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Definition of Map, physical
Medically reviewed by Dr. Otari Nergadze, Neurosurgeon | Updated: January 2026
Map, physical: A map of the locations of identifiable landmarks on chromosomes. Physical distance is measured in base pairs. The physical map differs from the genetic map which is based purely on genetic linkage data. In the human genome, the lowest-resolution physical map is the banding patterns of the 24 different chromosomes. The highest-resolution physical map is the complete nucleotide sequence of all chromosomes, a future goal.