A low-budget web service called Promethease and a simple wiki page are keeping direct-to-consumer genetics results alive.

23andMe, a service that previously sent consumers the results of their genetics, was previously reprimanded by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) saying that their TV ads and DNA health reports were illegal, since the FDA did not clear it.

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So when mother and blogger Meg DeBoe ordered her US$99 consumer DNA test, all that returned to her was genetic genealogy, possible relative, and ethnic roots. No news of possible Alzheimer's or diabetes came, due to the FDA's restrictions.

DeBoe turned to Promethease. By paying US$5 and uploading her raw 23andMe data, she was then provided with results neatly separated into "good news" and "bad news."

Promethease was only a side project created by geneticist Greg Lennon and computer programmer Mike Cariaso.

The service works by comparing a person's DNA entries with data in SNPedia, a public wiki on human genetics that they had also created years ago.

Lennon says that as many as 500 reports are being shelled out by Promethease a day.

Naturally, the FDA's decision had angered most folk. They began to ask why it was wrong for them to get genetic information about themselves.

The FDA commented that while collecting genetic data is relatively simple, the prediction of medical meaning is a risky business.

They went on to say that these reports could lead someone to take unnecessary surgeries or overdose on certain drugs.

People are beginning to criticize the FDA's decision though, saying that people have a right to get genetic facts without going to a doctor.

Lennon believes though that Promethease is out of the FDA's jurisdiction as the DNA tests use literature retrieval services as opposed to spit kits or self-done DNA tests.

TagsDNA, Direct-to-consumer genetics results, Promethease, Wiki, FDA, Greg Lennon