If we compare the human genome to an encyclopedia of10 billion words, this book can be divided into 23 chapters, each of which is a chromosome. Each chromosome contains thousands of "stories" called genes. These "stories" consist of a series of three-letter words, each of which is an arbitrary arrangement and combination of four basic chemical "letters". The human genome project is to "read" these 3 billion chemical "letters", that is, to measure the arrangement order of 3 billion base pairs on all chromosomes of the human body. The working sketch published on 26th contains the position information of more than 90% base pairs in human body, which is enough to help scientists master the main framework of human life code.
The human genome contains most genetic information about human birth, aging, disease and death. Reading it will bring revolutionary changes to the diagnosis of diseases, the development of new drugs and the exploration of new treatments, so decoding the human genome is called the "holy grail" of biology. With the help of scientists from all over the world, the Human Genome Project basically deciphered the human gobbledygook in 10, and its significance is immeasurable. It is no less important than the Apollo program, which put man on the moon.
It should be noted that sketching the human genome is only the first step. It will take several years to accurately sequence, identify the genes in the genome and figure out their functions, and it may take more than ten years or even decades for these achievements to be truly applied to medical practice. Similar to many major scientific research achievements, human genome research is also a double-edged sword, which brings good prospects to mankind, but also risks being misused and abused. Facing the great impact that the human genome may bring to philosophy, ethics and law, the international community should formulate relevant countermeasures as soon as possible. The scientific community generally believes that human beings have the ability to standardize the development of various new technologies, including gene technology, so as to advance along a healthy road.