The first draft sequence of the human genome, the culmination of more than a decade of scientific effort, was published more than 20 years ago. But it’s only now that researchers may finally have the sequencing and computational tools needed to sort through the complex, repetitive sequences that were left out of that draft. Although it only represents a small portion of the genome, this missing data has prevented scientists from fully understanding the genetic basis for traits and diseases, as Brianna Chrisman and Jordan Eizenga explained in our first feature in September. “From where we stand now, the future of the human reference genome looks bright,” they concluded.
In retrospect, it’s perhaps no wonder that Svante Pääbo was awarded the Nobel Prize for paleogenomics. The field of ancient DNA (aDNA) has exploded over the last decade, as advances in sequencing have made what were once considered impossible tasks—from high ...
