Fruit fly DNA may unveil cures for human afflictions

Seventy percent of the genes found in fruit flies are also present in humans

March 24, 2000
Web posted at: 12:12 a.m. EST (0512 GMT)

In this story: Insect has about 13,000 genes New method for gene sequencing RELATED STORIES, SITES

From Science Correspondent Ann Kellan

ATLANTA (CNN) -- A lowly fruit fly has given up all its genetic secrets to scientists who believe the insect's DNA map will aid in research of various human diseases and birth defects.

The tiny fly bearing the scientific name Drosophila is an open book now that scientists have decoded its entire genetic blueprint -- or genome -- one chemical at a time.

VIDEO CNN Science Correspondent Ann Kellan explains the relevance of the successful decoding of the fruit fly's genome. Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K

"It's a very exciting time. The Drosophila genome plays such a key part in science," said Craig Venter of Celera Genomics, where much of the genetic research was done.

Insect has about 13,000 genes

Even though the fruit fly has only about 13,000 genes, compared to the 70,000 to 100,000 genes found in humans -- we're more similar to fruit flies than not. Seventy percent of the genes found in the flies are also present in humans.

And because fruit flies reproduce and grow quickly, they are a scientist's dream laboratory specimen.

"There's literally hundreds to thousands of discoveries in the fruit fly that have helped us understand our own biology better," Venter said. "One is a set of genes that determine body segments in insects -- turns out those same genes control our body development as humans."

And don't mock the tiny brain of the insect.

"The key discoveries for understanding the molecular basis for how the human brain functions have come from the fruit fly," Venter said.

New method for gene sequencing

Now researchers will have easy access to all the genes because scientists at Celera Genomics developed a new method to quickly sequence vast amounts of genetic information.

The method involves several steps:

• Take DNA out of a cell
• Break material into pieces
• Analyse parts, chemical-by-chemical
• Use a super computer to put the genome back together like a jigsaw puzzle

"By understanding those genes, by seeing what you can do in a fruit fly -- change the temperature, expose it to different chemicals -- and then knowing exactly what the fruit fly genes are, we'll learn something about why, sadly, things sometimes go astray in human development," said Art Caplan, bioethicist at the University of Pennsylvania.

Although Celera is a private, for profit company, it plans to share its findings with researchers around the world.

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Berkeley Drosophila Genome Project and Celera
National Human Genome Research Institute

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