What is "minisatellite"

n. 1 (context genetics English) A short series of bases that reoccurs many times in a genome 2 (context space English) A small satellite 3 (context space English) an artificial satellite massing between 100 and 500 kilograms

A minisatellite is a tract of repetitive DNA in which certain DNA motifs (ranging in length from 10–60 base pairs) are typically repeated 5-50 times. Minisatellites occur at more than 1,000 locations in the human genome and they are notable for their high mutation rate and high diversity in the population. Minisatellites are prominent in the centromeres and telomeres of chromosomes, the latter protecting the chromosomes from damage. The name "satellite" refers to the early observation that centrifugation of genomic DNA in a test tube separates a prominent layer of bulk DNA from accompanying "satellite" layers of repetitive DNA.

Minisatellites and their shorter cousins, the microsatellites, together are classified as VNTR (variable number of tandem repeats) DNA. Confusingly, minisatellites are often referred to as VNTRs, and microsatellites are often referred to as short tandem repeats (STRs) or simple sequence repeats (SSRs).