Human genome

The human genome is the complete set of nucleic acid sequences for Homo sapiens, consisting of DNA contained within 23 pairs of nuclear chromosomes and a small circular mitochondrial genome[7][1][3]. The nuclear genome is made up of approximately 3.1 billion base pairs encoding around 19,000–20,000 protein-coding genes, along with numerous non-coding regions, regulatory elements, repetitive sequences, and pseudogenes[7][3][1]. The mitochondrial genome consists of about 16,569 base pairs[3]. The genome serves as the hereditary material responsible for encoding all of the proteins and many RNAs essential for human growth, development, and function, but it is not classified as a discrete therapeutic target, receptor, enzyme, or similar molecular entity[7][1][3]. The genome contains many families and clusters of genes, such as hemoglobin genes, but these individual genes, rather than the entire genome, are the usual subjects of targeted drug development and biomarker research[6][4]. Therefore, "human genome" is not considered a specific therapeutic target, and its inclusion as such is incorrect for most biomedical applications.

Other names

human genetic blueprinthuman DNA sequencehuman reference genome