Context: The ‘One Day One Genome’ initiative aims to showcase India’s vast microbial diversity and its vital role in environmental, agricultural, and human health sectors.

• By sequencing and sharing bacterial genomes, it promotes public access, research, and innovation in these fields.

About ‘One Day One Genome’ Initiative

• Initiative: ‘One Day One Genome,’ launched on the foundation day of the Biotechnology Research and Innovation Council (BRIC).

• Objective: To highlight India’s microbial diversity, focusing on unique bacterial species found across the country.

• Key Focus Areas: Environmental conservation, agriculture, and human health.

• Microbial Importance: Microorganisms play a crucial role in biogeochemical cycles, soil formation, degradation of organic waste, and pollution control. They also contribute to methane production and nutrient cycling in agriculture.

• Agricultural Role: Aid in nitrogen fixation, maintaining soil fertility, pest control, and plant stress responses.

• Health Contribution: Microorganisms are vital for digestion, immunity, and mental health, with non-pathogenic microbes protecting against infectious diseases.

• Genome Sequencing: Enables visualisation of microbial potential, identifying enzymes, antimicrobial resistance, and bioactive compounds.

• Public Access: Fully annotated bacterial genomes will be freely available, along with graphical summaries and genome assembly details.

• Impact: Promotes scientific research, innovation, and public awareness, benefiting the environment, agriculture, and human health.

About Genome and Genome Sequencing

• Genome: Complete set of genetic material (deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA/ ribonucleic acid or RNA) containing an organism's entire hereditary information, composed of unique nucleotide base sequences. 

• Genomic Sequencing: The process of determining the precise order of nucleotide bases (adenine (A), cytosine (C), guanine (G), and thymine (T) in DNA; A, C, G, uracil (U) in RNA) within an organism's genetic material.

Applications of Genome Sequencing (GS)

• Disease detection: To evaluate rare disorders, preconditions for disorders. E.g., Cystic fibrosis and thalassemia.

• Pharmacogenomics: Involves evaluating effectiveness & safety of drugs on the basis of information from an individual's GS.

• Metagenomic Sequencing: Explores collective genomes of multiple species in an environmental niche, enabling rapid species identification and environmental impact analysis.

• Agriculture: Identify genetic markers for disease resistance and drought tolerance in various crop plants; reduced time to develop new varieties of crop plants; decipher the host-pathogen relationships in crops.

• Microbial Sequencing: It enables advanced biofuel development, innovative diagnostic tools, improved vaccines, and sophisticated environmental cleanup techniques.

Significance of Microbes

• Environmental: Role in biogeochemical cycles, soil formation, etc.  E.g., Algae- make food using sunlight and give off oxygen into the air.

• Human body: Essential for our digestion, immunity and even mental health.

• Household Products: Development of flavors, foods and beverages. E.g. Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) are used in food fermentation.

• Industrial: Baker’s yeast is used for bread & drinks like beer from cereals and fruit.

• Others: Biofuel production by yeast; Sewage Treatment;etc.