Scientists Complete the First-Ever Human Genome Sequence
by Naba Batool
SHARES
Researchers were able to make history in 2003 when they sequenced 92% of the human genome successfully. But they were not able to decipher the remaining 8% for at least two decades.
Now a team of almost 100 scientists from the Telomere to Telomere Consortium has now successfully developed the complete human genome for the first time ever. This is the first time scientists are able to sequence the genome in its entirety.
The telomere-to-telomere human genome is the first truly complete human genome, a cover-to-cover read of the human genetic instruction book.
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According to Evan Eichler who is a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator at the University of Washington and research leader said that,
"Having this complete information will allow us to better understand how we form as an individual organism and how we vary not just between other humans but other species.”
This research has successfully introduced 400 million letters to the previous sequence which is worth an entire chromosome. This full genome will now allow scientists to have a better outlook on the working of the DNA and the role it plays in genetic diseases and their transfer.
Because the DNA and how it works is still a mystery.
"It turns out that these genes are incredibly important for adaptation." Eichler said. "They contain immune response genes that help us to adapt and survive infections, plagues and viruses. They contain genes that are very important in terms of predicting drug response."
Furthermore, scientists are still managing to find a way to make this process less costly and time-consuming. Additionally, more research is needed to figure out the identification of genomes that then lead to genetic differences.
