In 2019 alone, the DNA sequencing
market was valued at 4.7 billion dollars. How can such an industry have so much
value? What is DNA sequencing used for, anyway?
DNA is unique to each individual and can determine many factors about a person's life such as genealogy and even risk for certain diseases. Keep reading to find out all about what DNA is and how a DNA sequencing machine works.
What
Is DNA?
DNA stands for deoxyribonucleic
acid. It is one of the basic types of macromolecules in biological organisms.
It is made up of chains of nucleotides bound together in a double helix
structure.
DNA is responsible for the genetic
makeup and inheritance of almost all of the living organisms on Earth. Strands
of DNA reside in every cell in our body. They tell our cells how to grow and
reproduce.
Together with ribonucleic acid
(RNA), DNA makes up the nucleic acids. RNA is similar to DNA, but it contains slightly different
nucleotides and has a different structure. RNA is the biological predecessor to
DNA and controls the genes of more primitive organisms.
DNA is comprised of the nucleobases
adenine, cytosine, guanine, and thymine. These nucleobases bind together in
specific ways to form the double helix structure. Adenine binds to thymine, and
cytosine binds to guanine.
RNA, on the other hand, replaces
thymine with the nucleobase uracil. These nucleobases, together with a sugar
molecule, like ribose, and a phosphate molecule, form the nucleotides that
comprise DNA and RNA.
DNA reproduces by using special
proteins to unzip the helix and create two new strands, one from each half of
the old strand.
DNA
Sequencing Machine
DNA sequencing, also called genome
sequencing, means determining the order of the nucleobase pairs that comprise
an organism's DNA.
Although research on DNA sequencing
has been around since the 1970s, the technology has vastly improved over the
last few decades. The human genome took nearly 13 years to fully sequence. It
started in 1990 and wasn't completed until 2003.
The importance of DNA sequencing is
clear. Since DNA controls our entire genetic makeup, it can predict things like
the risk of disease and genetic abnormalities. It can give your doctor
information about what to look out for.
The purpose of DNA sequencing is
very broad. It can be used in biotech, forensic biology, virology, and medicine.
The results of DNA sequencing are used especially in determining which type of
cancer is present in cancer patients.
Since this is a relatively new
technology, reading a DNA sequencing report can be confusing, but this guide
will help. Whether you're in the industry or just curious about genetics, DNA
sequencing is the technology of the future.
Next
Steps
Now that you know all about what DNA
is and how a DNA sequencing machine works, feel free to do some research on
your own to determine if you need your DNA sequenced.
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