNA to get a better picture of the medical problem he or she may face. (The expensive process has been done on only four or five people so far.)

Common Genetic Tests
Here’s a guide to the most common genetic tests and those who should consider having them:

1. Down Syndrome
This genetic disorder occurs in one out of every 700-800 infants and causes lifelong mental retardation, developmental delays and other problems.

Screening for Down syndrome is a routine part of prenatal care. Your obstetrician will typically do an ultrasound and blood test in the first trimester, then a “quad screen” blood test at 15-20 weeks.

If tests are positive, the next step is chorionic villus sampling (CVS), in which cells are taken from the mother’s placenta at nine to 14 weeks, or amniocentesis after 15 weeks, in which a sample of amniotic fluid surrounding the fetus is withdrawn with a needle inserted into the woman’s uterus.

Who should have the test? Older pregnant women because the risk of conceiving a Down syndrome baby at age 35 is one in 400. By age 45, it’s one in 35. Also at higher risk are those with a Down syndrome child and men couples who are carriers. The screening is common among pregnant women of all ages.

Pros: Both amniocentesis and CVS are 98%-99% accurate.

Cons: There’s a 1-in-200 risk of miscarriage from amniocentesis and a 1-in-100 risk from CVS.

Cost: Both procedures average about $1,500, which many insurance plans cover.

2. Neural tube defects
Neural tube defects — including spina bifada, anencephaly and encephalocele — are openings in the spinal cord or brain and are among the most common birth defects.

They’re detected during pregnancy by one of three tests:

 

  • Amniocentesis
  • A maternal serum alpha fetoprotein (MSAFP) blood test administered at weeks 16-18
  • A high-resolution ultrasound after 18 weeks

Who should have the test? Women who have had a fetus or baby with neural tube defects. Those with folic acid deficiencies have a higher risk for the defects. Many pregnant women have one of the tests for routine prenatal care.

Pros: Parents can prepare for the special medical care that babies with the defects will need.

Cons: Amniocentesis raises miscarriage risks.

Cost: The MSAFP blood test is about $162 in California; costs may vary in other states. The high-resolution ultrasound costs from $300-$500. Amniocentesis and CVS each costs about $1,500.

3. BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes
The letters stand for breast cancer susceptibility genes 1 and 2, respectively. They are tumor suppressors and mutations have been linked to hereditary breast and ovarian cancer.

The procedure is a simple blood test, which can be done in a doctor’s office. Who should have the tests: The gene mutations are most common in Jews of Ashkenazi, or Eastern European, descent. Those with a first-degree relative (mother, daughter or sister) or two second-degree relatives (aunt, grandmother) diagnosed with breast or ovarian cancer should consider testing.

Other women with two first-degree relatives diagnosed with breast or ovarian cancer before age 50 should also consider it.

Pros: Learning that you don’t have the mutation can relieve you of worry and avoid costly preventive procedures.

Cons: If the test is positive, you may become anxious and depressed. A counselor can help you consider preventive measures, such as having your breasts and ovaries removed.

Cost: From several hundred dollars to $3,200, depending on the extent of the testing.

4. Cystic Fibrosis
An inherited chronic disease, cystic fibrosis affects the lungs and digestive systems of about 30,000 children and adults in the U.S.

A sweat test is the gold standard for diagnosis; People with CF have a higher level of chloride (salt) in their perspiration. A chemical to induce sweating is applied to an arm or leg. The liquid is then collected and analyzed in a lab.

A blood test can determine if you carry one or more CF gene mutations and how many copies of each.

With a positive test result, the next step is genetic testing to see which mutation you have. Screening newborns for CF is routine in most states.

Who should have the tests? More than 10 million Americans with no symptoms are carriers of the defective cystic fibrosis gene. The blood test helps detect carriers who may pass CF to their children.

To get the disease, a child must inherit one copy of the defective CF gene from each parent. The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists recommends that all couples considering having a child — and pregnant women — have the genetic-carrier testing done.

Pros: Carriers can make an informed decision about family planning, with the help of genetic counseling.

By testing their child, they can find out early if he or she has the disease and from which mutations. Early treatment and preventive measures help because symptoms often don’t show up until degeneration has begun. Cons: Getting a positive CF diagnosis often is stressful and upsetting to parents.

Cost: Sweat tests usually cost about $300 at CF-accredited centers.

A limited mutation panel (23-97 mutations) to see if you’re a carrier typically runs about $400-$500; a comprehensive sequence analysis (more than 1,500 mutations) costs about $2,500.

Mutation testing for those already diagnosed with CF sometimes can be done with the carrier panel, but if that doesn’t find the mutations, a sequence test will cost $2,500-$3,200 for more results.

5. Sickle Cell Anemia
This inherited condition causes a deficiency in healthy red blood cells to carry enough oxygen throughout the body.

A blood test can detect the defective form of hemoglobin that causes the disease. Newborns are routinely screened for it.

In pregnant women, amniocentesis or chorionic villus (CVS) sampling will detect the disease.

Who should have the test? The gene is common among people of African, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and East Indian ancestry. In the U.S., African Americans and Latinos are more commonly affected.

Both parents must carry a sickle cell gene for their baby to be born with the disease. Carriers — those with no symptoms — may pass it on to their children. Those with a sister or brother with the disease are at higher risk.

Pros: Couples who know they’re carriers can seek genetic counseling for prevention information and treatment options.

Cons: If the screening is positive, more tests are needed to determine the number of sickle cells present. There are risks of miscarriage associated with amniocentesis and CVS screenings.

Cost: The hemoglobin test runs about $75; DNA tests are about $300.

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Hello Genealogists, Puerto Ricans, Friends!

August 21, 2011 By

Hola amigos:
Genealogy is one of my many passions and with this site I want to share it with you. Come with me to this journey finding our many roots: from Spain, Africa, Taino Indians…

 

Hello Image

 

The Indigenous People of Iberia (Spain & Portugal)

Arcáicos Etruscans
Arawaks (Igneri) Phoenicians
Huecoids Greeks
Saladoids Celti-Iberians (Celtiberians)
Ostenoids Carthaginians
Pre-Taíno Romans
The Taíno “the Noble, Brave People” Western Romans
Suevi
Vandals
Ostrogoths
Visigoths
The Moors (Almoravids, Almohads, Mozarabes)
Sephardí
Basques
Spaniard (Españoles)

African
The TransAtlantic Slave Trade

ES

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The Genealogy Supplies To Get You Started

August 19, 2011 By

Well, you’re interested in Genealogy and you’ve decided that it’s something you want to pursue either as a casual or serious hobby.  We have all become far more interested in our roots and want to know more. Genealogy, the study of your family tree will offer you the information that you’re looking for about your own history.

What does it take to get involved in tracing your history? What kind of things will facilitate your entry into genealogy? What sort of supplies are necessary, and what can you expect to pay for genealogy supplies to help you get started?

When you’re beginning in genealogy you will of course need a few supplies to get you started. They aren’t for the most part costly things, nor will they need to be replaced frequently. The genealogy supplies that you need  are a necessity because without them, recording, organizing and putting the information in the proper places isn’t going to be easy.

Even if you do most of your research online, genealogy is a paper laden hobby or pursuit. You will want to print out a vast array of papers and save them for reference. Organization of those papers is going to be an absolute necessity unless you’d like to see your genealogy information spread across your desk and reaching skyward.

One of the few genealogy supplies that will serve you well are some loose leaf pages on which you can record your genealogy information. Many people use flat file folders, but we’ve found that those are just too easy to open and spill paperwork to the floor, then spend the next several hours re-categorizing it. A loose leaf  binder or two with plastic sleeves is going to be a lifesaver when it comes to working in genealogy.

The cost for binders is nominal and the savings in time along when you purchase binders and a hole punch as part of your initial genealogy supplies will be vast.

Second on your list of imperatives when it comes to genealogy supplies will be one or two good genealogy how to books to give you some insight and information about how to proceed in your information quest. There are a wide array of good, well written books  on the subject of beginning genealogy. Those books are  one of the genealogy supplies you’re going to need and use often.

A good book on the subject will serve as a desk reference and a valuable source of information for you no matter whether your research takes you to the information  of the Internet or the old  courthouse in a backwater town in Iowa. Get one, get two and take good care of them, because you’re going to find yourself going back to them again and again when you get stuck on something along the way, which you invariably will.

Information might not seem to fall under the category of genealogy supplies, but in some cases you will benefit from joining another site which has forums that you can use. Interaction will help to motivate you and guide you in your genealogy research.  In most cases the cost isn’t large, but it will be well worth it to you to join one or two so that you have the expertise of other genealogy researchers to pull from.

All l your genealogy supplies will cost very little, and be useful for many years to come. If you’re headed out to study your family tree, just as in any other pursuit, spending a little money to get started only makes good sense.

You don’t need many genealogy supplies to get started on your family tree. Just combine these with the step by step methods that have proven to be effective for others who are new to genealogical research. Head on over to tracing your genealogy and get started with your family tree.

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Sagrada Familia

August 19, 2011 By

 

Sagrada Familia is a Roman Catholic Church in Barcelona. Its full name can be translated as “The Basilica and Expiatory Church of the Holy Family”. It was designed by the architect Antoni Gaudi and it is included in the UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites. Today there is a donation fund for the completion of the church. Park Guell and Sagrada Familia, which are both designed by Antoni Gaudi, are two of the most impressive and popular landmarks in Barcelona. Antoni Gaudi was a native Barcelonian and devoted a huge part of his life to fill his city with his wonderful works. You can find the church Sagrada Familia on the square of Sagrada Familia, which is quite near to the centre of Barcelona.

Sagrada Familia, Barcelona Image

The idea of building Sagrada Familia belongs to bookseller Bocabella. In 1872 he returned to Barcelona after visiting the Vatican inspired by the church of Loreto.

In the beginning the cathedral was designed by other architect rather than Gaudi. He wanted to build a standard Catholic Gothic church but when Gaudi started to work, the design was changed thoroughly.

The construction of the church began in 1883 but it never got completed because of the architect’s untimely death in 1926. Gaudi himself was very religious and he spent a great part of his life on the work of designing this church. However, according to the artist, before he died, the work wasn’t even close to the end. In 1936 war interrupted the construction of Sagrada Familia and a fire in Gaudi’s workshop destroyed the works and models of the uncompleted parts of the church. It is planned now that the church will be completed by 2026.

Sagrada Familia Image

The height of Sagrada Familia is about 170 meters. Since 1904 there are three doorways which symbolize Faith, Hope and Charity and 18 towers which represent the Evangelists, the Apostles, the Virgin Mary and Jesus. There are three façades of the church. The East side of it is called the façade of Nativity. The South side of Sagrada Familia is the Glory façade which is not yet completed; the third one is called the Passion façade. The East façade bears the largest influence of Gaudi as it was mostly built during the time of his life. The Passion façade with its tortured characters however is the most impressive of them. Every element of the church is abundant with complexity and deep symbolicism that is especially typical for Gaudi’s works.

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Michelle Rodriguez American Dominican Puerto Rican Powerhouse

August 19, 2011 By

I am not just writing this article because Michelle Rodriguez and I share the same name, although it does make me feel a little cooler. I’m writing this because I’ve recently seen the Robert Rodriguez film Machete and was reminded of her talent as an actress and a role model. Michelle Rodriguez is an actress who is naturally pretty and sports a very soft-spoken voice yet she has the capability to be rough around the edges, not to mention quite the action star.

Rodriguez is an inspiration to many women as she breaks all stereotypes and proves that not only can a woman be naturally sexy, she can also be just as powerful on film and in real life as any man. We are obviously well aware that women have risen above the glass ceiling of life and have succeeded in their personal and professional lives well beyond what was once expected of our gender, but we get a reminder every time we see Rodriguez on the big screen. She brings out the go-getter in all of us when we see her boxing in Girlfight and sporting her get-up as the mystery woman known as “She” in the hot new film Machete. We like that she can get greased up as a mechanic in The Fast and the Furious and still look like a million dollars. You go girl, is all that I have to say.

It does not seem to be pure chance that Michelle Rodriguez lands such roles. As I’ve read in a few interviews the characters that she plays on film are of no coincidence but are carefully selected by Rodriguez herself before auditioning or accepting a part in a movie. Rodriguez enjoys working with Robert Rodriguez as well as with James Cameron as they offer her great support and according to Michelle allow her to have input on the character she plays. She enjoys roles that exhibit her personal and physical strength and wants to take advantage of her youth and her strengths. This is no ordinary actress people, Rodriguez is a 5’6″ powerhouse. Rodriguez was one of 10 children and was raised between her parents and grandmother. Perhaps being in the mix of so many family members growing up was enough to make Rodriguez have the desire to stand out and to become her own successful person.

Being strong-willed is one of Michelle’s assets though she is by no means free of flaws. Rodriguez is a great role-model for women looking to become successful in their career but not necessarily when it comes to her alcohol consumption. She has had many brushes with the law for driving under the influence and has also been arrested for a physical altercation she was involved in with her roommate back in 2002. Another topic that has landed Rodriguez in entertainment news is the question of her sexual orientation. I say who cares, really? Is it that important that someone identify him or herself as a heterosexual, bisexual or gay? Not really. She’s an actress who is best known for great performances on the big screen not for which side she’s batting for. Perhaps it is because Rodriguez is not the stereotypical lipstick wearing, big busted, dog-in-the-purse Hollywood star that she draws such questions concerning her sexual preference.

Michelle Rodriguez has starred in 18 films and has won numerous awards. The first round of awards went to her portrayal of Diana Guzman in the independent hit Girlfight. She brought home a total of five awards including Best Female Newcomer at the Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards, Breakthrough Performance at the Gotham Awards, Best Breakthrough Performance by an Actress at the National Board of Review Awards, Best Debut Performance at the Independent Spirit Awards and the Deauville Film Festival Prize for Best Female Performance. Rodriguez has also taken home the Imagen Foundation Award for Best Supporting Actress In A Film for her performance in S.W.A.T. She was also nominated for awards for her work in The Fast and the Furious and 3 A.M. Rodriguez has earned awards for her work on the hit television series Lost and has done work on voice-overs for video games like Driv3r, Halo 2, True Crime: Streets of LA, and, of course, Avatar.

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