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Biographical entry Cavalli-Sforza, Luca (1922 - )
Professor
- Born
- 25 January 1922
Genoa, Italy - Alternative Names
- Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza
Summary
Professor Luca Cavalli-Sforza of the Genetics Department at Stanford Medical School in California was the Chairman of the International Executive Committee of the Human Genome Diversity Project. In 1999, he invited colleagues from around the world to contribute to the Human Genome Diversity Project by collecting lymphoblastoid cell lines from individuals representing the populations of the world. These cell lines would serve as the source of DNA for typing with genetic markers, and the results would be collected in a database.The aim of the project was to understand genetic diversity in human populations.
Details
In September 1993, Sue Serjeantson attended a meeting of the Human Genome Diversity Project where a list of 500 human communities that could potentially be included in the study was circulated. Twelve of these were Australian Aboriginal communities. The names of these communities were leaked to the public. This resulted in much conflict among Australian researchers and Aborigines. In 1997, at the meeting of the Human Genome Society of Australasia, Professor Mick Dodson spoke passionately about the Indigenous opposition to the Human Genome Diversity Project, and Cavalli-Sforza insisted that any use of Aboriginal material would involve a proper negotiated process. Such a process did not eventuate and Simon Easteal's subsequent intervention resulted in the removal of the Australian Aboriginal samples from the HGDP. From that time on scientists working with the Indigenous blood samples at the John Curtin School of Medical Research became concerned as to whether it was ethical for them to continue using them without individual consent from the donors. In 1999, a moratorium was placed on the collection and it was placed into long term storage.
