DNA Drama

This past June marked the 25th anniversary of last great science story of the 20th century – the race to decode the human genome. Scientists always knew that the 3 billion A’s, T’s, C’s, and G’s composing the human genome held tantalizing clues to incredible advances in healthcare, sustainability, agriculture, and other areas of human enterprise.

The race to figure out how to read these clues involved two massive research efforts: the Human Genome Project (HGP), launched in 1990 by the National Institutes of Health, and a private venture that splintered off from the HGP in 1998 and was spearheaded by a company called Celera. In the end, a highly choreographed, more or less symbolic “tie” was declared in June of 2000. But their intense rivalry pushed each side to accomplishments that paved the way for a biotech revolution that has reshaped science and medicine in the 21st century.

Scientists, go to your corners

The contest between the HGP and Celera was embodied in the leaders of each side: Francis Collins of the HGP and Celera founder Craig Venter. Though Collins started off ambivalent about leading the HGP, he grew into the role and exhibited a steeliness in the face of Venter’s challenge. A gimlet-eyed, forward-motion machine, Venter set out to render the HGP an also-ran in the race to decode the genome. Indeed, as Celera’s researchers honed their new approaches and tools for sequencing data, it began to seem as if Venter would achieve his goal. But the prospect of Venter and Celera taking the human genome knowledge into privately held ownership inspired Collins and the HGP to redouble efforts.

Then in the spring of 2000, a big surprise – over a secretly arranged meal of pizza at the house of a neutral third party from the Department of Energy, Collins and Venter agreed to a truce. Both groups would announce success at producing an initial assembly of the human genome in a ceremony with President Bill Clinton on June 26, 2000. Even if technically incomplete, these milestone projects ushered in a new era of biotechnology advances and innovations.

Craig Venter and Francis Collins celebrate the “tie” that ended the race to decode the human genome.

As Venter has said, “What took me 10 years to do in the lab, any new student can do in about 30 seconds on the computer.” This leap in capability expanded the reach of genomics across fields and industries:

Fighting disease: Genetic research enables scientists to pinpoint disease-causing genes—in conditions ranging from cystic fibrosis to diabetes to Alzheimer’s—and develop targeted therapies.
Making better drugs: Medicines can now be designed to match specific genetic variations, improving safety and effectiveness.
Personalizing medicine: Doctors can tailor treatments to a patient’s DNA, improving outcomes and even preventing disease.
Improving agriculture: Genomics helps engineer crops and livestock to resist drought and disease, reducing environmental impact.
Cleaning the environment: Engineered bacteria can detect pollutants, restore ecosystems, and break down toxins into harmless byproducts.

Biotech blooms and booms

The economic impact of decoding the human genome and propelling the growth of biotechnology has been huge. In the U.S., genomics-related activities generate over $250 billion a year and support over a million jobs. Around the world, the global biotechnology industry is estimated to be worth about $1.5 trillion.

Workforce needs are great

For biotechnology to keep growing and improving our lives, the field must continue to attract and prepare students with the cross-disciplinary skills and persistence to succeed. With unemployment in the field at 2.8 percent and annual growth rates estimated at 7 percent over the next decade, demand is high and opportunity widespread for qualified entrants to the field.

Befitting a field with so many applications, post-secondary education options run the gamut from certificates to two-year, four-year, and graduate programs with highly varied subject areas and structures. From industry-based learning programs to broader approaches shaped by alternative focuses on engineering or science, schools offer learning options for all the different biotechnology career goals students might have.

Initiatives abound

Besides the biomedical focus of genomics at NIH, the federal government also supports significant genomics-related research and education efforts through both the Department of Defense and the National Science Foundation. Among the Manufacturing Innovation Institutes funded by the DoD is BioMADE, a public-private partnership working to advance biotechnology research and development as well as education and career opportunities in the field. At NSF, the InnovateBIO National Biotechnology Education Center supports biotechnology technician education programs at community and technical colleges. A long-running, national effort with 136 programs in 38 states, InnovateBIO schools have graduated almost 800 students into the biotechnology workforce.

Outside of government, biotechnology and life science organizations from the non-profit and private sector have just launched the Life Sciences Workforce Collaborative (LSWC). With the June release of its deeply researched Life Sciences Workforce Trends report, the LSWC aims to catalyze coordinated, scalable activities to engage and educate both students and professionals associated with life sciences fields.

At Start Engineering, we have been grateful to work with and benefit from leadership figures in all these organizations. Last year, we published our career guide in biotechnology, Join the Biotech Revolution, as a contribution to their larger efforts at making careers in biotechnology accessible and possible for high school students. A free interactive student workbook and short video combine with the career guide to offer a simple, engaging package to explain biotechnology to students in a learning process that can help them discover if a career in the field might work for them. If you are interested in learning more about this package, check out our website or get in touch with any questions. Thanks for reading and please feel free to share with any interested friends or colleagues.

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Eric Iversen is VP for Learning and Communications at Start Engineering. Comments and feedback are always welcome.

Our goal at Start Engineering is to help make STEM careers imaginable and accessible to kids of all backgrounds and interests. We publish educational and career outreach books in STEM fields like engineering, cybersecurity, and biotechnology, with more topics to come. Check out our newest releases here!

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