This excerpt is the story of a young family with two children who have spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). SMA is a rare genetic neuromuscular disease that affects the part of the nervous system that controls voluntary muscle movement. It is a deteriorating disease — and children with this form of SMA may survive to two years of age or older.

THE GENE weaves together science, history & personal stories for a historical biography of the human genome, while also exploring breakthroughs for diagnosis & treatment of genetic diseases & the complex ethical questions they raise.

“This generation has the responsibility to protect and to understand and to intervene on the most human thing that we possess in common – the human genome. And it’s an awesome responsibility.” – Dr. Sid Mukherjee.

Examine what makes up the perfectly symmetrical double helix and what that discovery means for the secret of life.

How could you take a piece of information and make it vanish from one generation, and then have it reappear? The only way is if the genetic information doesn’t get erased. It can be suppressed and hidden, but it remains intact across generations.

Catch up on the race to sequence the human genome and the consequences of what would happen if genes involved in diseases such as breast cancer became available only to the highest bidders.

Did you know that the DNA found within each gene can be read whole or in part, producing different results? It’s as if the exact same phrases and sentences that provide the instructions for making the legs of a chair could be rearranged to make the seat or the armrests.

How many genes does it take to build an organ as complex as the human brain? The answer? Fewer than in an onion! Discover just how many human genes there are.

This excerpt is the story of a young family with two children who have spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). SMA is a rare genetic neuromuscular disease that affects the part of the nervous system that controls voluntary muscle movement. It is a deteriorating disease — and children with this form of SMA may survive to two years of age or older.