An article in Nature News and Comment discusses a growing interest in genetic research within the Navajo Nation. DNA studies were banned in 2002 because of concerns about the misuse of genetic materials. Now, tribal leaders "increasingly see genetic research as a tool to improve medical care for the 174,000 residents of their sprawling reservation, which is roughly the size of Scotland." Consortium collaborator Nanibaa’ Garrison, PhD, a member of the Navajo Nation who is a professor at the University of Washington School of Medicine, is among those helping develop the new policy. She indicates the plan is likely to address types of research that will be allowed, who will have access to genetic information, and who will provide oversight. Prof. Garrison has written widely on genetics, with a focus on health conditions prevalent in American Indian communities, such as type 2 diabetes. She is author or co-author of two articles on related topics that were published in a special symposium of the Journal of Law, Medicine and Ethics; here's a link to that issue, for which Consortium chair Susan Wolf was one of the editors.