The meta-informational challenge of molecular data

The future of DNA sequencing

Where does DNA sequencing goes from here?. Nowadays, this is an appropriate question to pose.  The answer appears in an article in an interesting article in Nature.

Now, geneticists would like to have DNA sequences for everyone on Earth, and from every cell in every tissue at every developmental stage (including epigenetic modifications), in health and in disease. They would also like to get comprehensive gene-expression patterns by sequencing the complementary DNA copies of messenger RNA molecules.

In a mere 40 years, the central goal of putting molecular data about cells to practical use has changed from an informational challenge to a meta-informational one. Take clinical applications of genome-sequence data. It may soon be possible to use DNA sequencing routinely to analyse body fluids obtained for any clinical purpose. But only a vast amount of well-organized data about the multi-year medical histories of millions of people will provide the meta-information needed to establish when to ignore such data and when to act on them.

The uncertain cost of clinical trials

How much do clinical trials cost?

A research on seven top pharmaceutical companies has provided fresh data about costs of clinical trials:

For the trials in the data set, the median cost of conducting a study from protocol approval to final clinical trial report was US$3.4 million for phase I trials involving patients, $8.6 million for phase II trials and $21.4 million for phase III trials.

If you compare these data with the total drug costs (2.6 billion), you may ask yourself how all these costs are estimated. Maybe all this information is wrong and useless.

PS. Waiting for the new book on Theranos scandal

Pharma sales 2017

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Why is it so difficult to implement policies?

Governance and the Law

If you want to know an updated approach to policy reforms, then you have to read the World Development Report 2017
The main messages:

• Successful reforms are not just about “best practice.” To be effective, policies must guarantee credible commitment, support coordination, and promote cooperation.
• Power asymmetries can undermine policy effectiveness. The unequal distribution of power in the policy arena can lead to exclusion, capture, and clientelism.
• Change is possible. Elites, citizens, and international actors can promote change by shifting incentives, reshaping preferences and beliefs, and enhancing the contestability of the decision making process.
• Three guiding principles for rethinking governance for development are:
• Think not only about the form of institutions, but also about their functions.
• Think not only about capacity building, but also about power asymmetries.
• Think not only about the rule of law, but also about the role of law

You'll understand that the key element of any reform goes beyond evidence on what works and consensus. It should be clearly designed following specific steps. I suggest you have a look at it.

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