Human Genome Project

The most important biomedical research undertaking of the 20th Century

The Big Picture

The Human Genome Project was a landmark global scientific effort whose signature goal was to generate the first sequence of the human genome.

In 2003, the Human Genome Project produced a genome sequence that accounted for over 90% of the human genome. It was as close to complete as the technologies for sequencing DNA allowed at the time.

The project was critical for advancing policies and earning increased support for the open sharing of scientific data.

Concerns and questions about sequencing the human genome helped to usher in a greater emphasis on ethics in biomedical research.

The project was atypical for biomedical research, in that the researchers’ work was driven by a desire to explore an unknown part of the biological world — as opposed to first formulating a theory or hypothesis.

https://www.genome.gov/about-genomics/educational-resources/fact-sheets/human-genome-project