1. Comment #431091 by godsbelow on November 11, 2009 at 2:37 pm

"complete sequences of three people’s DNA at an average cost of $4,500"

Wow. Cheaper than I'd have imagined.

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2. Comment #431093 by Mr Blue Sky on November 11, 2009 at 2:41 pm

Wow! this is impressive. It will throw up some dilemmas for the human rights and personal liberty/privacy groups but what a goal and it could be achieved by the sound of it.

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3. Comment #431103 by Jos Gibbons on November 11, 2009 at 3:03 pm

“Our mission is to sequence a million genomes over the next five years,” Reid said in a telephone interview on Nov. 3. “That’s 1,000 people in each of 1,000 disease studies. By the time we’ve done that, we will have a deep understanding of the genetic basis of all the major human diseases.”

That'll cost $4.5 billion at the current prices then (although they may fall during the research), and if you ask me it's money well spent. But just imagine how cheap sequencing will be by the time they've done it! The use of sequencing to identify the causes of/predispositions towards diseases (insofar as they are genetic) will become a very cost-effective form of research in the next decade or two. Let's keep it going as long as Moore's law lasts!

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4. Comment #431169 by Shiva on November 11, 2009 at 7:48 pm

Wasn't there a story about two weeks ago about IBM researchers making it possible to do the whole thing for $100 to $1,000?

Yeah, here it was (knew I had it bookmarked somewhere :p):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKi30ai35mU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvclP3GySUY

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5. Comment #431222 by mordacious1 on November 11, 2009 at 9:59 pm

4. Comment #431169 by Shiva

Yes, I've heard researchers say that the price will eventually drop dramatically. I'll get mine done when WalMart offers it for $100. :)

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6. Comment #431227 by Fuller on November 11, 2009 at 10:12 pm

My projection predicts it should cost around 0.25c by 2020.

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7. Comment #431235 by DamnDirtyApe on November 11, 2009 at 10:48 pm

It'll only get cheaper.

Individually tailored cures for everything here we come.

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8. Comment #431248 by blitz442 on November 11, 2009 at 11:35 pm

Wow, decent little operation there.

They've already had (at least) four rounds of financing....IPO on the horizon? IPO activity has to start up again sometime.

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9. Comment #431252 by hiraethog on November 11, 2009 at 11:50 pm

If you can map it, you can store it digitally. You could carry your genome on a memory stick. You'll be able to manipulate it, even 'evolve' it (or steal it). Evolution could happen so much faster by manipulating digital genomes rather than having to wait all those years for legacy carbon forms to do all that yucky physical 'reproducing' stuff.

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10. Comment #431281 by godlezz on November 12, 2009 at 4:31 am

Oh wow. This is the here and now and taking us intelligent lbeings by storm!!! Just makes me wonder what's in store for the near future!

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11. Comment #431322 by Nunbeliever on November 12, 2009 at 9:03 am

Yes, I've heard researchers say that the price will eventually drop dramatically. I'll get mine done when WalMart offers it for $100. :)

Keep in mind that they only discuss the "mechanical" process of mapping a persons DNA. From an individual perspective that is quite useless. From an individual perspective the important part is a specific and detailed individual analysis. This is where the price tag becomes relevant. Even if one could get a total mapping of one's DNA for 100 bucks, that still would not mean you would necessarily benefit that much from that mapping. Or at least not in a foreseeable future.

The complete DNA is of course too big to be comprehensible. A large part of it is obviously still totally unknown regarding utility or just rubbish. So the important part is as mentioned earlier (to the individual) a specific individual analysis. What do the person in question want to know? How detailed is the analysis? How extensive? One could imagine the WalMart version being a single sheet containing the most general information about the individual, while the more expensive versions would include more extensive and detailed information and multiple discussions with experts etc...

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12. Comment #431343 by rod-the-farmer on November 12, 2009 at 1:39 pm

Pardon my lack of knowledge here....what exactly does this mean to the person who has been 'mapped' ? I can't imagine seeing much value in a list of ACGT values, so what do you get to DO with what you receive ? How is it presented to you ? Can we have someone post their results anonymously so we can see it, along with whatever explanation you get ?

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13. Comment #431346 by Bonzai on November 12, 2009 at 2:06 pm

DamnDirtyApe

Individually tailored cures for everything here we come.

Or it may swing the door wide open to massive violation of privacy and fine grained discriminations based on genetic profiling (Relatively innexpensive DNA tests already allows insurance companies and in some cases employers to discriminate based on DNA profiling)

Tailored made cures would likely cost way more than just producing a map and they would require a lot more work. It is a lot easier to make fast bucks to sell genetic maps for dubious purposes that don't rely on hard science but only based on uninformed expectations and hypes,-say to profile people.

It is so incredibly naive to only see the good things technology can bring. There is also a downside associated with the use of technology. The deployment of technology is dictated not by 'science' but by social and political factors. Our institutions are far from perfect, it is foolish to think that technology will automatically be used for the good for the most just because the potential exists. On the other hand, there are plenty of incentives to use technology in ways that limit choice, limit freedom and violate privacies.

I am not saying biotech would invariably lead to some kind of dystopia, but it is only rational to contemplate about possible abuse when very new and powerful technology comes to the scene.

I find that there is a blind spot of unfound optimism when it comes to technology for many sciency types (say on this site).They tend to view every technological advancement,--or even just alleged breakthroughs like probably this one,-- through rosy lenses without the proper cautions.

We should remember that 1) scientists who develope a technology may not be the most qualified people to decide on how it is going to be used; it is not a scientific question. 2) Once the technology leaves the lab the scientists have no control over it. How it is used is subjected to the usual vested interests and profit motives of the people who happen to own the technology.

P.S. But then in this case it may be all hypes and little substance as Numbeliever and Rod the farmer suggests.

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14. Comment #431354 by the4thNeutralNuclide on November 12, 2009 at 2:43 pm

Dear All,

Re Bonzai's last remark. I recommend you hire and watch a film called GATTACA starring Jude Law and others for a sci-fi glimpse at 'an instant DNA-sequencing society'. Policemen with hand-held scanners identifying every person who has moved through a room in the last few months, underclasses who buy good DNA in order to gain employment and DNA-apartheid against 'God' children whose parents didn't get the perfect baby sequence for their child (at a price of course!). There are two-sides to the coin always. Tom

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15. Comment #431366 by Nunbeliever on November 12, 2009 at 3:17 pm

They had an interesting debate on these issues during the Quantum to Cosmos festival in Canada. You can watch it here if you like:

http://www.q2cfestival.com/play.php?lecture_id=8013

Even Steven Paikin was quite "endurable" during this one :-)

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16. Comment #431484 by hiraethog on November 12, 2009 at 10:39 pm

Sequencing the DNA is only the 1st step. It's what we do with it that counts which raises moral questions galore and opens the mind to endless possibilities.

Starting with simple organisms, we are slowly understanding the way in which the DNA blueprint is adopted through embryology into the final product - living, reproducing organisms.

We can now easily sequence DNA into a digital format. The real key is when we can reverse the process and create life from a sequence of 0's and 1's.

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