List of Events in NHGRI History - 2002

2002

• January 2002 – The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) and other scientists find a gene on chromosome 1 associated with an inherited form of prostate cancer in some families. The findings are published in the February issue of Nature Genetics.
• February 2002 – The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) and the NIH Office of Rare Diseases (ORD) launch the Genetics and Rare Diseases Information Center (GARD), delivering free and accurate information to patients and their families about genetic and rare diseases.
• May 2002 – The Mouse Genome Sequencing Consortium (MGSC) announces a 96 percent complete working draft of the mouse genome freely available in public databases . The methods to sequence the mouse genome set a new standard for speed and accuracy.
• June 2002 – The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) launches a new Web site, www.genome.gov, that provides improved usability and easy access to new content for a wide range of users.
• September 2002 – Alan Edward Guttmacher, M.D. is named as the second deputy director of the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI). Vence L. Bonham, Jr., J.D., is appointed as NHGRI's Senior Consultant to the Director on Health Disparities.
• September 2002 – Gene discovery by an international team of researchers led by the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), reveals the cause for a rare form of microcephaly, a devastating brain disorder.
• October 2002 – The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) launches the International HapMap Project, this new venture is aimed at speeding the discovery of genes related to common illnesses such as asthma, cancer, diabetes and heart disease.
• October 2002 – The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), in cooperation with five other institutes and centers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), awards a three-year, $15-million grant to combine three of the world's current protein sequence databases into a single global resource.
• November 2002 – The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) selects Eric D. Green, M.D., Ph.D., as the new scientific director for the NHGRI, and William A. Gahl, M.D., Ph.D., as its new intramural clinical director.
• December 2002 – The international Mouse Genome Sequencing Consortium (MGSC) announces the publication of a high-quality draft sequence of the mouse genome – the genetic blueprint of a mouse.