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 30 August 2008 16:34 BST

Human DNA 'differs widely'

Thursday, 23 Nov 2006 10:29
Researchers analysed DNA from 270 people worldwide

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Scientists have discovered that there are a greater number of differences in humans' DNA than previously thought.

The international team of researchers behind the discovery claim that it could have a dramatic impact on treating diseases as it will change the way scientists search for genes involved with diseases.

Publishing their findings in the Nature journal, the researchers, led partly by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute (WTSI), describe how they created a map of DNA segments, with each segment containing at least 1,000 base pair differences between individuals.

The map was drawn up by analysing the DNA from 270 individuals from four populations with ancestry in Europe, Africa or Asia.

Over 1,400 copy number variants (CNV) were found, equalling 12 per cent of the human genome.

Professor James Lupski, vice chair of the department of molecular and human genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Texas, said that he believes the findings "will change forever the field of human genetics".

Explaining how the CNV map will help in treating diseases, Dr Nigel Carter of the WTSI said: "In some ways, the methods we have used are 'molecular microscopes', which have transformed the techniques used since the foundation of clinical genetics, where researchers used microscopes to look for visible deletions and rearrangements in chromosomes.

"With these new tools, we and our clinical colleagues are able to find previously undetectable deletions or duplications of the genome in a patient. The CNV map now allows us to identify which of these changes are unique to the disease."

Charles Lee, one of the project's leaders from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston added: "Medical research will benefit enormously from this map, which provides new ways for identifying genes involved in common diseases."End of story


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