Summer SAVY 2016 (Session 5, Day 1) – More Data, More Problems: Tackling Genetic Epidemiology

Posted by hallep on Monday, July 25, 2016 in Grade 5, Grade 6, SAVY.

Hello Students and Parents!

We had a busy day in Tackling Genetic Epidemiology today. During the morning, we did a few introductions and learned a little about our fellow geneticists in training. We also did a review of a few genetics terms that we are going to be using this week. The students did a fantastic job explaining their terms to their fellow students via the use of visuals and skits.

After lunch, we learned about the genetic traits we have in our classroom, including detached earlobes, dimples, and who in our class was able to taste PTC, thiourea, and sodium benzoate. We also made a bar graph to present our class data. Finally, we started to learn about the Precision Medicine Initiative, or PMI. We learned that the goal of the PMI is to be able to provide highly specific care for patients so that patients are more effectively treated and have better health outcomes. We also learned that the PMI is in the process of generating a database of one million individuals with all kinds of data including genetic data, health data, and environment data and that Vanderbilt is the first site in the nation to be a part of the PMI project!

I am looking forward to continuing to expanding our knowledge of genetic epidemiology tomorrow and beginning to start planning our genetic epidemiology studies.

See you tomorrow!

Brittany Hollister