Genome‑wide association studies (GWAS) are used to identify potential genetic variants that are associated with traits or diseases. GWAS can either be conducted using marker‑based or whole‑genome sequences. Genetic researchers may choose one approach over the other. Match the research benefits as pertaining to marker‑based, whole‑genome, or both approaches.

acceptable for biochemical pathway to remain unknown identifies novel candidate genes for a disease allows for large sample sizes with a limited budget identifies DNA elements that flank a variant

Explanation: Genome wide association studies (GWAS) are a relatively new approach to analyzing genetic sequence and have quickly become a fundamental part of modern genetic studies. Their purpose is to determine alleles that correlate to different diseases and traits.

GWAS focuses on SNPs. The modern unit of genetic variation is the single nucleotide polymorphism or SNP. SNPs are single base-pair changes in the DNA sequence that occur with high frequency in the human genome, inother words, the single nucleotide sites that differ between individuals. By studying SNPs, researchers can analyze a few hundred thousand nucleotides rather than the 3 billion nucleotides that compose the human genome. The basic design of a GWAS is simple and begins by dividing participants into two groups:

* People with a disease/trait of interest

* People without a disease/trait (control group)