Should you read your DNA? | Noam Shomron | TEDxTelAvivUniversity

From Dr. Noam Shomron: You should watch out. After listening to Dr. Shomron's talk, you'll think twice before running to read your DNA. He can know everything about you, including what the future holds for you, what diseases you might catch (God forbid), and when you will meet your end.

Dr. Shomron heads the Genomic Intelligence Laboratory at Tel Aviv University's faculty of medicine. He is also the director of Rare Genomics Israel, an organization aiding kids with genetic disorders. After you hear him on stage, you’ll be at a huge dilemma regarding your personal DNA. Produced by Gilad Adin http://www.giladadin.com/

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx

What if I told you

I could read your DNA, your genetic
makeup, your "Book of Life?"

Are you interested?

I can give you a vast amount
of information about yourself

that will help you live longer
and better lives.

Isn't that wonderful?

Do you want to?

You don't want to?

You are not sure?

Well, you're probably right.

It's complex.

Let me explain.

We are reaching a time

when more and more people will have
easy access to their DNA.

Just about 15 years ago,

it cost the equivalent
of four jumbo jet airplanes

to read the sequence of one human DNA
from beginning to end.

Today, it costs around
a bicycle to read the DNA.

And it takes about the time
to read your DNA

the same time it'll take you to ride
your bicycle from home to work and back.

Before you know it,

it's going to cost like a cup of coffee,

and it'll take the time to read your DNA

the same time it'll take you
to drink the coffee.

Isn't that amazing?

We are reaching a time
which we call "DNA of Everything."

We will be able to read the DNA
of everything around us.

This is a new layer of information
we have never seen before.

For example, you'll be able to read
the food you're eating

in order to understand what it contains
and what it's composed of.

I could read your DNA and figure out

what you contain
and what you're composed of.

You could use that to minimize
injuries and diseases.

For example, imagine you want
to run a marathon,

and besides the physiological test,

what if I told you that I could look
at your genes and tell you

whether your body can stand up
to this extreme stress?

Wouldn't you want to know that?

You can then take preventative measures,

start treatment,

or look at your genes and decide whether
you want to understand them or not.

You can change your lifestyle.

You can change the way you live

in order to minimize the risks
for these diseases.

Not only healthy individuals can benefit
from reading their DNA,

reading your DNA can also assist
in solving complex medical puzzles.

A few years ago,

Nicholas Volker from Wisconsin suffered
from an inflamed intestine.

He underwent more than 150 operations
in the first four years of his life.

His doctors didn't know what
the cause of his sufferings is,

but they decided that they wanted
to test a new technology,

an unproven technology.

This technology is DNA sequencing.

They were able to locate
the exact mutation on his DNA,

the change of his DNA
that probably explained

much of his suffering
and his medical condition.

And it also dictated a treatment:
bone marrow transplantation.

A few weeks later,
Nic was out of the hospital.

It was certain that DNA
sequencing saved Nic's life

At Tel Aviv University,
the team that I lead,

the genomic intelligence team,

has been reading and sequencing hundreds
of individuals in the past few years.

We scanned their DNA and we tried
to look for their change,

the mutation that leads to many
of their severe conditions.

They come to us with their physicians,

and we look at their DNA,

and we identify their exact mutation
that leads to their medical condition.

We were able to find many
of these novel mutations,

new mutations that explain
much of their suffering.

This is the first critical step in
understanding what leads to their disease.

And it's also a critical step in trying
to alleviate their suffering.

Some of them also lead to cure
or treatment for these patients.

So, reading your DNA is wonderful.

It's terrific.

We should all read our DNA.

OK, who's coming up first?

Many people asked me
if I have read my own DNA.

And the truth is ... No.

I haven't.

Why?

It's complex.

I have a game I play with my children.

We look up at the sky,
and we point at one of the clouds,

and then we try to figure out
what form the cloud takes.

Sometimes we see familiar faces;

other times we see dragons or princesses.

However, very rarely,
we see the same image

even if we look at the same cloud.

When I go back to the lab,
and I look at genetic information,

sometimes I feel like I'm playing
the same guessing game

I just played with my children.

Sometimes, it looks like a dragon,

and other times, it looks like a princess.

It doesn't have a definite structure.

What I mean is that even if
I find the mutation,

I can't always say if it's good or bad.

The answer is not straightforward,

and sometimes it leads to confusion
and to greater uncertainty.

Let's say, you came to me,
and you wanted to look at your genes.

We are looking at the genomic cloud,

and we are trying to define this cloud.

If I look at your DNA,
while scanning for genes to see

whether your body can stand up
to the extreme stress,

maybe I can also see genes

that are involved
in early cancer development,

or Alzheimer's disease,

or Parkinson's disease.

Now, would you want to know that?

The most challenging concern
when reading your DNA

is once you read it, you can't go back.

You can't erase this information.

You can't unlearn.

That's scary.

What if this information
would get out there?

It could be used against you.

12 year-old Colman was expelled
from school in Palo Alto, California

because he carried a mutation
that increased his risk for infections

that jeopardized other children at school.

He wasn't even sick.

He was just carrying the mutation.

Would we want to start
testing our politicians to see

whether they'll suffer from a devastating
disease during their service period -

you know, it might affect
their decision making.

Will we start selecting
our lifetime partners based on DNA,

and checking their loyalty in the DNA
before we get married?

And after we get married,
what about the next generation?

We all want perfect babies.

What if the parents
of this child were told

that their child will eventually
suffer from ALS?

Or this child - if his parents were told

that he will suffer
from severe hearing loss?

Or what about this sweet child -

if his parents were told
that at the age of 60

he will suffer from
Parkinson-like symptoms?

What would they have done?

What would the world look like
without these and many other children?

Will we shape our society
based on DNA sequencing?

It has already begun.

Abortions are on the rise
in the past few years

in parallel to advance
in DNA sequencing technologies.

Maybe - maybe if we gradually
look at the DNA,

and not all at once,

it would be easier
to digest this information.

In the lab, we call it
responsible genomics:

meaning giving the right person
the needed information at the right time,

whether it be prenatal diagnosis,

or predisposition to diabetes,

or cardiovascular complication.

We are scanning the DNA
and dividing it to discreet units,

and evaluating the private parts
and the open parts.

We are evaluating the risks versus
the benefits of exposing your DNA.

We are ranking it, so people
can accept their DNA more readily.

After we address these concerns,

I think I will be ready to read my DNA.

Reading your DNA gives you
great knowledge about yourself.

Knowledge leads to power.

And we all know that with great power
comes great responsibility.

It will not take long before
someone knocks on your door

and asks you whether you want
to read your DNA.

What will you say?

Thank you.

(Applause)