Genetic Variation: We're More Different Than We Thought

Recent research suggests that up to 10% of human genes vary from person to person. This is very different than the previous estimate that we share 99.9% of our genome. Rather than small fragments of our DNA differing, it is more likely that there are segments millions of nucleotides long that vary.

The research group also identified genes involved in diseases like Schizophrenia and atherosclerosis. These findings may make the idea personalized mapping of the an individuals genome more difficult but not out of the picture. It also changes how geneticists will go about studying genetic diseases and genetic evolution.
Overall, this new knowledge is helpful in the progress towards using genetics to cure diseases.

http://www.hhmi.org//news/scherer20061123.html