Rethink use of race in genetics research, US academies urge

Genetics is too complicated to rely on overly simplistic social concepts, report warns

Researchers who use genetic and genomic data in their work should rethink and justify their use of race, ethnicity and ancestry labels, a report from the US National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine has urged.

The study was conducted by a committee of experts in fields including race and genomic medicine, set up by the academies in response to a request from the National Institutes of Health. It comes in light of widening use of genomic databases across science, as such data become more readily available.