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Human Disease Modifier Gene
A human disease modifier gene is a modifier gene that alters expression of a human gene at another locus that in turn causes a genetic disease. Whereas medical genetics has tended to distinguish between monogenic traits, governed by simple, Mendelian inheritance, and quantitative traits, with cumulative, multifactorial causes, increasing evidence suggests that human diseases exist on a continuous spectrum between the two. In the context of human disease, the terms 'modifier gene' and 'oligogene' have similar meanings, and characterization of a particular locus depends on characterization of the phenotype (effects) that it causes or modifies. The term 'modifier gene' may be taken to mean a gene in which genetic variation modifies the effects of mutation at a major locus, but has no effect on the normal condition, a condition not necessarily met for oligogenic interactions. The study of diseases that arise from interactions amongst genes is important for understanding the genetic b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Modifier Gene
Epistasis is a phenomenon in genetics in which the effect of a gene mutation is dependent on the presence or absence of mutations in one or more other genes, respectively termed modifier genes. In other words, the effect of the mutation is dependent on the genetic background in which it appears. Epistatic mutations therefore have different effects on their own than when they occur together. Originally, the term ''epistasis'' specifically meant that the effect of a gene variant is masked by that of different gene. The concept of ''epistasis'' originated in genetics in 1907 but is now used in biochemistry, computational biology and evolutionary biology. The phenomenon arises due to interactions, either between genes (such as mutations also being needed in regulators of gene expression) or within them (multiple mutations being needed before the gene loses function), leading to non-linear effects. Epistasis has a great influence on the shape of evolutionary landscapes, which leads ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Weak Selection
Weak selection in evolutionary biology is when individuals with different phenotypes possess similar fitness, i.e. one phenotype is weakly preferred over the other. Weak selection, therefore, is an evolutionary theory to explain the maintenance of multiple phenotypes in a stable population. Weak selection can only be used to explain the maintenance of mutations in a Moran process. A Moran process is one in which birth and death are paired events, and therefore population size remains constant. If the population size was increasing, both wild type and mutant phenotypes can proliferate and the weak selection for one phenotype results in no particular selection for either. Hence weak selection requires a finite population to operate. Otherwise there would be no expectation of fixation and hence no selection. The result of weak selection is two phenotypes with similar fixation probabilities. Weak selection works to elongate fixation time for two competing alleles. Consequently, wea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Genetic Association
Genetic association is when one or more genotypes within a population co-occur with a phenotype, phenotypic trait association (statistics), more often than would be expected by chance occurrence. Studies of genetic association aim to test whether single-locus alleles or genotype frequencies or more generally, multilocus haplotype frequencies differ between two groups of individuals (usually treatment and control groups, diseased subjects and healthy controls). Genetic association studies are based on the principle that genotypes can be compared "directly", i.e. with the sequences of the actual genomes or exomes via whole genome sequencing or exome sequencing, whole exome sequencing. Before 2010, DNA sequencing methods were used. Description Genetic association can be between phenotypes, such as visible characteristics such as flower color or height, between a phenotype and a genetic polymorphism, such as a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), or between two genetic polymorphism ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Genetic Linkage
Genetic linkage is the tendency of Nucleic acid sequence, DNA sequences that are close together on a chromosome to be inherited together during the meiosis phase of sexual reproduction. Two Genetic marker, genetic markers that are physically near to each other are unlikely to be separated onto different Chromatid, chromatids during chromosomal crossover, and are therefore said to be more ''linked'' than markers that are far apart. In other words, the nearer two Gene, genes are on a chromosome, the lower the chance of Genetic recombination, recombination between them, and the more likely they are to be inherited together. Markers on different chromosomes are perfectly ''unlinked'', although the penetrance of potentially deleterious alleles may be influenced by the presence of other alleles, and these other alleles may be located on other chromosomes than that on which a particular potentially deleterious allele is located. Genetic linkage is the most prominent exception to Gregor M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bardet–Biedl Syndrome
Bardet–Biedl syndrome (BBS) is a ciliopathic human genetic disorder that produces many effects and affects many body systems. It is characterized by rod/cone dystrophy, polydactyly, central obesity, hypogonadism, and kidney dysfunction in some cases. Historically, slower mental processing has also been considered a principal symptom but is now not regarded as such. Signs and symptoms Bardet–Biedl syndrome is a pleiotropic disorder with variable expressivity and a wide range of clinical variability observed both within and between families. The most common clinical features are rod–cone dystrophy, with childhood-onset night-blindness followed by increasing visual loss; postaxial polydactyly; truncal obesity that manifests during infancy and remains problematic throughout adulthood; varying degrees of learning disabilities; male hypogenitalism and complex female genitourinary malformations; and renal dysfunction, a major cause of morbidity and mortality. There ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Human Genome
The human genome is a complete set of nucleic acid sequences for humans, encoded as the DNA within each of the 23 distinct chromosomes in the cell nucleus. A small DNA molecule is found within individual Mitochondrial DNA, mitochondria. These are usually treated separately as the nuclear genome and the Human mitochondrial genetics, mitochondrial genome. Human genomes include both protein-coding DNA sequences and various types of non-coding DNA, DNA that does not encode proteins. The latter is a diverse category that includes DNA coding for non-translated RNA, such as that for ribosomal RNA, transfer RNA, ribozymes, small nuclear RNAs, and several types of RNA#Regulatory RNA, regulatory RNAs. It also includes Promoter (biology), promoters and their associated Cis-regulatory element, gene-regulatory elements, DNA playing structural and replicatory roles, such as Scaffold/matrix attachment region, scaffolding regions, telomeres, centromeres, and Origin of replication, origins of repl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Huntington's Disease
Huntington's disease (HD), also known as Huntington's chorea, is an incurable neurodegenerative disease that is mostly Genetic disorder#Autosomal dominant, inherited. It typically presents as a triad of progressive psychiatric, cognitive, and motor symptoms. The earliest symptoms are often subtle problems with mood or mental/psychiatric abilities, which precede the motor symptoms for many people. The definitive physical symptoms, including a general Ataxia, lack of coordination and an unsteady human gait, gait, eventually follow. Over time, the basal ganglia region of the brain gradually Basal ganglia disease#Huntington's disease, becomes damaged. The disease is primarily characterized by a distinctive hyperkinesia, hyperkinetic movement disorder known as ''chorea.'' Chorea classically presents as uncoordinated, involuntary, "dance-like" body movements that become more apparent as the disease advances. Physical abilities gradually worsen until Motor coordination, coordinated mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Twin Study
Twin studies are studies conducted on identical or fraternal twins. They aim to reveal the importance of environmental and genetic influences for traits, phenotypes, and disorders. Twin research is considered a key tool in behavioral genetics and in related fields, from biology to psychology. Twin studies are part of the broader methodology used in behavior genetics, which uses all data that are genetically informative – siblings studies, adoption studies, pedigree, etc. These studies have been used to track traits ranging from personal behavior to the presentation of severe mental illnesses such as schizophrenia. Twins are a valuable source for observation because they allow the study of environmental influence and varying genetic makeup: "identical" or monozygotic (MZ) twins share essentially 100% of their genes, which means that most differences between the twins (such as height, susceptibility to boredom, intelligence, depression, etc.) are due to experiences that o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Retinitis Pigmentosa
Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a member of a group of genetic disorders called inherited retinal dystrophy (IRD) that cause loss of vision. Symptoms include trouble seeing at night and decreasing peripheral vision (side and upper or lower visual field). As peripheral vision worsens, people may experience " tunnel vision". Complete blindness is uncommon. Onset of symptoms is generally gradual and often begins in childhood. Retinitis pigmentosa is generally inherited from one or both parents. It is caused by genetic variants in nearly 100 genes. The underlying mechanism involves the progressive loss of rod photoreceptor cells that line the retina of the eyeball. The rod cells secrete a neuroprotective substance (rod-derived cone viability factor, RdCVF) that protects the cone cells from apoptosis. When these rod cells die, this substance is no longer provided. This is generally followed by the loss of cone photoreceptor cells. Diagnosis is through eye examination of the retina ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Complex Traits
Complex traits are phenotypes that are controlled by two or more genes and do not follow Mendel's Law of Dominance. They may have a range of expression which is typically continuous. Both environmental and genetic factors often impact the variation in expression. Human height is a continuous trait meaning that there is a wide range of heights. There are an estimated 50 genes that affect the height of a human. Environmental factors, like nutrition, also play a role in a human's height. Other examples of complex traits include: crop yield, plant color, and many diseases including diabetes and Parkinson's disease. One major goal of genetic research today is to better understand the molecular mechanisms through which genetic variants act to influence complex traits. Complex traits are also known as polygenic traits and multigenic traits. The existence of complex traits, which are far more common than Mendelian traits, represented a significant challenge to the acceptance of Mend ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cystic Fibrosis
Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disorder inherited in an autosomal recessive manner that impairs the normal clearance of Sputum, mucus from the lungs, which facilitates the colonization and infection of the lungs by bacteria, notably ''Staphylococcus aureus''. CF is a rare genetic disorder that affects mostly the lungs, but also the pancreas, liver, kidneys, and intestine. The hallmark feature of CF is the accumulation of thick mucus in different organs. Long-term issues include Shortness of breath, difficulty breathing and coughing up mucus as a result of frequent pneumonia, lung infections. Other signs and symptoms may include Sinusitis, sinus infections, failure to thrive, poor growth, Steatorrhea, fatty stool, Nail clubbing, clubbing of the fingers and toes, and infertility in most males. Different people may have different degrees of symptoms. Cystic fibrosis is inherited in an autosomal recessive manner. It is caused by the presence of mutations in both copies (alleles) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Phenylalanine Hydroxylase
Phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) () is an enzyme that catalyzes the hydroxylation of the aromatic side-chain of phenylalanine to generate tyrosine. PAH is one of three members of the biopterin-dependent aromatic amino acid hydroxylases, a class of monooxygenase that uses tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4, a pteridine cofactor) and a non-heme iron for catalysis. During the reaction, molecular oxygen is heterolytically cleaved with sequential incorporation of one oxygen atom into BH4 and phenylalanine substrate. In humans, mutations in its encoding gene, '' PAH'', can lead to the metabolic disorder phenylketonuria. Enzyme mechanism The reaction is thought to proceed through the following steps: # formation of a Fe(II)-O-O-BH4 bridge. # heterolytic cleavage of the O-O bond to yield the ferryl oxo hydroxylating intermediate Fe(IV)=O # attack on Fe(IV)=O to hydroxylate phenylalanine substrate to tyrosine. Formation and cleavage of the iron-peroxypterin bridge. Although evidence strong ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
