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1995: Ban on Genetic Discrimination
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission extended workplace protections under the Americans with Disabilities Act to cover discrimination based on genetic information -
1995: Physical Map of Human Genome Completed
One of the goals of the HGP was to complete a physical map with a marker every 100,000 base pairs by 1998 this was somewhat accomplished when a first map built by 1995 which was a significant milestone toward that goal -
1996: 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. The scientists gathered to compare sequencing strategies and to discuss guidelines for data release. The attendees agreed that all human sequence data they produce should be made freely available to the public. -
1996: 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. -
1996: Human DNA Sequence Begins
Computer image of a microarrayIn 1996, the National Human Genome Research Institute funded pilot projects to find efficient strategies for completely sequencing the human genome. The pilot projects tested the feasibility of large-scale sequencing, and explored how accurate and how costly alternative approaches might be. -
1997: 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. The Task Force declared that safe and effective genetic tests should not only be valid and useful but that they should be performed in laboratories of assured quality and used appropriately by health care providers and consumers. -
1998: HGP Map Included 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. -
1999: 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. -
1999: 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. The sequence of chromosome 22 gave scientists their first ever view of the organization of an entire chromosome. -
2000: 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. The President and Prime Minister Blair issued a Joint Statement in an effort to ensure that the public derives the maximum possible benefit from the sequence of the human genome. -
2001: 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. One surprise is that the estimated number of genes was lower than expected, just 30,000-35,000. (The final genome sequence produced in 2003 has further lowered this estimate to the 20,000-25,000 range) The sequence data was immediately and freely released to the world. -
2002: Researchers Find Genetic Variation Associated with Prostate Cancer
Researchers identified a gene on chromosome 1 associated with a hereditary form of prostate cancer. The researchers cautioned that mutations in this gene do not account for most cases of hereditary prostate cancer and also do not account for the majority of cases that arise through spontaneous mutations. Even so, the discovery can lead to a useful diagnostic test and allow men with the mutation to begin earlier treatment for the disease. -
2003: 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. In 2001, the international consortium published a draft sequence. Project scientists then worked to convert the draft sequence into finished sequence. -
2003: Fiftieth Anniversary of Watson and Crick's Description of the Double Helix
In April 1953, a paper appeared in the journal Nature that proposed a double helix structure for deoxyribose nucleic acid DNA. Determining the molecular structure of the gene was one of the most significant achievements in all of science. The structure was deceptively simple and immediately answered some important questions about genes and how they work. -
2003: 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. On this day, a series of events unfolded across the country all having to do with the discovery of DNA and its impacts on science and society.