The genetic variation within our bodies is often neglected in discussions of DNA. But each of us contains a fantastical number of genomes that keep shape-shifting throughout our lives. We should celebrate our intra-person genetic variability. Call it IPGV, since using an acronym seems to give scientific street cred to a concept or phenomenon.

World Athletics recently released new criteria for determining who can compete as a female in World Athletics sanctioned events. The criteria are straightforward - to compete as a female you must test negative for the SRY gene. This post critiques that criterion in light of the complexity of the development of primary and secondary sexual traits.

The controversy-du-jour in the mediaverse this past week centers on an advertising campaign for a pair of jeans by an apparel company, starring uber-celebrity Sydney Sweeney, that has raised the eugenics specter. It also capitalizes on the faded pun of jeans/genes, which gave me literary leeway to use the weak pun in the title of this posting. The controversy will likely be so short-lived that by the time this posting is up, the world will have its knickers in a twist over something else.

The trump administration seems to think America has a birth rate that is too low. Basically, the idea is that in this country you just can't have enough babies born to White middle and upper middle income married couples. Proposed pronatalist measures for increasing the birth rate, many of which are likely to be championed by the trump administration, stand out for their foolishness, ineptitude, and…

Authors: Contract employees of the newly-created NIH Division of Genomic Efficiency (NIH-DOGE), the cost-effective replacement NIH Institute for the now defunct National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI). The mission of NIH-DOGE is to improve America's genetic health. NOTE: This is a satire. I added this disclaimer after I wrote the first draft of this post because, well, it sounded like it could be true.

Last week in Part 1 I looked at the potential impact of Trump's policies on genetic counselors. Here I speculate about their impact on patients. As in my last posting, my analysis is not complete and, so far, mostly speculative because the effects of the policies are only beginning to be felt and Trump flip-flops so frequently that it's hard to know how permanent they will be.

This is a two part blogpost. Part 1 focuses on the impact of Trump's policies on genetic counselors. Part 2, which I plan to post next week, will focus on the impact on patients. When everyone is up front and they're not playing tricksWhen you don't have no freeloaders out to get their kicksWhen it's nobody's business the way that you want to live…

Let me start by saying that I am not sure yet about what genetic counselors should be doing to fight the racist, vile, despicable, UnChristian/unMuslim/unJewish/unEvery Other Religion-In-The-World policies, actions, and statements of the Trump administration. I do know that we should not be cowering quietly in the corner, overwhelmed by the crap coming out of the bowels of (F)Elon Musk and PINO Trump (President In Name Only) in peristaltic waves.

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Back on January 20th, American democracy and decency began to swalllow a poison pill of its own electoral making. The fallout has been all kinds of horrible, nationally and internationally, except in Moscow where Putin is having a belly laugh because America is doing his dirty work by destroying itself. The US Constitution is being shredded. People who are transgender, gay, non-White, and all the other non-majority varieties of American demographics feel that their very lives are threatened.

Should I stay or should I go now?If I go there will be troubleAnd if I stay it will be double- From The Clash’s “Should I Stay or Should I Go?” Working with patients as they make …

Should I stay or should I go now?If I go there will be troubleAnd if I stay it will be double- From The Clash's "Should I Stay or Should I Go?" Working with patients as they make decisions is one of the core components of genetic counseling. It's not the only thing genetic counselors do, but we sure do it a lot.