From genome to genes

In the 20th century, scientists established the molecular nature of genes – the basic units of biological inheritance – and of the processes involved in the flow of information from genes to proteins. The generalization of sequencing techniques facilitated the determination of the sequence of genomes, but their usability was limited without a map of all the genes involved. In order to build it, a combination of experimental and computational methods are used. The new sequencing technologies that allow the determination of the complete sequence of messenger RNAs are preferred, but they cannot always be used and this is why computational methods are essential. These methods include the identification of regions in the genome with sequence composition biases similar to those in the regions known to code for proteins. The ongoing projects that will sequence the genome of all the eukaryote species will make it necessary to develop more accurate and efficient computational methods.