The Human Genome Project : A Research Project

Human Genome Project The Human Genome Project is an international project basically sponsored by the U.S Government. It started in October 1990 with an aim to sequence the entire human genome. The complete set of information present in the form of the genes in an organism forms its genome. Each human being has 23 pairs of chromosomes having DNA double helix in each.

In recent discussions of medical advancements, a controversial issue has been genome mapping poses risks to its patients. On the one hand, some argue that it is going to be time consuming and costly. On the other hand, however, others argue that this can be a breakthrough in medicine. In sum, then, the issue is what America’s next step towards medical advancement is going to be. While some believe genome mapping poses many unseen risks, genetic testing can help identify unsurfaced illnesses.

The Goal of the Human Genome Project is to obtain genetic mapping information and to determine the complete sequence of all human DNA by the year of 2005. The project started in 1990 and 180 million dollars are being spent on it annually. This adds up to a total of over 2 billion dollars for the 15 year budget. Of this 2 billion dollars budgeted, 5% is spent annually on the ethical, legal and social issues. This report focused on some of these issues.

The material covered in this PBS special related to our class because we have discussed the Human Genome Project, the structure of DNA, and how genetic mutations work. The Human Genome Project was an international research project that sequences all of the genes in humans. DNA

Genetic testing existed even before the commencement of the Human Genome Project but has rapidly increased in its abilities with the newly discovered information the project provides. The US Task Force describes genetic testing as "the analyses of human DNA, RNA, chromosomes, proteins, and certain metabolites in order to detect heritable disease related genotypes, mutations, phenotypes, or karyotypes for clinical purposes" (Zimmern, 1999). Prior to the advances in genetic testing technology diagnosis of disease was "based upon observation of the patientís condition, supported by the results of laboratory tests on blood and tissue samples" and sometimes a family history study (Mehlman, 1998). Now genetic testing doesnít require such extensive searching. It is possible to detect the presence of or probability of developing genetic disorders. "Diseases amenable to genetic testingÖinclude heritable conditions, acquired genetic conditions and diseases caused by infectious agents" (Mehlman, 1998).

The documentary Cracking the Code of Life tells the story of two scientific teams, racing to decode the human genome. It talked about the wide range of possibilities the human genome presents once decoded, from curing diseases to completely preventing them in future generations. The documentary also talked about genetic engineering, which, at the most basic definition, is the altering of a human or plant genes. Genetic engineering presents the idea that we could one day genetically engineer human DNA to no longer carry serious diseases. The idea of being able to completely prevent humans from suffering from serious diseases one day astounded and horrified me.

In order for The Human Genome Project to exist, the background of genetics must be known, for the discoveries made in the field would be what eventually led the project itself. Genetics in itself is a fairly new concept, which officially began in 1865 in central Europe. A monk named Gregor Mendel learned about heredity and inheritance through breeding pea plants. After retiring from his teaching and scientific life, he became the abbot of his church. Unfortunately, the importance of his discovery was

When thinking about patents, many of us wonder how anyone can patent genes that all of us have carried since we were born. U.S patent law allows inventors to claim new and useful machines, processes, and objects as proprietary creations. This privilege, however, has not been extended to naturally occurring phenomena, such as elements in the periodic table. However, a legal precedent now allows human genes to be patented. In order to study genes, scientists have to isolate and manipulate genes in the laboratory. Thus, in the eyes of patent law, genes are treated just as any other man-made chemical ( Regalado 50). On the strength of this logic, the U.S Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has been issuing patents to genetic discoveries since the 1970s. Human growth-hormone, insulin, erythropoietin-protein drugs with billions of dollars in combined sales are all manufactured using patented DNA sequences.

In 1980 a projected called The Genome Project was proposed. Although, it didn’t officially start until 1990. The main idea of this project was to determine the DNA sequences of the human genome. Which could ultimately being around 3 billion nucleotide pairs. Another project is called The Human Genome Diversity Project, which is very similar to the Human Genome Project. Both of these projects discussed humans through DNA

The Human Genome Project was the largest single genetic project ever as it took on calculating what every gene in

Investigating God's majestic and awesome creation and attempting to improve the world should be encouraged not hindered. DNA, the information molecule of all living things, is an example of the part of the body that is being studied by researchers in order to further gain the knowledge to successfully manipulate it. According to Akudo Ejelonu, The Human Genome Project is “an international thirteen-year project that began in October 1990.” This project allows for the study of the elegance and complexity of our own bodies by gathering data from DNA in order to develop new ways to treat, cure, or even prevent the thousands of diseases that can afflict humankind ("What is the Human Genome Project "). For this reason, there are incredible stories of its use, such as doctors being able to safely draw blood from a pregnant woman and analyze the DNA of her unborn child. "Those of us in the field who do diagnostic procedures like CVS and amnio have seen a drastic decrease in the number of those procedures that are being performed," says Dr. Mary Norton, an expert on maternal-fetal medicine and genetics. "Places are reporting doing fewer than half the number of procedures that were being done previously". A dramatic impact like this in the process of prenatal screening could not have happened without the interference of scientists in the study of the human

The Genome project is very significant because it is trying to cure illness and diseases. This project was first started in 1990 and it lasted till 2003 and it took thirteen years to complete the genetic sequencing. The discoveries that were made during this project are now being tested and studied to become more accurate. Furthermore, The genome project is trying to accurately sequence all the genes, cure and prevent different illnesses that affect people all around the world. Mary Shelly's novel Frankenstein can apply to the Genome project because of the importance of both projects.

The human genome project is something that I have been very interested with ever since first learning of it. I had heard bits and pieces of what it is about, but my interest was greatly stimulated by Dr. Whited in basic genetics 311 last spring. The discussion that we had regarding the project left me with several ideas and questions about not only the process and ethics involved, but the future of the study of genetics as a whole.

The Human Genome Project basically was a research program that worked on a goal to get an image of human genome and get a better understanding of all a human beings genes. DNA is founded on 4 chemical bases, they turn into twisted ladder shaped DNA molecules. And all the the four bases are what create the genes just placed in different ways and different lengths. One revelation of the human genome project was when they learned that there are about 20,500 genes. The Human Genome Project brought many scientist together around the world and each one was an important factor for the project. It was a publicly funded organization and got funds and support from the Department of Energy and US National Institutes of Health

The polymerase chain reaction or PCR for short can be used to create many copies of DNA. This allows the DNA to then be visualized using a dye like ethidium bromide after gel electrophoresis. The process has been refined over the years, however the basic steps are similar.