China's Beijing Genomics Institute in Shenzhen
announced that it has mapped the entire genetic code for the giant panda using DNA sequencing and analysis equipment from San Diego-based Illumina. The project began in
mid 2008 and was completed by Jan.2009.The panda at the center of this discovery is Jingjing, who lives in China's Chengdu Panda Breeding Research Center and was the mascot for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The genetic information from Jingjing is expected to be complemented in the future with genetic information from other pandas.Scientists hope to use the data from the sequencing project to better understand panda biology and reproduction. Giant pandas are difficult to breed in captivity and are currently on the endangered species list.In China, the panda's genome sequencing was ranked by the Chinese government as one of the top 10 technology achievements of the year, right up there with the nation's space shuttle and the completion of the Tibetan railway.
China's Beijing Genomics Institute in Shenzhen announced that it has mapped the entire genetic code for the giant panda using DNA sequencing and analysis equipment from San Diego-based Illumina. The project began in mid 2008 and was completed by Jan.2009.The panda at the center of this discovery is Jingjing, who lives in China's Chengdu Panda Breeding Research Center and was the mascot for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The genetic information from Jingjing is expected to be complemented in the future with genetic information from other pandas.Scientists hope to use the data from the sequencing project to better understand panda biology and reproduction. Giant pandas are difficult to breed in captivity and are currently on the endangered species list.In China, the panda's genome sequencing was ranked by the Chinese government as one of the top 10 technology achievements of the year, right up there with the nation's space shuttle and the completion of the Tibetan railway.