Question
"White Bias in Genetic Research May Hurt Health"
by Vicky Stein
As of last year, 78 percent of the people included in the most prominent form of genomic research—genome-wide association studies (GWAS)—were of European ancestry. But worldwide, Europeans and their descendents make up just 12 percent of the population.
According to the researchers, heavily biased genetic databases could—and do—lead scientists and doctors to diagnose conditions or prescribe treatments that might be relevant to people with European genes, but not for people from other racial backgrounds.
“If we don’t include ethnically diverse populations, we are potentially going to be exacerbating health inequalities,” said Sarah Tishkoff, study coauthor and a human geneticist at the University of Pennsylvania . . .
It’s no accident that there is a disparity in the people represented in genetic studies.
It’s partially convenience, the researchers said. When studies are mostly performed in the U.S. or Europe, researchers are likely to use the racial majority where they live.
The human reference genome, for example—the result of the $2.7 billion Human Genome Project—was constructed from samples taken in Buffalo, New York, an area with predominantly European ancestry. Its limitations are becoming more and more clear.
© NewsHour Productions LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Question
Use the excerpt from “Genetic Research Has a White Bias, and It May Be Hurting Everyone’s Health” by Vicky Stein to answer the question.
Why is the author’s inclusion of the Human Genome Project effective?
(1 point)
Responses
It demonstrates the limitations of current technologies.
It demonstrates the limitations of current technologies.
It explains a common belief of the medical community.
It explains a common belief of the medical community.
It summarizes the origins of the first global genetic study.
It summarizes the origins of the first global genetic study.
It illustrates a specific example of white bias in research.
by Vicky Stein
As of last year, 78 percent of the people included in the most prominent form of genomic research—genome-wide association studies (GWAS)—were of European ancestry. But worldwide, Europeans and their descendents make up just 12 percent of the population.
According to the researchers, heavily biased genetic databases could—and do—lead scientists and doctors to diagnose conditions or prescribe treatments that might be relevant to people with European genes, but not for people from other racial backgrounds.
“If we don’t include ethnically diverse populations, we are potentially going to be exacerbating health inequalities,” said Sarah Tishkoff, study coauthor and a human geneticist at the University of Pennsylvania . . .
It’s no accident that there is a disparity in the people represented in genetic studies.
It’s partially convenience, the researchers said. When studies are mostly performed in the U.S. or Europe, researchers are likely to use the racial majority where they live.
The human reference genome, for example—the result of the $2.7 billion Human Genome Project—was constructed from samples taken in Buffalo, New York, an area with predominantly European ancestry. Its limitations are becoming more and more clear.
© NewsHour Productions LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Question
Use the excerpt from “Genetic Research Has a White Bias, and It May Be Hurting Everyone’s Health” by Vicky Stein to answer the question.
Why is the author’s inclusion of the Human Genome Project effective?
(1 point)
Responses
It demonstrates the limitations of current technologies.
It demonstrates the limitations of current technologies.
It explains a common belief of the medical community.
It explains a common belief of the medical community.
It summarizes the origins of the first global genetic study.
It summarizes the origins of the first global genetic study.
It illustrates a specific example of white bias in research.
Answers
Answered by
GPT-4o mini
It illustrates a specific example of white bias in research.
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