Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) is the genetic material of all cellular organisms (and most viruses). It carries the information needed to direct protein synthesis and replication. Protein synthesis is the production of the proteins needed by the cell or virus for its activities and development. Replication on the other hand is the process by which DNA copies itself for each descendant cell or virus, passing on the information needed for protein synthesis. The (DNA) molecule is the genetic blueprint for each cell and ultimately the blueprint that determines every characteristic of a living organism. (Just to give you an idea, don't sweat it!)
Many of us have a basic idea of what DNA is, but most lack a broader understanding of the implications of fully demystifying and having the ability to re-engineer this life-blueprint for specific human purposes. An international scientific collaboration called the Human Genome Project (HGP) was commissioned a few years ago and was given the task of decoding the entire genetic blueprint of a human being. Through a process known as sequencing, the goal of the HGP was to identify all of the estimated 31,000 genes (the basic units of heredity) in the nucleus of a human cell. This also involved mapping the location of these genes on the 23 pairs of human chromosomes, the structures containing the genes in the cell’s nucleus. The human DNA consists of 4 letters (i.e. proteins: A - adenine, C- cytosine, G - guanine, T - thymine) which are arranged in a sequence, but the challenge really is in determining the specific sequence of the 6 billion base pairs (genetic letters) for each person. (That’s right! 6 Billion!!)
The race for the complete sequencing of the Human Genome (lining up of all the human letters) began in 1990. In September 2007, the first complete human genome sequence was achieved and is now available to all on the internet
Dr J. Craig Venter (Entrepreneur and Scientist) in his presentation on BBC titled “DNA Driven World” said that I believe that the future of our society relies at least in part on our understanding of biology and the molecules of life - DNA. Every era is defined by its technologies. The last century could be termed the nuclear age, and I propose that the century ahead will be fundamentally shaped by advances in biology and my field of genomics, which is the study of the complete genetic make-up of a species.
Our planet is facing almost insurmountable problems, problems that governments on their own clearly can't fix. In order to survive, we need a scientifically literate society willing and able to embrace change - because our ability to provide life's essentials of food, water, shelter and energy for an expanding human population will require major advances in science and technology.
The future of life depends not only on our ability to understand and use DNA, but also, perhaps in creating new synthetic life forms, that is, life which is forged not by Darwinian evolution but created by human intelligence.
To some this may be troubling, but part of the problem we face with scientific advancement, is the fear of the unknown - fear that often leads to rejection.”
Venter went ahead and identified an even greater problem than scientific literacy, which is that almost every aspect of our modern society is geared toward only dealing with problems after they have occurred, rather than focusing on prevention
As a result of enormous advances in technology (cumulative effects of Moore’s law of computer chips / memory and Butler’s law of photonics), sequencing a human DNA which could cost billions of dollars and took years to conclude a few decades, would be done in minutes just 5 years from now. Databases are increasing exponentially every year and students are making more discoveries every year than yesterday’s dedicated institutions.
Statistics have shown that corrective spending by governments has not necessarily translated into good results. Preventative technology has been identified as the practical solution to the challenges we face today.
A disruptive innovation and/or technology that makes the most of groundbreaking scientific innovation is what we require in meeting today’s global challenges including health, food, climate change and energy. (Refer to my earlier postings for more on the concept of disruptive innovation).
In health-care, we face enormous global challenges. Malaria, HIV and Tuberculosis amongst others have consistently ravaged developing countries, with sub-Saharan Africa experiencing more than its fair share. There are still several million child and maternity deaths in Africa per year as a result of these diseases. In 2005 total US health expenditures rose 6.9% - twice the rate of inflation. Total spending was a staggering $2trillion. US health care spending is expected to increase at similar levels for the next decade reaching $4trillion in 2015. That's 20% of GDP. But all this money does not seem to guarantee the highest quality health care. The World Health Organisation in 2000 ranked the US health care system as 1st by expenditure but only 72nd on health. Though understanding our genetic code may provide very few yes-no answers, it would, however, provide probabilities concerning outcomes that we will eventually be able to influence. Considering enormous computing power and memory available today, we will be armed with databases of information that allows us to recognise our genetic patterns, make scientific deductions, lead higher quality lives and pre-empt a significant proportion of future health-related threats to our prosperity at minimal cost.
In energy, we face seemingly insurmountable challenges globally. We are all aware of the all time high prices attained by oil futures and other energy commodities and there seems to be no respite yet. Most of the commercially viable on-shore petroleum reserves of the world have been discovered and reality is that (non-renewable) fossil fuels including natural gas, coal and oil-shale would not last forever. Bio-fuels have been much publicised but considering that last year, we consumed more than 83 million barrels of oil per day (or 30 billion barrels during the year), it may not constitute a replacement for oil at the moment. In addition we used over 3 billion tons of coal. These are mind boggling numbers and the only way bio-fuels can become pervasive and penetrate is through a widely distributed system. If there were one million bio-refineries around the globe each one would still need to produce 17,000 litres per day. Agriculture can certainly not support such scale in the near term.
Closely linked to energy is the issue of climate change and global warming. Greenhouse gasses (gasses that trap heat in the earth’s atmosphere, making it possible for us to survive and not return to the ice-age) have consistently increased in volume resulting in the earth’s warming up. As the world population increases from 6.5 billion people to 9 billion over the next 45 years and countries like India and China continue to industrialise, some estimates indicate that we will be adding over 20 billion tons of carbon a year to the atmosphere (well over the current average of 4 billion). Al Gore’s inconvenient truth provides us with more insight into the climate-change issues we may be facing.
Advanced techniques including the use of Recombinant DNA technology (genetic engineering) and PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) have presented opportunities that could exploit bio-technology for generating renewable energy in sufficient scale.
Synthetic Genomics (Venter’s Company) have a major program underway in collaboration with BP to see how they can use naturally occurring microbes to metabolise coal into methane which can then be harvested as natural gas. While not a renewable source of carbon, it could provide as much as a 10 fold improvement over mining and burning coal. They also have organisms that can convert Carbon Dioxide into methane (Natural Gas is 95% methane) thereby providing a renewable energy source.
Sustainability, meaning our ability to meet the needs of today without compromising the resource-needs of future generations requires us to think unconventionally and apply our powerful minds and intellect in providing cross-platform and industry solutions. My creativity principle states that everything that would ever be invented already exists in its latent form. Our ability to permutate independent strands of knowledge and evolve a previously undiscovered solution is what distincts our species. We already have all that we need. It’s up to us to ignore our fears and embrace the new, or risk being swept away by inevitable mutations and transformations in our world as we know it.
Visit www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2007/12_december/05/dimbleby.shtml for more on the “DNA Driven World”. (Please note that there are risks associated with the use of advanced DNA techniques. It's actually a double edged sword. Wisdom compels us to maximize the inherent opportunities and mitigate the associated risks by enacting appropriate legislation and public enlightenement.)
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