The annual meeting of the American College of Medical Genetics (ACMG) brings together a large proportion of basic and clinical investigators of rare genetic diseases. The organizers propose a series of workshops to be held in conjunction with ACMG meetings to consider issues related to identifying needs and opportunities for collaborative research involving rare genetic diseases (RGDs) associated with birth defects, mental retardation and developmental disabilities, and would set the stage for clinical and translational research.

Most, if not all, human diseases have one or more genetic factors that contribute to cause, likelihood of occurrence, severity, and response to existing or experimental treatments. There is a general perception that the ability to define a person's genetic makeup will lead to better health, improved treatments and a better understanding of risks to other family members. However, many genetic technologies increase uncertainty and confusion in the minds of patients, relatives, doctors, health insurers and others.

This proposal requests funding to support an evaluation of existing regulatory frameworks and their appropriateness for the regulation of new probiotic products that are available in the market or will be available in the near future.

Learning more about the human microbiome is likely to change the way medicine is practiced. It may also have implications for our society and our legal system and important implications for how we conceive and address the ethics of medicine and biomedical research.

This research project will collect and analyze qualitative and quantitative data about US biobanks, exploring how organizational strategies, features, and attributes affect both framing and response to ELSI and policy choices. We argue that a biobank's organizational features impact 1) policy choices directly, and 2) members' framing and response to ELSI which in turn impact policy choices.

This application seeks to better understand the needs of patients undergoing genomic testing with respect to the understanding of an adaptation to genomic information through genomic counseling. Through an existing partnership between the Ohio State University Medical Center and the Coriell Institute's Personalized Medicine Collaborative, over 5000 participants have been enrolled in two studies aimed at evaluating the utility of personalized medicine.

This application is in response to PAR-13-027, International Research Ethics Education and Curriculum Development Award. The proposed project builds on an existing relationship in biomedical research capacity- building and training between the University of Pennsylvania (Penn) and two Guatemalan universities, the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (USAC), the country's premier public university, and the Universidad Francisco Marroquin (UFM).