Humans and pets are genetic kin, genome expert says

J. Craig Venter discusses his current research after receiving an honorary doctor of science degree.

6:24 p.m., April 16, 2004--The discovery that humans are genetically close to mice and dogs might make people develop greater respect for life, J. Craig Venter, a major contributor to the historic mapping of the human genome, said.

“The mouse and humans are on the same branch of the phylogenetic tree but the dog is closer,” Venter said at the University of Delaware’s Mitchell Hall, where he was awarded an honorary doctor of science degree in recognition of his contributions to science before an audience of faculty, staff, students and others.

Venter said his latest endeavor, a global expedition on his yacht, the Sorcerer II, in search of microbes in seawater and land, has already produced stunning results.

Some 1.3 million new genes and more than 1,800 new microbial species have been discovered in the Sargasso Sea, an area around Bermuda in the Atlantic Ocean previously thought to have very little microbial life.

“In 1870, people thought there was no life below a certain depth in the ocean,” Venter said, adding that his recent findings have shattered long-held beliefs and opened new horizons.

Venter explained that the discovery of nearly 800 new photoreceptors—proteins sensitive to light—changed the view about the carbon cycle and the conversion of light into energy.

Venter’s spirit of discovery and his contributions to human knowledge were cited as he was awarded the honorary degree.

“For your pioneering spirit, for your leaps of consciousness and for your many contributions to scientific discovery and inspiration, we salute you,” Glenn Gormley, UD trustee and vice president of clinical development for AstraZeneca, said as he conferred the degree.

“Your life’s journey has been exceptionally diverse, inspired and rewarding—from California surfer, Vietnam corpsman, returning adult student to genomic icon,” Gormley said.

UD President David P. Roselle said the University encourages research and discovery and cited the Undergraduate Research Program, through which research apprenticeships with faculty mentors give talented, motivated students opportunities to see and take part in what is happening on the front lines of discovery.

“Every college, department and research center provides such opportunities for interested students,” Roselle said. “Today continues our celebration of discovery and acknowledges those whose contributions to discovery and realization change the world in which we live.”

Venter, president of the Institute for Biological Energy Alternatives, which is the research base for his current project, won worldwide fame for his work that sped up the sequencing and analysis of the biochemical code in human genes.

The historic result, achieved years ahead of schedule, was announced during a White House ceremony in June 2000, during which Venter shared the limelight with Francis Collins, director of the government-sponsored Human Genome Project at the National Human Genome Research Institute.

But, Venter is credited for the ambitious approach that accelerated the project. His accomplishments in decoding the genetic sequences of other organisms, particularly the fruit fly and mouse, also have provided important scientific insights, including a new understanding of the genetic relationship between species, as well as human evolution.

“When I started graduate school in the 1970s, I was told it would be hard to find anything new in biology because most things have been discovered,” Venter said. “You can see from my work alone just how ridiculous that statement was.”

Venter said his goal now is to create a public database of all microbial life in the world.

“The most we can hope for is the next generation of scientists will be excited. Instead of having to generate the data, they will have it,” Venter said.

Gormley said the honorary doctorate is the highest honor bestowed by the University to individuals whose contributions to the values that the University of Delaware cherishes warrant exceptional recognition.

Venter, who also is president of the Center for the Advancement of Genomics and the J. Craig Venter Science Foundation and former president and founder of Celera Genomics, received his bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and doctorate in physiology and pharmacology from the University of California at San Diego.

A former Vietnam corpsman, Venter became professor of biochemistry at the State University of New York at Buffalo and the chief cancer research scientist at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute. He later worked as a researcher at the National Institutes of Health before he founded the Institute for Genomic Research Center for the Advancement of Genomics in 1992 with his wife, Claire Fraser.

Article by Martin Mbugua
Photo by Greg Drew

E-mail this article

To learn how to subscribe to UDaily, click here.