Genetic mapping

Article By:

Michelmore, Richard W. The Genome Center, University of California, Davis, California.

Last reviewed:April 2020

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.285200

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• Genetic mapping, published June 2014:Download PDF Get Adobe Acrobat Reader

The resolution of the elements of the genetic material of an organism into a linear array. Genetic mapping provides researchers with a graphic representation of the linear arrangement of genes on a chromosome (Fig. 1). Chromosomes are linear deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) molecules that encode the genetic determinants of traits. These determinants can be a variety of chromosomal elements, including genes that encode proteins, ribonucleic acid (RNA) genes that do not code for proteins, and structural features of the DNA. Genetic mapping is the process of determining the linear order of these determinants along each chromosome. This is a rapidly changing field that has been revolutionized through improvements in genetic marker technology and is likely to continue to advance quickly as a result of the advent of commodity DNA sequencing. See also: Chromosome; Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA); DNA sequencing; Gene; Genetic engineering; Genetics; Genomics; Ribonucleic acid (RNA)

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