Craig Venter
Encyclopedia
John Craig Venter is an American biologist
and entrepreneur
, most famous for his role in being one of the first to sequence the human genome
and for his role in creating the first cell with a synthetic genome in 2010. Venter founded Celera Genomics
, The Institute for Genomic Research
and the J. Craig Venter Institute
, now working at the latter to create synthetic biological organisms and to document genetic diversity
in the world's oceans. He was listed on Time
magazine's 2007 and 2008 Time 100
list of the most influential people in the world. In 2010, the British magazine New Statesman
listed Craig Venter at 14th in the list of "The World's 50 Most Influential Figures 2010".
. In his youth, he did not take his education seriously, preferring to spend his time on the water in boats or surfing. According to his biography, A Life Decoded, he was said to never be a terribly engaged student, having Cs and Ds on his eighth-grade report cards.
Although he was against the Vietnam War
, Venter was drafted and enlisted in the United States Navy
where he worked in the intensive-care ward of a field hospital. While in Vietnam, he attempted to commit suicide by swimming out to sea, but changed his mind more than a mile out.
Being confronted with wounded, maimed, and dying soldiers on a daily basis instilled in him a desire to study medicine — although he later switched to biomedical research.
and began his college career at a community college
, College of San Mateo
in California
. He received his B.S.
degree in biochemistry
in 1972, and his Ph.D.
degree in physiology
and pharmacology
in 1975, both from the University of California, San Diego
. At UCSD, he studied under biochemist Nathan O. Kaplan
, and married former Ph.D. candidate Barbara Rae. After working as an associate professor, and later as full professor, at the State University of New York at Buffalo
, he joined the National Institutes of Health
in 1984. In Buffalo, he divorced Dr. Rae-Venter and married his student, Claire M. Fraser
, remaining married to her until 2005.
, Venter learned of a technique for rapidly identifying all of the mRNA
s present in a cell and began to use it to identify human brain genes. The short cDNA
sequence fragments discovered by this method are called expressed sequence tag
s (ESTs) a name coined by Anthony Kerlavage at The Institute for Genomic Research
. The NIH initially led an effort to patent these gene fragments, in which Venter coincidentally and controversially became involved. The NIH later withdrew the patent applications, following public outcry. Subsequent court cases declared that ESTs were not directly patentable.
was the fastest and most effective way to get useful human genome data. The method was controversial, however, since some geneticists felt it would not be accurate enough for a genome as complicated as that of humans. Frustrated with what Venter viewed as the slow pace of progress in the Human Genome project, and unable to get funds for his ideas, he sought funding from the private sector to fund Celera Genomics
. The goal of the company was to sequence the entire human genome and release it into the public domain for non-commercial use in much less time and for much less cost than the public human genome project. The company planned to monetize their work by creating a value-added database of genomic data to which users could subscribe for a fee. The goal consequently put pressure on the public genome program and spurred several groups to redouble their efforts to produce the full sequence. DNA
from five demographically different individuals was used by Celera to generate the sequence of the human genome; one of the individuals was Venter himself. In 2000, Venter and Francis Collins
of the National Institutes of Health
and U.S. Public Genome Project jointly made the announcement of the mapping of the human genome, a full three years ahead of the expected end of the Public Genome Program. The announcement was made along with US President
Bill Clinton
, and U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair. Venter and Collins thus shared an award for "Biography of the Year" from A&E Network
.
Celera published the first Human Genome in the journal Science, and was soon followed by a Human Genome Project Publication in Nature. Despite some claims that shotgun sequencing
was in some ways less accurate than the clone-by-clone method chosen by the Human Genome Project, the technique became widely accepted by the scientific community and is still the de facto standard used today.
Although Celera was originally set to sequence a composite of DNA samples, partway through the sequencing, Venter switched the samples for his own DNA.
After contributing to the Human Genome, and its release into the public domain, Venter was fired by Celera in early 2002. According to his biography, Venter was ready to leave Celera, and was fired due to conflict with the main investor, Tony White, that had existed since day one of the project. Venter writes that his main goal was always to accelerate science and thereby discovery, and he only sought help from the corporate world when he couldn't find funding in the public sector.
(GOS) is an ocean exploration
genome project
with the goal of assessing the genetic diversity
in marine
microbial communities and to understand their role in nature's fundamental processes. Begun as a Sargasso Sea pilot sampling project in August 2003, Craig Venter announced the full Expedition on 4 March 2004. The project, which used Craig Venter's personal yacht, Sorcerer II, started in Halifax, Canada, circumnavigated the globe and returned to the U.S. in January 2006.
, which conducts research in synthetic biology
. In June 2005, he co-founded Synthetic Genomics
, a firm dedicated to using modified microorganisms to produce clean fuels and biochemicals. In July 2009, ExxonMobil
announced a $600 million collaboration with Synthetic Genomics to research and develop next-generation biofuel
s.
Venter is a member of the USA Science and Engineering Festival
's Advisory Board.
, Australian science magazine Cosmos
, and The Atlantic. Additionally, he was featured on The Colbert Report on both February 27, 2007, and October 30, 2007.
Venter appeared in the "Evolution" episode of the documentary television series Understanding
.
On May 16, 2004, Venter gave the commencement speech at Boston University
.
In a 2007 interview with New Scientist
when asked "Assuming you can make synthetic bacteria
, what will you do with them?", Venter replied:
Furthermore it suggests that one of the main purposes for creating synthetic bacteria would be to reduce the dependence on fossil fuels through bioremediation
.
On May 10, 2007, Venter was awarded an honorary doctorate from Arizona State University
., and on October 24 of the same year, he received an honorary doctorate from Imperial College London
.
He was on the 2007 Time 100
most influential people in the world list made by Time magazine. In 2007 he also received the Golden Eurydice Award
for contributions to Biophilosophy.
On September 4, 2007, a team led by Venter published the first complete (six-billion-letter) genome
of an individual human — Venter's own DNA sequence.
On December 4, 2007, Venter gave the Dimbleby lecture
for the BBC in London. In February 2008, he gave a speech about his current work at the TED conference
.
Venter delivered the 2008 convocation speech for Faculty of Science honours and specialization students at the University of Alberta
. A transcription of the speech is available here.
Dr. Venter was featured in Time Magazine's "The Top 10 Everything of 2008" article. Number three in 2008's Top 10 Scientific Discoveries was a piece outlining his work stitching together the 582,000 base pairs necessary to invent the genetic information for a whole new bacterium.
For an episode aired on July 27, 2009, Venter was interviewed on his boat by BBC One for the first episode of TV show Bang Goes the Theory
.
On May 8, 2010, Venter received an honorary doctor of science degree from Clarkson University
for his work on the human genome.
On May 20, 2010, Venter announced the creation of first self-replicating semi-synthetic bacterial cell.
On November 21, 2010 Steve Kroft
profiled J. Craig Venter and his research on 60 minutes
.
On April 21, 2011, Venter received the 2011 Benjamin Rush Medal from William & Mary School of Law.
In the June 2011 issue of Men's Journal
, Ventner was featured as the "Survival Skills" celebrity of the month. He shared various anecdotes, and advice, including stories of his time in Vietnam
, as well as mentioning a bout with melanoma
upon his back, which subsequently resulted in "giving a pound of flesh" to surgery.
of an individual human—Venter's own DNA sequence. Some of the sequences in Venter's genome are associated with wet earwax, increased risk of antisocial behavior, Alzheimer's and cardiovascular diseases. This publication was especially interesting since it contained a diploid instead of a haploid genome and shows promise for personalized medicine
via genotyping
. This genome, rather immodestly dubbed HuRef by Levy and others, was a landmark accomplishment and as of mid-2010 is probably the highest quality personal genome sequence yet completed.
The Human Reference Genome Browser is a web application for the navigation and analysis of Venter's recently published genome. The HuRef database consists of approximately 32 million DNA reads sequenced using microfluidic Sanger sequencing
, assembled into 4,528 scaffolds and 4.1 million DNA variation
s identified by genome analysis. These variants include single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), block substitutions
, short and large indel
s, and structural variations like insertions
, deletions, inversions and copy number changes.
The browser enables scientists to navigate the HuRef genome assembly and sequence variations, and to compare it with the NCBI human build 36 assembly in the context of the NCBI
and Ensembl
annotations. The browser provides a comparative view between NCBI and HuRef consensus sequences, the sequence multi-alignment of the HuRef assembly, Ensembl and dbSNP annotations, HuRef variants, and the underlying variant evidence and functional analysis. The interface also represents the haplotype
blocks from which diploid genome sequence can be inferred and the relation of variants to gene annotations. The display of variants and gene annotations are linked to external public resources including dbSNP
, Ensembl, Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM) and Gene Ontology
(GO).
Users can search the HuRef genome using HUGO gene names, Ensembl and dbSNP identifiers, HuRef contig
or scaffold locations, or NCBI chromosome locations. Users can then easily and quickly browse any genomic region via the simple and intuitive pan and zoom controls; furthermore, data relevant to specific loci can be exported for further analysis.
. There is speculation that this line of research could lead to producing bacteria that have been engineered to perform specific reactions, for example, produce fuels, make medicines, combat global warming, and so on.
In May 2010, a team of scientists led by Venter became the first to successfully create what was described as "synthetic life
". This was done by synthesizing a very long DNA molecule containing an entire bacterium genome
, and introducing this into another cell, analogous to the accomplishment of Eckard Wimmer
's group, who synthesized and ligated an RNA virus
genome and "booted" it in cell lysate. The single-celled organism contains four "watermarks"
written into its DNA to identify it as synthetic and to help trace its descendants. The watermarks include
highly cited researcher
and has authored over 200 publications in scientific journal
s.
Biologist
A biologist is a scientist devoted to and producing results in biology through the study of life. Typically biologists study organisms and their relationship to their environment. Biologists involved in basic research attempt to discover underlying mechanisms that govern how organisms work...
and entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
, most famous for his role in being one of the first to sequence the human genome
Human genome
The human genome is the genome of Homo sapiens, which is stored on 23 chromosome pairs plus the small mitochondrial DNA. 22 of the 23 chromosomes are autosomal chromosome pairs, while the remaining pair is sex-determining...
and for his role in creating the first cell with a synthetic genome in 2010. Venter founded Celera Genomics
Celera Genomics
Celera Corporation was a business unit of the Applera Corporation, but was spun off in July 2008 to become an independent publicly traded company. In May 2011 Quest Diagnostics Incorporated completed the acquisition of Celera, which thus became a wholly owned subsidiary...
, The Institute for Genomic Research
The Institute for Genomic Research
The Institute for Genomic Research was a non-profit genomics research institute founded in 1992 by Craig Venter in Rockville, Maryland, United States. It is now a part of the J. Craig Venter Institute.-History:...
and the J. Craig Venter Institute
J. Craig Venter Institute
The J. Craig Venter Institute is a non-profit genomics research institute founded by J. Craig Venter, Ph.D. in October 2006. The Institute was the result of consolidating four organizations: the Center for the Advancement of Genomics, The Institute for Genomic Research, the Institute for...
, now working at the latter to create synthetic biological organisms and to document genetic diversity
Genetic diversity
Genetic diversity, the level of biodiversity, refers to the total number of genetic characteristics in the genetic makeup of a species. It is distinguished from genetic variability, which describes the tendency of genetic characteristics to vary....
in the world's oceans. He was listed on Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
magazine's 2007 and 2008 Time 100
Time 100
Time 100 is an annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, as assembled by Time. First published in 1999 as a result of a debate among several academics, the list has become an annual event.-History and format:...
list of the most influential people in the world. In 2010, the British magazine New Statesman
New Statesman
New Statesman is a British centre-left political and cultural magazine published weekly in London. Founded in 1913, and connected with leading members of the Fabian Society, the magazine reached a circulation peak in the late 1960s....
listed Craig Venter at 14th in the list of "The World's 50 Most Influential Figures 2010".
Early life
Venter was born in Salt Lake City, UtahUtah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
. In his youth, he did not take his education seriously, preferring to spend his time on the water in boats or surfing. According to his biography, A Life Decoded, he was said to never be a terribly engaged student, having Cs and Ds on his eighth-grade report cards.
Although he was against the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, Venter was drafted and enlisted in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
where he worked in the intensive-care ward of a field hospital. While in Vietnam, he attempted to commit suicide by swimming out to sea, but changed his mind more than a mile out.
Being confronted with wounded, maimed, and dying soldiers on a daily basis instilled in him a desire to study medicine — although he later switched to biomedical research.
Education
Venter graduated from Mills High SchoolMills High School
Mills High School is a public high school in Millbrae, California. It is one of seven high schools in the San Mateo Union High School District....
and began his college career at a community college
Community college
A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries.-Australia:Community colleges carry on the tradition of adult education, which was established in Australia around mid 19th century when evening classes were held to help adults...
, College of San Mateo
College of San Mateo
College of San Mateo is a community college in San Mateo, California. It is part of the San Mateo County Community College District....
in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. He received his B.S.
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
degree in biochemistry
Biochemistry
Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
in 1972, and his Ph.D.
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
degree in physiology
Physiology
Physiology is the science of the function of living systems. This includes how organisms, organ systems, organs, cells, and bio-molecules carry out the chemical or physical functions that exist in a living system. The highest honor awarded in physiology is the Nobel Prize in Physiology or...
and pharmacology
Pharmacology
Pharmacology is the branch of medicine and biology concerned with the study of drug action. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur between a living organism and chemicals that affect normal or abnormal biochemical function...
in 1975, both from the University of California, San Diego
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego, commonly known as UCSD or UC San Diego, is a public research university located in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego, California, United States...
. At UCSD, he studied under biochemist Nathan O. Kaplan
Nathan O. Kaplan
Nathan Oram Kaplan was an American biochemist who studied enzymology and chemotherapy. After completing a B.A. in chemistry at UCLA in 1939, Kaplan studied carbohydrate metabolism in the liver under David M. Greenberg at the University of California, Berkeley medical school. He earned his Ph.D....
, and married former Ph.D. candidate Barbara Rae. After working as an associate professor, and later as full professor, at the State University of New York at Buffalo
University at Buffalo, The State University of New York
University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, also commonly known as the University at Buffalo or UB, is a public research university and a "University Center" in the State University of New York system. The university was founded by Millard Fillmore in 1846. UB has multiple campuses...
, he joined the National Institutes of Health
National Institutes of Health
The National Institutes of Health are an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and are the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research. Its science and engineering counterpart is the National Science Foundation...
in 1984. In Buffalo, he divorced Dr. Rae-Venter and married his student, Claire M. Fraser
Claire M. Fraser
Claire M. Fraser-Liggett is an American microbiologist and the current head of the Institute for Genome Sciences at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore...
, remaining married to her until 2005.
Discovery
While at the NIHNational Institutes of Health
The National Institutes of Health are an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and are the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research. Its science and engineering counterpart is the National Science Foundation...
, Venter learned of a technique for rapidly identifying all of the mRNA
Messenger RNA
Messenger RNA is a molecule of RNA encoding a chemical "blueprint" for a protein product. mRNA is transcribed from a DNA template, and carries coding information to the sites of protein synthesis: the ribosomes. Here, the nucleic acid polymer is translated into a polymer of amino acids: a protein...
s present in a cell and began to use it to identify human brain genes. The short cDNA
Complementary DNA
In genetics, complementary DNA is DNA synthesized from a messenger RNA template in a reaction catalyzed by the enzyme reverse transcriptase and the enzyme DNA polymerase. cDNA is often used to clone eukaryotic genes in prokaryotes...
sequence fragments discovered by this method are called expressed sequence tag
Expressed sequence tag
An expressed sequence tag or EST is a short sub-sequence of a cDNA sequence. They may be used to identify gene transcripts, and are instrumental in gene discovery and gene sequence determination. The identification of ESTs has proceeded rapidly, with approximately 65.9 million ESTs now available in...
s (ESTs) a name coined by Anthony Kerlavage at The Institute for Genomic Research
The Institute for Genomic Research
The Institute for Genomic Research was a non-profit genomics research institute founded in 1992 by Craig Venter in Rockville, Maryland, United States. It is now a part of the J. Craig Venter Institute.-History:...
. The NIH initially led an effort to patent these gene fragments, in which Venter coincidentally and controversially became involved. The NIH later withdrew the patent applications, following public outcry. Subsequent court cases declared that ESTs were not directly patentable.
Human Genome Project
Venter was passionate about the power of genomics to radically transform healthcare. Venter believed that shotgun sequencingShotgun sequencing
In genetics, shotgun sequencing, also known as shotgun cloning, is a method used for sequencing long DNA strands. It is named by analogy with the rapidly-expanding, quasi-random firing pattern of a shotgun....
was the fastest and most effective way to get useful human genome data. The method was controversial, however, since some geneticists felt it would not be accurate enough for a genome as complicated as that of humans. Frustrated with what Venter viewed as the slow pace of progress in the Human Genome project, and unable to get funds for his ideas, he sought funding from the private sector to fund Celera Genomics
Celera Genomics
Celera Corporation was a business unit of the Applera Corporation, but was spun off in July 2008 to become an independent publicly traded company. In May 2011 Quest Diagnostics Incorporated completed the acquisition of Celera, which thus became a wholly owned subsidiary...
. The goal of the company was to sequence the entire human genome and release it into the public domain for non-commercial use in much less time and for much less cost than the public human genome project. The company planned to monetize their work by creating a value-added database of genomic data to which users could subscribe for a fee. The goal consequently put pressure on the public genome program and spurred several groups to redouble their efforts to produce the full sequence. DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
from five demographically different individuals was used by Celera to generate the sequence of the human genome; one of the individuals was Venter himself. In 2000, Venter and Francis Collins
Francis Collins (geneticist)
Francis Sellers Collins , is an American physician-geneticist, noted for his discoveries of disease genes and his leadership of the Human Genome Project . He currently serves as Director of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. Prior to being appointed Director, he founded and...
of the National Institutes of Health
National Institutes of Health
The National Institutes of Health are an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and are the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research. Its science and engineering counterpart is the National Science Foundation...
and U.S. Public Genome Project jointly made the announcement of the mapping of the human genome, a full three years ahead of the expected end of the Public Genome Program. The announcement was made along with US President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
, and U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair. Venter and Collins thus shared an award for "Biography of the Year" from A&E Network
A&E Network
The A&E Network is a United States-based cable and satellite television network with headquarters in New York City and offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, London, Los Angeles and Stamford. A&E also airs in Canada and Latin America. Initially named the Arts & Entertainment Network, A&E launched...
.
Celera published the first Human Genome in the journal Science, and was soon followed by a Human Genome Project Publication in Nature. Despite some claims that shotgun sequencing
Shotgun sequencing
In genetics, shotgun sequencing, also known as shotgun cloning, is a method used for sequencing long DNA strands. It is named by analogy with the rapidly-expanding, quasi-random firing pattern of a shotgun....
was in some ways less accurate than the clone-by-clone method chosen by the Human Genome Project, the technique became widely accepted by the scientific community and is still the de facto standard used today.
Although Celera was originally set to sequence a composite of DNA samples, partway through the sequencing, Venter switched the samples for his own DNA.
After contributing to the Human Genome, and its release into the public domain, Venter was fired by Celera in early 2002. According to his biography, Venter was ready to leave Celera, and was fired due to conflict with the main investor, Tony White, that had existed since day one of the project. Venter writes that his main goal was always to accelerate science and thereby discovery, and he only sought help from the corporate world when he couldn't find funding in the public sector.
Ocean sampling
The Global Ocean Sampling ExpeditionGlobal Ocean Sampling Expedition
The Global Ocean Sampling Expedition is an ocean exploration genome project with the goal of assessing the genetic diversity in marine microbial communities and to understand their role in nature's fundamental processes. Begun as a Sargasso Sea pilot sampling project in August 2003, Craig Venter...
(GOS) is an ocean exploration
Ocean exploration
Ocean exploration is a term of biography describing the exploration of the ocean. It is also the period when people explored the ocean fishies. Notable explorers include: the Greeks, the Egyptians, the Polynesians, the Phoenicians, Phytheas, Herodotus, the Vikings, The Portuguese, and Christopher...
genome project
Genome project
Genome projects are scientific endeavours that ultimately aim to determine the complete genome sequence of an organism and to annotate protein-coding genes and other important genome-encoded features...
with the goal of assessing the genetic diversity
Genetic diversity
Genetic diversity, the level of biodiversity, refers to the total number of genetic characteristics in the genetic makeup of a species. It is distinguished from genetic variability, which describes the tendency of genetic characteristics to vary....
in marine
Marine (ocean)
Marine is an umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the sea or ocean, such as marine biology, marine ecology and marine geology...
microbial communities and to understand their role in nature's fundamental processes. Begun as a Sargasso Sea pilot sampling project in August 2003, Craig Venter announced the full Expedition on 4 March 2004. The project, which used Craig Venter's personal yacht, Sorcerer II, started in Halifax, Canada, circumnavigated the globe and returned to the U.S. in January 2006.
Current work
Venter is currently the president of the J. Craig Venter InstituteJ. Craig Venter Institute
The J. Craig Venter Institute is a non-profit genomics research institute founded by J. Craig Venter, Ph.D. in October 2006. The Institute was the result of consolidating four organizations: the Center for the Advancement of Genomics, The Institute for Genomic Research, the Institute for...
, which conducts research in synthetic biology
Synthetic biology
Synthetic biology is a new area of biological research that combines science and engineering. It encompasses a variety of different approaches, methodologies, and disciplines with a variety of definitions...
. In June 2005, he co-founded Synthetic Genomics
Synthetic Genomics
Synthetic Genomics is a company dedicated to using modified or synthetically produced microorganisms to produce the alternative fuels ethanol and hydrogen. Synthetic Genomics was founded in part by J. Craig Venter...
, a firm dedicated to using modified microorganisms to produce clean fuels and biochemicals. In July 2009, ExxonMobil
ExxonMobil
Exxon Mobil Corporation or ExxonMobil, is an American multinational oil and gas corporation. It is a direct descendant of John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil company, and was formed on November 30, 1999, by the merger of Exxon and Mobil. Its headquarters are in Irving, Texas...
announced a $600 million collaboration with Synthetic Genomics to research and develop next-generation biofuel
Biofuel
Biofuel is a type of fuel whose energy is derived from biological carbon fixation. Biofuels include fuels derived from biomass conversion, as well as solid biomass, liquid fuels and various biogases...
s.
Venter is a member of the USA Science and Engineering Festival
USA Science and Engineering Festival
USA Science and Engineering Festival was a science festival in Washington, D.C. that founder Larry Book deemed the country’s first national science festival. The inaugural event was held from October 10, 2010 through October 24, 2010 and was planned to be a yearly event. The two week festival...
's Advisory Board.
Media coverage
Venter has been the subject of articles in several magazines, including Wired, The EconomistThe Economist
The Economist is an English-language weekly news and international affairs publication owned by The Economist Newspaper Ltd. and edited in offices in the City of Westminster, London, England. Continuous publication began under founder James Wilson in September 1843...
, Australian science magazine Cosmos
Cosmos (magazine)
Cosmos is an Australian popular science magazine that is published six times a year. It is subtitled "the science of everything" and is described as "a magazine of ideas, science, society and the future"....
, and The Atlantic. Additionally, he was featured on The Colbert Report on both February 27, 2007, and October 30, 2007.
Venter appeared in the "Evolution" episode of the documentary television series Understanding
Understanding (TV series)
Understanding was a documentary television series that aired from 1994 to 2002 on TLC. The program covered various things understood from a scientific perspective and was narrated by Jane Curtin and Peter Coyote. It originally aired on TLC and is currently being shown on the Science Channel...
.
On May 16, 2004, Venter gave the commencement speech at Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
.
In a 2007 interview with New Scientist
New Scientist
New Scientist is a weekly non-peer-reviewed English-language international science magazine, which since 1996 has also run a website, covering recent developments in science and technology for a general audience. Founded in 1956, it is published by Reed Business Information Ltd, a subsidiary of...
when asked "Assuming you can make synthetic bacteria
Synthetic life
The creation of synthetic life is a goal of scientists working in the fields of synthetic biology or exploring the origin of life. The term has also been used to describe recent experiments that transferred...
, what will you do with them?", Venter replied:
Furthermore it suggests that one of the main purposes for creating synthetic bacteria would be to reduce the dependence on fossil fuels through bioremediation
Bioremediation
Bioremediation is the use of microorganism metabolism to remove pollutants. Technologies can be generally classified as in situ or ex situ. In situ bioremediation involves treating the contaminated material at the site, while ex situ involves the removal of the contaminated material to be treated...
.
On May 10, 2007, Venter was awarded an honorary doctorate from Arizona State University
Arizona State University
Arizona State University is a public research university located in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area of the State of Arizona...
., and on October 24 of the same year, he received an honorary doctorate from Imperial College London
Imperial College London
Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...
.
He was on the 2007 Time 100
Time 100
Time 100 is an annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, as assembled by Time. First published in 1999 as a result of a debate among several academics, the list has become an annual event.-History and format:...
most influential people in the world list made by Time magazine. In 2007 he also received the Golden Eurydice Award
Golden Eurydice Award
The Golden Eurydice Award is presented for an outstanding contribution, or contributions over a period, in the field of Biophilosophy. It is awarded by the International Forum for Biophilosophy which was established in Belgium by Royal Decree in 1988. Founding members included Herman Van Den...
for contributions to Biophilosophy.
On September 4, 2007, a team led by Venter published the first complete (six-billion-letter) genome
Genome
In modern molecular biology and genetics, the genome is the entirety of an organism's hereditary information. It is encoded either in DNA or, for many types of virus, in RNA. The genome includes both the genes and the non-coding sequences of the DNA/RNA....
of an individual human — Venter's own DNA sequence.
On December 4, 2007, Venter gave the Dimbleby lecture
Richard Dimbleby Lecture
The Richard Dimbleby Lecture was founded in the memory of Richard Dimbleby, the BBC broadcaster. It has been delivered by an influential business or political figure almost every year since 1972 ....
for the BBC in London. In February 2008, he gave a speech about his current work at the TED conference
TED (conference)
TED is a global set of conferences owned by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading"....
.
Venter delivered the 2008 convocation speech for Faculty of Science honours and specialization students at the University of Alberta
University of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...
. A transcription of the speech is available here.
Dr. Venter was featured in Time Magazine's "The Top 10 Everything of 2008" article. Number three in 2008's Top 10 Scientific Discoveries was a piece outlining his work stitching together the 582,000 base pairs necessary to invent the genetic information for a whole new bacterium.
For an episode aired on July 27, 2009, Venter was interviewed on his boat by BBC One for the first episode of TV show Bang Goes the Theory
Bang Goes the Theory
Bang Goes the Theory is a British television science magazine series, co-produced by the BBC and the Open University, that began on 27 July 2009 on BBC One. Presented by Liz Bonnin, Jem Stansfield, Dallas Campbell and Dr...
.
On May 8, 2010, Venter received an honorary doctor of science degree from Clarkson University
Clarkson University
-The Clarkson School:The Clarkson School, a special division of Clarkson University, was founded in 1978 as a unique educational opportunity. The School offers students an early entrance opportunity into college, replacing the typical senior year of high school with a year of college...
for his work on the human genome.
On May 20, 2010, Venter announced the creation of first self-replicating semi-synthetic bacterial cell.
On November 21, 2010 Steve Kroft
Steve Kroft
Steve Kroft is an American journalist and a longtime correspondent for 60 Minutes. His investigative reporting has garnered him much acclaim, including three Peabody Awards and nine Emmy awards, one of which was an Emmy for Lifetime Achievement.-Early life:Born on August 22, 1945 in Kokomo,...
profiled J. Craig Venter and his research on 60 minutes
60 Minutes
60 Minutes is an American television news magazine, which has run on CBS since 1968. The program was created by producer Don Hewitt who set it apart by using a unique style of reporter-centered investigation....
.
On April 21, 2011, Venter received the 2011 Benjamin Rush Medal from William & Mary School of Law.
In the June 2011 issue of Men's Journal
Men's Journal
Men's Journal is an American men's lifestyle magazine focused on outdoor recreation and comprising editorials on the outdoors, environmental issues, health and fitness, style and fashion, and "gear". It is owned by Jann Wenner of Wenner Media....
, Ventner was featured as the "Survival Skills" celebrity of the month. He shared various anecdotes, and advice, including stories of his time in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, as well as mentioning a bout with melanoma
Melanoma
Melanoma is a malignant tumor of melanocytes. Melanocytes are cells that produce the dark pigment, melanin, which is responsible for the color of skin. They predominantly occur in skin, but are also found in other parts of the body, including the bowel and the eye...
upon his back, which subsequently resulted in "giving a pound of flesh" to surgery.
Individual human genome sequenced
On September 4, 2007, a team led by Sam Levy published the first complete (six-billion-letter) genomeGenome
In modern molecular biology and genetics, the genome is the entirety of an organism's hereditary information. It is encoded either in DNA or, for many types of virus, in RNA. The genome includes both the genes and the non-coding sequences of the DNA/RNA....
of an individual human—Venter's own DNA sequence. Some of the sequences in Venter's genome are associated with wet earwax, increased risk of antisocial behavior, Alzheimer's and cardiovascular diseases. This publication was especially interesting since it contained a diploid instead of a haploid genome and shows promise for personalized medicine
Personalized medicine
Personalized medicine is a medical model emphasizing in general the customization of healthcare, with all decisions and practices being tailored to individual patients in whatever ways possible...
via genotyping
Genotyping
Genotyping is the process of determining differences in the genetic make-up of an individual by examining the individual's DNA sequence using biological assays and comparing it to another individual's sequence or a reference sequence. It reveals the alleles an individual has inherited from their...
. This genome, rather immodestly dubbed HuRef by Levy and others, was a landmark accomplishment and as of mid-2010 is probably the highest quality personal genome sequence yet completed.
The Human Reference Genome Browser is a web application for the navigation and analysis of Venter's recently published genome. The HuRef database consists of approximately 32 million DNA reads sequenced using microfluidic Sanger sequencing
Microfluidic Sanger Sequencing
The completion of the Human Genome Project has been a cornerstone in the advancement of biological studies. The outcomes of obtaining a complete reference map of the human genome have ushered in the post-genome era of studies...
, assembled into 4,528 scaffolds and 4.1 million DNA variation
Mutation
In molecular biology and genetics, mutations are changes in a genomic sequence: the DNA sequence of a cell's genome or the DNA or RNA sequence of a virus. They can be defined as sudden and spontaneous changes in the cell. Mutations are caused by radiation, viruses, transposons and mutagenic...
s identified by genome analysis. These variants include single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), block substitutions
Point mutation
A point mutation, or single base substitution, is a type of mutation that causes the replacement of a single base nucleotide with another nucleotide of the genetic material, DNA or RNA. Often the term point mutation also includes insertions or deletions of a single base pair...
, short and large indel
Indel
Indel is a molecular biology term that has different definitions in different fields:*In evolutionary studies, indel is used to mean an insertion or a deletion and indels simply refers to the mutation class that includes both insertions, deletions, and the combination thereof, including insertion...
s, and structural variations like insertions
Insertion (genetics)
In genetics, an insertion is the addition of one or more nucleotide base pairs into a DNA sequence. This can often happen in microsatellite regions due to the DNA polymerase slipping...
, deletions, inversions and copy number changes.
The browser enables scientists to navigate the HuRef genome assembly and sequence variations, and to compare it with the NCBI human build 36 assembly in the context of the NCBI
National Center for Biotechnology Information
The National Center for Biotechnology Information is part of the United States National Library of Medicine , a branch of the National Institutes of Health. The NCBI is located in Bethesda, Maryland and was founded in 1988 through legislation sponsored by Senator Claude Pepper...
and Ensembl
Ensembl
Ensembl is a joint scientific project between the European Bioinformatics Institute and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, which was launched in 1999 in response to the imminent completion of the Human Genome Project...
annotations. The browser provides a comparative view between NCBI and HuRef consensus sequences, the sequence multi-alignment of the HuRef assembly, Ensembl and dbSNP annotations, HuRef variants, and the underlying variant evidence and functional analysis. The interface also represents the haplotype
Haplotype
A haplotype in genetics is a combination of alleles at adjacent locations on the chromosome that are transmitted together...
blocks from which diploid genome sequence can be inferred and the relation of variants to gene annotations. The display of variants and gene annotations are linked to external public resources including dbSNP
DbSNP
The Single Nucleotide Polymorphism Database is a free public archive for genetic variation within and across different species developed and hosted by the National Center for Biotechnology Information in collaboration with the National Human Genome Research Institute...
, Ensembl, Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM) and Gene Ontology
Gene Ontology
The Gene Ontology, or GO, is a major bioinformatics initiative to unify the representation of gene and gene product attributes across all species...
(GO).
Users can search the HuRef genome using HUGO gene names, Ensembl and dbSNP identifiers, HuRef contig
Contig
A contig is a set of overlapping DNA segments that together represent a consensus region of DNA. In bottom-up sequencing projects, a contig refers to overlapping sequence data ; in top-down sequencing projects, contig refers to the overlapping clones that form a physical map of the genome that is...
or scaffold locations, or NCBI chromosome locations. Users can then easily and quickly browse any genomic region via the simple and intuitive pan and zoom controls; furthermore, data relevant to specific loci can be exported for further analysis.
Mycoplasma laboratorium
Venter is seeking to patent the first life form created by humanity, possibly to be named Mycoplasma laboratoriumMycoplasma laboratorium
Mycoplasma laboratorium is a planned partially synthetic species of bacterium derived from the genome of Mycoplasma genitalium. This effort in synthetic biology is being undertaken at the J. Craig Venter Institute by a team of approximately 20 scientists headed by Nobel laureate Hamilton Smith, and...
. There is speculation that this line of research could lead to producing bacteria that have been engineered to perform specific reactions, for example, produce fuels, make medicines, combat global warming, and so on.
In May 2010, a team of scientists led by Venter became the first to successfully create what was described as "synthetic life
Synthetic life
The creation of synthetic life is a goal of scientists working in the fields of synthetic biology or exploring the origin of life. The term has also been used to describe recent experiments that transferred...
". This was done by synthesizing a very long DNA molecule containing an entire bacterium genome
Genome
In modern molecular biology and genetics, the genome is the entirety of an organism's hereditary information. It is encoded either in DNA or, for many types of virus, in RNA. The genome includes both the genes and the non-coding sequences of the DNA/RNA....
, and introducing this into another cell, analogous to the accomplishment of Eckard Wimmer
Eckard Wimmer
Eckard Wimmer is an American virologist most famous for his seminal work on the molecular biology of poliovirus and the first chemical synthesis of a live virus.-Life and career:Wimmer was born on 22 May 1936 in Berlin, Germany...
's group, who synthesized and ligated an RNA virus
RNA virus
An RNA virus is a virus that has RNA as its genetic material. This nucleic acid is usually single-stranded RNA but may be double-stranded RNA...
genome and "booted" it in cell lysate. The single-celled organism contains four "watermarks"
written into its DNA to identify it as synthetic and to help trace its descendants. The watermarks include
- Code table for entire alphabet with punctuations
- Names of 46 contributing scientists
- Three quotations
- The web address for the cell.
Selected bibliography
Venter is an ISIInstitute for Scientific Information
The Institute for Scientific Information was founded by Eugene Garfield in 1960. It was acquired by Thomson Scientific & Healthcare in 1992, became known as Thomson ISI and now is part of the Healthcare & Science business of the multi-billion dollar Thomson Reuters Corporation.ISI offered...
highly cited researcher
ISI highly cited researcher
ISI Highly Cited is a database of "highly cited researchers"—scientific researchers whose publications are most often cited in academic journals over the past decade, published by the Institute for Scientific Information...
and has authored over 200 publications in scientific journal
Scientific journal
In academic publishing, a scientific journal is a periodical publication intended to further the progress of science, usually by reporting new research. There are thousands of scientific journals in publication, and many more have been published at various points in the past...
s.
See also
- Artificial gene synthesis
- Full genome sequencingFull genome sequencingFull genome sequencing , also known as whole genome sequencing , complete genome sequencing, or entire genome sequencing, is a laboratory process that determines the complete DNA sequence of an organism's genome at a single time...
- Genetic testingGenetic testingGenetic testing is among the newest and most sophisticated of techniques used to test for genetic disorders which involves direct examination of the DNA molecule itself. Other genetic tests include biochemical tests for such gene products as enzymes and other proteins and for microscopic...
- Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters
- MetagenomicsMetagenomicsMetagenomics is the study of metagenomes, genetic material recovered directly from environmental samples. The broad field may also be referred to as environmental genomics, ecogenomics or community genomics. Traditional microbiology and microbial genome sequencing rely upon cultivated clonal cultures...
- Personal genomicsPersonal genomicsPersonal genomics is the branch of genomics concerned with the sequencing and analysis of the genome of an individual. The genotyping stage employs different techniques, including single-nucleotide polymorphism analysis chips , or partial or full genome sequencing...
- PharmacogenomicsPharmacogenomicsPharmacogenomics is the branch of pharmacology which deals with the influence of genetic variation on drug response in patients by correlating gene expression or single-nucleotide polymorphisms with a drug's efficacy or toxicity...
- Predictive medicinePredictive medicinePredictive medicine is a rapidly emerging field of medicine that entails predicting disease and instituting preventive measures in order to either prevent the disease altogether or significantly decrease its impact upon the patient...
External links
- J. Craig Venter Institute
- Sorcerer II Expedition
- Synthetic Genomics
- The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR)
- HuRef Genome Browser
Media
- Cracking the code to life, The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, October 8, 2007 - Craig Venter interview, Wired ScienceWIRED ScienceWired Science is a weekly high-definition television program that covers modern scientific and technological topics. In January 2007 PBS aired pilot episodes for three different science programs, including Wired Science. Using Nielsen ratings, CPB-sponsored research and public feedback, PBS...
, December 2007 (video) - Radio interview on Philosophy TalkPhilosophy TalkPhilosophy Talk is a talk radio program co-hosted by John Perry and Ken Taylor, who are professors at Stanford University. The show is also available as a podcast, available for purchase. The program deals both with fundamental problems of philosophy and with the works of famous philosophers,...
- Video of interview/discussion with Craig Venter by Carl ZimmerCarl ZimmerCarl Zimmer is a popular science writer and blogger, especially regarding the study of evolution and parasites. He has written several books and contributes science essays to publications such as The New York Times and Discover...
on Bloggingheads.tvBloggingheads.tvBloggingheads.tv is a political, world events, philosophy, and science video blog discussion site in which the participants take part in an active back and forth conversation via webcam which is then broadcast online to viewers... - Craig Venter: A voyage of DNA, genes and the sea – TED (Technology Entertainment Design) conferenceTED (conference)TED is a global set of conferences owned by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading"....
(video) - Webcast of Venter talk 'Genomics: From humans to the environment' at The James Martin 21st Century School
- The Richard Dimbleby Lecture 2007 – Dr. J. Craig Venter – A DNA Driven World
- A short course on synthetic genomics. Edge Master Class 2009