The Human Genome Project: Promise or Problems?

Discusses the Human Genome Project, which aims to map the structure and function of approximately 100,000 genes in the human body. Describes some of the ethical and legal problems of genomic research, pointing out that such research presents both promise and problems and that it must be conducted according to well‐defined, rational rules if human rights are to be protected. Calls for a multidisciplinary involvement, both nationally and internationally, in the establishment of the necessary laws; and exhorts Australia and New Zealand, which have hitherto remained largely uninvolved, to make a larger contribution both towards the debate and towards funding for the project.