Genetics
Genetics is a science that studies the laws of heredity and variability of organisms. Thanks to the development of genetics, the progress of biology and medicine in recent decades has become so rapid that the phrase "the XXI century is the century of biotechnology" has become a truism. Of particular interest to us is the use of genetic methods for the prevention and treatment of diseases.
Diagnosis of many hereditary diseases in the early stages of pregnancy and genetic counseling of people who are going to have a child have long ceased to be exotic. Preimplantation diagnosis of severe genetic defects in embryos before in vitro fertilization is a mandatory procedure. The list of hereditary diseases that can be detected even before pregnancy or in its very first months is constantly growing.
Violations of the number or structure of chromosomes are the cause of about 700 hereditary diseases (for example, the well–known Down syndrome). About a thousand individual genes are already known, mutations in which cause genetic diseases, and several thousand more are wanted.
At least half of the "common" diseases are also caused by genetic predisposition. New "disease genes" are discovered almost every day. There are dozens of "diabetes genes", "heart attack genes" and other diseases, and several hundred "cancer genes" – each of them can contribute to the formation of different types of tumors. But, although the increased probability of most diseases is determined not by one, but by a number of genes, in many cases it is already possible to diagnose a predisposition to many diseases with sufficient confidence and take timely measures to prevent them.
More recently, two people received "genetic passports" – a DVD with a recording of the complete sequence of nucleotides of an individual genome worth about a million dollars: James Watson, who, together with Francis Crick, discovered the double helix of DNA, and Craig Venter, one of the most famous modern geneticists and, among other things, the head of the institute where this work was done. work. The world's leading experts are confident that in 10 years the cost of a complete reading of an individual genome will overcome the $1,000 milestone. This looks like a fairly realistic goal, given that the multi–year international project "Human Genome", completed seven years ago, cost three billion. In a few more years, obtaining a "genetic passport" will begin to turn into a routine medical procedure. Medicine of the XXI century will be predictive, preventive and personalized, i.e. predicting, preventing and focused not on the fight against individual diseases, but on clearly and scientifically individualized prevention and treatment of a particular patient.
The study of the genetic mechanisms of aging sooner or later (perhaps very soon) will allow us to find ways to prolong youth, ensure active longevity and increase life expectancy.