⦿ Department of Biotechnology (DBT) on Tuesday officially announced the completion of the ‘10,000 genome’ project — an attempt to create a reference database of whole-genome sequences out of India.
⦿ India first sequenced a complete human genome in 2006.
⦿ The Genome India Project is inspired by the Human Genome Project (HGP 1990-2003) – an international programme that led to the decoding of the entire human genome.
⦿ HGP was a highly collaborative international effort that led to the first sequence of the human genome (92% of the human genome). It took 13 years (1990 – 2003) to produce a blueprint of the sequence of genes and spaces between genes that make up a typical human genome
⦿ The HGP generated 92% of the Human Genome sequence in 2003.
⦿ The Human Genome Project released the latest version of the complete human genome in 2023 with a 0.3% error margin.
⦿ Genome sequencing is used to evaluate rare disorders, pre-conditions for disorders, and even cancer from the viewpoint of genetics rather than as a disease of certain organs.
⦿ Gene sequencing has been used to investigate genetic disorders/anomalies in foetuses (prenatal screening). The technology Crispr, which relies on sequencing, may potentially allow scientists to repair disease-causing mutations in genomes.