Decoded DNA would 'reach to Moon'

Pioneering scientists in the UK have decoded a record-breaking two billion letters of DNA, it has been revealed.

The researchers at the Wellcome Trust's Sanger Institute say that if this DNA was scaled up to the size of a spiral staircase it would stretch to the Moon. The "life code" found in cells contains information about biology, health and disease in humans and other organisms.

It is the genes written in the DNA that dictate the diseases we are likely to get and how we respond to treatment.

Remarkable achievement

Sequencing involves identifying the repeated patterns of component bases - or letters - that make up the long twisting strands of the molecule deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA).

THE DNA MOLECULE The double-stranded DNA molecule is held together by chemical components called bases Adenine (A) bonds with thymine (T); cytosine(C) bonds with guanine (G) Groupings of these letters form the "code of life"; there are about 2.9bn base pairs in the human genome wound into 24 distinct bundles, or chromosomes Written in the DNA are 30,000-40,000 genes which human cells use as templates to make proteins; these sophisticated molecules build and maintain our bodies The DNA code drives the biology of all living organisms

As well as contributing one-third (903 million bases) of the work involved in deciphering our genome, scientists at the Sanger Institute in Hinxton near Cambridge have also helped to decode the DNA secrets of more than 25 microbes that cause some of the world's deadliest diseases, including malaria, TB, typhoid and plague.

The two billion figure also includes 630 million mouse bases and 246 million zebrafish units.

Added to this are 49 million letters from the laboratory nematode worm, Caenorhabditis elegans, and 13 million from yeasts.

Dr Jane Rogers, head of sequencing at the Sanger, said: "The work carried out here has forever changed the way science works.

"Our understanding of organisms has been pushed forward light years.

"In just 10 years, the Sanger Institute has developed from a group of less than 20 scientists working in converted labs to the world leader in finished sequencing material. It really is a remarkable achievement and I'm proud to be part it."

'Risky gamble'

Sir John Sulston, the first director of the Sanger Institute, said: "The founding of the Sanger Centre was a risky gamble. Thanks to the dedicated efforts of everyone here, to our international collaborators, and to our funders' faith in us, the gamble became reality.

Two billion bases and counting

"I don't think any of us could have thought we would have come so far, so fast.

"Now the challenge for the world is to use these sequences wisely and equitably - for the advancement of knowledge and for the universal human good."

Professor Allan Bradley, the current director of institute, added: "We have sequenced a phenomenal amount of material but just as importantly we have ensured that the standards of accuracy are unsurpassed - far above internationally accepted measures."