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Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) comprises of four distinct compounds called bases, which are denoted: A, T, G and C. Genes, which store the information on the building of proteins can be located on certain DNA stretches. All of the DNA, which includes the genes in an organism, make up its genome. So the human genome is a collection of all human genes, consisting of DNA, contained within the 23 chromosome pairs. 12
From 1920, geneticists began to sort all of the genes present in the DNA of an organism. This was done in two parts, whereby:
1. Spontaneous mutations were identified or mutants that were generated by physical or chemical agents were collected
2. Linkage maps were generated from mutant strains
Although this procedure was effective, it was time-consuming and not very efficient. In 1977, Fred Sanger and other geneticists started the field of genomics as recombinant DNA-based procedures were developed. Throughout the following 3 decades, the computer-automated DNA sequencing procedures began developing, making the sequencing of more complex genomes such as the human genome more promising. One of the largest projects undertaken to sequence the human genome is called the Human Genome Project. 11
The Human Genome Project…
Fig 1: The output from an automated DNA sequencing machine used by the Human Genome Project to determine the complete human DNA sequence.
(www.sciencemuseum.org.uk)
The Human Genome Project (HGP) began in 1990 and was spearheaded by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Institutes of Health. 12
“The human genome has been called the Book of Life. Rather, it is a library, in which, with rules that encourage exploration and reward creativity, we can find many of the books that will help define us and our place in the great tapestry of life.” 9
The main goal of the HGP was to analyze the structure of human DNA while determining the location of genes on the human chromosome making them available for further biological study. This was done in parallel with studies being carried out on selected model organisms that provided essential information for comparative study critical for understanding how the human genome functions. Such a model organism included was Escherichia coli. 1
The following goals were outlined as follows by the U.S. Department of Energy Genome Program’s Biological and Environmental Research Information System (BERIS)12:
identify all the approximately 20,000-25,000 genes in human DNA
determine the sequences of the 3 billion chemical base pairs that make up human DNA (see video below)
store this information in databases
improve tools for data analysis
transfer related technologies to the private sector
address the ethical, legal, and social issues (ELSI) that may arise from the project.
Comments (2)
Farees Hyatali said
at 10:58 pm on Mar 31, 2011
very interesting, could possibly help with studying for quiz 3
LGunning said
at 1:03 pm on Apr 3, 2011
how'd you get you video on the page without having to re-direct to another pg?
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