Genetics Volume 1 & Volume 2

Genetics is the study of genes. Genetics is about how and why physical characteristics, such as eye colour or height, passed on from one generation to another about how diseases and conditions can run in families the study of patterns in genetic information, such as the patterns used in DNA fingerprinting and profiling, thus genetics is about how variation occurs in and between animals, plants or humans. Genetics affects us all in many ways. Genetics can help us understand why people look the way they do and why some people are more prone to certain diseases than others. Genetics can help health-care professionals to identify certain conditions in babies before they are born using techniques such as prenatal testing. Genetic technologies are also being used to help develop targeted medicines for certain diseases. In addition to its use in health care, genetics has a range of other applications. To understand genetics, it is important to know something about cells, chromosomes and DNA. All living things are made up of cells. The cell is the basic building block of life. A human body contains millions and millions of cells. An average adult has an estimated ten to one hundred thousand million cells. Each cell is so small that you can only see it using a microscope. Genetics allows us to understand how thalassaemia is passed on in families. Blood tests and genetic investigations can help us determine whether an individual has the disease or is a carrier. Our improved understanding of a causes of a condition may even raise the possibility of future gene-based therapies that may offer a cure.