To avoid a sloppy scientific scramble to put particular organismal genomes into bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) libraries, the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) has instituted a nomination process that will queue organisms according to priority. First submissions are due Nov. 15. Written requests will be ranked by a peer review committee based on such criteria as the importance of the organism, uses of the BAC library other than for genomic sequencing, the size of the research community to benefit from the resource, and the size and complexity of the genome. Priority rankings for the first set of submissions, says Jane L. Peterson, program director of large scale sequencing at NHGRI, should be sorted out in time for a new round of BAC production grants to be funded December 1. "They're going to need to know some organisms to make libraries for," she explains. While plant, eubacteria, and archaea will not be accepted, the program intends to produce 15 new BAC libraries per year with submission dates in February, June and October. An organismal sequencing project will follow a similar request submission and review procedure starting Feb. 10, but Peterson warns, "The capacity as far as sequencing goes doesn't become available right away," as public sequencing centers are well occupied completing the genomes of the rat, mouse, and human. While researchers' hopes may be high that their model organism may be chosen, Peterson urges patience. "We don't want people to be disappointed if their organisms doesn't make it into the queue in either process." Other organizations, even within the NIH, offer funding and facilities for such projects. Detailed instructions for submission can be found at www.nhgri.nih.gov/About_NHGRI/Der/org_request/org_request.html. "The most important thing is that people address all the issues. Then it will be up to the panel to compare these apples and oranges," Peterson says.
Computer Draws First Breath
| Courtesy of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory |
 Digital rat lung model may aid in studying pollutants, drug delivery |
Physicists, biologists, and mathematicians have come together at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Seattle to develop a virtual model of the rat respiratory system. The researchers hope to predict the impact of individual particles as they move through the nose, larynx, and lung and are either expelled or deposited. Researchers base the three-dimensional model on data collected from lung casts and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometry conducted on dead rats. Using the model, they will be able to look at the effects of low doses of pollution or drugs on healthy lungs, and even alter it to mimic the fluidics and dynamics of diseased lungs. "We'd hopefully have models that look at susceptible populations-people with emphysema and asthma-and ask questions in terms of the implications of exposure at various concentrations," says Charles A. Timchalk, staff scientist at PNNL. Efforts are being made to couple this project with PNNL's cellular observatory activities to complete the model and view the impact of pollution or drugs from the systemic level right down to cellular damage or benefit. Though it will not replace the living lab rat as a model, the technology serves as a complement and a starting point for the development of a virtual human lung. Preliminary cast data have already been entered for that effort, and models for the upper respiratory tract have been developed. Possible applications include environmental health, toxicology, and pharmaceuticals, or the model might aid in understanding the striking rise of asthma reported by federal statistics (www.cdc.gov/epo/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00052262.htm). But the rat model is far from complete. Applicable technology should be available in the next five to 10 years, Timchalk predicts.
