What is the Earth BioGenome Project?

Powerful advances in genome sequencing technology, informatics, automation, and artificial intelligence, have propelled humankind to the threshold of a new beginning in understanding, utilizing, and conserving biodiversity. For the first time in history, it is possible to efficiently sequence the genomes of all known species, and to use genomics to help discover the remaining 80 to 90 percent of species that are currently hidden from science.

The Earth BioGenome Project Phase II: Illuminating the eukaryotic Tree of Life

Authors: Mark Blaxter, Harris Lewin, Federica Di Palma, Richard Challis, Manuela da Silva, Richard Durbin, Giulio Formenti, Nico Franz, Roderic Guigó, Peter W. Harrison, Michael Hiller, Katharina J. Hoff, Kerstin Howe, Erich Jarvis, Mara Lawniczak, Kerstin Lindblad-Toh, Debra Mathews, Fergal J. Martin, Camila Mazzoni, Ann McCartney, Nicola Mulder, Sadye Páez, PhD, MSPT, MPH, Kim D. Pruitt, Verena Ras, Oliver Ryder, Lesley Shirley, Françoise Thibaud-Nissen, Tandy Warnow, Robert Waterhouse, and the EBP Community of Scientists

Journal: Frontiers in Science

Date: Sept 4, 2025

A GRAND CHALLENGE

The Earth BioGenome Project (EBP), a moonshot for biology, aims to sequence, catalog and characterize the genomes of all of Earth’s eukaryotic biodiversity over a period of ten years. 

A GRAND VISION

Create a new foundation for biology to drive
solutions for preserving biodiversity and sustaining human societies.

Featured Species

The Orange-tip Butterfly (Anthocharis cardamines)

High-quality Chromosomal-level Genome

Sequenced by the Darwin Tree of Life at the Wellcome Sanger Institute.

This is the first and only genome published for this common European butterfly species.

Featured Publication

Tree of Life programme at the Wellcome Sanger Institute

Title: On the path to reference genomes for all biodiversity: lessons learned and laboratory protocols created in the Sanger Tree of Life core laboratory over the first 2000 species.

Authors: Howard, Caroline, Amy Denton, Benjamin Jackson, Adam Bates, Jessie Jay, Halyna Yatsenko, Priyanka Sethu Raman et al.

Journal: bioRxiv (2025)

“These protocols for tissue preparation, high molecular weight (HMW) DNA extraction, fragmentation and clean-up, and RNA extraction have been applied at scale with standardised quality control (QC) measurements at key stages. Here we share both the routine processes that we employ as a first pass for organisms from a variety of different taxonomic groups as well as the approaches we take when we encounter failures. We also share things that we have learned along the way regarding specific challenges presented by different taxonomic groups, sample types, and species.”

EBP Life Newsletter:

We’re excited to share our seasonal newsletter highlighting the successes of the Earth BioGenome Project (EBP).
The EBP now includes more than 60 global affiliated projects, all united by the mission to generate annotated, reference-quality genomes for ~1.8 million named eukaryotic species.

Issue 4 is coming soon!
In this edition, dive beneath the waves with us as we spotlight real-world stories from EBP-affiliated projects that are harnessing the power of genomics to explore underwater biodiversity. Discover how several affiliated groups are generating reference-quality genomes to unlock the secrets of life beneath the surface.

2025 Understanding Life:

Using Large-scale Biodiversity Reference Genomes

🗓️ Conference dates: 27-29 October 2025

📍 Hinxton Hall Conference Centre, Wellcome Genome Campus, UK, and online

✅ Find out more about the conference, speakers, and abstract opportunities here