Genetics | Penn Today

liang feng, erica korb, and weijie su headshots

Three Penn faculty named 2020 Sloan Research Fellows

Engineer Liang Feng, neuroscientist Erica Korb, and statistician Weijie Su each received the competitive and prestigious award honoring early-career researchers.

Old Genealogy Family History Photographs and Documents

Do DIY DNA kits revive a harmful perceived link between genetics and race?

Research from sociologist Wendy Roth reveals that on average, these tests don’t reinforce the idea of essentialism, but how much participants know about genetics going in matters.

Cluster of luminescent sperm swimming upstream

Uncovering a defective sperm epigenome that leads to male infertility

A new mouse model allows researchers to track defective sperm and potentially find ways to correct it.

African American patient in a hospital bed

This genetic variant is underdiagnosed, under-recognized, and deadly

A genetic variant which is found in about 3 percent of individuals of African ancestry is a more significant cause of heart failure than previously believed, according to a multi-institution study led by researchers at Penn Medicine.

A scientist in a white coat with blue rubber gloves on holding a petri dish. In the background are lab materials on several sets of shelves.

Q&A

The view from inside the ‘medical scandal’ of China’s gene-edited babies

In a Q&A, geneticist Kiran Musunuru describes his unintentional connection to the scientist behind the scandal and the book that came out of the experience.

carpenter ant perched on the top of a stick

Reprogramming ant ‘soldiers’

A Penn study reveals the epigenetic pathway that controls social behavior in carpenter ants, finding that the ants reprogram up to five days after they hatch, while reprogramming was ineffective at the 10-day mark.

Row of six adorable and different dog breeds

Genes play a role in dog breed differences in behavior

Border collies are highly trainable, greyhounds love to chase, and German shepherds make good guard dogs. While the environment plays a role, traits like these are highly heritable. A new study identifies 131 genetic variants associated with breed differences in behavior.

How genetics paint a picture of the Jewish past

Steven Weitzman of the School of Arts and Sciences commented on efforts to study Jewish genetics. While the research is “fascinating,” he acknowledges that it may make some uncomfortable. “There’s a lot of resistance to [genetic research] within the field of Jewish studies,” Weitzman said. “A lot of people remember or have in mind the role of race science in Nazism. So the idea that Jewish scholars would look in any way to genetics to understand Jewish identity or Jewish history and origins can make people concerned.”

A DNA test revealed this man is 4% black. Now he wants to abolish affirmative action

Wendy Roth of the School of Arts and Sciences spoke about DNA testing and its intersection with culture and identity. “Right now I don’t think that [companies selling at-home genealogy kits] are generally doing a good enough job of explaining how these tests should be interpreted and what the limitations are and what some potential negative impacts could be,” she said.

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