2012 National DNA Day Online Chatroom Transcript
This is just one question from an archive of the National DNA Day Moderated Chat held in April 2012. The NHGRI Director and many genomics experts from across NHGRI took questions from students, teachers and the general public on topics ranging from basic genomic research, to the genetic basis of disease, to ethical questions about genetic privacy.
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If DNA is injected into a growing or living organism, how fast or how much time before a change is seen?
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Donna Krasnewich, M.D., Ph.D.:
I am a Program Director at the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS). I am knowledgeable in diseases resulting from inborn errors of metabolism.
It depends on what happens to the DNA injected. Sometimes the effect can be quite rapid. But remember that often the gene will be replicated and transcribed best if it is integrated into the whole genomic DNA of the cell. The insertion of injected DNA is typically into a random spot, and if that random insertion site isn't replicated often then it will not be transcribed easily and will not have much effect. Also, the gene may have a function that takes a long time to show, so the gene may be working but we can't see it. Another important thing to think about is that much of the injected DNA never gets transcribed at all, it just gets degraded. Currently, there are scientists working on getting injected DNA to the right place in an efficient manner to cause the appropriate change. Lots to learn. |
| McDowell Intermediate High School in PA (10th grade student) |
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