Chromosome 21 Mapped

Ant writes "In an achievement that could point the way to treatments for a host of illnesses, scientists have mapped chromosome 21, the smallest human chromosome and the one associated with Down's syndrome, epilepsy, Lou Gehrig's disease and Alzheimer's." Two down.

NATURE offering free issue with paper in it

[Cy Guy]

I got the following email from Nature:


Dear Colleague:
We are very pleased to offer all users of Nature's electronic services a
FREE sample of the May 18th issue of Nature. To request a free print copy
containing the Chromosome 21 paper, use the order form at:
http://www.nature.com/marketing/freecopy/ [nature.com]
These free copies of Nature are produced with support from AppliedBiosystems -
http://www.appliedbiosystems.com [appliedbiosystems.com]
Forward this e-mail to let your friends and colleagues know about this
special offer.
Chromosome 21 is the second human chromosome sequence to be documented,
encompassing more than 33 million base pairs of DNA, and its publication
therefore marks a major scientific milestone. A striking feature of the
chromosome is that it contains less than 300 discernible genes. This implies
that the whole human genome may contain no more than 40,000 genes, many
fewer than previously thought.
The chromosome sequence reveals the organisation of a number of genes linked
to specific human disorders, and will speed the search for several more
disease-linked genes. The availability of this sequence will also provide
valuable tools for investigating the basis of Down syndrome, which is caused
by the inheritance of three (rather than the normal two) copies ofchromosome 21.
Yours sincerelyRichard GallagherBiological Sciences EditorNature