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Ban on Genetic Discrimination in Workplace
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission extended workplace protections under the Americans with Disabilities Act to cover discrimination based on genetic information. -
Physical Map of Human Genome Completed
A physical map uses sequence-tagged sites (STSs) as markers to order large segments of DNA. -
International Strategy Meeting on Human Genome Sequencing
The first international strategy meeting on human genome sequencing drew scientists from the countries in Europe, North America, and Asia funding human genome sequencing projects. -
Human Gene Map Created
Scientists created a map showing the locations of ESTs (expressed sequence tags) representing fragments of more than 16,000 genes from throughout the genome. James Watson was the first to map a human gene. -
Human DNA Sequence Begins
In 1996, the National Human Genome Research Institute funded pilot projects to find efficient strategies for completely sequencing the human genome. -
Recommendations on Genetic Testing
A Task Force on Genetic Testing was created by the NIH-DOE Working Group on Ethical, Legal, and Social Implications of Human Genome Research to review genetic testing in the United States and make recommendations to ensure the development of safe and effective genetic tests. -
HGP Map Includes 30,000 Human Genes
In October 1998, HGP researchers released a gene map that included 30,000 human genes, estimated to represent approximately one-third of the total human genes. -
Genome of Roundworm C. elegans Sequenced
In December 1998, the first genome sequence of a multicellular organism, the roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans, was completed. -
Full-scale Human Genome Sequencing
In March 1999, HGP participants advanced their goal of obtaining draft sequence covering 90 percent of the human genome to 2000, a year and a half before projected previously. Full-scale human genome sequencing began. -
Chromosome 22
In December 1999, the HGP completed the first finished, full-length sequence of a human chromosome - chromosome 22. This accomplishment demonstrated the power of the HGP method of clone-by-clone sequencing to obtain large amounts of highly accurate sequence. -
Free Access to Genomic Information
In March 2000, U.S. President Clinton and U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair stated that raw, fundamental data about human genome sequence and its variations should be freely available. -
First Draft of the Human Genome Sequence Released
The Human Genome Project international consortium published a first draft and initial analysis of the human genome sequence. The draft sequence covered more than 90 percent of the human genome. -
Researchers Find Genetic Variation Associated with Prostate Cancer
Researchers identified a gene on chromosome 1 associated with a hereditary form of prostate cancer. The work was a collaboration between researchers at the National Human Genome Research Institute, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, and The Cleveland Clinic. -
Human Genome Project Completed
The International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium announced the successful completion of the Human Genome Project more than two years ahead of schedule and under budget. The primary goal of the project was to produce a reference sequence of the human genome. -
50th Anniversary of Watson and Crick’s Description of the Double Helix
The model proposed by Francis Crick and James Watson resulted from nearly two years of work and was partly based on X-ray diffraction data from their colleagues Maurice Wilkins and Rosalind Franklin. Crick, Watson, and Wilkins shared the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their work. -
The First National DNA Day Celebrated
The United States Congress passed a resolution setting aside April 25th as National DNA Day. The date was chosen to mark the 50th anniversary of the publication of the landmark paper by Francis Crick and James Watson describing the double helix model of DNA and the recent official completion of the Human Genome Project. -
Surgeon General Stresses Importance of Family History
In November 2004 - and to coincide with Thanksgiving, when families traditionally gather - U.S. Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona, M.D., M.P.H., and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) launched a national public health campaign called the U.S. Surgeon General's Family History Initiative. The campaign focused attention on the importance of the family health history, and encouraged all families to learn more about their health histories. -
Initiatives to Establish the Genetic and Environmental Causes of Common Diseases Launched
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the creation of two new, closely related initiatives to speed up research on the causes of common diseases such as asthma, arthritis and Alzheimer’s disease.