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GENETIC INHERITANCE

Vocabulary

Living organisms are made of . Most cells have a set of chromosomes that contain DNA . These DNA molecules contain all the information that make the cells work.

The man who discovered the structure of DNA.

The structure of DNA was discovered by in 1953 and is one of the most famous discoveries of recent times. DNA stands for ' acid' and the molecule looks like a twisted ladder called a ''. DNA are found in the of a cell.

How do the cells know what to do with the DNA? The cells use a or genome to understand the DNA. The genetic code is a sequence of 64 possibilities and each of these possibilities has another 4 possibilities (adenine, thymine, guanine, cytosine). The , which was finished in 2000, listed the 3.1 billion possibilities in the human DNA.

The DNA in human cells have between 50 000 and 100 000 genes. Genes are passed on from our parents to us and contain information. The mathematical patterns of inheritance were discovered by a monk, , in 1866.

Using the genetic code, the cell can change the DNA molecules into amino acids and to build more cells. When a cell the DNA molecules copy themselves. So how do cells make protein from DNA molecules ?

The DNA molecule separates and then RNA copy the genetic information from the DNA and convert it to protein with the help of ribosomes. DNA and RNA are both examples of . Nuclei acids are made from nucleotides.

Sometimes accidental changes occur during the copying of DNA. These accidental changes are called . Deliberate changes can now be made to genes. This is called genetic . Genetic engineering is also called or bio-engineering.

Genetic engineering involves moving genes from one living organism to another. Scientists can now change plants, and man. There are and agricultural benefits to genetic engineering however there are also many concerns. Is it okay to 'make' people?

Genetic engineering is a very young science; it is only about 25 years old but has been very for all of these 25 years. What do you think about genetic engineering? What are some of the benefits?