Human genome: bust or boon?
July 9, 2010
Joseph Hall and Megan Ogilvie
HEALTH REPORTERS
Ten years ago, scientists unveiled the first map of the human genome.
The announcement made headlines across the globe and world leaders praised the work, heralding it as “the genetic blueprint for human beings.”
U.S. president Bill Clinton said “today we are learning the language in which God created life.” And British prime minister Tony Blair called the map a breakthrough “whose implications far surpass even the discovery of antibiotics.”
The map was to lead to a new era of genetic medicine, where patients could find out their risk for disease, miracle medicines would cure debilitating illnesses and cancer would be eradicated.
While those predictions have not been born out, the information scientists have teased out of the 3 billion base pairs they mapped along our twisting DNA ladders has been a boon to basic biology.
As the Human Genome Project marks its 10th anniversary, the Star asked four of Canada’s leading genetic experts to weigh in on the millennium’s first great scientific breakthrough.
Here’s what they had to say:
Paul Lasko, head of genetics, Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Ben Blencowe, professor in molecular genetics, University of Toronto
Dr. Michael Hayden, Killiam professor at the University of British Columbia and director of the Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics
Dr. Thomas Hudson, president and scientific director of the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research
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