Autosomal recessive is a pattern of inheritance. Genetic diseases are caused by changes, also called mutations or pathogenic variants in genes that cause the gene not to work properly. We inherit two copies of each gene from our parents; one from our mothers and the...
Deciding to undergo predictive genetic testing for an adult-onset, incurable condition such as Huntington’s disease (HD), frontotemporal dementia or familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (FALS) can be difficult for at-risk individuals. When an individual has a...
As a genetic counselor, I have heard hundreds of patient stories. Now and again, there are some that create quite an impact; so much of an impact that it changes the way you provide information to other patients. Lee Cooper is that person who profoundly changed how I...
One of the most recent developments in the field of genetics is called genome editing. This group of scientific techniques allows for the addition, removal, or modification of DNA. CRISPR is a method for genome editing that has gained popularity as it is considered to...
One of the leading causes of infant death is a genetic disease called spinal muscular atrophy, also known as SMA. While SMA is genetic, most people are unaware of the risk of having a child with SMA until they either have a child with this disorder or their SMA...
