I haven't posted in a while so I thought I'd post something new! Some of you might find this boring because you probably know about this topic already. SO, turn away if you must!
DNA or deoxyribonucleic acid is in every living thing. The
DNA in our bodies has been passed down over a billion years. DNA is considered
the “secret of life”. It contains genetic instructions that make us who we are.
It is in almost every cell in your body. A gene is a specific part of a cell’s
DNA. We have twice as many genes as fruit flies but we only have 30,000 genes,
which is less than what was originally thought. You pass your genes on to your
children.
There are some diseases that are caused by malfunctions or
mutations in your genes. Even one base pair* can mess up everything. Tay-sachs
disease is one of these. It basically kills your brain. It is very uncommon
because even if one parent is a carrier the disease isn’t passed on. In one
case, there were two brothers who were identical twins. After having children
with their spouses, they found out that one family’s son had tay-sachs and the
other family’s daughter had it too. As it turned out, all four of them were
carriers.
And before I lose you I'll stop!
* Base pairs make up DNA. If you have ever seen a picture of DNA, you will have seen the ladder-like bars connecting the sides together. Those are base pairs. The letters that make base pairs are Adenine, Guanine, Cytosine, and Thymine.
