Genetics Terminology Practice

A complete set of vocabulary flashcards covering the genetics and genomics terms listed in the lecture notes.

Genetics

The scientific study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in living organisms.

Genomics

The branch of molecular biology concerned with the structure, function, evolution, and mapping of genomes.

Genotype

The genetic makeup of an individual organism, representing its complete set of genes.

Phenotype

The set of observable characteristics or traits of an individual resulting from the interaction of its genotype with the environment.

Genes

The basic physical and functional units of heredity, consisting of specific sequences of DNA.

Chromosomes

Thread-like structures located within the cell nucleus that carry genetic information in the form of genes.

DNA

Deoxyribonucleic acid; the hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms.

RNA

Ribonucleic acid; a nucleic acid present in all living cells that acts as a messenger carrying instructions from DNA for protein synthesis.

Protein synthesis

The biological process by which individual cells build specific proteins based on genetic instructions.

Inheritance

The process through which genetic information is passed from parents to their offspring.

Dominant

An allele that expresses its phenotypic effect even when heterozygous with a different allele.

Recessive

An allele that produces its characteristic phenotype only when its paired allele is identical.

Epigenetics

The study of heritable changes in gene expression that do not involve changes to the underlying DNA sequence.

Substitution

A type of mutation where one nucleotide is replaced by a different nucleotide in the DNA sequence.

Deletion

A type of mutation in which a part of the DNA sequence or a segment of a chromosome is lost or removed.