An Overview of the Human Genome Project

Description :

Mapping human genome can be considered as one of the main endeavors of modern world bio scientists. They have been pursuing this for decades and so far have achieved some measurable results. In simple terms, human genome can be defined as a map of how the cells of human beings are made up. If human genome is properly documented and researched, it could deliver answers to a myriad of mysteries.

Human genome is significant as it can provide with answers to questions like why we age, what genetic markers are, what causes and cures illnesses and many more. As a result, finding answers for this scientific puzzle has become part of an interesting competition. Entrepreneurs who start working on this field will be able to learn a lot of new things.

History of the Human Genome Project

The National Institute of Health in United States has established a partnership with the British government in order to solve the mysteries that are associated with the human genome project. They have hired the finest bio-scientists from different parts of the world and have created excellent equipment and facilities to complete their work successfully. A substantial amount of funds were approved generously to contribute to this project by both governments. According to statistical information, the government of United States has spent about $3 billion on this project. The British government has spent even more. 

1998 was an important year for the human genome project. In this year, a scientist named Dr. Craig Ventner was going through some published papers of the project and figured out that a different approach can be followed in order to get quick results. This method also had the ability to deliver more accurate answers for the complex issues and therefore he decided to undertake a project on this area himself. Nevertheless, as Dr. Craig Ventner was in need of financial assistance, he sought to get help from capitalist funding sources. His efforts became successful and was able to make $300 million within a short period of time. This motivated Dr. Craig Ventner to start working on his unique approach in the human genome project. His venture was named as “Celera” and it was charged with mapping the human genome to commercialize the findings. 

The Main Objective of the Human Genome Project

The primary objective of the human genome project is to figure out the consequence of chemical base pairs that are responsible for making up human DNA. It also focuses on mapping the genes of human genome through a functional and physical standpoint. As mentioned earlier, a lot of parties are involved in this project. Therefore, it can be considered as the world’s largest collaborative biological project. It was declared complete during 2003. At the early stage of this project, the main objective was to map the nucleotides in human body to reference genome. The genomes that can be found in human beings differ from one another. Hence, mapping the human genome is an extremely complex process for which scientists involved in this project hoped to succeed to eliminate that complexity.

State of Completion

The human genome project was not focused in sequencing the entire DNA that can be seen in human body cells. It only focused on the euchromatic areas of genome. In fact, euchromatic areas make up about 90 percent of human genome. The remaining area of the genome was called as heterochromatic and they were not considered in this project. 

As mentioned earlier, the human genome project was completed in 2003. The initial draft of the human genome was available by 2000 and a working draft was completed one year later. The final consequence mapping took place in 2003. This project was completed with a success rate of 99.99%. However, further analysis is being carried out at the moment and researches are scheduled to be carried out on HGP. 

Proposed Benefits of the Human Genome Project

The findings of the human genome project can be used for a variety of applications. These applications in turn have the potential to deliver tons of benefits, which range from molecular medicine up to human evolution. For instance, these findings can help people gain a better understanding about diseases. In other words, people will be able to get a clear view of the genotyping process of specific viruses that can be directed to appropriate treatments. It can also be used to identify mutations that are connected to different types of cancers. 

On the other hand, the human genome project is being used to design medication in an appropriate manner while ensuring their accuracy. The effects of medication on different people can also be predicted based on this theory. Commercial development of genomics is another major advantage that is associated with the human genome project. Therefore, it can be considered as a multibillion dollar industry. 

The sequence of DNA figured out from this method is stored in a database. The database is then being uploaded to the Internet, so that anyone can access. This database is well known as GenBank and it is being managed by the United States National Center for Biotechnology Information. Some other organizations are contributing towards it as well. 

Summary

It becomes apparent that the human genome project is one of the most important and useful projects in the biotechnology industry. It is in a position to deliver a variety of benefits for every human being that exists on the planet. From this project, it has been identified that around 20,500 genes can be found in human beings. The same range of genes can be found in mice as well.

On the other hand, the human genome consists of a large amount of segmental duplications. These duplications are nearly identical and can be defined as repeated sections of DNA. Even though the human genome project is completed at the moment, more and more studies are yet to be conducted on the same field to discover additional benefits that can be reaped out of it.

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