Image - David Haussler

The Human Genome

David Haussler, Ph.D., UC Santa Cruz; Led the Team that Was First to Sequence the Human Genome

Humanity achieved the first reading of its own genetic heritage in the year 2000. That first genome cost $300 million. Today the price is approaching $1,000, initiating an era of personal genomics. We take you on a brief odyssey into the human genome, how it evolved, how genomes differ between people, and why this matters. We then look at where the field of genomics is going, especially in understanding cancer and other diseases, what is holding it back, and what can be done so that it achieves its potential to revolutionize our understanding of ourselves for the benefit of science and medicine.