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Human Genome News, October-December 1996; 8:(2)
Long-Term Efficacy, Adverse Consequences Not Yet Known
An overview of challenges facing gene therapy is presented in a special feature of the September 10, 1996, issue of Human Gene Therapy (7, 1781-90). "Gene Therapy in the United States: A Five-Year Status Report" concludes that it clearly is too early to assess the therapeutic efficacy of gene therapy or even to predict its promise. Although the public is excited about novel medical cures and some measure of success has been achieved in certain technical aspects of gene transfer, the report says that gene therapy is still at an early stage. Nearly all the gene-therapy studies consist of Phase I trials, with the goal of establishing the procedure's safety rather than its effectiveness. [Article reprints: Brian R. Smith; Yale University School of Medicine; 333 Cedar Street, P.O. Box 208035; New Haven, CT 06520-8035]
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Human Genome Program, U.S. Department of Energy, Human Genome News (v8n2).
The Human Genome Project (HGP) was an international 13-year effort, 1990 to 2003. Primary goals were to discover the complete set of human genes and make them accessible for further biological study, and determine the complete sequence of DNA bases in the human genome. See Timeline for more HGP history.
Published from 1989 until 2002, this newsletter facilitated HGP communication, helped prevent duplication of research effort, and informed persons interested in genome research.