Understanding Genetics: Four Letters Which Create Everything
When we talk about our genome, we are referring to all the genetic material in our bodies, and we hold a copy of our genome in almost every healthy cell in our body; to give you an idea of how much DNA that is…if we were to uncoil all the DNA in one human body, it could stretch from the earth to the sun 600 times! Mind blowing, eh?! DNA or Deoxyribonucleic Acid is the chemical found in the cells of plants and animals that carries genetic information. DNA is made up of four base chemicals: Adenine (A), Thymine (T), Guanine (G) and Cytosine (C). Humans typically have 46 chromosomes which are arranged in pairs with 23 chromosomes inherited from your mother, and 23 chromosomes from your father. Each chromosome in the pair has the same set of genes which correspond to one another. However, there may be one or more forms of these genes, known as alleles. Therefore, whilst we all have blood, we have different blood types. And maybe a bit gross, whilst we typically have earwax, someone’s ear...