How is gene mapping done

An example of this process in application is the work done with the gene for cystic fibrosis. The cystic fibrosis gene was mapped by linkage analysis in This paved the way for its cloning in by Francis Collins and his associates. This led to a better understanding of the cause of the disease. The foundation of gene mapping also laid the foundation for the Human Genome Project.

The idea of sequencing the entire human genome was explored in the s, but was not universally thought to be feasible. Impetus from the U. The project was completed in Mary Elizabeth is passionate about reading, writing, and research, and has a penchant for correcting misinformation on the Internet.

In addition to contributing articles to TheHealthBoard about art, literature, and music, Mary Elizabeth is a teacher, composer, and author. She has a B. Mary Elizabeth. Please enter the following code:. Genetic mapping offers evidence that a disease transmitted from parent to child is linked to one or more genes and provides clues about which chromosome contains the gene and precisely where the gene lies on that chromosome.

Among the main goals of the Human Genome Project HGP was to develop new, better and cheaper tools to identify new genes and to understand their function. One of these tools is genetic mapping. Genetic mapping - also called linkage mapping - can offer firm evidence that a disease transmitted from parent to child is linked to one or more genes.

Mapping also provides clues about which chromosome contains the gene and precisely where the gene lies on that chromosome. Genetic maps have been used successfully to find the gene responsible for relatively rare, single-gene inherited disorders such as cystic fibrosis and Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Genetic maps are also useful in guiding scientists to the many genes that are believed to play a role in the development of more common disorders such as asthma, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and psychiatric conditions. To produce a genetic map, researchers collect blood or tissue samples from members of families in which a certain disease or trait is prevalent. Using various laboratory techniques, the scientists isolate DNA from these samples and examine it for unique patterns that are seen only in family members who have the disease or trait.

These characteristic patterns in the chemical bases that make up DNA are referred to as markers. DNA markers don't, by themselves, identify the gene responsible for the disease or trait; but they can tell researchers roughly where the gene is on the chromosome. This is why: when eggs or sperm develop, the paired chromosomes that make up a person's genome exchange stretches of DNA. Think of it as a shuffling process, called recombination.