25 GENOMES:

.. CRACKING THE CODE OF UK WILDLIFE

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To celebrate turning 25 this year, the Wellcome Trust Songer
Institute hos sequenced the genetic material from 25 species

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that represent the richness and diversity of wildlife in the UK,

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as Digital Collections Programme, Communications Manager,

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As one of the partners of the 25 Genomes for
25 Yeors project, the Natural History Museum
has provided expert advice , engaged the
public in selecting species for sequencing
and provided samples from its collections.
Don Mead continues, 'The Song er In stitute is
kicking off this ambitious aim by producing
25 new genome sequences from important
UK species. The knowledge gained from these
genomes will allow scientists to better manage
cellular degradation halts, preserving a
specim en's genetic resources and keeping it fit
for further research.
The Molecular and Frozen Co ll ectio ns con hold
around two million sam pl es, but the freezers

• -~--.-. .~,.;,
~,t
•• •· . ..•.-..~~~(:. The 25 selected species includes the lesser- populations of endangered species, monitor the ore not yet full. So for the Museum holds around

.•••··•:•·-·
.. spotted catshork, red mason bee, common impacts of climate change and come up with 750,000 samples 0t various temperatures -
••• • starfish and king scallop. ways to combat invasive species. We'll also these include fresh tissues, tissues in ethano l,
be able to see how animals hove evo lved over dried tissues with silica gel or on paper cords,
THE IMPACT OF GENETIC DATA time by comparing the differences between the and frozen DNA extracts, which ore held at

..•.,.
A genome is the comp lete set of genes or genomes, as well as develop potential medical room temperature, +4T, -20T, -SOT and
••
~·--· · ···•· •
·•· .
.·•··••.•
genetic material (DNA) present in on organism . -196'C, respective ly.

·•··•··
• innovotjpns by looking at how certain species

·•· . ••. • ····· .·••···••·

••
•••
Genome sequencing is figuring out the order of con regenerate lost limbs or teeth .' These samples range from top quality

..•·•·. ·.. .•..

•••• • • • •
••••
DNA nucleotides in a genome - the order of As, (fresh, flash frozen) samples, fully sorted,

:~•-·•·-•·
•••

.•.•.
Cs, Gs and Ts that make up on orga nism's DNA. THE PEOPLE HAVE SPOKEN with full information stored on the Museum's

.••.•.·•·· ••.•·•··
col lectio ns database, to older unsorted, yet

.
Sequencing the genomes of UK species is In August lost year, scientists were asked to
•••••• ... .••••.
··•····
•... : valuable to scientists. It helps them understand propose and champion the UK species they to be databased, 'legacy ' samp les from post

:
. •
•••• •
. .
• •
•
·•·· .• .•.
•••• •
:
•·· .how different species evolved and how they ore
adopting to a changing environme nt, and how
_wonted sequenced as port of the 25 Genomes
fo r 25 Years project. From those, the Songer
research projects where some degradation hos
occurred during the spec im en's lifetime - before

···•··
.•...·•· •
:.e,
..••.•;
non-native species arrived in the UK. In stitute selected 20 to sequence. They left the it was rescued by the Molecular and Frozen
•
.•· .·-·
..•••·•·
Jomes Watson and Frances Crick discovered decision on the final five species to the public - Collections facility .
••..• ~•!•.
• •
•:
DNA in 1953, a time of thinking about codes ,
ciphers and information. They defined the
and school chi ldren - on the 'I'm a Scientist, Get
Me Out of Here' platform. The final 25 species
These legacy collections remain extremely
valuable, as new advances in technology
genetic code as the set of rules used by living were decided on in December, so that they cou ld continue to enable us to unlock more
• • cells to translate information encoded within be sequenced•in 2018. information from poorer quality, degraded

.•
genetic materia l into proteins. The pub li c selected two specie s nominated by specimens every year. Once a specimen is

. ... •.-~
• .,.. !a . Information from genomes con also help us scientists at the Museum - the lesser-spotted stored in the facility no further degradation wi ll

..,. ·•. . .····-·

•••
.....
address the world's big cha ll enges such as crop cotshork and common starfish - and they occur, so it is protected for future scientific use.
•• •••••• ••••••• security , climate change and disease . joined two other Museum-bocked species - the
~
···•·········-·····
••
•• •• ••. •••
•
• •••.i•
•
:
•
•• Don Mead, from the Songer Institute expla in s,
'Recent rapid advances in technology mean that
we con now put together entire genomes in less
than a hundredth of the time it took to get the
human genome - along with a vast reduction
king sca ll op and red mason bee - on the final
list. Other species on the li st include the iconic
golden eagle, the endangered red squirrel and
the humble blackberry .
SENDINGOFF THE SPECIMENS
Minimal destructive sampling is preferred
wherever possible, but for some processes
the who le specimen hos to be destroyed to
generate adequate amounts of DNA.
in the cost, from three billion pounds for the SOURCING GENETIC MATERIAL To begin, the samples and specimens ore
human genome to £3,000 for o comparab le The Museum's Molecular and Frozen Collections retrieved from the freezers. These con then
animal genome - which means itis now is a fantastic resource that is able to preserve be divided into sma ll er 'subsomples', such
possible to begin to put together the genomes specimens and tissue samp les in ultra -cold as a piece of tissue or leg from on insect, for
for all of life on earth.' storage at -SOT on o long term basi s. At -80'C example. The sample is then placed in ►

· 64 - evolve issue 37
evolve issue 37 • 65 •
 25 GENOMES:
.. CRACKING THE CODE OF UK WILDLIFE

.
. .
..........•.........
. . .......
.. .. : .~ ::
••••. ••
.
.
·"'
....•.···•··· . .· ...·.•. . . ..
: ...

·•··.··• ...
'·
........,~-...............
. .
. .
. . ..... . .. ..
. •·
. . .
•.
.........•.....
•: .
• •.
.
To celebrate turning 25 this year, the Wellcome Trust Songer
Institute hos sequenced the genetic material from 25 species

.. . .... .. .. . ... ... .·..... .

• •••• ••••••• • •••
• •
.•. ........ ......
... ..
:.
.
..·• .. . .... ..
. • •
that represent the richness and diversity of wildlife in the UK,

........
.

~
- - ~-- .
..
.....•..
. .. ........
....
• : •:
•·•··•••f._, ·
.......·..............
.. •
.... ·.. •
-:,:
..,
...•.••·.
as Digital Collections Programme, Communications Manager,

... ....
. ~-.•:.:

~~···
~·: Jennifer Pullar explains .
•••••
•··••::
.•
••••
;
.••· .•.. ,.

. ·•·..=
•••.:•···
·•· •••• ••• •
.• • .
·•·····
•••••
•.•. ·•··.
•...
•
•
••••
•
• ••
..··• .· ....•..·•·..... .
•..•·:•:••·
. •·••!It·.

. .... . . ..
.•

..... .... •. •...•••...

.•:.··•
•
•
••

:it;•.•: !;'~.... . •.. ~·.. ...:.. ~• '\-•-·

,.. iel\••·
:-~•
•
, .,f; · ·~,. I;~.,.' ".~•'~
.. \j • ...
415 !: ,.
~
, ::..
··.•··•···
··•··..•....
..•
...•·
.•. •
•
·....•..··•··
,r•.t.•• . . . . . . ..

:-... ..··••••••••••••
•
~
•
~-
•·. .........••.. . .
··.•.•:·-·•··· ·.
As one of the partners of the 25 Genomes for
25 Yeors project, the Natural History Museum
has provided expert advice , engaged the
public in selecting species for sequencing
and provided samples from its collections.
Don Mead continues, 'The Song er In stitute is
kicking off this ambitious aim by producing
25 new genome sequences from important
UK species. The knowledge gained from these
genomes will allow scientists to better manage
cellular degradation halts, preserving a
specim en's genetic resources and keeping it fit
for further research.
The Molecular and Frozen Co ll ectio ns con hold
around two million sam pl es, but the freezers

• -~--.-. .~,.;,
~,t
•• •· . ..•.-..~~~(:. The 25 selected species includes the lesser- populations of endangered species, monitor the ore not yet full. So for the Museum holds around

.•••··•:•·-·
.. spotted catshork, red mason bee, common impacts of climate change and come up with 750,000 samples 0t various temperatures -
••• • starfish and king scallop. ways to combat invasive species. We'll also these include fresh tissues, tissues in ethano l,
be able to see how animals hove evo lved over dried tissues with silica gel or on paper cords,
THE IMPACT OF GENETIC DATA time by comparing the differences between the and frozen DNA extracts, which ore held at

..•.,.
A genome is the comp lete set of genes or genomes, as well as develop potential medical room temperature, +4T, -20T, -SOT and
••
~·--· · ···•· •
·•· .
.·•··••.•
genetic material (DNA) present in on organism . -196'C, respective ly.

·•··•··
• innovotjpns by looking at how certain species

·•· . ••. • ····· .·••···••·

••
•••
Genome sequencing is figuring out the order of con regenerate lost limbs or teeth .' These samples range from top quality

..•·•·. ·.. .•..

•••• • • • •
••••
DNA nucleotides in a genome - the order of As, (fresh, flash frozen) samples, fully sorted,

:~•-·•·-•·
•••

.•.•.
Cs, Gs and Ts that make up on orga nism's DNA. THE PEOPLE HAVE SPOKEN with full information stored on the Museum's

.••.•.·•·· ••.•·•··
col lectio ns database, to older unsorted, yet

.
Sequencing the genomes of UK species is In August lost year, scientists were asked to
•••••• ... .••••.
··•····
•... : valuable to scientists. It helps them understand propose and champion the UK species they to be databased, 'legacy ' samp les from post

:
. •
•••• •
. .
• •
•
·•·· .• .•.
•••• •
:
•·· .how different species evolved and how they ore
adopting to a changing environme nt, and how
_wonted sequenced as port of the 25 Genomes
fo r 25 Years project. From those, the Songer
research projects where some degradation hos
occurred during the spec im en's lifetime - before

···•··
.•...·•· •
:.e,
..••.•;
non-native species arrived in the UK. In stitute selected 20 to sequence. They left the it was rescued by the Molecular and Frozen
•
.•· .·-·
..•••·•·
Jomes Watson and Frances Crick discovered decision on the final five species to the public - Collections facility .
••..• ~•!•.
• •
•:
DNA in 1953, a time of thinking about codes ,
ciphers and information. They defined the
and school chi ldren - on the 'I'm a Scientist, Get
Me Out of Here' platform. The final 25 species
These legacy collections remain extremely
valuable, as new advances in technology
genetic code as the set of rules used by living were decided on in December, so that they cou ld continue to enable us to unlock more
• • cells to translate information encoded within be sequenced•in 2018. information from poorer quality, degraded

.•
genetic materia l into proteins. The pub li c selected two specie s nominated by specimens every year. Once a specimen is

. ... •.-~
• .,.. !a . Information from genomes con also help us scientists at the Museum - the lesser-spotted stored in the facility no further degradation wi ll

..,. ·•. . .····-·

•••
.....
address the world's big cha ll enges such as crop cotshork and common starfish - and they occur, so it is protected for future scientific use.
•• •••••• ••••••• security , climate change and disease . joined two other Museum-bocked species - the
~
···•·········-·····
••
•• •• ••. •••
•
• •••.i•
•
:
•
•• Don Mead, from the Songer Institute expla in s,
'Recent rapid advances in technology mean that
we con now put together entire genomes in less
than a hundredth of the time it took to get the
human genome - along with a vast reduction
king sca ll op and red mason bee - on the final
list. Other species on the li st include the iconic
golden eagle, the endangered red squirrel and
the humble blackberry .
SENDINGOFF THE SPECIMENS
Minimal destructive sampling is preferred
wherever possible, but for some processes
the who le specimen hos to be destroyed to
generate adequate amounts of DNA.
in the cost, from three billion pounds for the SOURCING GENETIC MATERIAL To begin, the samples and specimens ore
human genome to £3,000 for o comparab le The Museum's Molecular and Frozen Collections retrieved from the freezers. These con then
animal genome - which means itis now is a fantastic resource that is able to preserve be divided into sma ll er 'subsomples', such
possible to begin to put together the genomes specimens and tissue samp les in ultra -cold as a piece of tissue or leg from on insect, for
for all of life on earth.' storage at -SOT on o long term basi s. At -80'C example. The sample is then placed in ►

· 64 - evolve issue 37
evolve issue 37 • 65 •
a barcoded viol for tracking purposes and sent
to the Songer Institute in a po lystyrene box with
dry ice, ta keep it at -80 °C. Any unused mate rial
and DNA extracted at the Sanger Institute is
returned to the Museum.
If the Museum holds a large numb er of
specim ens of the same species - and the
specie s is not rare or endangered - then it is
usually justifiable to authorise destruction
of a whole specimen. Each destructive
samp ling request is considered carefully and
opprov_ed, or not, by the collections manager.
Once a specimen hos been destroyed in this
way, however, it has not disappeared but
transformed into another in formation format -
tissue to DNA to sequence data.

USING THE DATA

Once the Songer Institute has sequenced the
25 genomes, the results wi ll be mode publica ll y
ava ilable. These data wil l support futu re studies
on UK biodiversity and aid the conservation
and understanding of the chosen species.
Museum staff wi ll use the unravelled genomes
in their research.

To find out more about this project and to keep up -ta-date

with progress, you can vis it www.s onger.oc.u k/science/
collaborotion/25-genomes-25-years .

evolve issue 37 - 67 -
- 66 - evolve issue 37
a barcoded viol for tracking purposes and sent
to the Songer Institute in a po lystyrene box with
dry ice, ta keep it at -80 °C. Any unused mate rial
and DNA extracted at the Sanger Institute is
returned to the Museum.
If the Museum holds a large numb er of
specim ens of the same species - and the
specie s is not rare or endangered - then it is
usually justifiable to authorise destruction
of a whole specimen. Each destructive
samp ling request is considered carefully and
opprov_ed, or not, by the collections manager.
Once a specimen hos been destroyed in this
way, however, it has not disappeared but
transformed into another in formation format -
tissue to DNA to sequence data.

USING THE DATA

Once the Songer Institute has sequenced the
25 genomes, the results wi ll be mode publica ll y
ava ilable. These data wil l support futu re studies
on UK biodiversity and aid the conservation
and understanding of the chosen species.
Museum staff wi ll use the unravelled genomes
in their research.

To find out more about this project and to keep up -ta-date

with progress, you can vis it www.s onger.oc.u k/science/
collaborotion/25-genomes-25-years .

evolve issue 37 - 67 -
- 66 - evolve issue 37