Best-Ever Map of the Human Genome Sheds Light on ‘Jumping Genes,’ ‘Junk DNA’ and More
24th July 2025
Twenty-two years after the completion of the Human Genome Project, scientists have unveiled the most expansive catalog of human genetic variation ever compiled.
Across two new papers published Wednesday (July 23) in the journal Nature, scientists sequenced the DNA of 1,084 people around the world. They leveraged recent technological advancements to analyze long stretches of genetic material from each person, stitched those fragments together and compared the resulting genomes in fine detail.
The results deepen our understanding of “structural variants” within the human genome. Rather than affecting a single “letter” in DNA’s code, such variations affect large chunks of the code — they may be deleted from or added to the genome, or encompass places where the DNA has been flipped around or moved to a different location.