Researched
Genome sequencing
Reading all three billion letters of the human genome, and then making that routine.
Open in the interactive tree →Frederick Sanger's chain-termination method (1977) read the first DNA genomes. The publicly funded Human Genome Project (1990-2003, roughly 2.7 billion US dollars) and Craig Venter's company Celera announced a first draft in 2000 (published 2001) and an essentially complete reference in April 2003 (about 92 percent of the genome; the gaps were closed by the T2T consortium in 2022). Next-generation sequencers from 2005 onward cut the cost per genome from millions of dollars to a few hundred.
Prerequisites
- Programmable Computer1941
- Sanger DNA sequencing1977Sanger sequencing read the first genomes and drove the Human Genome Project
- PCR1985
Unlocks
- Genome-wide association studies2005
- Human microbiome2007-2012
- CRISPR gene editing2012
- Asgard Archaea & Complex Life2015–2020
- Single-cell atlases2016
- Gene Therapy (AAV Vectors)2017
- AI protein structure prediction2020
- COVID-19 pandemic2020
- Precision fermentation2020
- mRNA technology2020
- Ancient DNA & Human Origins2022
- Complete genome and pangenome2022
- Synthetic genomes2025
- C4 rice / better photosynthesisopen
- Causes of mental illnessopen
- Eradicating tuberculosisopen
- Halting mass extinctionopen
- Pandemic preparednessopen