genome

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   The complete genetic information (either DNA or, in some viruses, RNA) of an organism.

   Creating a complete map of the human connectome would therefore be a monumental milestone but not the end of the journey to understanding how our brains work. The achievement will transform neuroscience and serve as the starting point for asking questions we could not otherwise have answered, just as having the human genome has made it possible to ask new questions about cellular and molecular systems.

2. 2
   noun

   the ordering of genes in a haploid set of chromosomes of a particular organism

Etymology

From earlier genom, from German Genom, coined by German botanist Hans Winkler in 1920 as a blend of Gen (“gene”) + Chromosom (“chromosome”). By surface analysis, gen(e) + -ome, or a blend of gen(e) + (chromos)ome. Spelling altered to reflect the surface analysis.