Biotechnology: Sequencing the Human Genome
- How the human genome was first sequenced.
- How epigenetic factors complicate the medical applications of human genome sequencing.
- How the complex genetic causes of diseases complicate the search for gene-based cures.
- Science
- Biology
- Genetics
- Cultural and Social Change
- The Modern Era (1980-Present)
The race to sequence the human genome was seen as the race to end disease, but the reality has proven not so simple, or so easy.
The Human Genome Project was launched in 1990 with a 15-year timeline and a $3 billion budget to create a map that would locate and sequence every gene in our DNA.
The goal was to understand the hereditary factors in all diseases as quickly as possible, which was no easy task: the human genome is made up of some 6 billion chemical letters.
A map of the human genome was released in 2003, two years ahead of the projected deadline. Hopes were high that doctors would eventually cure diseases like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, diabetes and even some kinds of cancer by attacking their genetic causes.
That goal has proved elusive. Diseases once thought to be caused by a single gene, like kidney cancer, are now known, thanks to the genome map, to be caused by at least 16 different genes.
Researchers have not found many drug interventions that are based on genetic discoveries, and they realize that the relationship between genes and illness is far more complicated than initially imagined.
Some researchers, aided by supercomputers, are sifting through genomes and health data to understand better the role that genes and the environment play in our health.
- When the Human Genome Project began, how did the leaders of the project think it would transform medical science?
- What was “shotgun sequencing”? How did it accelerate the process for sequencing genes?
- In the race to sequence the human genome, how was the public vs private competition ultimately resolved?
- How many genes influence the onset of diabetes?
- When the Human Genome Project began, Dr. Marston Linehan thought there would be a single gene for kidney cancer. How many genes did they end up finding for kidney cancer, and what does that teach us about the complexity of using the sequenced genome to find cures for diseases like cancer?
- Since the sequencing of the human genome, what have we learned about drug interactions that depend upon genes? What limits have scientists encountered in seeking to tailor drugs based upon genes? How do epigenetic factors complicate our ability to do this?
- Can genes alone explain which humans will contract certain diseases? Do you think that knowledge derived from sequencing human genomes will eventually create cures for most common diseases? Why or why not?
- How concerned are you about the role of private corporations in taking the lead on certain aspects of human genome sequencing? What are the costs and benefits of allowing private companies to “own” human genetic information?
Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, connecting insights gained from specific details to an understanding of the text as a whole.
Determine the central ideas or conclusions of a text; summarize complex concepts, processes, or information presented in a text by paraphrasing them in simpler but still accurate terms.
Ask questions to clarify relationships about the role of DNA and chromosomes in coding the instructions for characteristic traits passed on from parents to offspring.
Skill 6.D: Explain the relationship between experimental results and larger biological concepts, processes, or theories.
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