A Guide to Genome Explorer (Free Version)

Genome Explorer is the search engine for your DNA

Use Genome Explorer to search your DNA for conditions, genes, or genetic variants (mutations).

The free version of Genome Explorer allows you to search for genetic variants for specific variants. To learn which variant to search for, you will need to do your own research on diseases or conditions of interest to you. Working with a healthcare professional or genetic counselor to pinpoint genes of interest is another way to zero in on what matters most to you.

Once you have a target gene in mind, you can ask Genome Explorer to search your data to pull up information about your data for that gene.

Getting started with Genome Explorer

Let’s go through an example search.

Say you would like to find out whether you carry a risk version of the Breast Cancer 1 (BRCA1) gene. Follow these steps:

1. Open Genome Explorer Free. On the opening page, you will see an empty field with a dropdown menu and a “search” field.
2. In the field with the dropdown menu, select “Gene.”
3. In the search field, enter “BRCA1.”
4. Click “Search Genome.”

Genome Explorer Free will bring up a table of your genetic information for that gene. You will see various columns of data. These include the RCV ID, which indicates the exact genetic variant and the disease associated with it, and the Variant ID, which indicates the position of that gene in the genome. These numbers are important, as they verify that the correct data from the correct gene is being reviewed.

This data in scientific nomenclature may be difficult for you to understand. However, if you look at the column with the heading “Your Data,” you will clearly see the alleles you carry for the BRCA1 gene.

Once you know your alleles, you can do further research or talk with your healthcare professional to understand whether your genome carries a risk of breast cancer.

What if I upgrade to Genome Explorer Plus or Premium?

Genome Explorer Free is a great way to begin to explore your genome. However, it does require you either to do your own research to gain insight into the meaning of your DNA data or to work with a healthcare professional.

If you would like access to more information about your genome without the help of a healthcare professional, you may want to upgrade to either Genome Explorer Plus or Genome Explorer Premium. Both of these versions allow you to dive deeper into diseases and conditions your genome may contain and give you more insights into your own DNA.

Genome Explorer Plus

Genome Explorer Plus gives you additional information on conditions associated with each variant to help you understand how each variant is significant to you. It also provides links to relevant scientific research via the National Institutes of Health.

Genome Explorer Premium

Genome Explorer Premium gives you all the searchability and knowledge of Plus as well as additional information that indicates your status in relationship to a particular variant—whether or not you express or carry the risk version of a gene of concern.