Genome Project Write

Congratulations!

You solved your 21th Amazing Bio-Hunt clue! 
When discovering the answer to this clue you would have learned about the amazing project the Genome Project – Write, often abbreviated as GP-write.

The Genome Project-write project spans across 15 countries and more than 100 institutions and seeks to write the human genome, rather than continue to decode the functions of the human genome. 

It is an open, international research project led by a multi-disciplinary group of scientific leaders who will oversee a reduction in the costs of engineering and testing large genomes, including a human genome, by over 1,000-fold within ten years. This project also aims to develop new technologies and an ethical framework for genome-scale engineering as well as transformative medical applications. The overarching goal of such an effort is to further our understanding of the blueprint for life provided by the Human Genome Project.

In 2018, they announced their first project which was about writing human cells that are resistant to natural viruses and looking to expand into cancer, radiation, and freezing resistance. This worked using a process called recoding, where the codons* used to replicate DNA were altered from the original so the modified cells could interpret them, but the viral genomes could not. This could mean all sorts of future medicinal implications so make sure to stay up to date on their newest discoveries.

If you haven’t already checked out their website, here is the link to learn more about this initiative https://engineeringbiologycenter.org.

*Zero to Genetic Engineering Hero Chapter 5!