CHAPTER 5

GENETICS MENDEL AND THE GENE IDEA

Genetics
Genetics is the branch of biology that deals with the study of heredity and its biological
process. It also involves the study of genes, genomes and the cell cycle.

What is Genetics?
Genetics is termed as the study to understand the functioning of inheritance of traits from
parents to offspring. The groundwork on which heredity stands is known as inheritance. It is
defined as the procedure by which characteristics are handed down from one generation to
the other. Gregor Johann Mendel is known as the “Father of Modern Genetics” for his
discoveries on the basic principles of heredity.
Variation, as the name suggests is the amount of dissimilarity that exists between children
and their parentages. Some of the major reasons that variation are

 Genetic/Chromosomal rearrangement.
 Mutated genes due to the influence of the ecosystem.
 Crossing over.

Genetics Definition
Genetics is defined as the branch of biology that deals with the study of genetic variation, genes, and
heredity.

Genetics and its concepts had been observed for centuries, however, it was scientifically
studied by Gregor Mendel. He was a pioneer in this field and had set the framework for
modern genetics. One of the most important works of Mendel was his Principle of
Inheritance; however, it did not gain recognition until after his death.
Many years later, scientists rediscovered his research and built upon it. Modern genetics has
enabled a deeper understanding of the various forces at play. Traits and characteristics, and
how they passed from parents to offspring, were better understood. Eventually, disorders that
were caused due to genes (faulty genes) were discovered. This led to the development of
viable treatments to address these disorders.
Heredity
Do you remember our grandparents telling us that we are accurately like our father or mother?
Yes, it is the concept of heredity, the most puzzling and mysterious phenomenon of nature. No
matter how unique we call ourselves, we happen to be an accumulation of all the traits we have
inherited. Therefore, bloodline matters and those traits will travel through you, to the end of
time.

Heredity is normally defined as the method by which an offspring acquires characteristics from its parent
cell. It is the process of transferring genetic traits from parents to their offspring and is initiated by the
recombination and segregation of genes during cell division and fertilization.
The process of heredity is the sum of all biological processes resulting in the genesis of a new organism
similar to its kind and displaying certain modifications arising from the genes and their interactions with
their surroundings.
Inheritance
Inheritance works differently during sexual and asexual reproduction.
For example – When one individual bacterium divides, it produces two bacteria which again divides and
produce four individual bacterium. The newly generated individuals would be very much similar to each
other and there would be only minor differences between them due to small errors in DNA copying. This is
the case with asexual reproduction.
In the case of sexual reproduction, greater variation between individuals can be observed. Not all these
changes in a species have similar possibilities of surviving in the environment. Their possibilities mainly
depend on the nature of variations or evolution. Different individuals have different kinds of advantages.
For example – Drosophila which has a strong resistance to heat will persist better even in a heatwave. So
here the selection of variants by environmental factors determines the source of the evolutionary process.
Although, several obvious consequences of the reproductive process still remain with the generation of
individuals, the similar pattern and the rules of heredity determine the process by which traits and
characteristics are reliably inherited.
Define Genetics
Genetics is defined as the branch of biology that deals with the study of genetic variation
genes, and heredity.

Genetics
Genetics is the branch of science that deals with the study of genes, genetic variations and heredity in
organisms. Genes are made up of DNA and are a type of genetic instruction. These instructions are used to
make molecules and control the chemical reaction of life. These are passed from parent to offspring.

Evolution
It is the process of heritable changes in the population of organisms over several generations. The inherited
traits are the expression of genes that are copied and passed on to the offspring during reproduction. The
heritable traits that are helpful for survival and reproduction become more common, while the harmful
traits become rare.

Genes
Genes are functional units of heredity as they are made of DNA. The chromosome is made of
DNA containing many genes. Every gene comprises of the particular set of instructions for a
particular function or protein-coding. Speaking in usual terms, genes are responsible for
heredity.

There are about 30000 genes in each cell of the human body.Many studies have been made
on the same that found the location of nearly 13000 genes on each of the chromosomes.

Characteristics determined by Genes

The human cell contains 23 pairs of chromosomes. The trait is one of the characteristics
determined by one or more genes. Abnormal genes and genes that are formed due to new
mutations also result in certain traits. Genes vary in size depending on the code or the protein
they produce. All cells in the human body contain the same DNA. The difference between the
cells occurs due to the different type of genes that are turned on and therefore produce a
variety of proteins.
Reasons for hereditary
Genes come in pairs in the same way as the chromosomes. Each parent of a human being
carries two copies of their genes and each parent passes one copy of genes to their child. This
is the reason why the child has many characteristics of both the parents like hair colour, same
eyes etc.

Functions of Genes

1. Genes control the functions of DNA and RNA.

2. Proteins are the most important materials in the human body which not only help by being the
building blocks for muscles, connecting tissue and skin but also takes care of the production
of the enzyme.
3. These enzymes play an important role in conducting various chemical processes and reactions
within the body. Therefore, protein synthesis is responsible for all activities carried on by the
body and are mainly controlled by the genes.
4. Genes consist of a particular set of instructions or specific functions. For example, the globin
gene was instructed to produce haemoglobin. Haemoglobin is a protein that helps to carry
oxygen in the blood.

Chromosome
Chromosomes are the genetic material present in all cells. They are present in the nucleus of
a eukaryotic cell. They are a thread-like structure.
Each chromosome of a eukaryotic cell contains DNA and associated proteins, known as
histone proteins. They are responsible for the hereditary traits and passed from parents to
offspring from one generation to another. DNA codes for specific proteins and are
responsible for variations in a species and among various organisms. Scientists have given
this name chromosomes as they are stained using specific dyes, chroma means colour and
soma means body.

Properties of Chromosomes
Humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes. This unique structure of the chromosome keeps
DNA tightly packed with histone proteins to fit inside the cell and it also helps in giving more
stability to it. For instance, the unwound DNA of a single cell will measure 6 feet, with this,
one can understand the need for packaging inside the nucleus of each cell.
Cells must continuously repair, grow and regenerate to replace the old cells. Cell division is
important for the growth and development of an organism. We can see chromosomes clearly
during cell division. Chromosomes ensure that DNA is divided equally between the daughter
cells during cell division. Even a small irregularity in the process may lead to various
diseases and deformities. Uncontrolled cell division results in tumour cells and causes cancer.
Chromosomal aberration like changes in structure or number can cause genetic disorders, e.g.
Down’s syndrome, Turner’s syndrome, etc. Defective chromosomes may even lead to a
certain type of leukaemia in humans.
 CLASSWORK

Who is the Father of Genetics?

Gregor Mendel is the Father of Genetics

Give some examples of hereditary diseases.

Down’s syndrome, sickle cell anaemia, turner’s syndrome, Haemophilia and colour blindness
are hereditary diseases.

Why sexual reproduction produces more variation?

In sexual reproduction, the chromosomes from both the parents are mixed resulting in a
completely new set of chromosomes. They also undergo crossing over during gamete
formation and thus each gamete formed is unique. So the progeny has more variation.

What biomolecules are responsible for heredity?

The Deoxyribonucleic acid abbreviated as DNA is responsible for heredity, as it carries
coded information from parents to offspring through the gametes.

What are exons?

The part of DNA coding for amino acids is called exons. The prokaryotic DNA consists of exons only. The
Eukaryotic DNA consists of both exons and introns.

HOMEWORK
Q1.Define genetics, heredity and variation.
Q2.Define gene and write down the functions of gene.
Q3.Define chromosome and write down the characteristics of chromosomes.