#human genome

[yodaprod]

Baby Blue a prototype automated thermal cycler for PCR (1986)

[warningsine]

A team of researchers from the University of Cape Town (UCT) and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig have reconstructed the oldest human genomes ever found in South Africa from two people who lived about 10,000 years ago, the AFP news agency reported on Sunday.

The genetic sequences were from a man and a woman whose remains were found at a rock shelter near the southern coastal town of George, about 370 kilometers (230 miles) east of Cape Town, according to Victoria Gibbon, a professor of biological anthropology at the UCT.

They were among 13 sequences reconstructed from people whose remains were found in the Oakhurst rock shelter and who lived between 1,300 and 10,000 years ago. Prior to these discoveries, the oldest genomes reconstructed from the region dated back about 2,000 years.

Genetic stability in southernmost Africa

Surprisingly, the Oakhurst study found that the oldest genomes were genetically similar to the San and Khoekhoe groups living in the same region today, UCT said in a statement. 

Similar studies from Europe have revealed a history of large-scale genetic changes due to human movements over the past 10,000 years, according to Joscha Gretzinger, lead author of the study.

"These new results from southernmost Africa are quite different and suggest a long history of relative genetic stability," he said.

This only changed about 1,200 years ago, when newcomers arrived. They introduced pastoralism, agriculture and new languages to the region, and began interacting with local hunter-gatherer groups.

Although some of the world's earliest evidence of modern humans can be traced to southern Africa, it tends to be poorly preserved, the UCT's Victoria Gibbon told AFP. Newer technology allows that DNA to be obtained, she said. 

[cbirt]

The sequencing and assembly of the human Y chromosome have been challenging due to its intricate repeat structure, which encompasses lengthy palindromes, tandem repeats, and segmental duplications. The existing GRCh38 reference sequence lacks over half of the Y chromosome’s content, leaving it as the final unfinished human chromosome. Addressing these limitations, the Telomere-to-Telomere (T2T) consortium introduces the full 62,460,029-base-pair sequence of the human Y chromosome from the HG002 genome (T2T-Y). This new sequence rectifies multiple errors in GRCh38-Y, supplementing the reference with over 30 million base pairs. It reveals complete ampliconic patterns of gene families like TSPY, DAZ, and RBMY, adds 41 protein-coding genes (primarily from TSPY), and unveils a distinctive alternating arrangement of human satellite 1 and 3 blocks within the heterochromatic Yq12 region. Through integration with the CHM13 genome assembly and the inclusion of population variations, clinical variants, and functional genomics data, a comprehensive reference spanning all 24 human chromosomes has been established.

The complex architecture of the human Y chromosome, with its large repeats and palindromes, plays a pivotal role in fertility. This includes hosting genes that are crucial for spermatogenesis and sex determination. Although it remains notably incomplete due to over half of its makeup being riddled with gaps in the GRCh38 human reference genome, this condition impedes comprehensive analysis of regions such as Azoospermia factors associated with infertility.

Despite these challenges, breakthroughs from the Telomere-to-Telomere (T2T) consortium have allowed researcher Adam M. Phillippy and his team to assemble the entire CHM13 cell line genome; however, they could not fully put together the Y chromosome because of its unique characteristics. The Human Pangenome Reference Consortium (HPRC) concurrently launched a project to embody a broader genomic range via the use of the HG002 genome. This endeavor successfully resulted in the reconstruction of the full sequence for the Y chromosome, known as T2T-Y.

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[covenawhite66]

The most durable data carriers (in the form of ceramic tablets), stored deep in the oldest salt mine in the world will carry our stories hundreds of thousand of years into the future.

[thepastisalreadywritten]

[jbfly46]

The end of Jungian psychoanalysis intersecting with technology is man merging his consciousness with AI to use his own genome to become a biosynthetic organism, akin to Man evolving into God.

This process could be used to optimize the human body for space travel, possibly make spacesuits and pressurized space craft obsolete; and make the human ideal of colonizing space a reality within our current lifespan.

[saysomethingnorway]

A Call to Adopt the Scientific Definition of Race

As part of the quest to consign injustice - in particularly racism - to history, Say Something* calls on the global community to adopt the current scientific definition of race as a fundamental step in dismantling racism and creating a just world for all human beings. 

According to the American Society of Human Genetics, the largest professional organization of scientists in the field, 

“The science of genetics demonstrates that humans cannot be divided into biologically distinct subcategories.”

In 2000, the Human Genome Project confirmed that the genomes found around the globe are 99.9 percent identical in every human being irrespective of phenotypes, such as skin color. And in 2018, Scientific American stated that there is a “broad scientific consensus that when it comes to genes, there is just as much diversity within racial and ethnic groups as there is across them.” In other words, the concept of race has no genetic or scientific basis. 

We affirm that race science, race ideology, and racial essentialism perpetuate a social hierarchy with whites at the top and blacks at the bottom – the basis of many of the atrocities of the past few centuries. This belief system, unfortunately, is alive and well. Racial distinctions continue to impact legal, political, economic, civil, social, and cultural spaces and perpetuate racism, as well as a plethora of other harms.

We recognize that race is a ubiquitous social construct and social convention around the world. We believe that continuing to propagate a discredited definition of race only fuels racist beliefs and perpetuates unjust outcomes in science, law, politics, academics, health and other aspects of life.

We thus disavow the scientifically-discredited traditional concept of race which supports the idea that humanity can be categorized into different categories of humans as biologically separate and distinct according to phenotype — observable physical differences — and ranked according to a value hierarchy with whites at the top and blacks at the bottom.

Join us in adopting the current scientific definition of race as a fundamental step in abolishing racism, changing the conversation, transforming minds, and creating a just world for all human beings. 

CHANGE THE CONVERSATION

Racism continues to be a scourge on humanity. Around the world, racists (white supremacists) and “anti-racists” are becoming more visible and powerful, even occupying top positions of government, and using that power to perpetuate racial classifications and racism.

On one end of the political spectrum is the “anti-racist” identitarian coalition of the woke. They foster division by positioning humanity in opposing and irreconcilable sides of oppressor and oppressed, i.e., whites versus blacks (sometimes other people of “color”), white privilege versus black victimhood. The main proponent of anti-racism, Ibram X. Kendi, advances the argument that racial discrimination “is the sole cause of racial disparities in this country and in the world at large.” And as he has stated, “When I see racial disparities, I see racism.” Other anti-racists argue that whites are inherently and irredeemably racist and are the beneficiaries of white privilege. In keeping with the legacy of Stokely Carmichael, the father of Black Power, who said, “We must fill ourselves with hate for all white things,” some anti-racists, like Journalist Sarah Jeong (with her tweet #cancelwhitepeople) called for the cancelation of white people and Professor Brittney Cooper called for taking them out with her colorful statement, “…we got to take these mother fuckers out.” 

On the other end of the political spectrum is the white nationalist conservative right (in the USA, this consists of the Republican Party, right-wing think tanks, media outlets, law firms, etc.). They foster division by advancing white supremacy, “great replacement” theory, fear of white genocide through immigration, race science, eugenics, and anti-CRT (Critical Race Theory) legislation. Two popular proponents of racism are Rush Limbaugh and Bill O’Reilly. 

Common to both sides is the belief that race is a scientifically valid concept, a concept that continues to racialize society, stoke fear and hatred, and perpetuate the race war. 

The current conversation about race is divisive and counterproductive. In order to change the conversation, we need to disavow the inherently divisive and scientifically-discredited antiquated definition of race. We propose that the term “race” be abandoned, and that in its place, “ancestry” or “ethnic group”/“ethnicity,” the terms that scientists use to describe human diversity, be used. “Ancestry” reflects the fact that human variations do have a connection to the geographical origins of our ancestors. Unlike the term “race,” “ancestry” focuses on understanding how a person’s history unfolded, not how they fit into one category and not another. “Ethnicity” and “ethnic group” evoke social characteristics such as history, language, beliefs, and customs. The terms African American/Black, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian American, European American/White, Latino/Hispanic, Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander can continue to be used, but explicitly as ethnic groups, thus reflecting geographic origin and ancestry instead of “races” which intrinsically connote biological differences. Using “ethnic group” or “ethnicity” in place of “race”  has been the standard practice in Europe following the end of World War II.

In addition, when referring to race as a hierarchical system with whites at the top and blacks at the bottom, we recommend using the word “race” in quotations to denote awareness that this concept of race is not supported by science. We are not seeking to engage in revisionist history or sanitize it of the atrocities against humanity in the name of race. 

Although the examples above speak to the United States, this dynamic has spread around the world. We believe that the current narratives about race on both sides are in direct opposition to humanism, universalism, and individualism and threaten to divide humanity even more – a step in the wrong direction.

We are seeking to change the conversation around race by using the current scientific definition so it’s uniform and consistent around the world.

THE CHALLENGE

We challenge the global community, including public institutions, governmental institutions, organizations, businesses, and sport clubs, to start using “ancestry” or “ethnic group”/“ethnicity” instead of “race.” 

An example of this done right is The Equality and Discrimination Act of Norway which departed from The UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination which prohibits discrimination based on race, skin color, descent or national or ethnic origin. The convention was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 21 December 1965 and entered into force in January 1969.

Norway dropped “race” as a descriptor. Norway ratified the convention on 6 August 1970 without reservation. The convention is incorporated into Norwegian law through the Equality and Discrimination Act. States' implementation of the UN Convention on Racial Discrimination is monitored by the UN Committee on Racial Discrimination, which consists of independent experts. Please see below. 

The Equality and Discrimination Act

The Equality and Discrimination Act entered into force on 1 January 2018. The Act prohibits direct and indirect discrimination on the grounds of, among other things, ethnicity (including national origin, descent, skin colour, language), religion and outlook on life. The purpose of the Act is to promote equality,, ensure equal opportunities and rights and to prevent discrimination. The law applies to all areas of society, but is not enforced in family life and other personal relationships.

TRANSFORM MINDS

As stated above, the idea that race is real is ubiquitous around the world. Each side of the political spectrum perpetuates racist ideology to dehumanize the “other.”

In order to transform minds, we propose that instead of continuing to focus on our perceived differences, we focus on our scientifically-based sameness.

Categorizing human beings according to distinct phenotypes and highlighting differences reinforces a racialized worldview. The idea of biologically ranked subdivisions of the human species ranked according to phenotypical differences triggers in-group loyalty and intergroup competition. In-group bias causes us to favor people who look like us and to disfavor – and fear – people who don’t look like us. People in the in-group see themselves as being in constant threat from the out-group, and consequently are under constant stress, and people in the out-group perceive themselves as being excluded from the in-group, and also are under constant stress. This places both the perpetrator and the target of racism at risk of a multitude of health problems to the degree that Dr. Larry Sherman, Professor of Neuroscience at the Oregon Health & Science University, considers it a public health problem. 

The “us” versus “them” dynamic has been manipulated in the media by both sides of the political spectrum to perpetuate the fear response. In Birth of a Nation, for example, “blacks” are portrayed as violent savages looking for “white” women to rape. Subsequent to modern-day films portray “blacks” as dangerous, lazy, and ignorant - the same attributes that were prescribed to “blacks” by scientific racism. Currently, in political discourse, leaders around the world have referred to immigrants with references to infestation, "cockroaches to be eliminated,” and rats. “Whites,” on the other hand, are depicted as saviors and agents of civilization. On the other side, blacks are portrayed as innocent victims and whites as the conscious purveyors of evil and the perpetrators of internalized racism. Both sides foster the “us” versus “them” mentality.

Psychologist Albert Bandura states that dehumanization (of the “other”) is a form of moral disengagement that allows people to abandon normal human sympathies toward oppressed minorities. Linking immigration to crime also activates a fear of newcomers which triggers support for politicians promising to protect the native population. Keeping out-group prejudice alive is harmful to both the racist and the target of racism. As mentioned above, both sides experience stress and have high levels of cortisol which exacerbate the top causes of death.

Fortunately, fear conditioning can be reversed. Introducing even a little familiarity about the subject rewires the brain, so we do not see people who are different as a threat. 

We believe that popularizing the scientific fact that we, human beings, are 99.9 percent the same - and ceasing to classify ourselves as inherently different - will contribute to the familiarity effect and to minimizing the fear response. As a global, diverse society, we are in desperate need of rewiring.

The scientifically discredited definition of race has no place in today’s increasingly pluralist, interdependent, interconnected, and interrelated world. Changing the terminology and language can go a long way. As cognitive scientist George Lakoff has shown, even as a social construct, simply using the word “race,” even when criticizing racism, reinforces the false belief that human beings belong to fundamentally different groups. That’s because the more a word is used, the more that certain brain circuits are activated and the stronger that metaphor becomes.

CREATE A JUST WORLD FOR ALL HUMAN BEINGS

Historically, “race” has been weaponized by those in power to rob people of human rights and to further their political and economic standing. Currently, “race” is being weaponized by the anti-racist coalition to vilify white people and to correct education, income, and other disparities.

For the last few centuries, who was considered white and who wasn’t changed depending on the political climate and social and economic expediencies of the time. At one point, all “non-white" people were considered “black.” At another point, Italians, Irish, and Polish, who now are considered “white,” were considered “non-white.” The term “Asian,” as defined by the USA Census Bureau, only includes people originating in east Asia, Southeast Asia or the Indian subcontinent. People born elsewhere on the Asian continent—such as Turkey, Afghanistan or Iran—are not considered “Asian” on the USA census.

What has remained consistent is the concept of “race” as the basis for discriminatory laws, policies, and practices, such as Jim Crow laws, Black laws, redlining, the Trail of Tears, the Chinese Exclusion Act, Japanese internment camps, etc. 

“Race” now is being used to right social and economic gaps. Identitarians and anti-racists call for programs to combat unequal outcomes like Affirmative Action, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs, statistical parity initiatives, etc. In the name of diversity, they call that people of “color” have a seat at the table in the name of statistical parity. Allocating desirable positions on the basis of “race” rather than merit is not the answer. 

Both of these approaches are flawed and fuel dangerous ideologies and behavior. 

As a step toward eradicating racism, we call for the phasing out of the word “race” in all discourse. We believe that continuing to use the term “race,” which evokes innate biological differences, reinforces racism. Disavowing the discredited notion of “race” is an important step in the fight against racism. We support ending racism at the individual and structural and systemic levels, and creating a just world for all human beings — one in which we human beings are celebrated for the 99.9 percent that we have in common all the while honoring what is unique about each of us. 

We commend the scientific community for being a leader in phasing out the use of “race” and racial distinctions. We urge the global community to follow suit.

“Say Something” is an international non-profit organization based in Oslo, Norway, dedicated to consigning injustice to history by transforming minds, changing the conversation, and creating a just world for all human beings through science via art exhibitions, documentaries, salons, and social media campaigns. 

[greatprinceofabraham]

.@TrendsJournal

"When the #humangenome was first discovered, scientists estimated it contained 20,000 to 30,000 #genes. Adding the #darkproteome raises that total to between 50,000 and 100,000, scientists think."

#DNA #genetics #science #proteins #nucleus

https://trendsjournal.com/tens-of-thousands-of-new-human-genes-have-been-revealed-what-are-they-for/

[alphaengineering]

The Last Spark of a Great Fire🧠💠

By:

Peter Kazansky

[mankabrosstudios]

This Date In Manka Bros. History - August 23, 1953

Studio co-founder Simeon Manka's research into mapping the human genome is destroyed by his brother Harry because it had ‘nothing to do with motion pictures!’ This drives Simeon further into madness.

[cbirt]

In a remarkable corridor of achievement, the scientists of the University of Southampton have reputedly gotten the ability to conserve the complete human genomic sequence on a disruptive 5D memory crystal. This achievement is an exceptional phenomenon in data storage and has profound implications for preserving the genetic heritage of humanity and other species.

The 5D memory crystal, a creation by the university’s Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC), bears unprecedented durability and storage longevity. Unlike the previous ways of storing data, which were subject to aging deterioration, this crystal can hold a lot of information for decades, even centuries and millennia, even in the harshest of conditions.

The crystal’s remarkable resilience stems from its composition and structure.  The crystal is equivalent to fused quartz, one of the most chemically and thermally durable materials on Earth. It withstands extremely low as well as unbearably high temperatures, extreme stress, and even radiation. It can withstand the high and low extremes of freezing, fire, and temperatures of up to 1000 °C. The crystal can also withstand a direct impact force of up to 10 tons per cm2 and is unchanged by long exposure to cosmic radiation.

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[simonh]

Gene Discovery In the Human Genome by National Library of Medicine Via Flickr: Contributor(s): Venter, J. Craig. National Institutes of Health (U.S.). Medical Arts and Photography Branch. Publication: [Bethesda, Md. : Medical Arts and Photography Branch, National Institutes of Health], 1992 Language(s): English Format: Still image Subject(s): DNA, Genome, Human Genre(s): Posters Abstract: The poster is black with the computerized view of DNA bands taking up three-quarters of the area. The remainder of the poster gives the title and Dr. Venter's position as Chief, Receptor Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Section, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, NIH. The date of the lecture is Thursday, July 23, 1992, and the time and place are also listed. A phone number and contact name for additional information are also given. Extent: 1 photomechanical print (poster) : 79 x 55 cm. Technique: color NLM Unique ID: 101454172 NLM Image ID: C00799 Permanent Link: resource.nlm.nih.gov/101454172

[sciencestyled]

The Unlikely Adventures of Ferdinand and the Fateful Genome Fiesta

Oh, what a peculiar twist of fate it was that steered me, Ferdinand Magellan, famed navigator of the globular seas, towards the yet uncharted waters of the human genome! You see, my tale begins not on the deck of a ship, but within the dusty, forgotten stacks of an ancient library in Lisbon, where a peculiar manuscript caught my eye—or rather, knocked upon my head, as it fell from a shelf during a rather overzealous search for a seafaring map.

This manuscript, bound in leather as weathered as the face of an old sailor, was titled "The Secret Inner Oceans: A Guide to the Human Corpus." A mix-up, perhaps, by some nearsighted librarian of yore, but as I leafed through its pages, my curiosity was piqued. It spoke not of saltwater and winds, but of something called DNA, described as the very essence of life, flowing like countless microscopic rivers within us all.

"Blimey!" I exclaimed, my mind racing faster than a ship caught in a tempest. What if my next great adventure lay not across the Earth's vast oceans, but inside the human body itself? The idea was as thrilling as it was ludicrous. But then again, I, Ferdinand Magellan, had never been one to shy away from ludicrous thrills.

So, with a heart swollen with excitement, I set about assembling a crew. Not the hardened sailors of yore, but a band of merry, white-coated scientists, whose understanding of this genetic brine was as deep as my knowledge of the high seas. We convened not under the crow's nest, but beneath the flickering fluorescents of a laboratory, our ship a state-of-the-art research facility equipped with the latest in sequencing artillery.

The mission? To chart the unknown territories of the human genome as one might a vast, unexplored ocean. The stakes were high, and the potential for discovery boundless. Could we, a motley crew of genetic buccaneers, navigate these inner seas and uncover the secrets etched into the very blueprint of life?

As we set sail on this most unconventional voyage, our tools were as foreign to me as the land was to a fish. Sequencers hummed and computers beeped like the calls of exotic birds, and I found myself more lost than I had ever been amidst the actual Spice Islands. Yet, the passion of my crew, their eyes alight with the thrill of discovery, was infectious, and I soon found myself uttering scientific terms with a sailor's swagger.

Days turned into nights, and sequences poured in like tales from distant shores. Each string of nucleotides was a potential treasure trove, a hidden cove of genetic gold. We encountered storms, of course—technical tempests and ethical squalls that threatened to capsize our endeavor. Yet, we navigated through these with the resolve of seasoned explorers, our eyes ever on the prize.

And what treasures we found! Genes that held the stories of diseases and traits, markers as valuable as any chest of gold doubloons. With each discovery, I felt as though I was, once again, rounding the Cape of Good Hope, each gene a new continent of biological mystery revealed.

This genetic odyssey, as mad and marvelous as any of my sea-faring exploits, led me to pen the article you now hold. A guide, a chart of sorts, for those intrepid enough to navigate the swirling, genetic currents of the Human Genome Project. For just as the oceans of the Earth were once a mystery to us, so too are the oceans within, vast and teeming with untold secrets.

So, here I stand, your unlikely captain of this genomic voyage, inviting you to hoist the sails and join us as we explore the inner cosmos of our own DNA. Who knows what wonders await us in the uncharted depths of our own essence?

Ah, my friends, let us set our course for the horizons yet unseen, the mysteries yet unsolved. For in the boundless ocean of our genome, there are still countless treasures waiting to be found, and it falls to us, the bold and the curious, to seek them out. Together, let us navigate these hidden waters, for the greatest discoveries lie not beyond the horizon, but within us.

[covenawhite66]

Teōtīhuacān is an ancient Mesoamerican city located in the Teotihuacan Valley of the Free and Sovereign State of Mexico, Mexico.

Teōtīhuacān constructed the Pyramid of the Sun, the Pyramid of the Moon, the Avenue of the Dead, and the Ciudadela with the Temple of the Feathered Serpent Quetzalcoatl.

They are Nahuatl people more ancient than the Aztecs. Teōtīhuacān, loosely translated in Nahuatl as “birthplace of the gods.

The DNA from the burials are associated with haplogroups A2, B2, or D1, which are indicative of contemporary Native American lineages. Haplogroup A2 was the most prevalent, followed by B2 and D1, mirroring a pattern akin to what’s observed in the Central Mesoamerican population.

With the mitochondrial DNA sequence information, these six individuals were categorized into more precise haplogroups: A2f2, A2ae, A2d1, A2d1, B2c1, and D1i.