Prediction and modification in functional genomics: combining bioinformatical, bioethical, biomedical and biotechnological research

Cross-disciplinary gains

• First, the biomedical and biotechnological questions investigated are interesting in their own right, and research into these questions will not only gain the separate fields of biomedicine and biotechnology, but will introduce important questions to be answered by bioethics and bioinformatics.
• Secondly, the bioethical issues will be investigated and will lead to important information on the perception of risk for individuals and for society. In a knowledge based society created on the basis of the progress in biotechnology, biomedicine and bioinformatics, we are confronted with the important task to design a new system of technology governance. Incorporation of a public input in decision making in this regard will provide for a democratic legitimacy of the new system, as well as prevent the block in further development of these fields.
• Thirdly, the models and methods developed within bioinformatics will gain bioinformatics as a research field in its own right, and will lead to improved understanding of the biomedical, biotechnological and bioethical questions.
• Finally, the sum of achievements from each discipline in this cross-disciplinary research project will be greater than what would have been achieved in four separate research projects.