Department of Biotechnology (DBT) announced completion of sequencing 10,000 Human Genome | Current Affairs | Vision IAS
News Today Logo

    Department of Biotechnology (DBT) announced completion of sequencing 10,000 Human Genome

    Posted 28 Feb 2024

    2 min read

    • Sequencing whole genome of 10,000 healthy individuals from 99 communities of diverse Indian populations was completed under Genome India Project (GIP).
    • GIP, inspired from Human Genome Project, was launched and funded by DBT (under Ministry of Science & technology) in 2020 to collect 10,000 genetic samples from citizens across India, to build a reference genome. 
    • It is a consortium of 20 national institutes and led by Centre for Brain Research Bengaluru-based Indian Institute of Science.

     

    • Significance of GIP: Creating a database of Indian genomes can help researchers to learn about genetic variants that are unique to India’s population groups and use that to customise drugs and therapies.

     

    • About Genome and its sequencing
      • Genome is entire set of DNA instructions found in a cell.
      • In humans, it comprises 23 pairs of chromosomes (thread-like structures of DNA) in cells’ nucleus and small chromosome in cells’ mitochondria.
        • Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is molecule that carries genetic information for functioning of an organism.
        • DNA contains unique chemical codes determined by order of Adenine (A), Cytosine (C), Guanine (G) and Thymine (T) (four nucleotide bases present in DNA).
      • Genome sequencing refers to figuring out order of DNA nucleotides in a genome (i.e., order of As, Cs, Gs, and Ts).

    Other initiatives for Genome sequencing

    • Human Genome Project, launched in 1990 (completed in 2003), covered about 92% of total human genome sequence. 
    • IndiGen programme to undertake whole genome sequencing of thousands of individuals representing diverse ethnic groups from India.
    • Global Alliance for Genomics and Health (GA4GH) sets standards to expand genomic data use within a human rights framework.
    • Tags :
    • Human Genome
    • Genome and its sequencing
    Watch News Today
    Subscribe for Premium Features