“The” human genome was always a misnomer

ThehumanGenome ProjectDNA , which published its results 20 years ago , was a landmark in biology. It was also somewhat misleadingly named. After all, there is no such thing as “the” human genome. Instead, there are 8bn individual humans, each of whom share the vast majority of their —but not all of it. The genome published by the Human Genome Project in 2003 was put together from a dozen anonymous blood donors in and around Buffalo, in New York state.But there is more to life than Buffalo. That, in essence, is the motive behind the publication this week, in , of a set of 47 new “reference” genomes taken from individuals on four continents (Africa, both of the Americas, and Asia). The idea of the Human Pangenome Project, the organisation behind the publications, is that rather than relying on a single “reference” genome, it would be better to have several, and to ensure that between them they capture as much of the genetic diversity of as possible.