What is medical genetics all about????

[Mohammed Inamul Ahmed]

Hi, i am a lower sixth form student and at school i found learning about genetics very interesting so i came here to see what medical genetics is all about only to find there are no threads here. So i thought i'd start one so that hopefully if anyone knows anything about medical genetics they might post some information on here. I would greatly appreciate this as i find this speciality quite intriguing. Any help or information would be much appreciated. Thanks very much.

[Dan1979]

In a nutshell, genetic medicine involves the treatment of people with genetic disease, for instance trisomies like Down syndrome.

[Mohammed Inamul Ahmed]

oh i see, i have at least some idea now. Thanks for your reply dan. Does anyoneone have any recommendations for any interesting reads for genetics in general which are not too complicated for an alevel student? Also any other persons' experiences and knowledge of genetic medicine would be much appreciated. Thanks.

[Dan1979]

Check out 'Genome: The History of a Species in 23 Chapters'. It's a pretty interesting read, and it goes some way to breaking genetics down into an understandable format. I can't remember the author, I'm afraid.

[Mohammed Inamul Ahmed]

Hey Dan. I found the book, I will try to get hold of it. Many thanks!!

[pilly84]

Originally Posted by Dan1979

Check out 'Genome: The History of a Species in 23 Chapters'. It's a pretty interesting read, and it goes some way to breaking genetics down into an understandable format. I can't remember the author, I'm afraid.

The author is Matt Ridley. It's an excellent book. If you enjoy this and are interested in genetics from an evolutionary aspect you may like 'The Selfish Gene' by Richard Dawkins. If all goes well with my exams, I hope to intercalate in medical genetics next year It's a fascinating subject.

[Mohammed Inamul Ahmed]

Hey bubblepop, this may be an old thread but my interest is still very much alive!! Many thanks for your recommendation, I will certainly look it up.

Thanks fpr your recommendation too pilly, I will look that up too, oh and by the way, is there any chance u many know about what sort of things a doctor involved in medical genetics may need to do and any different methods of treatment?? I'm very much interested in medicine as a career and i find genentics generally fascinating too and any info would be very much appreciated. Many thanks. Oh yes and I wish you all the best in your exams!!

[BubblePop]

No prob Mohammed, I'm currently doing an MSc in this subject so I know a fair bit about it. It's really interesting and especially since it's being swept up by more and more scientific media coverage, it's good to know even a little bit about it.

[itihad]

here you go Mohammed

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_genetics

[pilly84]

Originally Posted by Mohammed Inamul Ahmed

Thanks fpr your recommendation too pilly, I will look that up too, oh and by the way, is there any chance u many know about what sort of things a doctor involved in medical genetics may need to do and any different methods of treatment?? I'm very much interested in medicine as a career and i find genentics generally fascinating too and any info would be very much appreciated. Many thanks. Oh yes and I wish you all the best in your exams!!

Thanks Mohammed Inamul Ahmed!

I think the role of Medical Geneticists is best summed up by this web page:

http://www.nhscareers.nhs.uk/nhs-kno...data/5470.html

The British Society for Human Genetics may also give you some more information:

http://www.bshg.org.uk/

Genetics is something that tends to be undertaught at medical schools because you generally either love it or hate it (most people hate it!). If you are interested, it might be worth considering intercalating in genetics.

EDIT: Just found this very useful webpage:

http://www.clingensoc.org/Trainees/careers.htm