ABSTRACT
With the completion of the human genome sequence in 2003 [1], the Human Genome Project accomplished its initial goals two years earlier than originally planned, partly due to the rapid development of related analytical technologies. Among them, DNA sequencing analysis by capillary electrophoresis (CE), which has played an important role, is used to determine the exact order of the bases (A, T, G, and C) by separating and identifying DNA chemical subunits with one-base resolution and high reliability. Several breakthroughs, including the Sanger DNA sequencing developed in 1977 by Frederick Sanger and its automation, as well as the replacement of slab gel electrophoresis by CE, were achieved during the past two decades, leading to a two-to three-fold enhancement in terms of ef ciency and sequencing cost per base. However, new advances are still needed to reduce the cost further and to increase the throughput in order to satisfy the increasing demands of current biomedical research and clinical practices. One of the primary goals of the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) is to achieve a four to ve order of magnitude decrease in the cost of sequencing a human genome, resulting in a targeted cost of $1000 or less for sequencing about 10 million bases, the size of a human genome [2]. If this objective could be reached in the next 5-10 years [3], it should produce a tremendous impact on biological research and medical applications. Nevertheless, DNA CE remains the main reliable analytical technique at the present time.
