That genome in full - September 04, 2007
Craig Venter’s diploid genome (as published in PLoS Biology) is all over the shop today, fairly predictably: Reuters, press release, Google, and naturally Nature: see Postgenomic for blog reactions. Nicholas Wade gives it a big write up in the New York Times, characterising Venter as “the loser” in the original race to sequence the genome and the new data as a sort of last-laugh comeback, with a far higher quality than in any other sequence deposited to date.
Huntington F. Willard, a geneticist at Duke University who has had early access to Dr. Venter’s genome sequence, said that the quality of the new genome was “exceptionally high” and that “until the next genome comes along this is the gold standard right now.”
Wade also points out the number of gaps in the genome – 4,500 -- and the fact that it could be further improved on, not least by sequencing the hard-to-sort-out ends of the chromosomes. He also mentions the possibility of sequencing Venter’s mother to work out which chromosome came from whom. The Washington Post notes that Venter didn’t ask the permission of the various people who share his genome in whole or in part – mother, three siblings and son – before publishing: “Their main response is not "Oh, my God.' It's 'Can I get my genome done, too?'” Venter is quoted as saying.
Not all responses see the work as quite so great an advance: “I would call this a small, quantitative milestone,” George Church told the Post (Church’s own genome is being sequenced as part of the Archon X-prize genomes project). As far as I can see no one asked Jim Watson, whose genome was published a few months ago, for comment (or if they did, he didn’t produce one that they were willing to use).
Most reports note that the new data shows more variation than was expected, and that its possible to suggest various things about Venter – from the consistency of his earwax (lead in the Globe and Mail) through mixed news on heart disease to an elevated risk of Alzheimers – from the resulting data. There’s a fair amount of discussion of what knowing ones genes can and can’t reveal about the future, but not much on the business implications of the technology (though this recent piece from Motley Fool is relevant)
The genome itself -- now known simply as HuRef -- should be available for your inspection at Genbank: the accession numbers are AADD00000000 (WGSA) and ABBA01000000
