开放阅读框是基因序列的一部分，包含一段可以编码蛋白的碱基序列，不能被终止子打断。当一个新基因被识别，其DNA序列被解读，人们仍旧无法搞清相应的蛋白序列是什麽。这是因为在没有其它信息的前提下，DNA序列可以按六种框架阅读和翻译（每条链三种，对应三种不同的起始密码子）。ORF识别包括检测这六个阅读框架并决定哪一个包含以启动子和终止子为界限的DNA序列而其内部不包含启动子或密码子，符合这些条件的序列有可能对应一个真正的单一的基因产物。ORF的识别是证明一个新的DNA序列为特定的蛋白质编码基因的部分或全部的先决条件。

An open reading frame (ORF) is a portion of a gene’s sequence that contains a sequence of bases, uninterrupted by stop sequences, that could potentially encode a protein. When a new gene is identified and its DNA sequence deciphered, it is still unclear what its corresponding protein sequence is. This is because, in the absence of any other knowledge, the DNA sequence can be translated or read in six possible reading frames (three for each strand, corresponding to three different start positions for the first codon). ORF identification involves scanning each of the six reading frames and determining which one(s) contains a stretch of DNA sequence bounded by a start and stop codon, yet containing no start or stop codons within it; a sequence meeting these conditions could correspond to the actual single product of the gene. The identification of an ORF provides the first evidence that a new sequence of DNA is part or all of a gene encoding for a particular protein.