Genome
hideIn classical genetics, the genome of a diploid organism including eukarya refers to a full set of chromosomes or genes in a gamete; thereby, a regular somatic cell contains two full sets of genomes. In haploid organisms, including bacteria, archaea, viruses, and mitochondria, a cell contains only a single set of the genome, usually in a single circular or contiguous linear DNA (or RNA for retroviruses). In modern molecular biology the genome of an organism is its hereditary information encoded in DNA (or, for retroviruses, RNA).
The genome includes both the genes and the non-coding sequences of the DNA. The term was adapted in 1920 by Hans Winkler, Professor of Botany at the University of Hamburg, Germany. The Oxford English Dictionary suggests the name to be a portmanteau of the words gene and chromosome; however, many related -ome words already existed, such as biome and rhizome, forming a vocabulary into which genome fits systematically.
More precisely, the genome of an organism is a complete genetic sequence on one set of chromosomes; for example, one of the two sets that a diploid individual carries in every somatic cell. The term genome can be applied specifically to mean that stored on a complete set of nuclear DNA (i.e., the "nuclear genome") but can also be applied to that stored within organelles that contain their own DNA, as with the mitochondrial genome or the chloroplast genome. Additionally, the genome can comprise nonchromosomal genetic elements such as viruses, plasmids, and transposable elements. When people say that the genome of a sexually reproducing species has been "sequenced", typically they are referring to a determination of the sequences of one set of autosomes and one of each type of sex chromosome, which together represent both of the possible sexes. Even in species that exist in only one sex, what is described as "a genome sequence" may be a composite read from the chromosomes of various individuals. In general use, the phrase "genetic makeup" is sometimes used conversationally to mean the genome of a particular individual or organism. The study of the global properties of genomes of related organisms is usually referred to as genomics, which distinguishes it from genetics which generally studies the properties of single genes or groups of genes.
Both the number of base pairs and the number of genes vary widely from one species to another, and there is little connection between the two (an observation known as the C-value paradox). At present, the highest known number of genes is around 60,000, for the protozoan causing trichomoniasis (see List of sequenced eukaryotic genomes), almost three times as many as in the human genome.
An analogy to the human genome stored on DNA is that of instructions stored in a book:
For more information about Genome, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with genetic data
Chicago Cancer Genome Project studies genetics of 1,000 tumors
Dec 22, 2009 |
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No two tumors are alike, but analyzing the genetics of cancers from different parts of the body may reveal surprising details useful for treatment and prevention.
Genetic study clarifies African and African-American ancestry
Dec 21, 2009 |
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People who identify as African-American may be as little as 1 percent West African or as much as 99 percent, just one finding of a large-scale, genome-wide study of African and African-American ancestry released ...
'Extreme' genes shed light on origins of photosynthesis
Dec 11, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- While most school children understand that green plants photosynthesize, absorb carbon dioxide and produce oxygen, few people consider the profound global-scale effects that photosynthesis has had on Earth. ...
Scientists put interactive flu tracking at public's fingertips
Nov 16, 2009 |
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New methods of studying avian influenza strains and visually mapping their movement around the world will help scientists more quickly learn the behavior of the pandemic H1N1 flu virus, Ohio State University ...
Africa's rarest monkey had an intriguing sexual past, DNA study confirms
Nov 11, 2009 |
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The most extensive DNA study to-date of Africa's rarest monkey reveals that the species had an intriguing sexual past. Of the last two remaining populations of the recently discovered kipunji, one population ...
Standards for a New Genomic Era
Oct 21, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A team of geneticists at Los Alamos National Laboratory, together with a consortium of international researchers, has recently proposed a set of standards designed to elucidate the quality of publicly available ...
Blood counts are clues to human disease
Oct 11, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A new genome-wide association study published today in Nature Genetics begins to uncover the basis of genetic variations in eight blood measurements and the impact those variants can have o ...
Keeping DNA 'all in the family'
Oct 06, 2009 |
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Scientists look for clues about therapies and cures for life-threatening childhood illnesses in children's DNA -- it seems only logical to do so. But the decision as to who should have access to DNA samples from children ...
Socio-cultural, genetic data work together to reveal health disparities
Sep 09, 2009 |
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When it comes to health disparities between different groups, how society sees people in terms of race might play a greater role than genetics, according to a new University of Florida study.
Open source DNA
Aug 31, 2009 |
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A new mathematical tool from Dr. Eran Halperin of TAU's Blavatnik School of Computer Science aims to protect genetic privacy while giving genomic data to researchers.
Dogs, humans, put heads together to find cure for brain cancer
Jul 06, 2009 |
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Pinpointing the genes involved in human brain cancer can be like looking for a needle in a haystack, and sometimes the needle you find may not be the right one. By comparing human and canine genomes, researchers at North ...
New website to help translate genetic data into medical therapies
Jun 13, 2009 |
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Princeton researchers have created a Rosetta Stone for the human body, a website that offers clues to the role DNA plays in aging and disease by helping scientists make sense of the vast jumble of information emerging from ...
Native Americans descended from a single ancestral group, DNA study confirms
Apr 29, 2009 |
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For two decades, researchers have been using a growing volume of genetic data to debate whether ancestors of Native Americans emigrated to the New World in one wave or successive waves, or from one ancestral ...
DNA in dung to reveal first true cassowary count
Biology /
Jan 30, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- In a world first, CSIRO scientists will use an innovative DNA technique to deliver reliable data about north Queensland’s Cassowary population and by doing so develop a greater understanding ...
Researcher Uses DNA Testing to Unlock Secrets of Medieval Manuscripts
Jan 12, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Thousands of painstakingly handwritten books produced in medieval Europe still exist today, but scholars have long struggled with questions about when and where the majority of these works originated. Now ...
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