Genomics—an interdisciplinary field bringing together health sciences and data science to study the structures and functions of an organism’s complete set of genetic material—is uniquely suited to the talents of researchers at Pitt. In studying the origins and course of breast cancer, blindness, dental deformities and dozens of other conditions, Pitt researchers are helping illuminate the ever-increasing complexity of the interplay of genes within humans, both traits that are shared and those that may be unique to one individual.

Genomics—an interdisciplinary field bringing together health sciences and data science to study the structures and functions of an organism’s complete set of genetic material—is uniquely suited to the talents of researchers at Pitt. In studying the origins and course of breast cancer, blindness, dental deformities and dozens of other conditions, Pitt researchers are helping illuminate the ever-increasing complexity of the interplay of genes within humans, both traits that are shared and those that may be unique to one individual.

Albinism is in many ways a hidden condition, although roughly one in every 18,000 to 20,000 people in the United States live with some type of albinism, which can manifest in a range of conditions. While albinism affects people of all races and backgrounds, in subSaharan Africa the incidence of albinism has been estimated by researchers to be one in every 1,000 to 2,000 people.