 |
|
|
|
January 23rd, 2013
01:01 PM ET
Shakespeare, thou art stored in DNAThe stuff we’re made of may be the means by which we store information that we want kept around long after we're gone. Scientists have developed a technique of storing information in DNA, the molecule found in living creatures including humans that contains genetic instructions. The experiment is discussed in a new study in the journal Nature. Researchers aren't using DNA from any living organism, or one that was once alive; instead, they are synthesizing it. "We’re using DNA here as a chemical molecule of storage. It just happens to be the same molecule that is used in our bodies as well," said Ewan Birney, senior author of the study and geneticist at the United Kingdom's European Bioinformatics Institute, at a press briefing Tuesday. As long as the DNA is kept cold, dry and dark, it will last for a long time. Consider that scientists can sequence DNA from woolly mammoths tens of thousands of years old that’s preserved by chance. “There must be some point in time when it’s cheaper to store information for that length of time as DNA than as something that requires electricity or some other maintenance cost to keep it around,” Birney said. Birney and colleagues did the math, and found that although DNA storage is expensive, it's more cost-effective than other methods if you want to preserve a digital file for somewhere between 600 and 5,000 years. However, the scientists say the synthesis cost will probably come down in the next decade, so DNA storage could even work for ensuring your grandchildren can see your wedding photos. "Anything that you want to store we could store," Birney said. "Really, the only limit is the expense." Study collaborators at Agilent Technologies provided DNA synthesis free of charge for the Nature paper, but commercial rates for DNA synthesis are probably between $10,000 and $30,000, researchers said. The technique, researchers said, could even encode a zettabyte’s worth of data. That's enough to encompass the total amount of digital information that currently exists on Earth, which would be "breathtakingly expensive" right now, Birney said. Researchers used five different kinds of digital information to show that their method would work to preserve a variety of media in DNA. These included a text file with William Shakespeare’s 154 sonnets, a PDF of a scientific paper, a photo in JPEG format of the European Bioinformatics Institute, and an MP3 audio excerpt of Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Scientists showed that they could encode these files in DNA and then, by sequencing the DNA, reconstruct them with 100% accuracy. So how would your digital files translate into DNA? Text on your computer, while it may look like words, is actually encoded in your computer as ones and zeros - this is called binary. For the purposes of DNA synthesis, scientists took that information and converted it to base 3 – that is, zeroes, ones and twos. From there, the data gets translated into collections of DNA’s nucleic acid bases, represented by the letters A, C, G and T. That’s how scientists encode the DNA fragments. This is not the first study of its kind. In 2012, George Church of Harvard University and colleagues published a paper in the journal Science describing their own strategy for DNA storage. That research group operated independently from the British scientists. One distinguishing factor in the new study is error correction, Goldman said. Built into their method are measures that adjust for possible errors in translating the digital material into DNA and back again. An example is that the translation method in Goldman's study does not allow for identical letters of DNA to be next to each other - in other words, there are no instances of "AA" in the final DNA code, since this kind of repetition could cause errors, Birney said. They also encode the same piece of information multiple times in different ways in the DNA, in case something goes wrong. DNA has the advantage of being light and small, researchers said. One of Shakespeare’s sonnets would weigh 0.3 picograms (10^-12) grams, said Nick Goldman, lead study author. A small test tube holds about a petabyte – a billion megabytes – of data. DNA storing this much information is about as big as the space between the top two joints of your little finger, Goldman said. “A gram of DNA would hold the same information as a bit over a million compact discs,” Goldman said. “Your storage options are: one thing a bit smaller than your little finger, or a million CDs.” Given DNA's small size and long endurance, according to Goldman and Birney, the method could be used to propagate information about our current selves thousands of years into the future - assuming, of course, our descendants in the year 4013 understand languages as we speak and write them today.
Next entry »New diabetes guidelines for children
« Previous entryBird flu research resumes - but not in U.S.
|
  About this blog
Get a behind-the-scenes look at the latest stories from CNN Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen and the CNN Medical Unit producers. They'll share news and views on health and medical trends - info that will help you take better care of yourself and the people you love.
 |
|
|
|
cialis on line purches canadian pharmacy https://canadacialisstore.com/ cialis canadian discounts
canadian pills pharmacy https://canadapillstorex.com/ canadian pills pharmacy
zytromax https://zithromaxes.com/ zithromax directions
20 mg sildenafil cheap https://eunicesildenafilcitrate.com/ where to buy sildenafil 50mg
May I just say what a relief to uncover someone who really knows what they're talking about over the internet. You definitely understand how to bring an issue to light and make it important. More people need to read this and understand this side of the story. I was surprised that you aren't more popular given that you definitely have the gift.
https://www.ownedcore.com/forums/redirect-to/?redirect=https://wildwestlifttrucks.com/moreno-valley-forklifts/
You have made some decent points there. I looked on the web for more information about the issue and found most individuals will go along with your views on this web site.
https://map.google.com.bz/url?sa=t&rct=j&url=https://meganleary.com
Spot on with this write-up, I really feel this web site needs a lot more attention. I’ll probably be back again to read more, thanks for the information!
https://d.agkn.com/pixel/2389/?che=2979434297&col=22204979,1565515,238211572,435508400,111277757&l1=https://newportcatalina.com
http://niwai.ifro.ir/admin/Portal/LinkClick.aspx?Value=http://ocrvcenter.com/rv-repair-shop-torrance-california/
http://jm9.loveshop.com/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=salonsbocaraton.com/best-colorist-boca-raton-boca-raton-hair-salons.htm/3-4
avanafil buy avanafil 50mg
https://sense-life.com/forum/go.php?https://meganleary.com
how much is viagra in canada https://canadaviagrastore.com/ generic viagra cost walmart canada
canadian weight loss pills https://canadapillstorex.com/ canadian diet pills
cialis through canadian pharmacies https://canadacialisstore.com/ buying canadian cialis
erectile winstrol https://canadaerectiledysfunctionpills.com/ is erectile dysfunction a chronic disease
who makes chloroquine phosphate https://chloroquineorigin.com/ is chloroquine phosphate the same as hydroxychloroquine
https://cse.google.dm/url?sa=j&source=web&rct=j&url=https://ocrv.xyz
http://google.co.bw/url?q=https://aikareborn.com
https://cse.google.com.do/url?sa=j&source=web&rct=j&url=https3A2F2Faikareborn.com&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNGaY_nlK9ozc51fqwjiVdMaYZL7rg
priligy pills usa buy priligy uk
https://cse.google.es/url?rct=i&sa=t&url=https://sprintervanrepairshop.com
I enjoy reading through an article that will make men and women think. Also, thank you for allowing me to comment!
http://www.groupecho.org/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=www.optometristphoenixaz.com
An outstanding share! I've just forwarded this onto a friend who has been doing a little research on this. And he in fact ordered me lunch because I discovered it for him... lol. So let me reword this.... Thanks for the meal!! But yeah, thanks for spending some time to talk about this subject here on your web site.
https://clients1.google.fr/url?sa=i&url=https://fleetautorepairshop.com
This excellent website definitely has all the information and facts I needed about this subject and didn’t know who to ask.
https://local.google.fm/url?q=j&sa=t&url=https://sprintervanrepairshop.com
There's certainly a great deal to find out about this topic. I like all of the points you made.
https://cse.google.co.bw/url?q=j&source=web&rct=j&url=https://mastermindformen.com
http://niceassthumbs.com/crtr/cgi/out.cgi?id=137&l=bottom_toplist&u=https://www.ocrv.tv
Having read this I believed it was really informative. I appreciate you finding the time and effort to put this informative article together. I once again find myself spending way too much time both reading and leaving comments. But so what, it was still worth it!
https://google.com.cy/url?sa=t&rct=j&url=https://fleetservicesorangecounty.com
https://cse.google.com.fj/url?sa=i&rct=j&url=https3A2F2Fcarsonrvexperience.com&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNGaY_nlK9ozc51fqwjiVdMaYZL7rg
http://images.google.com.vc/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://mastermindformen.com
I blog frequently and I truly thank you for your information. This great article has truly peaked my interest. I will book mark your blog and keep checking for new information about once a week. I subscribed to your RSS feed as well.
https://imgab.seenthis.co/t/https://www.fleettruckrepairshop.com
Great post! We are linking to this particularly great post on our website. Keep up the great writing.
https://image.google.cl/url?sa=i&url=https://fleetservicesocrv.com
This site was... how do you say it? Relevant!! Finally I have found something that helped me. Many thanks!
http://www.oznaczenie-ce.pl/redirect.php?site=https://eyedoctorphoenixaz.com
https://avfocus.avclub.pro/bitrix/redirect.php?event1=news_out&event2=http2F2FADnh-sA1ch-bA1n-hA0ng-chung-cB0-vincity-ocean-park-tBBA7-91D0D0D1D184B582B0&goto=https://howtobrews.com
https://eachnow.com/watch?v=xmeTLPAgxaI
Very good info. Lucky me I found your website by chance (stumbleupon). I have saved it for later!
http://uk.youtuberepeater.com/watch?v=pfFD5aEeFhs
You are so awesome! I don't believe I've read through anything like that before. So wonderful to find somebody with some unique thoughts on this issue. Seriously.. many thanks for starting this up. This web site is something that is needed on the internet, someone with some originality!
http://www.libertyad.net/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=www.howtobrews.com
Very good write-up. I definitely love this website. Stick with it!
https://www.irrigationnz.co.nz/ClickThru?mk=5120.0&Redir=http://www.fleetvehiclerepairshop.com
A fascinating discussion is definitely worth comment. I think that you should write more about this topic, it may not be a taboo subject but usually folks don't speak about such issues. To the next! Many thanks!!
https://videogg.com/watch?v=-zLxOy3vX_c
Saved as a favorite, I love your website!
http://heartvod.com/play=dBezC9hXVu0
https://google.cf/url?rct=j&sa=t&url=https://allbrewsupplies.com
This site was... how do you say it? Relevant!! Finally I've found something which helped me. Thank you!
https://cse.google.as/url?q=https3A2F2Fforkliftrepairorangecounty.com&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNGaY_nlK9ozc51fqwjiVdMaYZL7rg
https://barbados.org/al/?event=ad.logClickampadvert=DC6FF007FAD78E23C54A673E3258DDC0EE638CB31CFE6FB9D0F4E0C53EF6B1276EC9DDCA3D10A7EA5E5F52955053E7F2A0C5D4D51F5050E21EC0B7F8CDCDA1EB3BBEEEDAB3EBDC25114C276741BA028E&webAddress=http://www.ocrv.store
I'm excited to discover this great site. I need to to thank you for ones time for this particularly fantastic read!! I definitely enjoyed every part of it and I have you saved as a favorite to check out new information on your web site.
http://www.vidtunez.com/watch?v=BIx3f6Ksv6c
http://forum.near-fest.com/index.php?thememode=mobile;redirect=https://affordableranking.com
There is definately a lot to learn about this issue. I love all the points you made.
http://imgarden.com/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=ocrvcenter.com
Good article. I am dealing with a few of these issues as well..
https://www.trk.atomex.net/cgi-bin/tracker.fcgi/clk?cr=8898&al=3369&sec=3623&pl=3646&as=3&l=0&aelp=-1&url=https://affordableranking.com
https://nanohub.com/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=www.affordableranking.com
http://www.officeservice.com.br/trackMKT/trackerFolha.aspx?DESCRIPTION=HotSite_EcrmContabil&FROM=Workshop&DESTINATION=https://affordableranking.com
Greetings, There's no doubt that your website might be having web browser compatibility issues. When I look at your web site in Safari, it looks fine however when opening in IE, it's got some overlapping issues. I simply wanted to provide you with a quick heads up! Aside from that, great blog!
http://funsim.com/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=ocrvcenter.com
https://www.nyc.hiremedical.com/home/redirect/?site=https://affordableranking.com