Figure 1: Comparison of genome and exome sequencing technologies. Genome sequencing, or the process of reading every letter of your DNA, was first completed for a human genome in 2003, requiring 12 years of effort, over 200 scientists, and $2.7 billion in total costs. Today, a single scientist can sequence a whole human genome for a mere ~$1,500 over a span of just two days. Exome sequencing, or a modified version of genome sequencing, reads just the ~1% of your genome that produces proteins, making it a cheaper and more direct approach to hone in on the most critical bits of your DNA.
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