DNA

• Chromosomes are really long molecules of DNA

  • DNA is the chemical that all the genetic material in a cell is made up of
  • it is coded information is the instructions to put an organism together
  • it determines what inherited characteristics you have
  • it is found in the nucleus in really long structures called chromosomes
  • chromosomes come in pairs
  • DNA is a polymer, it's made of 2 strands coiled together in the shape of a double helix
• A gene codes for specific protein

  • a gene is a small section of DNA found on a chromosome
  • each gene codes for a particular sequence of amino acids which are put together to make a specific protein
  • only 20 amino acids are used but make up thousands of proteins
  • genes tell cells in what order to put the amino acids together
  • it then determines what type of cell it is
• Every organism has a genome

  • genome is the entire set of genetic material in an organism
  • scientist have worked out the complete human genome
• Human Genome is important tool for science/medicine:

  • allows scientist to identify genes in a genome that are linked to different diseases
  • knowing which gene links to inherited diseases could help understand or use effective treatment for them
  • scientist can look at the human genome to trace migration to certain people around the world