Latest news
* 22.12.2006:
BIOEMIT Newsletter December 2006
Upcoming
events
BIOEMIT
* Project description
* Cross-disciplinary
gains
* Research plans
* Project management group
* List of participants
* Project communications
* Research fellows
* Research results
Seminars and courses
Interesting reading:
*
Genetically modified food to rats on Schrødingers katt www-page
*
Gentisk veiledning fra NRK P1 Norgesglasset
*
Gen-sidene
*
Vital statistics in Nature
Participating units at NTNU:
* SVT: ISS and PSY
* HF: FI
* IME: IMF
* NT: BI
* DMF: ISM and
IKM
*
Program for Bioinformatikk at NTNU
* Bioethical research group
Related projects
*
Norwegian Arabidopsis Research Center
* The Norwegian Microarray
Consortium
http://www.bioethics.ntnu.no/biobanks
|
|
Research plans
The common focus of this project is prediction and modification in
functional genomics. The project can be decomposed into four
axes. These axes are the,
- biomedical axis: prediction based on gene expression - the
study of gastrin regulated genes and gastric carcinomas, and
identification of predictive markers for cancer diagnosis
- biotechnological axis: genetic prediction and modification –
the study of genetically controlled changes of plant metabolism,
- bioinformatical axis: genetic prediction and modification -
development of statistical, mathematical, chemometrical and
informatical models and methods, for generation of predictive models
for medicine and biotechnology
- bioethical axis: risk and genetic prediction - presymptomatic
screening, risk-perception and public health, public perception,
identifying stakeholders and mapping their values with the aim to
incorporate them into policy process and consensus building.
The four axes provide balance and symmetry in the project necessary to
be able to achieve cross-disciplinary gains.
This cross-disciplinary research project is concentrated around the
scientific research and achievements of seven collaborating research
fellows and their respective research groups. Research plans for the
research fellows are as follows.
Biomedical axis:
The postdoc in molecular biology will perform DNA microarray analysis,
contribute to optimal use of physiological, patological and clinical
data under the interpretation of microarray data. She will perform the
experimental studies for identification of molecular biological
mechanisms involved in gastric response and gastric carcinoma. The PhD
student in medicine will perform studies involving experimental animal
models and patient material. Several collaborating PhD students and
post.doc. candidates are already in place and funding will be sought
for additional candidates which are needed for carrying out biomedical
research of relevance to the present cross-disciplinary project.
Biotechnological axis:
The post doc in biotechnology will generate basic metabolic and
transcriptional data from knock-outs and transgenic material where
specific genetically controlled modifications have been
introduced. These data will be used to study metabolic networks of
living cells and the cross-talk between different parts of the
network. Plants produce some 200000 different metabolites of which a
number are the basis of life and health of other organisms. It is
therefore of outmost interest to acquire more knowledge about how the
cellular processes work, how they are regulated and how genetically
introduced changes affect the networks and the products formed. Such
data is also important for evaluation of consequences and potential
risks of genetic/metabolic engineering.
Bioinformatical axis:
The postdoc in statistics will develop statistical models and methods
for analysis of data from DNA microarray experiments. These analyses
must be performed in close connection with the researchers in
molecular biology and medicine. The statistics postdoc will also be
central in the planning of DNA microarray experiments to ensure that
the statistical findings have the highest precision
possible. Physiological, pato-physiological and clinical data will be
connected to the DNA microarray data with the aid of statistical
model, where the aim is to discriminate between different outcomes
(normal vs. disease) and to predict future outcomes (e.g. from choice
of treatments).
The post.doc. in
metabolic modeling will develop tools needed for analyzes of data from
metabolic and transcriptional profiling experiments. The integration
of data from analyses of metabolites and transcripts and phenotypical
data represents a challenge to understand how the gene products
organize themselves into interactive networks. These are dynamic
molecular relationships and processes including several levels of
tightly regulated activities. The post doc will interact with a
advisory group to help integrate prediction and modeling of the
networks.
Bioethical-medical axis:
The research fellow will follow the micro-array research process and,
through semi-structured interviews with a sample of researchers and
clinicians, study their expectations to fields of application and
whether there are ethical dilemmas concerning the
technology. Expectations and ethical considerations at the time of
development of medical technology currently in use for presymptomatic
diagnostics will be studied in scientific literature, primary
sources, media and other sources. Expectations to health implications
of a sample of medical break-throughs will be studied by media
presentations, scientific sources and in publications from health
authorities. The approach will be a cultural analytic one.
Bioethical-political axis:
Identifying of the value systems of the stakeholders engaged and using
the data in constructing of the policy process. This research will be
based theoretically on the risk society perspective, scenario
construction and the concept of technological citizenship. The
analysis of the mentioned problem with respect to genetically modified
food and gene technology has been initiated by the researchers at
Institutt for sosiologi og statsvitenskap in 1999 and has resulted in
publications and presentations at international conferences, such as
the First European Ethics Summit and the Workshop of the European
Consortium of Political Research.
|
