European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 04, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Researchers made great strides in the controversial areas of human Fertility and fetus manipulation. Clockwise from right French doctors discovered a synthetic molecule that might halt the spread of the aids virus new guidelines were issued on screenings for breast cancer Gene therapy was used on newly born Andrew Gobea to cure an inherited disease. Not medical questions  United press International Hile scientific advances raised new Hopes for people suffering from a Host of diseases in 1993, the year s events prompted some heavy debates Over How medical technology should be applied. A report of the first cloning of a human embryo and the continued efforts of a retired Michigan pathologist Jack Kevorkian to help terminally ill patients commit suicide also focused ethical debates. And when a National cancer Institute researcher announced he found evidence of a Gene at least partly responsible for male homosexuality activists on both sides of the Gay rights debate raised concerns that such information could be misinterpreted. Nothing will be More troublesome to Deal with than the development of genetic tests that arguably predict behaviour said or Philip Reilly former chairman of the social issues committee of the american society of human genetics. But he added that a number of state Legislatures already Are considering the implications of genetic testing and what legislation is needed to protect individual information. Progress in identifying the underlying genetic causes of Colon cancer diabetes muscular dystrophy and Huntington s disease were among the recent achievements As thousands of scientists worldwide continued work on the human genome project a Muk billion Dollar Effort to map and identify the 100,000 building blocks of human life. Harvard s Jeffrey Sklar said doctors now have genetic tests that can help patients with 24 different cancers. They will give you information about the disease that will allow doctors to save lives Sklar said. Close to year s end or. Daniel Cohen of the Centre d etude do polymorphism humain in Paris announced the most Complete map of the human genome yet developed a Guidebook for researchers trying to locate genes responsible for diseases such As epilepsy muscular Dys trophies diabetes and cancers said Francois Gros Secretary of the French Academy of sciences. Before today a physical map existed for Only 2 percent of the human genome. Our map covers about 90 percent of the genome said Cohen. Pinpointing a genetic defect that makes a person susceptible to a disease Means a simple blood test can identify those at greatest risk. But some fear this information could be used by insurance companies and employers to deny benefits or employment to a person who might develop a disease later on. 20 the stars and stripes tuesday january 4,1994