Building on the DNA revolution
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A special section of the April 11 issue of Science—Building on the DNA Revolution—features two articles on the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science participation in the Human Genome Project and future directions—the Genomes to Life project. In its 11 April 2003 issue, Science presents a special collection of news, viewpoints, and other articles to celebrate the 50th anniversary of one of the signpost events of modern biology—the publication of the structure of DNA.
The articles by Office of Science staff are the first and second features under the "Viewpoints" subheading and are also highlighted by Barbara Jasny, editor of Science, in the introduction to the special section of the magazine:
"The project to sequence the human genome represented biology's first foray into 'big science.' In pioneering this new direction, the National Institutes of Health, Wellcome Trust, and Department of Energy (DOE) faced unique challenges, as Collins et al. recount on p. 286. One promising avenue of research to emerge from that project is DOE's ambitious 'Genomes to Life' program. As Frazier et al. describe (p. 290), its goal is to understand the molecular machines and systems acting within microbes and microbial communities, and then try to harness them to solve global problems such as the need for clean energy. As part of this effort, DOE intends to create user facilities that will serve as bridges between large and small laboratories."
This special section of Science, "Building on the DNA Revolution," is available online free.
"The Human Genome Project: Lessons from Large-Scale Biology," by Francis Collins, National Institutes of Health; Michael Morgan, The Wellcome Trust; and Aristides Patrinos, U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science, Office of Biological and Environmental Research.
"Realizing the Potential of the Genome Revolution: The Genomes to Life Program," by Marvin Frazier,1 David Thomassen,1 Gary Johnson,2 C. Edward Oliver,2 and Aristides Patrinos,1 U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science, 1Office of Biological and Environmental Research, and the 2Office of Advanced Scientific Computing Research.