CURRENT AFFAIRS

Detailed explanation-1: -China launches world’s largest human genome research project.

Detailed explanation-2: -Despite the controversy, the HGP was initiated in 1990 under the leadership of American geneticist Francis Collins, with support from the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The effort was soon joined by scientists from around the world.

Detailed explanation-3: -According to the study, the lungfish genome is the largest animal genome ever sequenced. Boasting 43 billion base pairs, it is 14 times larger than the human genome, exceeding the genome of the axolotl, the previous record holder in the animal kingdom, by an impressive 30 percent.

Detailed explanation-4: -The human genome has approximately 3.1 billion base pairs. The Human Genome Project was started in 1990 with the goal of sequencing and identifying all base pairs in the human genetic instruction set, finding the genetic roots of disease and then developing treatments.

Detailed explanation-5: -Many scientists and medical researchers consider this project the most important scientific undertaking of our time. The work of the publicly funded Human Genome Project led by Collins complemented the work of the privately funded Human Genome Project led by J. Craig Venter (1946-) of Celera Genomics (Rockville, MD).