Genome Explorer Plus Benefits

Genome Explorer Plus lets you dive deeper into your genome

Genome Explorer is available in three versions: Free, Plus, and Premium. Genome Explorer Plus is the next step up from our Free version. It is designed for those who would like more independence in their self-discovery and the ability to more easily research diseases and conditions without having to rely on experts for help.

Genome Explorer Plus gives you the same columns of data as Genome Explorer Free, along with additional information that connects your data to diseases, conditions, and research. You’ll find searching for variants in your genome easier with Plus than it is with Free. That’s because Plus allows you to do condition-based searches.

Access to Genome Explorer Plus comes with our Plus Genome Plan. 

⁠Learn more about our Genome Plan subscription program.

How do I use Genome Explorer Plus?

Let’s look at a sample search.

Suppose you want to know if you carry any genetic variants for arthritis. With Genome Explorer Plus, you can choose “condition” as your search category and enter in the name of the condition—in this case, arthritis—in the search field.

Genome Explorer Plus will pull up the gene variants that are known, or suspected, to be connected to various forms of inherited arthritis. However, just because a variant shows up in the search results doesn’t necessarily mean you have, or will develop, arthritis. To better understand your own risk for arthritis you may want to look at the following columns:

• Your Data: This column will show you what variants you have at each of the relevant positions on your genome.
• Classification: Each variant is given one of five possible classifications that will let you know whether it is likely to cause a condition of concern. The classifications are: pathogenic, likely pathogenic, likely benign, benign, or uncertain significance.
• Confidence Rating: Each classification is given a confidence rating based on research submitted to the Clinical Variant Repository (ClinVar), an archive of reports at the National Institutes of Health. A classification can range from a firmly established guideline supported by many studies to a preliminary classification with more research needed. These confidence ratings can help you to understand how strong the relationship is known to be between the variant and the condition.
• References: These are links to published research about that particular genetic condition.
• Links: These are links to data on that particular genetic condition in the ClinVar database at the National Institutes of Health.

Taken together, the information in these columns can offer greater insight into your genome. The “References” and “Links” data, in particular, offer you avenues to educate yourself further on a particular condition of interest and to dive deeper into your own situation.