The Washington University Genome Sequencing Center, Box 8501, 4444 Forest Park Parkway, St. Louis, MO 63108, USA. worm@watson.wustl.edu
The 97-megabase genomic sequence of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans reveals over 19,000 genes. More than 40 percent of the predicted protein products find significant matches in other organisms. There is a variety of repeated sequences, both local and dispersed. The distinctive distribution of some repeats and highly conserved genes provides evidence for a regional organization of the chromosomes.