pangenome

Thirty years out from the start of the Human Genome Project, researchers have finally finished sequencing the full 3 billion bases of a person’s genetic code. But even a complete reference genome has its shortcomings.

Researchers create a “consensus genome” that halves the number of errors when mapping transcripts, although they say the current standard is still a good tool.

Researchers are abandoning the concept of a list of genes sequenced from a single individual, instead aiming for a way to describe all the genetic variation within a species.

To make sense of the genetic variation within species, researchers are turning to the concept of the pangenome.