FRIDAY, June 6, 2003 (HealthDayNews) -- Are you losing sleep at night because you're having trouble understanding genes, chromosomes, DNA and other genetics-related bafflegab?
Well, fret no more. The U.S. National Library of Medicine can provide you with the answers to all your ponderings about genetics at its newest consumer Web site called Genetics Home Reference.
The site includes a genetics refresher course that includes information about, for example, how genes can be turned on and off in cells, hereditary diseases, and the principles of gene mutation.
To access information about specific diseases, you can search by the disease name or by gene. For example, if you search for Alzheimer's disease, you'll find out how people inherit Alzheimer's, what the symptoms are, and how the disease is treated.
The site also includes a glossary of genetic terms and links that take you to clinical trials related to the disease or disorder that you're researching.
Information contained on Genetics Home Reference is targeted at the general public and written at the high school level.
"Knowledge about genetics is vital for a true understanding of many diseases. Often, individuals need to make life-altering decisions because of their genetic background. We hope that Genetics Home Reference can help guide them as they make their medical choices," Alexa T. McCray, director of the Lister Hill Center for Biomedical Communications, says in a news release.
More information
The Genetics Home Reference is just one of the resources available at the National Library of Medicine.
