Cracking the Code of Life: The Race to Decode Human DNA (2001)

• Main Author: Producer: WGBH Boston Video
• Language: English
• Published: 2001
• Subjects: Breast Cancer; Cancer; Cystic Fibrosis; DNA; Genes; Genome; Genomics; Health; Human Genome; Human Genome Project; Interviews; Life; Medicine; Research; Science; Genome Mapping; Tay; Iceland
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10822/549344; http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/genome

"Does it amaze you that yeast is your very close relative? That you possess roughly the same number of genes as a mouse? That you are 99.9% genetically identical to every other human? ABC Nightline correspondent Robert Krulwich lends a lighthearted touch to genetic science in this provaocative two-hour NOVA special that takes you inside the amazing, complex and contentious race to decode the human genome. The Human Genome Project was born in 1990, when an international consortium of labs set out to sequence all 3 billion letters of our DNA, predicting they'd finish by 2005. Halfway though their schedule, controversial scientist and entrepreneur J. Craig Venter threw the genome world into turmoil when he announced his for- profit company Celera could finish the job in just two years. Francis Collins, leader of the publicaly-funded effort, and MIT's Eric Lander were among the scientists who answered Venter's challenge. The result made history and laid the foundation for a remarkable future. Armed with this powerful information, medical pioneers are in the midst of astonishing breakthroughs that will change medicine as we know it. Will you get cancer, arthritis, or Alzheimer's? The answer lies in your genetic code-but the question is: Do you want to know? And will these new discoveries eventually lead to cures?" [Description from NOVA cassette box] "In June 2000, two fiercely competitive teams of scientists made the joint announcement that their labs had achieved one of the greatest prizes in history: the decoding of the human genome. NOVA tells the story of the genome triumph and its profound implications for medicine and human health in this special, hosted by Robert Krulwich, ABC "Nightline" correspondent." [Description taken from TV Guide listing.] Program aired on April 17, 2001. Footage includes interviews with Dr. Fancis Collins, director of the National Center for Human Genome Research; Dr. Craig Venter, head of its rival, the private Celera Genomics; and the Whitehead Institute's Dr. Eric Lander, one of the leaders of the Human Genome Project. Human Genome Project; Celera Genomics; DeCode; Iceland; tay sachs; cystic fibrosis; breast cancer