Scientists plot Noah’s Ark for 21st century

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.

A €4.2billion global project is attempting 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.

The Earth BioGenome Project involves institutions in the US, China, Germany, Brazil, Denmark, Australia and the UK.

Jim Smith, science director at the Wellcome Sanger Institute in Cambridge which is leading the UK’s research effort, 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 global project will revolutionise our knowledge of evolution and 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%, of all known eukaryotic species – those with a wall around the cell nucleus – have had their DNA sequenced.

Researchers hope to have sampled all 1.5million genomes within ten years.

Professor 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.’