Abstract
Unprecedented advances in human genome science are underway with potential to benefit public health. For example, it is estimated that within a decade, geneticists and epidemiologists will complete a catalog of the majority of genes associated with common chronic diseases. Such rapid advances create possibilities, if not the mandate, for translational research in how best to apply these and other anticipated discoveries for both individual and population health benefit. Driving these discoveries are rapid advances in infrastructure (e.g., the International HapMap Project to catalog human genetic variation; http://www.hapmap.org), analytical methods, and technology. This expansion in capabilities quickly has taken us from a genetics paradigm-where the influence of individual genes on health outcomes is paramount, to a genomics paradigm-where the complex influence of individual genes is considered in concert with each other and with environmental exposures on health outcomes. We discuss these and similar groundbreaking discoveries with an eye toward understanding their importance to child health and human development, and the role of behavioral science research conducted at the interface of pediatrics and genomic discovery.