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Ari Patrinos
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Genome Science
overviews, backgrounders

Genome Primer (PDF)
Facts About Genome Sequencing
• DNA Sequencing Process

SNP Fact Sheet
Functional & Comparative Genomics

• Working Draft Sequence Analysis Information
• Working Draft Sequence Papers

Abstracts of HGP Research


Areas of Impact
overviews, backgrounders

Medicine and the New Genetics
Pharmacogenomics
Gene Testing 
Gene Therapy
Ethical, Legal, and Social Issues
Genetically Modified Foods and Organisms
Genetics and Privacy Legislation 
Genetics and Patenting
DNA Forensics
Behavioral Genetics
Minorities, Race, and Genomics
Genetics in the Courtroom

U.S. Dept. of Energy & the HGP
Fact Sheet about DOE's involvement in the HGP
• DOE investments contributing to HGP's success
• Website of the DOE Human Genome Program



Post HGP Information

The Human Genome and Beyond (PDF)
Beyond the HGP: Poster and Powerpoint
Genomics:GTL (PDF Overview)
What have we learned so far? What is still unknown?


Spin-off Research Programs

DOE Genomics:GTL Program
DOE Microbial Genome Project
Environmental Genome Project
Cancer Genome Anatomy Project
SNP Consortium


HGP Background Information
History
Progress
Goals
Timeline
Budget
What labs are involved?
How has HGP catalyzed biotechnology industry?
Whose genome is being studied?
Anticipated Benefits of Genome Research
• Human Genome News Archives

Media Release Archive
Human Genome Sequence Researchers Trim Gene Count to 20,000 - 25,000 (October, 2004)
Announcements on the Human Genome Project Completion (April 14, 2003)
Announcements on the First Analysis of Genome Sequence (February 12, 2001)
• Completion of the First Survey of the Entire Human Genome (June 26, 2000)
• DOE completes working drafts of human chromosomes 5, 16, and 19 (April 13, 2000)
• Background handout on chr. 5, 16, 19 (April 2000)
• Genome sequence of fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster is completed (April 2000)
• US HGP reaches 2 billionth base --2/3 of genome is complete (March 2000)
• Human chromosome 22 completed: first human chromosome to be sequenced (December 1999)
• HGP leaders confirm accelerated timetable for draft sequence (October 1999)



What is the Human Genome Project?

Begun formally in 1990, the U.S. Human Genome Project was a 13-year effort coordinated by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Institutes of Health. The project originally was planned to last 15 years, but rapid technological advances accelerated the expected completion date to April 2003. Project goals:

To help achieve these goals, researchers also studied the genetic makeup of several nonhuman organisms. These include the common human gut bacterium Escherichia coli, the fruit fly, and the laboratory mouse. Several types of genome maps have been completed, and a working draft of the entire human genome sequence was announced in June 2000, with analyses published in February 2001. The high-quality, finished version of the human genome sequence was completed in 2003. Papers and journal articles are still forthcoming.

A unique aspect of the U.S. Human Genome Project is that it was the first large scientific undertaking to address the ELSI implications that might arise from the project.

Another important feature of the project was the federal government's long-standing dedication to the transfer of technology to the private sector. By licensing technologies to private companies and awarding grants for innovative research, the project is catalyzed the multibillion-dollar U.S. biotechnology industry and fostering the development of numerous technologies and new medical applications.

Quick Facts
Estimated sizes of human chromosomes
• Comparative genome sizes of humans and other organisms
• Four chemical bases present in DNA: adenine (A), thymine (T), cytosine (C), and guanine (G)
• Number of chromosomes in the human: 24 chromosomes (1, 2, 3, ...22 + X + Y) arranged in 23 pairs (females have 2 copies of chromosomes 1 through 22 + 2 copies of the X chromosome; males have 2 copies of chromosomes 1 through 22 + one X and one Y chromosome)
• Estimated number of genes in the human genome: ~20,000-25,000
• Number of basepairs in the human genome: 3 billion
• U.S. HGP officially began in 1990 and was completed in 2003; see timeline
• U.S. HGP Joint Leaders: Ari Patrinos (DOE HGP) and Francis Collins (NIH NHGRI)
• HGP Research areas: sequencing, mapping, instrumentation, bioinformatics, comparative and functional genomics, ELSI (ethical, legal, and social issues)

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