By the end of the century, we may have the complete genetic codes for perhaps 40 lifeforms. British scientists are leading an attempt to sequence Streptomyces, an important group of microbes which make almost two-thirds of all known natural antibiotics and which have provided the majority of new antibiotics in the past 50 years. A fuller understanding of the genes will lead to the development of yet more useful products. Fighting disease Researchers have also unravelled the complete genetic sequence of one of the world's worst scourges, the tuberculosis bacterium. It kills 3 million people in the world each year.
Drug companies are thrilled.
Last year, Human Genome Sciences in Rockville, Maryland, determined the entire genetic sequence of the bacterium Enterococcus faecalis. This organism, a normal inhabitant of our intestines, is emerging as a major component of hospital infections. Many strains of this bacterium are resistant to most antibiotics and most have acquired resistance to Vancomycin often regarded as the antibiotic of last resort. More food please It is not just microbes that scientists want to sequence, they want to look at plants as well and for good reason. There is a strong interest among many cereal biologists to sequence the rice genome.