History Of The Human Genome Project

Over the last 10 years scientists have been involved in the progression and completion of the Human Genome Project. "Scientists working on this project have developed detailed maps that identify the

The HGP was a 13-year long project started in 1990 with the objective of determining the entire human euchromatic genome sequence. It was a public funded project and the goal was to complete the project within 15 years. Since its inception, the project had been met with scepticism from scientists and commoners alike. One significant doubt was whether the astounding expenditure of the project would outweigh the potential benefits from it. However, the incredible success of the HGP became apparent very soon after completion. Not only did it mark the beginning of a new era in medicine, it also made significant development in the various techniques that can be used for DNA sequencing. This publicly funded, $3 billion project began formally in 1990, under the co-ordinated effort of the United States Department of Energy (DOE) and National Institutes of Health (NIH). Although destined to be completed in 15 years, rapid technological development accelerated the completion date to 2003.

Our incessant curiosity for knowledge and answers has prompted the intricate research institutions we know today. Among the volumes of research, scientists have searched for innovations to better understand the human body and edge closer to more individualized medicine. In 1990, breakthroughs in genetic technology allowed for researchers to begin a quest to map and understand all the genes of human beings. A mere 13 years later and just shy of $3 billion invested the Human Genome Project successfully mapped the billions of base pairs involved. With the ability to diagnose specific abnormalities, researchers and medical professionals have saved hundreds of ill children to which their survival was indefinite. However, with scientists continuing

Before discussion of the ethical, legal and social issues can be successful, some background information is needed. For example, why is the goal of mapping the human genome important? Who is going to benefit or at least be affected by this new

Mapping the human genome was so ground breaking because for the first time it allowed researchers to

Today we live in a very technologically advanced society. Scientists are continually discovering new things about the world and the way things work. "In the 1980ís, it was becoming increasingly apparent to many scientists that an understanding of basic biology would be greatly enhanced if the detailed structure of DNA was understood" (Mehlman, 1998). Thus began what has become know as The Human Genome Project which is "the mapping of all our

The Human Genome Project introduces a significant scientific finding to the world, but raises a lot of controversies. Many controversies related to the Human Genome Project are issues concerning the application of this new scientific finding and its ethicality. Genetic information from a project that once has an aim to map the human genome in hope for curing diseases are now being used in businesses. It shouldn’t be permissible for employers to require that all employees, as well as potential employees, be screened for genetic vulnerabilities and to use the results of such screening when they make hiring, retention, and job assignment decisions. These genetic vulnerabilities may include diseases, unsuitable personality traits and other undesirable traits according to the company’s judgements. Employees shouldn’t be judged by their genes, because the results are inadequate to judge what the employees will do in life, the employee’s position in the society, and the employee’s financial standing. Genetic testing should be an option for the employees to decide on job assignment rather than hiring decisions. Genetic testing only shows potential. Conducting genetic tests on employees is infringing their privacy and will also create more social gaps with genetic classes.

The DNA sequence of the entire human genome was pieced together after a greatly anticipated 13 years, which allowed scientists and biological researchers to establish the genetic make-up of proteins, which essentially make up the human body. The Human Genome Project (HGP) ‘sequenced only "euchromatic" regions of the genome, which make up about 90% of the genome’ (En.wikipedia.org, 2016), which consists of, more or less, a majority of the DNA sequences in humans. Unlocking this huge amount of biological knowledge was exciting, but definitely slightly daunting, as these DNA sequences had to be identified in

The Human Genome Project: A Government Initiative The Human Genome Project (HGP) is a worldwide effort aimed at analyzing the structure of human DNA and determining the location of the estimated 100,000 human genes, the entire human genome. This effort will study and compare the DNA of other organisms to further our understanding of the human genetic makeup. This unique idea originated shortly after the United States developed and used the atomic bomb. There was a need of information regarding the study of the genome structure, replication, damage, repair and the consequences of genetic mutations especially those that are caused by radiation and chemical by-products of energy production. The U.S. Congress put D.O.E. (The Department of Energy) in charge of this research. The researchers soon realized that the best way to get these results would be to analyze the entire human genome so that they could obtain a reference sequence. The

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.

So what is the Human Genome Project? Well it all came from The Human Genome Project which began in the late 1980s when it was introduced by the United States government. The purpose of this project was to develop a complete encyclopedia of the human genome. The Human Genome Project had two main reasons for this project. First, they wanted to build a map of the human genome. Second, they wanted to develop the order of existence of all human DNA (Kevles). The completion of the Human Genome Project came in 2000, which took 13 years and $3 billion dollars to complete; along with

The human genome project is an incredible feat. The significance and contributions of the project to the science world has and will have a significant impact of the way we treat, diagnosis, and prepare for diseases if an individual knows they have a predisposition to it. There are two significant contributions that I believe has been very beneficial to the health field. The first is recording and storing all the new found information on genomics into one database. More importantly though is having this enormous information in a database that is easy to navigate and that is useful to multiple different professional fields of study. With this database health personal can see the genomes of different species and over time can be able to the evolutionary changes of genetics of different species. Health professionals can also take the genome of a patient and compare it to the human genome in the database to see if they have a genetic predisposition to a disease or an abnormal genome to diagnose a disease. “Such detailed, fundamental understanding about our bodies will have profound effects on the ways diseases are diagnosed, on the prevention of disease, and on treatments.” (Collins, McKusick, Jegalian, 2012) With the identification/belief that there are “approximately 20,000-25,000 genes in human DNA,” (U.S. Department of Energy Human Genome Project, 2014) we have now begun to identify which genes contribute to diseases. The identification of these mutate genes can be recorded

For as long as DNA has been used for storing the information for life, genes have controlled the development and evolution of all living things on Earth. Today genetics influences aspects of our behavior and health, and will continue to be the focus of biological research in the near future. Aside from our health, genes have control over our entire perception of reality. This sobering fact, along with the sheer ubiquitous nature of genes in all living things, has only recently been elucidated. Since Mendel made his famous observations on heredity we have achieved enormous strides in understanding and even manipulating our genes to obtain a better grasp on how they rule us. However, the advances we are making now will likely only pale in comparison to the ones to come in the future. Some of these advances will cure complex diseases and assist us in understanding the evolutionary context of our existence, but they may not provide all the benefits they promise and careful consideration on the consequences of such technology is strongly warranted.

During the project the scientist goals were to get a finish a whole set of the 3 billion DNA base pairs that make the human genome. They also wanted to be able to find 20,000 to 25,000 human genes. As well as finding the genomes of different organisms that are vital to medical research like a mouse or a fruit fly. Not only did they want to make discoveries in their research but they also wanted to make new tools they could use to get and analyze new data to spread the availability of their information. Some goals were completed and others were not but some of the things they did accomplish were getting a high quality finished sequence of almost the entire human genome. As well as the genome of other organisms including a roundworm and a fruit fly. On their last year they announced that they had completed the genome mouse. The research the scientists made were made viable to view on the internet by the