What the naked eye can’t see is proving that all the humans who can be seen are 99 and 44/100ths percent the same, whether they are as white as Ivory Snow or dark as molasses.

And, because of an extra inventory of these units – called genes – humans are different – but not all that different — from other warm-blooded species of all shapes and sizes that occupy planet Earth.

Southwest Michigan residents are able to see all of this for themselves because the nationally touring “GENOME:  The Secret of How Life Works” is at the Kalamazoo Valley Museum through January 10th.  Admission is free.

“Genome” is made possible by Pfizer Inc and was produced by Evergreen Exhibitions in collaboration with the National Human Research Institute, a division of the National Institutes of Health, and the Whitehead Institute/MIT Center for Genome Research.

“Genome” explores how genes affect growth and aging, maps what might be in store for humanity, and offers a look at what your future children might look like.

All this became humanly possible once scientists mapped the human genome – a person’s entire set of genes.

The exhibition, which debuted at the Smithsonian in 2003, investigates the mysteries of the human gene, why the genome is being mapped, and the potential benefits of gene research, such as:

• Preventing and curing diseases

• Living longer

• Solving crimes

• Producing better food and drugs

The exhibit looks at the 200-year history of this science and the individuals who shaped it – from Gregor Mendel, the 19th-century monk who discovered the rules of inheritance by cultivating peas in a monastery garden, to Jim Watson and Francis Crick, who in the early 1950s unearthed the form and process of genetic replication, the famous DNA double helix.  This Harvard University breakthrough is regarded as the most important biological discovery of the 20th century.

“The understanding of the human genome opens up an entirely new frontier for health-science research,” said Dr. Tom Turi, a genomic scientist with Pfizer Inc, “and it is anticipated that it will lead to new therapies and cures for devastating diseases.  However, many people are unaware of the genome or its potential to enhance our lives.”

“Genome” uses interactive displays and family-friendly activities to help visitors understand the genome’s function and its role in daily life.

These include:

• An 8-by-25-foot display of DNA’s double helix structure that is enhanced by a video.

• The opportunity in the Discovery Theater to meet scientists who were instrumental in the discoveries leading up to the sequencing of the human genome.  Another “show” discusses the genetic issues of the future.

• A working slot machine that demonstrates the odds that children will inherit genes for certain characteristics.

• Using the metaphor of a “Cookie Factory,” DNA, genes and proteins as the ingredients and recipes for “making” human beings can be understood.

• Gaining access to a cell to discover the workings of its parts and processes.

• Computer simulations to design new gene therapies, replacing disease-causing proteins with healthy new human genes.

Visitors will enter the exhibit through a circular corridor, encountering graphic and mirror images of themselves in the initial stages of life and as a mature human, reflecting who they were and who they are today.

Emanating from a mirror at the end of the tunnel is a swirling ribbon of genetic code, representing the genes that hold the secrets to where they came from, who they are and who they may become.

The exhibit’s “The Secret of Life” section explains what a gene, DNA, protein and cell are, and how genes are involved in reproduction, growth and the maintenance of life.

The role of this revolutionary branch of science and what it holds for the future comes alive by people with genetic conditions telling their stories. How DNA testing is solving some of history’s mysteries and helping to identify people who committed crimes with almost 100-percent certainty are also exhibit attractions.

“Genome” will be the second medical-science related exhibition brought to Kalamazoo under the auspices of Pfizer.  “BRAIN:  The World Inside Your Head” spent the fall and early winter of 2006 at the Museum.

Think about this the next time you peel a banana – that white fruit behind the yellow skin has 50 percent of the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) that you do.

More information is available at the museum’s web site at www.kalamazoomuseum.org.

Source:  News release from Kalamazoo Valley Community College