Part 2. International scientific projects

Text 1

Lead-in

1.Fill in the gaps with the words in the list:

Data care objective detailed domain

1. The main … of this laboratory is to study human genes.

2. The object studied needs a more … analysis.

3. USA is known for high standards of health ….

4. The scientists have to study all the … before starting on the project.

5. Studying genes with the help of computer programs is the … of bioinformatics.

 

2. Answer the questions:

1) What do you know about the Human Genome Project?

2) How did you learn about it?

3) What do you think is the main goal of the project?

 

3. Read the text and say what the words in bold mean:

Human Genome Project

The Human Genome Project (HGP) is an international scientific research project with a primary goal of determining the sequence of chemical base pairs which make up DNA, and of identifying and mapping the approximately 20,000–25,000 genes of the human genome from both a physical and functional standpoint.

The project began in October 1990. A working draft of the genome was announced in 2000 and a complete one in 2003, with further, more detailed analysis still being published. The mapping of human genes is an important step in the development of medicines and other aspects of health care. While the objective of the Human Genome Project is to understand the genetic makeup of the human species, the project has also focused on several other nonhuman organisms such as E. coli, the fruit fly, and the laboratory mouse. It remains one of the largest single investigative projects in modern science.

The Human Genome Project originally aimed to map the nucleotides contained in a human haploid reference genome (more than three billion). The "genome" of any given individual (except for identical twins and cloned organisms) is unique; mapping "the human genome" involves sequencing multiple variations of each gene. The project did not study the entire DNA found in human cells; some areas (about 8% of the total genome) remain un-sequenced. The sequence of the human DNA is stored in databases available to anyone on the Internet. Computer programs have been developed to analyze the data, because the data itself is difficult to interpret without such programs. The process of identifying the boundaries between genes and other features in a raw DNA sequence is called genome annotation and is the domain of bioinformatics. All humans have unique gene sequences. Therefore the data published by the HGP does not represent the exact sequence of every individual's genome. It is the combined "reference genome" of a small number of anonymous donors. The HGP genome is a scaffold for future work in identifying differences among individuals.

Tasks:

1.Answer the questions:

1) What is the primary goal of the Human Genome Project?

2) When did the project begin?

3) Is the project finished now?

4) Was only human DNA studied in the project?

5) What does mapping of “the human genome” involve?

6) Is the sequence of the human DNA an open information?

7) What is genome annotation?

8) What is “reference genome”?

Fill in the words from the list, then make sentences using the completed phrases.

Gene, primary, working, further, human, anonymous, genetic, human, research

1. … project

2. … goal

3. … genome

4. … draft

5. … analysis

6. … species

7. … sequence

8. … donors

9. … makeup

Fill in the prepositions, then make sentences using the completed phrases.

1. to be focused … sth; 2. chemical base pairs which make … DNA; 3. to be available … the Internet; 4. to study sth. … functional standpoint; 5. a work … identifying differences … individuals

Read the text again and take notes under these headings. Then, look at your notes and talk about HGP.

· HGP goals

· Dates

· Organisms Studied

· Mapping of "the Human Genome"

· HGP Data Storage and Processing

· Reference Genome

 

Text 2

Lead-in

1. Fill in the gaps with the words in the list:

Undertaking comprise diseases proteins draft

1. Fish is rich in ….

2. This dictionary … about 60 000 words.

3. A rough … of the project is available on the Internet.

4. Today medicine can cure … earlier considered incurable.

5. This … requires careful preparations.

2. Answer the questions:

1) Why do you think the necessity to study human genome appeared?

2) What technologies are necessary to study DNA?

 

3. Read the text and say what the words in bold mean:

HGP History and Findings

The Human Genome Project began with the culmination of several years of work supported by the United States Department of Energy. This 1987 report stated boldly, "The ultimate goal of this initiative is to understand the human genome" and "knowledge of the human is as necessary to the continuing progress of medicine and other health sciences as knowledge of human anatomy has been for the present state of medicine." Candidate technologies were already being considered for the proposed undertaking at least as early as 1985.

The $3-billion project was formally founded in 1990 by the United States Department of Energy and the U.S. National Institutes of Health, and was expected to take 15 years. In addition to the United States, the international consortium primarily comprised geneticists in the United Kingdom, and also in France, Germany, Japan, China, and India.

Due to widespread international cooperation and advances in the field of genomics (especially in sequence analysis), as well as major advances in computing technology, a 'rough draft' of the genome was finished in 2000. Ongoing sequencing led to the announcement of the essentially complete genome in April 2003, 2 years earlier than planned. In May 2006, another milestone was passed on the way to completion of the project, when the sequence of the last chromosome was published in the journal Nature.

Key findings of the draft (2001) and complete (2004) genome sequences include:

1. There are approximately 23,000 genes in human beings, the same range as in mice and roundworms. Understanding how these genes express themselves will provide clues to how diseases are caused.

2. Between 1.1% to 90% of the genome sequence codes for proteins.

3. The human genome has significantly more segmental duplications than other mammalian genomes. These sections may underlie the creation of new primate-specific genes.

 

Tasks:

1. Answer the questions:

1. What caused the initiative to study the human genome?

2. What establishments and countries participated in the HGP?

3. When was the project completed?

4. What are the key findings of the HGP?

 

Fill in the words from the list, then make sentences using the completed phrases.

Mammalian present proposed human key major rough

1. … advances; 2. … findings; 3. … state; 4. … draft; 5. … beings; 6. … undertaking; 7. … genomes.

Fill in the prepositions, then make sentences using the completed phrases.

for by with to to in

1. to lead … sth.; 2. to be supported … smb.; 3. to begin … sth.; 4. advances … the field of; 5. to be necessary … sth/smb; 6. on the way … sth.

 

Read the text again and take notes under these headings. Then, look at your notes and talk about HGP History and Findings.

· How HGP Started

· HGP Participants

· Stages

· Findings

 

Text 3

Lead-in

1. Match the words and their definitions:

a. Management; b. predisposition; c. advance; d. etiology; e. mammal

1. Going forward, progress;

2. Warm-blooded vertebrate of the class secreting milk to feed its young;

3. Study of the causes of disease;

4. Treatment;

5. Bent or inclination to something;

 

2. Answer the questions:

1) What do you think are the advantages of HGP?

2) Can you think of any disadvantages?

 

Read the text and say what the words in bold mean

HGP Benefits

The work on interpretation of genome data is still in its initial stages. It is anticipated that detailed knowledge of the human genome will provide new avenues for advances in medicine and biotechnology. Clear practical results of the project emerged even before the work was finished. For example, a number of companies, such as Myriad Genetics started offering easy ways to administer genetic tests that can show predisposition to a variety of illnesses, including breast cancer, hemostasis disorders, cystic fibrosis, liver diseases and many others. Also, the etiologies for cancers, Alzheimer's disease and other areas of clinical interest are considered likely to benefit from genome information and possibly may lead in the long term to significant advances in their management.

There are also many tangible benefits for biological scientists. For example, a researcher investigating a certain form of cancer may have narrowed down his/her search to a particular gene.

Further, deeper understanding of the disease processes at the level of molecular biology may determine new therapeutic procedures. It is likely that expanded knowledge in this area will facilitate medical advances in numerous areas of clinical interest that may not have been possible without them.

The analysis of similarities between DNA sequences from different organisms is also opening new avenues in the study of evolution. In many cases, evolutionary questions can now be framed in terms of molecular biology. Many questions about the similarities and differences between humans and our closest relatives (the primates, and indeed the other mammals) are expected to be illuminated by the data from this project.

The project's goals included not only identifying all genes in the human genome, but also to address the ethical, legal, and social issues (ELSI) that might arise from the availability of genetic information.

 

Tasks:

1. Answer the questions:

1. What are the practical results of the HGP?

2. What are the benefits for biological scientists?

3. How does the genes research influence the study of evolution?

4. Where might the ethical, legal, and social issues arise from?