Newborn Screening News and Resources from the March of Dimes

Nearly 90% of Babies Receive Recommended Newborn Screening Tests: State Programs Expand, But Half a Million Babies Still Not Screened for Serious Genetic Disorders

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., JULY 11, 2007 - Nearly 90 percent of all babies born in the United States - more than double the percentage in 2005 - live in states that require screening for at least 21 life-threatening disorders, according to the latest March of Dimes Newborn Screening Report Card. [Read more ]

Related Resources: In addition to last week’s press release (excerpt above) visit the March of Dimes PeriStats site for related statistics, “report cards”, and basic GIS maps. For additional maps, including a U.S. map linked to state genetic services plans, visit a PeriStats collaborator, the National Newborn Screening and Genetics Resource Center.

Presentations from the NHGRI Science Reporters’ Seminar on Genome-Wide Association Studies

from National Humane Genome Research Institute (NHGRI). Retrieved 14 June 2007 from http://genome.gov/25521070

NHGRI Holds Science Reporters' Seminar on Genome-Wide Association Studies

Bethesda, Md., May 1, 2007 - The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) offered a seminar on Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) to leading science reporters from major media around the United States. Genome-Wide Association Studies have been possible only in the last two years since the completion of the International HapMap Project in October 2005 and the development of several new technology platforms that have dramatically reduced the cost of genotyping, a kind of scan across a person's entire genome that seeks out genetic variation. Now, numerous research teams will be reporting results on common disease, ranging from heart disease to cancer to mental illnesses and diabetes.

In the seminar, NHGRI experts in this new field explain how the science works, how it will speed up the understanding of the genetics of common diseases, and how that will lead to the development of new diagnostics, preventives and therapeutics.

PredictER Note:

Site includes links to video and slide presentations from the conference:

Welcome and Introduction. Francis Collins, M.D., Ph.D.; Director, National Human Genome Research Institute

Human Heredity and Environment: Nature and Nurture. Emily Harris, M.P.H., Ph.D.; Epidemiologist, Office of Population Genomics

Genetic Variation. Larry Brody, Ph.D.; Senior Investigator, Genome Technology Branch.

Genome-Wide Association Studies. Teri Manolio, M.D., Ph.D.; Senior Advisor to the Director for Population Genomics

Common Disease Findings. Francis Collins, M.D., Ph.D.; Director, National Human Genome Research Institute

Genetic Influence on Human Traits and Behaviors. Elaine Ostrander, Ph.D.; Chief and Senior Investigator, Cancer Genetics Branch

Genetics and Race. Vence Bonham, J.D.; Senior Advisor to the Director on Societal Implications of Genomics