21st-century Noah’s Ark
Scientists aim to save all 1.5m species from extinction by storing their DNA
‘Sequencing all life on Earth’
IT IS the modern equivalent of Noah’s Ark – but instead of loading them on a boat two by two, researchers hope to preserve animal species by recording the DNA of each and every one.
The UK is leading a £3.7billion global project to sequence the genomes of all 1.5million known species, with priority going to the 23,000 that face extinction within the next ten years.
In Britain alone, the hugely ambitious scheme will involve recording the DNA of 66,000 species of animal, bird, insect, fungus and plant. The first 25 – including the red and grey squirrel, European robin and blackberry – are already done.
Dr Tim Littlewood, the Natural History Museum’s head of life sciences, said: ‘It is hoped that together we can uncover the blueprints of the diversity of UK life, which will effectively rewrite what we know about these species.’
Sir Jim Smith, science director at the Wellcome Sanger Institute in Cambridge which is leading the research, said: ‘ When the Human Genome Project began 25 years ago, we could not imagine how the DNA sequence produced back then would transform research into human health and disease today. Embarking on a mission to sequence all life on Earth is no different.
‘We shall gain insights into how to develop new treatments for infectious diseases, identify drugs to slow ageing, generate new approaches to feeding the world or create new bio-materials.’
It is hoped the UK’s Darwin Tree of Life Project, which was launched yesterday and forms part of the global Earth BioGenome Project, will revolutionise our understanding of evolution and also help develop treatments for diseases such as cancer. Storing a genome copy of every species could also allow those that go extinct to be brought back to life – if technology advances.
To illustrate the scale of the project, currently fewer than 3,500, or 0.2 per cent, of all known eukaryotic species – those with a wall around the cell nucleus – have had their DNA sequenced. Alongside the Sanger Institute and the Natural History Museum, the Royal Botanic Gardens, in Kew, south-west London, and the University of Edinburgh will contribute research. Institutions in the US, China, Germany, Brazil, Denmark and Australia are also taking part.
Researchers said they hoped to have sampled all 1.5million genomes within ten years.
Professor Sir Mike Stratton, director of the Sanger Institute, said: ‘Using the biological insights we will get from the genomes of all eukaryotic species, we can look to our responsibilities as custodians of life on this planet, tending life on Earth in a more informed manner using those genomes, at a time when nature is under considerable pressure.’