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

Project goals were to
identify all the approximately
20,000-25,000
gene s in human DNA,

determine the sequences
of the 3 billion
chemical base pairs that
make up human DNA,
store this information in
databases, improve tools
for data analysis, transfer
related technologies
to the private sector, and
address the ethical, legal,
and social issues
(ELSI) that may arise
from the project.

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

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
catalyzed the multibilliondollar
U.S. biotechnology
industry and fostered the
development of new medical
applications.

There are many discussions around this topic,
the most important one of them relates The
Human Genome Project to cloning. Craig
Venter's Celera Genomics' company is not far
from the image displayed in the movie The
Island' (2005) in which people could pay to
have a live clone of themselves ready in case
they needed an organ transplant, blood transfusion
or anything of the like.

Strict regulations regarding the use of
the knowledge of the human genome
can probably be enforced, keeping
such nightmare scenarios alive only in
the imagination. The positives of such
a project then become more evident.
Knowledge about the effects of DNA
variations among individuals can lead
to revolutionary new ways to diagnose,
treat, and someday prevent the thousands
of disorders that affect us. Besides
providing clues to understanding
human biology, learning about nonhuman
organisms' DNA sequences can
lead to an understanding of their natural
capabilities that can be applied
toward solving challenges in health
care, agriculture, energy production,
environmental remediation, and carbon
sequestration. Thus, the treatment
of virtually all hereditary diseases
seems

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