Genetic & Inheritance Flashcards
DNA structure
A polymer made up of two strands coiled around each other to form a double helix. Strands consist of a sugar- phosphate backbone with nitrogenous bases attached to the backbone via complementary base pairing
Genome
The entire set of genetic material (DNA) of an organism
Gene
A section of a molecule of DNA found on a chromosome that codes for a specific protein
What does nucleus contain
Contains chromosomes on which genes are located
Alleles
Different versions of the same gene
Chromosome
A thread- like structure of DNA found in the nucleus of a cell that carries genetic information in the form of genes
Dominant
Only needs to be inherited from one parent for the characteristsics to show up in the phenotype
Recessive
Needs to be inherited from both parents for the characteristics to show up in the phenotype
Homozygous
Two identical alleles of the same gene (2 dominant or 2 recessive)
Heterozygous
Two different alleles of the same gene (one dominant & one recessive)
Phenotype
The observable characteristics of an organism
Genotype
The genetic consitution of an individual organism
Meiosis
A form of cell division that produces two non- identical cells with half the usual number of chromosomes
Diploid
Two complete sets of chromosomes
How many different chromosomes do humans have?
23 different chromosomes
Types of chromosomes
22 pairs of homologous chromosomes & 1 pair of sex chromosomes
Gametes
Have one copy of each chromosome. There are 23 chromosomes in each sex cell. Haploid cells
Mutation
A random change in DNA which may result in genetic variants
Nucleus
The organelle that contains the genetic material of the cell & controls the activities of the cell
Complementary base pairing
The specific pairings of nucleotide bases in DNA
Adenine - Thymine
Guanine - Cytosine
Homologous chromosomes
Two chromosomes that carry corresponding genes, but they may have different alleles for each gene
Bonds between paired bases
Hydrogen bonds between paired bases
Nucleotide structure
A nitrogenous base, a deoxyribose sugar & a phosphate group
