The multi budgeted assignment that went through criticism from different fronts was, that of the human genome sequence. At times there were instances when the project was about to be shut. at last, the efforts proved successful and the project reached its finishing point at the term of the millennia. The next question ready in the minds of the critics was about the usefulness of this project to the general public. It’s been used for criminal identification by employing a DNA test. Furthermore, it has fundamental importance in forensics. Thanks to this system, now the guilty could easily be proven by collecting evidence from the crime scene. A minor piece of skin or hair is enough to identify the culprit. Moreover, issues like paternity fraud could also be addressed by a straight forward paternity test.
In times of emergency conditions such as the terrorist’s attacks or deaths resulting from burns, the victims are not left in a condition to be easily identified. DNA identification done by the institutes along with the team of professionals could help the medical examiners in the identification of the victims. This would speed up the process. Furthermore, the aggravated family members of the victims would at least be able to find the remains of their loved ones to carry on their burial ceremoniously.
If we take examples from the history such as the Shoah project in which children from Argentina were lost in 1970. The relatives were separated by the holocaust. The Deoxyribonucleic acid from the remains buried throughout Europe was used to identify the missing children who were finally reunited to their grand parents.
Another area of much importance where this technique proved its worth is sports. In The two most popular international proceedings of the world i.e. in the NFL fields and in the Olympics, this sequencing was used. It was done on Super Bowls' souvenir footballs and Olympic souvenirs to confirm verifiable authenticity.
This method has been a tool of undeniable importance in studies of evolution. Moreover, it has also been used to date bak evidence of human migration patterns to find out their family lineage. It can also be used as a way to track migratory or endangered animals and also for the demarcation of freshly discovered biological creatures. It is a means of prosecuting poachers of endangered and protected species that have their own personal DNA databank.
The most interesting use of this sequencing is for the testing of foreign species or material from outer space. These studies aim at determining their source and to see if they ever existed on our planet and if so then in what conditions. It was this tool that gave evidence about the presence of extra-terrestrial life on Mars. It only requires the testing of a small sample and it can be employed to identify the pre-existing type on the earth that might be present millions of years ago.
It’s simply astonishing how this technique could be employed to provide advantages to the society in varying or completely contrasting fields.
Tags: DNA test, paternity test
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