The evolution of evolutionary molecular medicine

The evolution of evolutionary molecular medicine: Genomics are transforming evolutionary biology into a science with new importance for modern medicine

By Detlev Ganten and Randolph Nesse

In Journal of Molecular Medicine 2012, DOI: 10.1007/s00109-012-0903-2 (not open access)

This article introduces a special issue of the Journal of Molecular Medicine on Evolutionary Molecular Medicine. The first paragraphs are below.

New technologies have always been the driving forces for major developments in science. Medicine is no exception. New sequencing technologies have enabled us to begin understanding the genomic and molecular origins of life and the reasons for disease; they are also transforming evolutionary biology into a new, precise, molecular science that has enormous promise for advancing medicine and public health [1]. This issue of the Journal of Molecular Medicine has invited papers to discuss this exciting development.

Evolution comes to medicine, genomics comes to evolution Medical doctors are trained to taking a detailed history from their patients, their personal history, a family history (and tree if indicated), and the time course symptoms and laboratory tests. Now we look back into the history of mankind and to the origins of life 3.5 billion years ago to understand why we get sick. The history-taking process has thus been extended from the individual to his phylogenetic ancestors. The transformation of medicine by genomics will eventually be recognized among the most significant in a long history of innovations. The beginnings of modern medicine were made…(see article for more)