Human Genetics

Kim Finer, Department of Biological Sciences, Kent State University - Stark Campus, Canton, Ohio

This course is organized around this key question: How will advances in Human Genetics, particularly data generated by the Human Genome Project, have an impact on society? Six years ago, Human Genetics was taught as a traditional genetics "content" course to nursing students. However, the huge volume of information generated by the Human Genome Project has changed the course dramatically. In addition to a basic understanding of genetic principles, students are now also challenged with ethical, legal, moral, and social questions that new information, research, and technologies have raised. The science content of the course includes the history of genetics as a discipline, how genetic material is transferred, genetic defects at the molecular and chromosomal level, sex determination, and gene mapping and manipulation. The ethical and civic questions addressed include the political and medical use of eugenics, genetic testing and privacy, laws against race mixing, the patenting of genetic material, genetically modified food, the therapeutic and experimental use of fetal tissue, and cloning. Course activities and teaching tools include the use of problems and case studies drawn from historical and contemporary sources. Other teaching strategies and assignments, such as poster presentations, term papers, position papers, and class discussions, are used. In a recent semester, the course centerpiece was a portfolio composed of ten journal entries, each one a synopsis and critique of an article found in the popular press concerning genetic advances. Synopses included both the genetic principles that applied to the news item and a thoughtful opinion of the application or value of the new information or technological advance to society. The portfolios featured a reflective essay describing the ways in which student thinking, reading, and writing have improved, and how sharply their critical thinking skills developed, as well as an evaluation of how their content learning improved.

Course Learning Goals

The objective of the student will be to master the following classical genetic concepts: DNA and RNA replication, chromosomal structure, cell division, Mendelian inheritance, sex linkage, mutation, gene mapping, cloning, and gene regulation. These concepts will then be applied to specific genetic topics. To meet the above objective it will be the goal of the student to master the material such that he or she will be able to answer the review questions found at the end of each chapter in the book.