Genetics and heritability Flashcards
Gene regulation
a variety of processes that regulate the expression or repression of genes.
Epigenetics
a stably heritable phenotype resulting from changes in a chromosome without alterations in the DNA sequence
Gene expression
the process whereby a gene initiates the process of protein formation and therefore ‘activates’ the cell according to the protein that the genetic blueprint
Phenotype
the observable characteristics of an organism, the product of its genes and the environment.
Gene repression
the process whereby a gene’s blueprint for protein formation is silenced. This most frequently occurs through methylation.
Dizygotic twins
clinical term for fraternal twins; this occurs when two fertilized eggs are implanted in the uterus wall at the same time. When two eggs are independently fertilized by two different sperm cells, fraternal twins result. The genetic similarity is the same as any other siblings.
Concordance rate
the probability that the same trait will be present in both members of a pair of twins.
Epigenetics (2)
A branch of genetics that focuses son “gene expression” - that is, how environmental factors may “activate” genes.
Genetic vulnerability
An underlying inherited susceptibility - that is, the theory that you may have genes that may make you more likely to have certain traits if those genes are exposed to the appropriate environmental stressors
Genome-wide association studies (GWAS
an examination of a genome-wide set of genetic variants in a large sample individuals to see if any variant is associated with a trait.
Human Genome Project
the international, collaborative research program whose goal was the complete mapping and understanding of all the genes of human beings. All our genes together are known as our “genome.”
Monozygotic twins
The clinical term for identical twins; they share 100% of their DNA.
Linkage analysis
Matching genetic variations (polymorphisms) with the frequency of a behaviour
Heritability
the estimation of the extent to which a character’s (or trait’s) variance within a population is due to genetics.
Trait
any physical or behavioural expression of a gene
Histone acetylation
the process whereby a gene is turned on or expressed
Transcription
The process of copying a gene in order for a cell to follow its biological blueprint to create a specific protein
Genes
sections of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). that instruct cells what to become and how to behave through the creation of proteins.
Chromosome
a chromosome is made up of strands of DNA coiled tightly around proteins called histones.
four nucleotides that make up DNA
adenine, guanine, cytosine and thymine
Genome
The complete set of instructions for protein construction written in your DNA
Mitosis
the process whereby cells divide. It allows for complex organisms to be created by single cells.
