STAT July 9, 2024
The Human Genome Project was among the most ambitious scientific efforts in modern history, with the aim of deciphering the chemical makeup of the entire human genetic code.
The sequence of some 3 billion DNA base pairs that comprise our genome was supposed to be a mosaic, assembled from multiple anonymous people to protect the identity of the volunteer donors. But that’s not how it turned out: One individual’s DNA accounted for the vast majority of the genome when a first draft was released in 2001.
The story of how that happened, and its ethical implications, has largely gone untold. To piece together this history, Undark examined more than 100 emails, letters, and other documents, and interviewed many of the...
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