DNA decoding

DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) - a kind of drawing of life, a complex code, which contains data on hereditary information. This complex macromolecule is able to store and transmit hereditary genetic information from generation to generation.

DNA determines such properties of any living organism as heredity and variability. The information coded in it sets the entire program for the development of any living organism. Genetically predetermined factors predetermine the whole course of a person's life. Intervention by doctors or the natural impact of the environment can only slightly affect the overall severity of individual genetic traits or affect the development of programmed processes.

DNA, the code of which has not only scientific but also practical value, allows doctors to prevent diseases that the person is predisposed to by birth. Knowing the peculiarities of the structure of the patient's genome, the physician is able to predict the reaction of the body to the effect of the external environment, to predict the outcome of the disease and the effectiveness of using specific medications, etc.

Nucleic acid molecules connected in a certain order control all the processes of protein synthesis and enzymes controlling the exchange of energy and substances in the human body. The structure of proteins and their functions are determined by the amino acids they consist of. An important role is played by the order of location of these amino acids in the protein molecule.

If deep layers of DNA are considered, its composition is determined by four types of nucleotides: thymidyl (T), adenyl (A), guanyl (G) and cytidyl (C). The macromolecule itself with a cover of chromosomes reaches a length of 1 meter. Its thickness in this case is only one nanometer (one billionth of a meter).

The DNA formula looks like an alphabetic sequence of nucleotides in the chain. For example, it can look like this: AGTCATGCCAG.

DNA has been the subject of research by scientists for decades. The fact that the genes are separate parts of the molecules of deoxyribonucleic acid, was established already in the middle of the 20th century. At the same time, scientists were convinced that these parts of the molecules are responsible for the structure of proteins.

On the basis of this, the interdependence between the chemical structure of DNA molecule sections and the protein molecules themselves was revealed. The essence of this dependence lies in the fact that the order of the arrangement of DNA in proteins corresponds to the order of the structural units of DNA (nucleotides) in the gene.

The discovery was revolutionary in terms of understanding the basic essence of DNA. Deciphering the genetic code allowed scientists to come close to the main secrets of human hereditary information.

The human genetic code is written as a definite sequence of nucleotides on the main information carrier - DNA. The interpretation of the structure of this macromolecule in 1953 became a very important milestone in the history of microbiology. For the contribution to this discovery, J. Watson, F. Crick and M. Wilkins received the Nobel Prize.

DNA decoding takes a very long time. This is explained by the fact that one molecule of deoxyribonucleic acid contains a huge amount of information encrypted with complex code. The nucleus of one cell contains such amount of information that could fill a million pages of a scientific encyclopedia.

For the first time, the human genome was read in the so-called draft version in 2001, although two more additional years took place to complete the project. The project was spent 300 million dollars, it involved several scientific organizations.

The full record of the genome was made in 2007. The budget of the project was already 1 million dollars.

Today, a procedure called "DNA decoding of human chromosomes" is performed on a single unit, and its cost has fallen to a record value for the entire previous history. It is equal to 50 thousand dollars.