Mapping a genetic world beyond genes

Most of the DNA alterations that are tied to disease do not alter protein-coding genes, but rather the "switches" that control them. Characterizing these switches is one of many goals of the ENCODE project -- a sweeping, international effort to create a compendium of all of the working parts of the human genome that have not been well studied or well understood. The function of the vast majority of the human genome has remained largely unknown, but the Encyclopedia of DNA Elements (ENCODE) project, launched in 2003, set out to change that.

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