Racial differences exist. Knowing this has enabled us to create numerous targeted therapies that are more beneficial.
Could you expand on this a little? I was under the impression that race had no biological significance. Sure, we can say people of African descent are more likely to have sickle-cell, but could I hand you a genome and you say, "Oh, this person is Asian"?
I was under that same impression. In fact, in my Race, Gender, and Class course, we had a huge unit about "race" not existing biologically as there is no gene or pair of genes that everyone of one race has and that no one of another race can have.
Also there is more genetic diversity between different populations within Africa than there are between every other population outside of Africa. This means that two people from Africa which are simply considered "black" are more different to each other genetically than a tall blond Swede and a small dark haired Japanese. Race is determined by subjective external observation, nothing to do with the genome.
Again, it has to do with gene expression moreso than genotype. I may have the same genotype as, say, an Asian male in Tokyo, but there are epigenetic factors that affect gene expression and regulation, and those factors create many of the differences we associate with race. Diet, for example, can result in the methylation of certain regions of DNA and affect their expression. Many of these regulatory factors are present in the genome in regions that control gene expression. Point mutations in these regions result in changes to expression, and thus create a divergence.
Again, it has to do with gene expression moreso than genotype. I may have the same genotype as, say, an Asian male in Tokyo, but there are epigenetic factors that affect gene expression and regulation, and those factors create many of the differences we associate with race. Diet, for example, can result in the methylation of certain regions of DNA and affect their expression. Many of these regulatory factors are present in the genome in regions that control gene expression. Point mutations in these regions result in changes to expression, and thus create a divergence.
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