The Gene: An Intimate History Paperback – Large Print, April 18, 2017

As others have stated, the writing is both clear and elegant. Modern genetics is a hugely important topic, but the future of genetics technology is murky. Mukherjee deals nicely with the complexities although there are bound to be disagreements about his conclusions and musings. More to the point, understanding modern genetics is far from easy especially for those of us without the appropriate scientific background. Toward the end of the book when he discusses many of the modern technologies the going gets rough. However, I have a fairly good lay understanding of genetics, and have read many attempts to explain how all this works. It's just hard work. There were certainly places where I didn't completely follow although perhaps a second or third reading might have done the trick. At any rate this is by far the best introduction to modern genetics although something like Genetics for Dummies would make a nice companion for help in clarification. The latter is somewhat too simplified (and now dated), but it is useful for relatively non-technical explanations.The author nicely integrates discusses individual cases including those from his own family which makes for a more interesting reading. He also does a superb job of bringing the history to life by focusing on individual scientists and their contributions. It would have been fun to read more about the various personality conflicts and rivalries, but such gossip while interesting is hardly central to the story. The early part of the book dealing with early genetics through Watson and Crick is engaging, and in fact I could hardly put the book down during the first half when the technical issues are not so complicated. The latter half is certainly less of a page turner, but there's just no way to give a reasonable explanation in page-turning mode.This book is certainly too long and too detailed for the causal reader, but it's brilliant for those of us willing to invest some time. Even the parts I didn't fully understand were interesting if a bit opaque. Highly recommended so long as potential readers do not expect an easy go of it.The negative reviews are mostly about delivery failures and Kindle mishaps which are not relevant to the worth of the book. These are not issues likely to affect the majority of us and say nothing about the book itself. This is not the best place for complaining about such matters although, of course for some items consistent problems in manufacture and delivery are important to know. Not true here. And there are legitimate complaints about some material that might have been included but wasn't. However, the lack of such material is hardly reason to denigrate the whole book. I too missed material that I wish had been included, but the book is long and inevitable decisions must be made about what gets in and what doesn't. Missing material, which is not extensive in any case, is hardly reason to give the book really low ratings. It's important to have such lapses pointed out, but they have to be balanced against the many strengths of the book.

This book makes one think of biology in an introspective fashion. Its state of the art narrative compels the reader to view life with a little more awe that is induced by the current scientific understanding of what makes ‘Us’…‘Us’. The author connects the dots in a broad array of scientific subject matter that leaves the reader informed and in my opinion self improved. He accomplishes this in an enticing manner using several approaches that makes the science of genes blend with everyday life. Early on the author personalizes his account by using family anecdotes that bonds the reader to the subject matter about to be presented. Reader empathy develops as the author recounts his family history with its assorted ills. Most people can relate to intimate anecdotes about family problems. He uses historical perspective to put scientific enlightenment in context.Who gets credit for what is the human side of scientific achievement but all science is built on the previous insight and work of predecessors. His smooth narrative provides an enjoyable understanding of the building blocks of genetic science. As Johnson had his Boswell so to did Mendel have his Bateson. The reader finds himself musing as to how the father of genetics just missed the boat by not having his heritable pea traits named ‘mendelibles’. Instead we have ‘genes’. The author’s network of links between life’s social issues and life’s DNA are presented in such a seamless manner that no fair reader should take offence. The genetic role in various topics pertaining to intelligence, gender, race, disease, crime, abortion, and eugenics is discussed is such a clear and disarming manner that it tempers the hot button nature of these issues. His connection with the reader is solidified by his obvious attempt to be genuinely objective. It is noted with some disappointment that the topic of consciousness as it relates to the DNA code and human genome was scarcely mentioned. As the gold standard of human life this phenotype might have received a little more attention than a nod or two.As a salient feature of humanity, this ‘gorilla in the room’ should have been given a few more citations especially if it’s going to soon know that it’s a gorilla. This book leaves me with various impressions. With the genetic code of the human genome demystified, the scientific understanding of the actions of genes in monogenic illnesses has advanced by leaps and bounds. On the other hand, the scientific understanding of the combinatorial actions of genes that cause polygenic illnesses and traits is still in its embryonic stage. Environmental feedback mechanisms that can activate or deactivate genes add to the biological mystery. Gene editing techniquesalong with cutting edge research striving to change the genome of a human embryo contrasts profoundly with research that cautions about inferring the capabilities of human embryonic stem cells from mouse embryonic stem cells. An aura of scientific gambling develops that seems to be taking place on the knowledge tip of an iceberg. Under the water lies our ignorance. The author has a knack for incorporating literary references into his narrative to clue the reader as to what lies ahead in the subject material. Shakespearian references make several appearances but a pertinent tocsin may have been given by one that was missing. “…laugh to scorn the power of man, for none of woman born shall harm Macbeth.” was the omen believed by Macbeth. He met his demise at the hands of Mr. Macduff who proved to be Macbeth’s ultimate toxin. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone who wants a current and perspicuous account of our past, present and future genetic nature.

The story telling is very good. Kept me engaged in a highly technical subject as it’s written for a layman. It’s very engaging and interesting.

Muy buen libro, explica de forma sencilla pero concisa conceptos importantes sobre genética y biotecnología, además que la forma de llevar la historia lo hace de acuerdo a los eventos más relevantes y en orden cronológico sobre dichas áreas.

The book begins as an intimate history of genetics but develops into the intimate future of one of the most powerful and dangerous ideas in the history of science: the gene, the fundamental unit of hereditary and the basic unit of all biological information.The power of the idea can be seen today in the way personal genomics is revolutionising drug development, therapy and precision oncology – preventing and treating diseases taking into account individual variability in genes , environment and lifestyle. Genomics is being combined with Artificial Intelligence to mine vast amounts of genetic information for new clues about disease, diagnosis or treatment and combining the amazing potential in AI and genetics for opening new horizons in healthcare.Why is the idea dangerous? Because like the other two profoundly destabilising scientific ideas of the atom and the byte that richochet through the 20th century, the gene has transformed culture, society, politics and language.Mukhergee goes right back to the first steps in understanding the mechanism and influence of genes with Mendel and Darwin and roller coasters through the 20th century. The scientific progress falls into 4 stages ; the establishment of the cellular basis of heredity: the chromosomes; the molecular basis of hereditary :the double helix; the informational basis : the genetic code and sequencing of the human genome; and finally the era of genomics: the deciphering, reading and understanding the human genome and developing medical applications.He tells history is told in an extremely personal and readable way describing how scientists built on each others’ contribution with accelerating progress. The book is full of detective stories – for example how it had taken Morgan and his team three decades to collect fifty fly mutants in New England. Then one night in 1926 Muller discovered the effects of radiation and mutated half that number in a single night. Or for example, the detective work of Watson and Crick in discovering the double helix structure of DNA following the groundbreaking work of Linus Pauling, Robert Corey, Maurice Wilkins and Rosalind Franklin.There is a feeling of balance in Mukhergee’s account of the race for sequencing the human genome, once Muller had discovered the way to copy a human gene in a test tube. The US National Institute of Health (NIH) was chosen as the lead agency to sequence the entire human genome with the US’s DOE and the UK’s Medical Research Council and Wellcome Trust joining the effort. However a little known, pugnacious, single minded neurobiologist at the NIH, Craig Venter, proposed a shortcut to genome sequencing. James Watson and the NIH were appalled at not only at Venter’s technique but at his proposal to patent genes. Scientists at Stanford had patented methods to recombine pieces of DNA to create genetic chimeras, Genetech had patented processes to express proteins such as insulin, Amgen had filed a patent for isolation of erythropoietin using recombinant DNA but nobody had patented a gene or piece of genetic information for its own sake. The race between the US and UK’s public agencies and Craig Venter’s privately funded company Celera was on. The Wellcome Trust doubled its funding and congress threw open the slices of federal funding. But a kind of truce was struck and in 2001 the Human Genome Project and Celera both published their results of the sequencing of the human genome marking the start of the era of genomics.But the history of the gene is told not just from the angle of scientific discoveries. The social effects of the development of the genetics are explored.The history of eugenics and its misuse widely in the USA for sterilising imbeciles to improve human intelligence is shown to be based on a totally fallacious theory of hereditary. The Nazi eugenic experiments and the holocaust gruesomely exposed the danger of false science.The Asilomar meeting in 1973 of leading virologists, genetiscists, biochemists and microbiologists addressed the growing concerns about gene – manipulation techniques. Asilomar II in 1975 got unanimous support for ranking the biohazard risks of genetic recombination.This has resulted until recently in three unspoken principles which guide the arena of genetic diagnosis and intervention. Firstly diagnostic tests have been restricted to gene variants that are singularly powerful determinants of illness – for examplehighly penetrant mutations like Downs syndrome and cystic fibrosis. Secondly, the diseases caused by these mutations have generally involved extraordinary suffering. Thirdly justifiable interventions have been defined by social and medical consensus, and all interventions have been governed by complete freedom of choice.But these boundaries could be loosening from these originals - of high penetrance genes, extraordinary suffering and justifiable interventions - to genotype-driven social engineering. Mukherjee provides examples of genetic diagnosis being transformed into clinical and personal realities. Individuals are inspired to get our personal human genome mapped which could lead to determining genetic fitness. Individuals are not so easily governed by guiding principles.Evidence of the influence this book has had on me is that I have now set out to get my personal genome sequenced!

A very interesting introduction to the science behind genetics and genomics that reads like a thriller. Not a dry and uninteresting text book, but the sort of book you can't put down until the last page.Comprehensive and well written, with plenty of references to the original research documents quoted if you want to go deeper into the subject.

Mukherjee nimmt seine Leser hier in ungemein spannender, persönlich anrührender und erkenntnisreicher Weise mit auf eine Entdeckungsreise in die Welt der Gene. Von den ersten Theorien zur Vererbung über die Aufklärung der DNA-Struktur bis hin zu der Fähigkeit Gen-Informationen zu lesen und zu verändern, ist diese Reise bei jeder Station fesselnd. Gerade auch die Diskussion der ethischen Konsequenzen dieses Erkenntnisgewinns ist äußerst interessant zu lesen. Wozu führt es, wenn Frauen von einer Mutation in ihrem Genom erfahren, dass das Risiko einer Krebserkrankung erhöht, oder werdende Eltern erfahren, dass ihr Kind einen Gendefekt aufweist? Wie wird eine Gesellschaft aussehen, in der es möglich ist, das eigene Erbgut zu verändern? Dieses Buch ist ein must-read für alle, die an Biologie und Genetik und deren gesellschaftlicher Bedeutung interessiert sind.