Genes and Society

The project to sequence the human genome has inspired knowledge and technologies of tremendous consequence.  The theme "Genes and Society" covers all approaches to extend and utilize our knowledge of genes and their function for enhanced understanding, invention and innovation.

Benefits to Society

We are in the midst of a transformation that places Biology at the centre of scientific and societal change.   Central to this is the accumulation of vast sequence information on genomes, which reveals their organization and diversity across individuals, species and time.   This information, together with remarkable technologies to assess and manipulate gene function, will impact human knowledge, medicine, and technology in myriad ways, most of which remain to be identified.  This theme focuses interests, abilities and intelligence across College on the central issue of genes and genomes, in order to harness for the benefit of society, the explosion of opportunities now available.

Research at Trinity

Research in genetics and genomics is particularly strong in the School of Genetics and Microbiology and in the School of Medicine.  However, there is considerable activity in other Schools including: Natural Sciences, Psychology, Biochemistry and Immunology and Engineering.  This theme, will promote and anchor connections among diverse fields of science and humanities, and provide a multidisciplinary platform for addressing hugely important questions. 

For example, in Psychology and Neuroscience:  how do genetic variations determine individual traits? In Sociology: how may individuals and society benefit from this information?. In History: what roles did disease, ecological change and human migration play in ancient events that led to today's civilization? In Law, how should the use of individual genome information be regulated? In Medicine: how do individual genome sequences predict vulnerability to disease and response to personalized therapy? What preventive measures are suggested by our growing ability to predict disease?  How will knowledge of human and pathogen genome sequences, integrated with technologies for gene manipulation drive the discovery of new therapeutics?  In Industry, Chemistry and Engineering: how will knowledge of microbial, plant and animal genomes, together with the ability to manipulate them, allow the invention of organisms, materials, compounds and manufacturing processes with clinical, industrial and agricultural relevance?  And in Mathematics and Computer Science: how can one extract meaningful information from genome sequences?

Research Champion

The research champion for this theme is Prof. Mani Ramaswami
Co-Championed by:  Prof. Seamus Martin and Prof. Jane Farrar