lower their blood pressure
Probably should practice before I read the news.
Rat Genome Completes Research Triad
Joins human and mouse sequence to improve health studies
Gabe Romain
The genome of the laboratory rat has been sequenced and compared to that of mice and humans, feats that promise to advance research into human biology and health.
An international consortium of researchers comprising more than 20 groups in six countries has completed a high-quality, draft sequence of the Brown Norway strain of laboratory rat, which shares roughly 90% of its estimated 25,000 to 30,000 genes with humans.
"For nearly 200 years, the laboratory rat has played a valuable role in efforts to understand human biology and to develop new and better drugs," says US National Institutes of Health Director Elias Zerhouni. "Now, armed with this sequencing data, a new generation of researchers will be able to greatly improve the utility of rat models and thereby improve human health."
Excellent model
Every organism, including humans, has a biological "blueprint" called a genome that contains all of the genetic material needed to build and maintain it.
The sequence of the rat genome opens up a new era of study, facilitating research into disease treatment, drug development and mammalian evolution.
"The sequencing of the rat genome constitutes another major milestone in our effort to expand our knowledge of the human genome," says US National Human Genome Research Institute Director Francis Collins. "As we build upon the foundation laid by the Human Genome Project, it's become clear that comparing the human genome with those of other organisms is the most powerful tool available to understand the complex genomic components involved in human health and disease."
Because almost all human genes known to be associated with diseases have counterparts in the rat genome, the rat is an excellent model for many areas of medical research.
"As a result of this significant achievement, the rat model is poised to be at the forefront of discovery, providing insight into human health and new treatments for human diseases," says US National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Acting Director Barbara Alving.
Three-way analysis
The rat sequence draft follows that of mice and humans.
A draft of the human genome sequence was published in February 2001, and the completed human sequence was announced in April 2003.
A draft of the mouse genome sequence was published in December 2002.
The availability of the rat genome sequence gives scientists the ability to triangulate data to better resolve details of human biology.
After the rat genome was sequenced, researchers conducted a three-way analysis comparing it with similar data from mice and humans.
Some of the interesting things they found were:
Mid-size: At approximately 2.75 billion base pairs of DNA, the rat genome is smaller than the human genome, which is 2.9 billion base pairs, and slightly larger than the mouse genome, which is 2.6 billion base pairs.
Closely related: Chromosomes from mice, rats and humans are related to each other by about 280 large regions of sequence similarity distributed in varying patterns across the organisms' chromosomes.
Exclusive genes: Rats possess some genes not found in the mouse, including genes involved in immunity, the production of pheromones, the breakdown of proteins and the detection and detoxification of chemicals.
The research is reported in the journal Nature (read full text nature.com. ).
betterhumans.com
See the above link for embedded links to other material.
lurqer |
