Practice question

Next-generation sequencing instruments generate tens of millions of short reads that individually are too short for direct biological interpretation. Bioinformatics mapping uses algorithms like BWA, Bowtie2 or Minimap2 to align each read to a reference genome assembly of same species, finding best match position tolerating mismatches and indels. Successful alignment reveals coverage depth, variants and expression levels. Fluorescent scanners capture images, polyacrylamide gels were used for Sanger fragment sizing, pH meters are irrelevant. Reference genome mapping is therefore essential step converting raw reads to genomic coordinates.