The Human Body

Roughly how many protein-coding genes are in the human genome?

Answer

20,000 genes

Before the Human Genome Project, scientists bet we'd have around 100,000 genes. We actually have about the same number as a roundworm — and an onion carries roughly five times more DNA per cell than you do. Complexity comes from how genes are used, not how many there are.

Source: National Human Genome Research Institute

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