Medical genetics and genomic medicine in Chile: opportunities for improvement

Chile, a long and narrow country in South America, is situated between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is bordered by Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the south (Fig. 1). Chilean territory includes the Pacific islands of Juan Fern andez, Salas y G omez, Desventuradas and Easter Island in Oceania. Chile claims about 1,250,000 square kilometers (480,000 sq mi) of Antarctica. Chile is the longest country in the world, with 4329 km length (2689.92 mi) (the Pacific Ocean coast stretches over 8000 km); and the narrowest, with an average width of 180 km (111.85 mi). The northern desert of Chile has significant mineral wealth, principally copper. This relatively small central area is the cultural and political center of the country, dominating in terms of both population and agricultural resources. Southern Chile has abundant forests and grazing lands, as well as a series of volcanoes and lakes. A warren of inlets, channels, twisting peninsulas, and islands dot the southern coast. The country is divided from North to South into 15 administrative regions expanding over 292,000 mile. Spain conquered and colonized Chile in the mid-16th century, replacing Incan rule in northern and central Chile. The Spaniards were unable to conquer the independent Mapuche who inhabited south-central Chile. Since declaring its independence from Spain in 1818, Chile has developed as a relatively stable republic. Chile leads Latin American nations in the ranking of human development, competitiveness, income per capita 15,732.31 USD (2013), globalization, the state of peace, and economic freedom. It also ranks high on the sustainability of the state, and democratic development at a regional level. Chile is a founding member of the United Nations, the Union of South American Nations and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (http://www.breakingnews.com/topic/chile/).