The Human Genome Project was one of mankind’s greatest triumphs. But the official gene map that resulted in 2003, known as the “reference genome,” is no longer up to the job.
So say scientists laying plans for a new universal map they say will combine the genomes of hundreds, and eventually thousands, of people to create a true reference that reflects all of humanity.
The problem with the existing gene map is that it represents only one way a person’s genome could look. The new map, called a “graph genome,” or pan-genome, would use mathematics to reflect every possible twist or turn a person’s genome could take as it spirals around 46 chromosomes.
The math behind the idea is graph theory. You are already familiar with graphs if you know about the “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon” game. Every actor is a node and if they acted in a movie together, that’s an edge. The game is to find the smallest number of edges it takes to reach Kevin.
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In a graph genome, the objective will be to find a path through the genetic letters that exactly matches yours. If every possible path is represented—which is the whole idea—it will make the interpretations of genomes faster, less expensive, and more accurate.
Fewer than 250,000 people’s genomes have ever been sequenced, but that figure is set to double each year as genome sequencing becomes a routine way to diagnose disease at children’s hospitals and cancer centers. Some expect that eventually every newborn will have its genome decoded.
The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis. Read full, original post: Rebooting the Human Genome
