Health security

'We are at the beginning of a revolution in healthcare'

Fifteen years ago this month, the full human genome sequence was published for the first time, heralding a new era of medicine. Since then technology has markedly speeded up genomic sequencing and reduced the cost. But have those hoped-for medical breakthroughs materialised?

"We have embarked on one of the most exciting chapters of the book of life," said Prof Allan Bradley, director of the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, as he welcomed the success of the Human Genome Project.

Sequencing the human genome took 10 years and cost about $30bn (£21.5bn). Now advances in computing power have seen the cost of human genome sequencing fall to under $500.

A firm called Oxford Nanopore has even developed a hand-held reader that can sequence genetic material in minutes.

Dr Gordon Sanghera, the firm's chief executive, talks about creating "the internet of living things - real time connection of live DNA information" using such portable devices.