Genome: What is it, Why it's Important and How We Unlock Its Potential
The genome represents the fundamental building block of life; a complex set of genetic instructions that are passed along from one living thing to another. It contains all the information contained in an organism’s genes and allows for physical traits such as eye color or gender to be determined throughout its lifespan. In recent years, scientists have been making great progress in understanding how this information works and what potential implications may arise through further study and innovation. On a most basic level, the human genome can be thought of like pages inside a book written by nature. Each page consists of four types nucleotides—adenine, guanine, thymine, cytosines—which form different combinations sequence called ‘base pairs’ which act like instructions when decoded. This extensive code for controlling every aspect about our development and characteristics make up about three billion base pair letters! For example sequencing specific parts fall into categories su...