How did Venter's shotgun sequencing uncover 1.2 million new ocean genes?

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A groundbreaking study led by Craig Venter has unveiled over 1.2 million new genes through shotgun sequencing of microbial genomes from seawater in the Sargasso Sea. This research highlights an unprecedented level of microbial diversity, significantly expanding the known genetic landscape, which previously included around 180,000 genes in the Swiss-Prot database. Among the discoveries, more than 700 new rhodopsin-like photoreceptors were identified. Venter emphasized the innovative approach of applying shotgun sequencing to entire environments rather than individual genomes, marking a significant advancement in oceanographic and genomic research. The findings pave the way for future mapping of these genes, despite the current uncertainty regarding the specific organisms they originate from.
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http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20040305/01

Shotgun sequencing of the ocean reveals 1.2 million new genes in a single sweep | By Cathy Holding

New horizons in oceanography and genomics were opened up this week with the publication by Craig Venter and colleagues of a pilot study to shotgun clone and sequence microbial genomes filtered from seawater in the Sargasso Sea, off the coast of Bermuda (Science, DOI:10.1126/science.1093857, March 4, 2004).

More than 1.2 million new genes were identified, revealing a level of microbial diversity in seawater that was only previously guessed at. More than 700 of those were new rhodopsin-like photoreceptors.

“At the time of writing the paper, there were roughly 180,000 genes and proteins in Swiss-Prot [the curated protein database],” Venter told The Scientist. “In one paper, we're adding 1.2 or 1.3 million [genes].”

Venter said his group had extended the shotgun method to take it from single genomes to entire environments. “The level of discovery is truly extraordinary,” he said.
 
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They found the genes, now I am ready to see them map the genes.:smile:

Nautica
 
I'll bet they will map them, even though they don't know what critters those genes belong to!
 
Yet :wink:
 
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