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For more details about these applications, see below.

Molecular Medicine

• Improved diagnosis of disease
• Earlier detection of genetic predispositions to disease
• Rational drug design
• Gene therapy and control systems for drugs
• Pharmacogenomics "custom drugs"

On the horizon is a new era of molecular medicine characterized less by treating symptoms and more by looking to the most fundamental causes of disease. Rapid and more specific diagnostic tests will make possible earlier treatment of countless maladies. Medical researchers also will be able to devise novel therapeutic regimens based on new classes of drugs, immunotherapy techniques, avoidance of environmental conditions that may trigger disease, and possible augmentation or even replacement of defective genes through gene therapy.

For more information, see Medicine and the New Genetics and Fast Forward to 2020: What to Expect in Molecular Medicine --an article for online magazine TNTY Futures.

Energy and Environmental Applications

• Use microbial genomics research to create new energy sources (biofuels)
• Use microbial genomics research to develop environmental monitoring techniques to detect pollutants
• Use microbial genomics research for safe, efficient environmental remediation
• Use microbial genomics research for carbon sequestration

Despite our reliance on the inhabitants of the microbial world, we know little of their number or their nature: estimates are that less than 0.01% of all microbes have been cultivated and characterized. Microbial genome sequencing will help lay a foundation for knowledge that will ultimately benefit human health and the environment. The economy will benefit from further industrial applications of microbial capabilities.

Information gleaned from the characterization of complete microbial genomes will lead to insights into the development of such new energy-related biotechnologies as photosynthetic systems, microbial systems that function in extreme environments, and organisms that can metabolize readily available renewable resources and waste material with equal facility. Expected benefits also include development of diverse new products, processes, and test methods that will open the door to a cleaner environment. Biomanufacturing will use nontoxic chemicals and enzymes to reduce the cost and improve the efficiency of industrial processes. Microbial enzymes have been used to bleach paper pulp, stone wash denim, remove lipstick from glassware, break down starch in brewing, and coagulate milk protein for cheese production. In the health arena, microbial sequences may help researchers find new human genes and shed light on the disease-producing properties of pathogens.

Microbial genomics will also help pharmaceutical researchers gain a better understanding of how pathogenic microbes cause disease. Sequencing these microbes will help reveal vulnerabilities and identify new drug targets.

Gaining a deeper understanding of the microbial world also will provide insights into the strategies and limits of life on this planet. Data generated in this young program have helped scientists identify the minimum number of genes necessary for life and confirm the existence of a third major kingdom of life. Additionally, the new genetic techniques now allow us to establish more precisely the diversity of microorganisms and identify those critical to maintaining or restoring the function and integrity of large and small ecosystems; this knowledge also can be useful in monitoring and predicting environmental change. Finally, studies on microbial communities provide models for understanding biological interactions and evolutionary history.

For more information, see:

• DOE Genomic Science Program
• DOE Microbial Genome Program
• MicrobeWorld

Risk Assessment

• Assess health damage and risks caused by radiation exposure, including low-dose exposures
• Assess health damage and risks caused by exposure to mutagenic chemicals and cancer-causing toxins
• Reduce the likelihood of heritable mutations

Bioarchaeology, Anthropology, Evolution, and Human Migration

• Study evolution through germline mutations in lineages
• Study migration of different population groups based on female genetic inheritance
• Study mutations on the Y chromosome to trace lineage and migration of males
• Compare breakpoints in the evolution of mutations with ages of populations and historical events

Comparing the DNA sequences of entire genomes of differerent microbes will provide new insights about relationships among the three kingdoms of life: archaebacteria, eukaryotes, and prokaryotes.

DNA Forensics (Identification)

• Identify potential suspects whose DNA may match evidence left at crime scenes
• Exonerate persons wrongly accused of crimes
• Identify crime and catastrophe victims
• Establish paternity and other family relationships
• Identify endangered and protected species as an aid to wildlife officials (could be used for prosecuting poachers)
• Detect bacteria and other organisms that may pollute air, water, soil, and food
• Match organ donors with recipients in transplant programs
• Determine pedigree for seed or livestock breeds
• Authenticate consumables such as caviar and wine

To identify individuals, forensic scientists scan about 10 DNA regions that vary from person to person and use the data to create a DNA profile of that individual (sometimes called a DNA fingerprint). There is an extremely small chance that another person has the same DNA profile for a particular set of regions.

For more information, see the DNA Forensics site.

Agriculture, Livestock Breeding, and Bioprocessing

• Disease-, insect-, and drought-resistant crops
• Healthier, more productive, disease-resistant farm animals
• More nutritious produce
• Biopesticides
• Edible vaccines incorporated into food products
• New environmental cleanup uses for plants like tobacco

Alternate uses for crops such as tobacco have been found. One researcher has genetically engineered tobacco plants in his laboratory to produce a bacterial enzyme that breaks down explosives such as TNT and dinitroglycerin. Waste that would take centuries to break down in the soil can be cleaned up by simply growing these special plants in the polluted area.

For more information, see the Access Excellence Website's Biotech Applied page.