rsIDs
rsIDs are unique identifiers assigned by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) to specific genetic variants cataloged in the dbSNP database. The prefix rs stands for Reference SNP cluster ID, and an rsID serves as a stable reference to that variant across studies and resources. An rsID can refer to a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), as well as small insertions and deletions (indels) or other types of variation that are captured in dbSNP. The ID is used in literature and bioinformatics tools to report a variant unambiguously, independent of genomic coordinates or allelic representation.
Format and scope: An rsID takes the form of the letters “rs” followed by digits, such as
Assignment and maintenance: rsIDs are assigned after a variant is submitted to dbSNP and curated. The entry
Usage and caveats: rsIDs are widely used in genome-wide association studies and annotation pipelines to report