Q.What is genome?

Genomics studies an organism's whole genome; used in medicine and agriculture/forensics.

Genomics is the branch of molecular biology/biotechnology concerned with studying the complete set of genetic material (the genome) of an organism — mapping, sequencing, and analysing the function and organisation of all its genes together, rather than studying one gene at a time.

Two applications: (1) In medicine, sequencing the human genome has helped identify specific genes responsible for inherited diseases, enabling earlier and more accurate diagnosis, genetic counselling, and the development of targeted treatments such as gene therapy and personalised medicine tailored to a patient's own genetic makeup. (2) In agriculture and forensic science, genomics is used to identify and characterise useful genes (e.g. for pest resistance, drought tolerance, higher yield) that can then be transferred into crop plants by genetic engineering to develop improved varieties, and genomic/DNA-sequence data underlies techniques like DNA fingerprinting used in forensic identification and paternity testing.