chapter 5: gentic variarion

A set of flashcards summarizing key vocabulary and concepts related to genetic variation and its implications in behavior genetics.

Genetic Variation

Differences in genetic traits among individuals that can affect reproductive fitness and are essential for natural selection.

Genome

The complete set of genetic material in an organism, encompassing both coding and non-coding sequences.

Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP)

A common type of genetic variation involving a change in a single nucleotide that may affect gene function.

Indel

A type of genetic variation involving insertion or deletion of nucleotide sequences ranging from 1 to 10,000 base pairs.

Mobile Element Insertions (MEIs)

Genetic variations caused by repetitive DNA sequences that move from one genomic location to another.

Aneuploidy

An abnormal number of chromosomes in a cell, which can lead to developmental issues.

Linked Genes

Genes that are located close together on the same chromosome and tend to be inherited together.

Polygenic Risk Score

A score that sums the effects of multiple genetic variants to estimate the genetic predisposition for a trait or disease.

Genome-Wide Association Study (GWAS)

A study that looks for associations between specific genetic variants and traits in large populations.

CRISPR-Cas9

A revolutionary gene-editing technology that allows precise modifications to DNA by introducing double-strand breaks.

Nonsense Mutation

A mutation that introduces a premature stop codon in the protein-coding sequence.

Convergent Evidence

Data obtained from multiple sources or methods that corroborate genetic findings related to behavior.

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)

A technique used to amplify specific DNA sequences for analysis.

Missense Mutation

A mutation that results in a different amino acid being incorporated into a protein, potentially altering its function.

Conditionally Knockout Mice

Mice engineered to have a gene disabled only in specific tissues or under certain conditions, providing greater control in experiments.

Linkage Analysis

A genetic method used to find genetic markers that co-inherit with traits or diseases in families.

Mitochondrial Genome

The genetic material found in mitochondria, distinct from the nuclear genome and inherited maternally.

Behavior genetics uses homogeneous populations because otherwise there may be a false positive significance between a genotype and a behavior. This problem is known as population.

population stratification

A cheaper faster and more accurate way to add a DNA has recently been invented called

CRISPR