Das Human-Genom-Projekt: Die Entschlüsselung des menschlichen Erbmaterials

Abstract

The ambitious plan of the determination of the DNA sequence of the human genome is known as the human genome project (HGP). Since its start in 1991, it has yielded significant results. Until recently, the work has focused on the establishment of high-resolution genetic and physical maps. The genome sequences of many prokaryotes and of several eukaryotes have been completely determined. Approximately 17% of the human genome sequence are already known, and recent technological developments will lead to the determination of the complete human genome sequence by the years 2000-2003. At the moment, the genomic location and at least partial sequence of 30.000 human genes are known, corresponding to approximately 30% of all human genes. These results are relevant for the localisation and isolation of disease genes and disease susceptibility alleles. The knowledge of a large part of all human genes allows the determination of the activity of many thousands of genes in parallel. The information from the HGP makes the search for frequent predisposition alleles for common diseases (cancer, heart disease, psychiatric diseases) possible, in particular through the identification of linkage disequilibria. These studies require the clinical and genetic analysis of large human populations in hitherto unknown detail, thereby raising new questions regarding the ownership and the privacy of genetic data