Human Genome Project to Survey Entire Human Instruction Book

Recently, investigators have made great strides in using DNA sequence data to help find genes, which are the parts of the genome that code for proteins.

The protein-coding component of these genes, however, makes up just a small fraction of the human genome--approximately 1.5%. There is strong evidence that other parts of the genome have important functions, but very little information exists about where these other functional elements are located and how they function. A new U.S genome project will try to address this critical goal of genomics research.

The U.S. National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI; Bethesda, MD, USA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), announced grants totaling more than US$78 million over the next four years to expand the ENCyclopedia of DNA Elements (ENCODE) project, which in its pilot phase yielded provocative new insights into the organization and function of the human genome.

"Based on ENCODE's early success, we are moving forward with a full-scale initiative to build a parts list of biologically functional elements in the human genome,” said NHGRI director Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D. "The ENCODE pilot, which looked at just 1% of the human genetic blueprint, produced findings that are reshaping many long-held views about our genome. ENCODE's effort to survey the entire genome will uncover even more exciting surprises, providing us with a more complete picture of the biological roots of human health and disease.”

While the sequencing of the human genome was a major scientific accomplishment, it was just the first step toward the ultimate goal of utilizing genomic data to diagnose, treat, and prevent disease. In June 2007, the ENCODE research consortium published a series of landmark articles in the journals Nature and Genome Research that found the organization, function, and evolution of the genome to be far more complex than most had suspected. For example, while investigators have traditionally focused on studying genes and their associated proteins, the ENCODE data indicate the genome is a very complex, interwoven network in which genes are just one of many types of DNA sequences with functional impact.

"We learned many valuable lessons from the ENCODE pilot project. Among them was the importance of scientific teamwork,” said Elise A. Feingold, Ph.D., program director for ENCODE in NHGRI's division of extramural research. "Following the pilot's strong example of multi-disciplinary collaboration, we are confident that the scaled-up ENCODE team will succeed in its quest to build a comprehensive catalog of the components of the human genome that are crucial to biological function.”

In addition to the research grants to support expansion of the ENCODE project, NHGRI also announced awards for two pilot-scale projects, the establishment of an ENCODE data coordination center, and six projects to develop novel methods and technologies aimed at helping the ENCODE project achieve its goals.

"As was the case for the Human Genome Project and the ENCODE pilot, all of the data generated by the full-scale ENCODE project will be deposited into public databases as soon as they are experimentally verified,” said Peter Good, Ph.D., program director for genome informatics in NHGRI's division of extramural research. "Free and rapid access to this data will enable researchers around the world to pose new questions and gain new insights into how the human genome functions.”

NHGRI is one of 27 institutes and centers at the NIH, an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NHGRI's Division of Extramural Research supports grants for research and for training and career development at U.S. sites.


Related Links:
National Human Genome Research Institute