VUS
Science & Engineering abbreviation · Genetics
| Stands for | Variant of uncertain significance |
|---|---|
| Categories | Science & Engineering |
VUS stands for Variant of uncertain significance, a genetics abbreviation.
Classification for a genetic change whose effect on disease risk cannot yet be determined from available evidence. Genetic test reports list VUS findings separately, and clinical decisions are not normally based on them; many are later reclassified, usually as benign.
Example: Her BRCA2 result showed a VUS, so screening follows her family history rather than the variant.
Usage notes
The category is one of five in the 2015 ACMG/AMP variant classification guidelines: pathogenic, likely pathogenic, uncertain significance, likely benign and benign. VUS results are more frequent in people of non-European ancestry because reference databases have historically been dominated by European samples.
Related abbreviations
More genetics abbreviations
- AD – Autosomal dominant
- AR – Autosomal recessive
- atDNA – Autosomal DNA
- BAC – Bacterial artificial chromosome
- BLAST – Basic Local Alignment Search Tool
- bp – Base pair
- cDNA – Complementary DNA
- ChIP-seq – Chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing
- cM – Centimorgan
- CNV – Copy-number variation
- CpG – Cytosine-phosphate-guanine (site)
- dsDNA – Double-stranded DNA