They Can Play Together Nicely, Can't They?

At Eye on DNA, Hsien-Hsien Lei reminds us of the “working partnership” that eventually evolved between the HGP and Celera. Now, more and more government-funded organizations are sprouting up to manage complementary post-genomic projects: CDC’s National Office of Public Health Genomics, the Human Genome Epidemiology Network (HuGENet), and HHS’s Personalized Health Care Initiative. “It’s extremely encouraging to see that the government is aware of the needs and demands of the genome revolution,” she writes, but also wonders how new collaborative efforts between private and public sectors will actually play out. “After all, it’s only natural that everyone will want to protect their turf.”