The Human Genome and Graph Theory
The Human Genome and Graph Theory
In this academic article, Antonio Regalado discusses the “reference genome” constructed from the Human Genome Project which lasted from 1990-2003 and was funded by the United States government. Since then, billions of dollars have been invested in software and scientific efforts to support and build upon this reference genome. Scientists now, however, believe that there could be a better model than the reference genome for the human genome using graph theory.
The problem with the current model of the human genome, scientists say, is that it only represents one way that the human genome could look. The new map that’s currently being developed, called the graph genome, using graph theory would use mathematics to reflect the different paths and routes the human genome could take as it winds around 46 chromosomes. The objective of the graph genome is to find the path through the human genome that exactly matches your genetic letters. This would expedite the study of genomes and make it much less expensive.
One important downfall of the current model is that, since it only represents one way the human genome could be shown, it cannot be used to describe how your genome differs from the reference. In other words, the reference genome is bad at flagging certain pieces of DNA that could change. This is important because some of these pieces of data have been linked to disorders like autism.
This is a good example about how graph theory, which is a big part of networks, can be applied to real-life topics like the human genome.